Evaluation of Culture and Real Time PCR Methods for the Diagnosis of Brucellosis.

This study aimed to determine the presence of Brucella spp. in 73 abortion materials collected from various provinces of Turkey. Culture isolation and Real-time PCR methods were used for this purpose, and the laboratory diagnosis was compared. The clinical samples were taken from aborted cattle. A total of 79 samples were used for this study, consisting of 28 fetal stomach contents and 51 vaginal swabs. The presence of Brucella spp. was investigated using both culture isolation and real-time PCR methods. Of the collected samples, eight (10.12%) were found to be positive for Brucella spp. through culture isolation. These same samples were then subjected to Real Time PCR testing for comparison. Thirteen point nine two percent (11/79) of the samples tested positive for Brucella spp. using real-time PCR. This suggests that inhibitors, bacterial load in clinical samples, and possible contamination may reduce the chance of isolating the bacteria in culture or lead to false negative results. Therefore, it can be concluded that real-time PCR is a fast and reliable alternative to culture for diagnosing brucellosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]