A comparison of dot-blot assay with the synergistic haemolytic inhibition test in goats naturally infected with Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis

Blood samples were collected from 145 goats >2years of age: 60 from the University farms and 74 and 12 goats from 2 farms which had a clinical history of caseous lymphadenitis. The synergistic haemolytic inhibition (SHI) test identified 36 goats that gave a positive reaction to caseous lymphadenitis infection whereas with the dot-blot assay only 27 goats gave positive reactions. Of the 145 sera, those from 27 goats gave positive reactions in both the dot-blot assay and the SHI test, most of these were from the farms with a history of the disease. Nine samples were positive by the SHI test, but negative in the dot-blot assay, while only one was positive by dot-blot assay but not by the SHI test. The difference between the tests was significant.