The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) recently approved the registration of the BOVIGAM TB Kit from Thermo Fisher Scientific in the "OIE Manual of Diagnostic Tests & Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals 2015."

It is the only bovine tuberculosis (bTB), interferon-gamma in vitro assay that is OIE-registered. The kit is validated for use in cattle, goat, buffalo (Syncerus caffer) and sheep, according to the announcement.

"The OIE registration of BOVIGAM is a major step toward a world free of bTB," Martin Guillet, global head and general manager of animal health at Thermo Fisher Scientific, said. "It will help make bTB programs worldwide more efficient and better accepted, in line with the Thermo Fisher Scientific’s mission of enabling our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer."

According to Guillet, the eradication of bTB is a complex undertaking, and the flexible application of testing schemes will help avoid unnecessary culling, lengthy farm closures and will help reduce the occurrence of bTB worldwide. Guillet said this ultimately will save time and money and will increase farmer support for TB control programs.

Previously, a skin test was the only option for screening, which could cause farm operations to be out of the marketplace for up to six months. Now, OIE has validated BOVIGAM to be used as the primary, stand-alone test for screening and confirmation in bTB-infected areas. This will enable faster results and can result in shorter interruptions of animal movement (farms can be back in operation in one week).