A Capillary Agglutination Test for Bovine Q Fever

Abstract

A capillary agglutination test, employing a stained antigen of Coxiella burnetii, for use in detecting the presence of antibody against Q fever in bovine serums is described. An evaluation of the new test was accomplished by comparison of the results obtained with the complement-fixation test on a large number of serums. Nonspecific reactions did not commonly occur. The sensitivity of the capillary agglutination test appears to be greater than that of the complement-fixation test. A high degree of reproducibility for both screening and titration purposes is an outstanding characteristic. The technique makes possible a very simple, economical, and rapid test that is adaptable to work in the field or in the laboratory.