Development of multiplex real-time PCR assay for the detection of Brucella spp., Leptospira spp. and Campylobacter foetus

Abortion among dairy cattle is one of the major causes of economic losses in the livestock industry. This study describes a 1-step multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect Brucella spp., Leptospira spp. and Campylobacter foetus, these are significant bacteria commonly implicated in bovine abortion. beta-actin was added to the same PCR reaction as an internal control to detect any extraction failure or PCR inhibition. The detection limit of multiplex real-time PCR using purified DNA from cultured organisms was set to 5 fg for Leptospira spp. and C. foetus and to 50 fg for Brucella spp. The multiplex real-time PCR did not produce any non-specific amplification when tested with different strains of the 3 pathogens. This multiplex real-time PCR provides a valuable tool for diagnosis, simultaneous and rapid detection for the 3 pathogens causing abortion in bovine.