Abstract

Leptospira spp. is a pathogenic bacteria that causes leptospirosis in humans and cattle. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the microscopic agglutination test (MAT) as the laboratory gold standard in the detection of leptospirosis. However, the limitation of MAT triggers the laboratory technicians to develop alternative laboratory tests against leptospirosis. The current study aimed to compare the sensitivity and specificity of histopathology special stain using modified Gram staining (MGS) and molecular test using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), compared to the MAT for Leptospira spp. detection in cattle. This study used a total of 38 serum and 38 kidney samples from the cattle slaughtered in the Sidoarjo slaughterhouse, Indonesia. The collected serum samples were tested against MAT and RT-PCR. The kidneys were processed for histopathology using MGS. The result indicated that 16 (42.10%) of the tested samples were positive against MAT, 6 (15.78%) were positive against MGS, and 18 (47.36%) were positive against RT-PCR. The RT-PCR indicated better sensitivity and lower specificity, compared to MAT and MGS. The findings revealed that the RT-PCR is an appropriate laboratory test for detecting cattle leptospirosis with better sensitivity and specificity. Therefore, this method can be suggested to substitute MAT and overcome its limitations.