| Wildlife Tuberculosis |
| Written by BTB Website Administrator | |
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After Bovine Tuberculosis (BTB) was first detected in the Kruger National Park in August 1990, follow-up sampling of buffalo showed that the disease was already well established in the southern region of the Park. This gave rise to the formation of a "TB Study group" initially made up of a small group of concerned veterinarians employed by Animal Health regulatory services, South African National Parks and academic institutions in 1991. The functions of this group were to characterise the organism and its ability to survive outside of a host, monitor the disease dynamics, identify and validate ante mortem tests for BTB, investigate the pathogenesis of the disease and describe the macro and histopathology. As the disease spread northwards through the Kruger National Park in buffalo, infection was also detected in a range of new species, the TB study group was expanded to include biologists and ecologists.
To provide guidance, a platform for networking and facilitate coordinated programme development and funding in the southern African wildlife bovine tuberculosis (BTB) arena, in a way that serves the needs of stakeholders, especially the conservation and disease regulation agencies as well as the wildlife industry.
With the three main areas of discussion being:
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The mission statement of the TB Study Group is:
