I'm currently working on a project examining the interactions between badgers and cattle and how this might impact on transmission of tuberculosis. In light of the controversy surrounding the culling programme in the UK (and the less publicised version in Ireland), what do people think about the efficacy or ethics of such 'wildlife management' initiatives (on this species or others). The debate is quite polarised, with politicians/farmers on one side and conservationists on the other. I am interested in seeking the viewpoints of scientists from diverse but relevant fields.
I agree Thomas, but it appears that the UK policy is a knee-jerk reaction to pressure from farming groups that want a more pro-active approach to eradicating the disease (vaccine trials take time, not only to gain approval but also to generate effective results). It's important to remember that reactor cattle can have a devastating effect on a farmer's livelihood and in areas of persistent flare-ups of the disease, a beef farmer can be put out of action for a decade due to restrictions on cattle movements. However, the current TB test in cattle is less than adequate, having a relatively high false positive/negative results, so it too could explain a large part in the persistence of TB. My background is in animal behaviour, so I am interested in hearing views from other angles, such as virology, agriculture, politics, etc.
From viewpoint of zoonoses bovine tubercullosis is medically and economically important zoonotic disease and eradication program usually carried out by administering tuberculin test and eliminating the reactors.
Thanks for your answer Nashwa. What is your understanding of the reliability of the tuberculin test? My imipression is that there are quite a few false positive and false negative results among cattle which, if factored into modelling studies, could account for the persistence of TB in cattle populations. My feeling is that while badgers may play a very small role in disease transmission, most of the problem lies with the tuberculin test.
Tuberculin test have been used most commonly and are standardized and can differentiate between infected and non-infected animal.Reactivity is measured 48 hours after intradermal injection of purified protein derivatives a reaction of 10mm or more in duration considered positive.
En la Argentina hay una tesis de doctorado del Dr. Abdala (INTA), que capturaba comadrejas (animales silvestres) y aislo en algumos casos el mismo patron genómico que el Mbovis del ganado de la misma region. Sin embargo en vista que en la Argentina la tuberculosis es enzootica en varias regiones, no se ha tomado ningún tipo de accion con los silvestres. En breve saldra en la revista Argentina de Microbiología un paper del Dr. Abdala con los resultados de su tesis
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