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Table 1 Main findings and seroprevalence and M. tuberculosis infection prevalence of included studies using serology and culture methods, respectively

From: Understanding Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in elephants through a One Health approach: a systematic review

S.N

Authors

Research Design

Type of diagnosis

Diagnostic method

Country

Elephant species

Source

Prevalence (%)

Main findings

1

Mikota et al. (2000) [15]

Cross sectional study

Culture

Culture

USA

Asian Elephant

Captive and Free-ranging

3.30%

Further research is essential to validate other diagnostic tests and treatment protocols.

2

Abraham (2009) [32]

Cross-sectional study

Serology

Elephant TB Stat-Pak

India

Asian Elephants

Captive

15.20%

The rapid serum test showed that not less than 15.2% of the population has seropositivity to M.bovis

3

Murphree et al. (2011) [20]

Cohort study and onsite assessment

Culture

Culture of environmental samples and trunk wash.

USA

Asian and African elephant

Refuge

All were Negative except for specimens taken in December 2008 from 1 elephant living in the quarantine area

The risk for conversion was increased for elephant caregivers and administrative employees working in the barn housing

4

Verma et al. (2012) [33]

Cross-sectional study design

Culture & Serology

Culture, ELISA, Immunoblot analysis

India

Asian elephant

Captive

15.90%

High prevalence of asymptomatic M. tuberculosis infection in Asian elephants in a captive Indian setting.

5

Feldman et al. (2013) [37]

Prevalence study

Culture

Culture of trunk wash sample (n1 = 684 Asian, and n2 = 459 African)

USA

Asian elephant

Captive

5.10%

The incidence of tuberculosis differed significantly between Asian and African elephants. Accurate and species-specific knowledge of prevalence and incidence will inform our efforts to mitigate occupational risks associated with captive elephants in the USA.

6

Ong et al. (2013) [36]

A cross-sectional study

Serology

Elephant TB Stat-Pak assay/ TB antigen rapid test, trunk wash samples, QuantiFERON-TB Gold ELISA

Malaysia

Asian elephant

Captive

20.40%

There was evidence of active and latent TB in the elephants and the high seroprevalence in the elephants and their handlers suggests frequent, close contact, two-way transmission between animals and humans within confined workplaces.

7

Yakubu (2015) [34]

Cross sectional study

Molecular

PCR

Malaysia

Asian elephant

Captive

23.33%

Risk of infection to be significantly associated with facility staff, workers older than 30 years of age, mahouts, and foreigners.

8

Mikota et al. (2015) [39]

Prospective study

Serology & Culture

Elephant TB Stat-Pak assay, Culture

Nepal

Asian Elephant

Captive

0%

Culture and serological results were variable and required careful interpretation to develop criteria to assess TB risk.

9

Yakubu et al. (2016) [40]

Cohort and Cross-sectional study

Serology

STAT-PAK and DPP VetTB Assays, QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-tube test (QFT) were used.

Malaysia

Asian elephant

Captive

23.30%

Univariate analysis showed that elephants with assigned mahouts have significantly higher risk of TB OR = 3.8 The risk of seroconversion was significantly higher among elephants with assigned mahouts [OR = 4.9]

10

Magnuson et al. (2017) [41]

Clinical research

Culture and Molecular

Culture, PCR

USA

Asian elephant

Captive

8.40%

Molecular test results can be used to support current diagnostic procedures applied by veterinarians for treatment decisions to prevent the spread of tuberculosis in elephants.

11

Rosen et al. (2018) [10]

Cross sectional study

Serology

Elephant TB Stat-Pak and DPP VetTB Assay

Zimbabwe

African elephant

Captive

17.10%

Strong correlations were noted between contact with wild elephants and facilities (p = 0.86)

12

Jeewan et al. (2021) [35]

Cross sectional study

Serology

Elephant TB Stat-Pak

Nepal

Asian elephant

Captive

21.56%

The occurrence of TB seropositive cases in other more remote national parks suggest TB may be wide spread among the captive elephant population of Nepal

  1. PCR Polymerase chain reaction, ELISA Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, TB Tuberculosis