Journal
AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL
Volume 89, Issue 7, Pages 260-264Publisher
WILEY-BLACKWELL
DOI: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.2011.00794.x
Keywords
Australia; beef cattle; Coxiella burnetii; Q fever; Queensland; serology
Categories
Funding
- Meat and Livestock Australia
- Defence, Science and Technology Organisation
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Background Queensland has the highest incidence of Q fever in Australia. The aim of this study was to undertake a cross-sectional seroprevalence survey of Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever, in beef cattle in Queensland. Methods Serum samples were tested by ELISA for both phase II and phase I antigens of the organism using an Australian isolate. Blood samples were collected at an abattoir that processes beef cattle originating from northern and north-western Queensland, in addition to blood samples taken from beef cattle across Queensland as part of a second survey. Results Seropositivity was 16.8% (95% confidence interval 16.7-16.8%). Conclusion Evidence of C. burnetii infection in beef cattle has public health implications for occupational exposure of primary producers and veterinarians and for the proximity of beef cattle properties to residential areas in regional Queensland. This study is the first known investigation of C. burnetii seroprevalence in beef cattle in Queensland and the first known use of an Australian C. burnetii isolate for screening using both phase II and phase I antigens.
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