1989 Volume 42 Issue 10 Pages 703-708
A Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) stain for acid-fast bacteria and an immunoenzyme technique using anti-BCG serum were applied to paraffin sections of acid-fast bacterial infections in pigs, cattle and turkey. As for swine mycobacteriosis, a few bacilli were found in some lesions in 3 of 5 cases by ZN stain, while a small amount of BCG-positive material was seen in all cases by immunoenzyme method. In lesions of bovine and turkey tuberculosis, a moderate number of bacilli were detected by ZN stain and reactive products of immunostaining were more frequently observed. In bovine paratuberculosis, there were many ZN-positive bacilli and much more reactive products of immuno-staining. Among non-acid-fast bacteria, Rhodococcus equi was stained with anti-BCG serum, but was gram-positive. The immunoenzvme method using anti-BCG serum may be more useful in detecting acid-fast bacteria than ZN stain.
