A new test that can detect bovine TB bacteria in blood and milk within six-hours is being developed in England.

The test is being developed by Suffolk-based firm PBD Biotech and is based on research carried out at the University of Nottingham.

“The existing skin test is based on the animal’s immune response and takes three days to produce a result,” said Dr Cath Rees from PBD Biotech.

Dr Rees said that the skin test misses around 20% of animals that have TB. This is known as sensitivity of a test and refers to the number of false negatives.

Specificity refers to the number of false positives, which are animals that test positive but don’t have the disease. The current skin test for TB has a high specificity, so false positive animals are uncommon.

Dr Rees said that the new test is “fast, specific and highly sensitive”.

Ongoing research

Kits for the new test are currently only available for research and validation studies, and are unlicensed for commercial use.

After a trial was conducted on a dairy farm in the west of England, the company said that the test identified TB-positive animals months before the skin test gave positive results.

PBD Biotech has said that it is in advanced talks with authorities in France, Canada and the USA over trials to start shortly.

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