Volume 24, Number 12—December 2018
Research Letter
Conservation of White Rhinoceroses Threatened by Bovine Tuberculosis, South Africa, 2016–2017
Table
Findings from 6 Mycobacterium bovis–infected white rhinoceroses, Kruger National Park, South Africa, 2016–2017*
Case no. | Age category | Sex | Date | Body condition | Features of lesions consistent with bovine TB† |
M. bovis culture– positive tissue pools† | AFB on cytology of lesions† | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Macroscopic, multifocal mineralized granulomas | Multifocal granulomas on histology | AFB on histology | |||||||
1 | Subadult | M | Sep 2016 | Thin | + Lung and retropharyngeal LN | + Lung and retropharyngeal LN | – | Head, thoracic, and peripheral LNs and lung | + LNs |
2 | Adult | F | Sep 2016 | Thin | – Lung and all LNs | ND‡ | ND‡ | Thoracic LN and lung | ND‡ |
3 | Adult | M | Oct 2016 | Thin | + Lung; – all LNs | + Lung; – LNs | – | Thoracic and abdominal LNs and lung | + Lung |
4 | Subadult | F | Nov 2016 | Thin | – Lung; + submandibular, retropharyngeal, tracheobronchial, and mesenteric LNs | – Lung; + submandibular, retropharyngeal, tracheobronchial, and mesenteric LNs | Rare | Head and thoracic LNs | + LNs |
5 | Subadult | F | Sep 2017 | Normal | + Lung and prescapular and axillary LNs | ND | ND | Thoracic LN | + Lung |
6 | Adult | M | Oct 2017 | Thin | + Lung and prescapular, retropharyngeal, and tracheobronchial LNs | ND | ND | Tracheobronchial, prescapular, and retropharyngeal LNs and lung | + Lung and LNs |
*AFB, acid-fast bacilli; LN, lymph node; ND, not done; TB, tuberculosis; + feature present; – feature absent.
†LNs were pooled into 4 sets: head (retropharyngeal, submandibular, and cervical); thoracic (tracheobronchial and mediastinal); abdominal (mesenteric and hepatic); and peripheral (axillary, prescapular, and inguinal) LNs.
‡No clinically significant lesions other than inflammation (poaching case).
1These first authors contributed equally to this article.
2Current affiliation: Great Plains Conservation, Maun, Botswana.
3Current affiliation: University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.