New Test for Animal Antibiotic.

A new antibody developed and patented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) quickly pinpoints Ceftiofur, an antibiotic often given to farm animals. Ceftiofur is used to treat mastitis in dairy cows and respiratory diseases in cattle, pigs, and poultry.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) routinely screens milk to ensure that antibiotic residues do not exceed tolerance levels, USDA'S Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) also routinely checks meat products. Currently these measurements rely on time-consuming laboratory analytical methods.

The antibody test is much quicker and easier. The ARS-patented antibody, called CEFT-116, can detect Ceftiofur in the low part-per-million (ppm) range in hundreds of milk samples per day. Unlike chemical analyses, an antibody test requires very little cleanup time.

The researchers envision CEFT-116 being used alone or being incorporated into a test kit with other antibodies. The advantage of an immunoassay kit is that members of the dairy and meat industries can use it in the field to prescreen their products for safety.

The antibody has been licensed to a company that will incorporate it into an immunoassay for measuring Ceftiofur in milk.