Summary
The
authors describe a study of the tuberculosis (TB) incidence in cattle
exposed to low doses of radiation resulting from the Chernobyl (pronounced ‘Chornobyl’
in Ukrainian) nuclear plant catastrophe in 1986. The purpose of
the study was to determine if ionising radiation influences the
number of outbreaks of bovine TB and their severity on farms in
the Kyiv, Cherkasy and Chernigiv regions of Ukraine. These farms
are all located within a 200 km radius of Chernobyl and have had
low-dose radiation pollution. Pathological and blood samples were
taken from cattle in those regions that had positive TB skin tests.
Mycobacterium spp. were isolated, differentiated by PCR,
analysed and tested in guinea-pigs and rabbits. Species differentiation
showed a significant percentage of atypical mycobacteria, which
resulted in the allergic reactions to tuberculin antigen in the
skin test. Mixed infection of M. bovis and M. avium
subsp. hominissuis was found in three cases. The results
concluded that low-dose radiation plays a major role in the occurrence
of bovine TB in regions affected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
Keywords
Bovine
tuberculosis, Cattle, Chernobyl, Chornobyl, Low dose, Mycobacteria,
Mycobacterium bovis, Radiation, Tuberculosis, Ukraine. |