Use of enzyme immunoassay in a serological survey of leptospirosis in sheep

A total of 731 serums, all from Merino rams from 20 farms, were tested for antibodies against Leptospira interrogans serovars hardjo, pomona and tarassovi using the microscopic agglutination test (MAT). The enzyme immunoassay (EIA) technique was used to test all serums for IgM and IgG antibodies to serovar hardjo. In the MAT, reactions to serovar hardjo were most common with 236 rams (32.3%) reacting at 1/100 or greater. Only 1.9% of serums reacted against serovar tarassovi and 1.1% against serovar pomona. The percentage of sheep with positive MAT reactions to serovar hardjo ranged from 0 0 to 94.9 between farms. When using EIA, 46 (6.2%) of the serums were positive for IgM antibody and 246 (33.6%) were positive for IgG antibody. Correlation of the EIA for detection of IgG antibody with the MAT was good. The EIA detection of IgG antibody was considered to be a good alternative test to the MAT for epidemiological studies in sheep.