Brucella melitensis infection in sheep: present and future.

Sheep brucellosis, a zoonosis mainly due to B. melitensis (biovar 1, 2 or 3), remains widespread world-wide. Pathologically and epidemiologically, the disease is very similar to B. abortus infection in cattle. The live B. melitensis Rev 1 strain is currently considered as the best vaccine available for the control of sheep brucellosis, especially when used at the standard dose by the conjunctival route. Used exhaustively in whole-flock vaccination programmes, it induces a great decrease in the prevalence in both sheep and human populations. The expensive test-and-slaughter strategy should be restricted to the lowest infected areas. Whenever possible, Brucella spp. should be isolated by culture using adequate selective media from uterine discharges, aborted fetuses, udder secretions or selected tissues, such as lymph nodes, testes or epididymides. Species and biovar identification is routinely based on cultural criteria, on lysis by phages and on simple biochemical and serological tests. The recently developed polymerase chain reaction methods provide additional means of detection and identification. Despite the high degree of DNA homology within the genus Brucella, several methods, including PCR-RFLP and Southern blot, have been developed which allow, to a certain extent, the differentiation between Brucella species and some of their biovars. While several ELISA tests have been developed recently, the rose bengal plate agglutination and complement fixation tests, based on the detection of anti-S-LPS antibody, are still recommended for screening flocks and individuals. However, these tests sometimes lack specificity or sensitivity. For pooled samples, there are no useful tests such as the milk ring test in cattle. The brucellin allergic skin test can be used as a screening or complementary test in unvaccinated flocks, provided that a purified, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-free and standardized antigen preparation is used.