InPouch™ TF-Bovine

Trichomonads are motile protozoa that can be found in many wild and domestic animals world-wide. One of the clinical relevant trichomonads is Tritrichomonas foetus, causing bovine tritrichomoniasis, a venereal (sexual transmitted) and notifiable disease in cattle.

Tritrichomonas foetus is an elongated pear-shaped protozoon colonising the mucosa of the male and female genital tract of cattle. T. foetus can also be found in goats, sheep and pigs, but causes no disease. In many countries, the detection of T. foetus is notifiable, because tritrichomoniasis is classified as eradicable epizootic disease.

T. foetus is transmitted in most cases during natural mating. The transmission with contaminated sperm or by contaminated instruments is possible but rather improbable.

In female cattle vaginitis, endo- and pyometritis and, as a result, temporary sterility or intrauterine fetal death are clinically possible. A permanent immunity does not develop, so reinfections are common. In the bull, the infection normally passes off unapparent. Mild inflammations of the male urogenital tract can appear 2 weeks post infection but are mostly overlooked. The bulls, especially older ones, play an important role for the distribution of the parasites as asymptomatic carriers.

Thanks to the increasing propagation of  artificial insemination, the prevalences of T. foetus are very low. Due to the high economic damage during outbreak of a T. foetus infection, new members (heifers, cows) as well as breeding bulls, especially, still have to be tested for T. foetus.

The detection of T. foetus can be done via direct microscopical proof, cultivation with InPouch™ TF-Bovine or by PCR. The on-site method of choice is the incubation of material of a swab in the InPouch™ TF-Bovine. For that, preputial lavation material or vaginal / cervical swabs can be used.

Aspects for the direct detection in culture by InPouch™ TF-Bovine are the exclusive growth, preservation of the typical morphology and the specific movement pattern of T. foetus.

The application of InPouch™ TF-Bovine enables the veterinarian to detect T. foetus on-site fast, simple and reliably. Confirmation of the microscopic diagnostics can be done in the laboratory directly from the sent-in InPouch™ TF-Bovine culture pouch via PCR.

InPouch™ TF-Bovine is applicable for cultivation of T. foetus, T. suis, Trichomonas gallinae and Pentatrichomonas hominis.

• Test Principle :  Culture
• Packaging :  20
• Pathogenic :  Tritrichomonas foetus