Molecular diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis on postmortem carcasses during routine meat inspection in Benin: GeneXpert(®) testing to improve diagnostic scheme

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Bovine tuberculosis (TB) is a zoonotic disease of major public health importance, particularly in African countries, where control measures are limited or largely not applied. This study aimed to determine the accuracy of the currently used bovine TB diagnostic method at slaughterhouses in Benin; this is to contribute to the betterment and improvement in the epidemiological surveillance of the disease in the country. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 40 tissue samples were collected from meat/viscera (lung, liver, heart, kidney, and the gastro-intestinal tract tissues) at Cotonou slaughterhouses from ruminants suspected to be infected with bovine TB during routine meat inspection. The collected samples were analyzed using GeneXpert testing technique as a reference method. RESULTS: Twenty-six samples tested positive out of the 40 suspected tissue samples collected by GeneXpert diagnostic technique; this shows the limitation of the routine meat inspection in detecting bovine TB as currently performed in Benin. CONCLUSION: The outcome of the use of the molecular technique, therefore, supports the importance of the use of a molecular tool alongside the routine meat inspection for a better understanding of the epidemiology of bovine TB in Benin. However, more robust technical and policy efforts are needed for a sustainable implementation of such a strategy.