“…Serological assays are currently most likely to meet these requirements, as B. bovis infection finally leads to an asymptomatic carrier animal state in which the parasite commonly escapes direct detection by PCR, reverse line blot hybridization (RLB), or Giemsa-stained blood smears (10,23). A number of serological methods have been established for the detection of B. bovis-specific antibodies, of which ELISA is considered the most advantageous for epidemiological investigations, as it offers greater sensitivity and objectivity and can be easily adapted to test large numbers of serum samples (3,4,6,7,8,11,20,21,27,31,35,37). Furthermore, this format is amenable to the use of recombinant antigens, which makes it independent of the necessity to produce large amounts of parasites in vivo or in vitro, facilitates standardization, and has the potential to overcome limitations caused by cross-reactivity (22,32).…”