ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Infectious Agents and Disease
This article is part of the Research TopicOne Health Approach to Mycobacterial Infections in Veterinary Science - volume IIView all 4 articles
Nationwide Seroprevalence of Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium avium in Domestic Sows and Wild Boars in Korea under a One Health Framework
Provisionally accepted
- 1College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeonbuk National University, Iksan, Republic of Korea
- 2Chonnam National University, Buk-gu, Republic of Korea
- 3Kangwon National University, Chuncheon-si, Republic of Korea
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Tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium bovis and infections due to nontuberculous mycobacteria, particularly the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), are increasingly recognized at the livestock–wildlife – human interface. In the Republic of Korea, bovine tuberculosis remains endemic in cattle, yet nationwide data on mycobacterial exposure in suids are lacking. Between February 2023 and November 2024, serum samples from 1,366 domestic sows and 1,168 wild boars collected across nine administrative provinces were analyzed using validated commercial ELISAs to estimate apparent seroprevalence. Apparent seroprevalence of M. bovis was 4.54% (95% CI: 3.56–5.78%) in domestic sows and 5.91% (95% CI: 4.69–7.41%) in wild boars, while apparent seroprevalence of M. avium was 10.10% (95% CI: 8.61–11.81%) and 7.71% (95% CI: 6.31–9.38%), respectively. Significant provincial variation was detected only for M. avium in domestic sows and was driven by higher seropositivity in Gyeonggi Province, whereas no significant province-level heterogeneity was observed in wild boars. Because ELISA-based serology reflects exposure rather than active infection, results should be interpreted with caution. In an international context, the observed seroprevalence in Korea was higher than that reported from intensive indoor production systems but lower than estimates from wildlife-rich ecosystems with established reservoir hosts. These findings indicate ongoing environmental exposure to mycobacteria in Korean suids and support the need for integrated One Health surveillance incorporating domestic pigs, wildlife, and complementary diagnostic approaches.
Keywords: Domestic sows, Mycobacterium avium, Mycobacterium bovis, One health surveillance, seroprevalence, Wild boar (Sus scrofa)
Received: 23 Dec 2025; Accepted: 16 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Moon, Bae, Cho, Yoo, Oh and Cho. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yeonsu Oh
Ho-Seong Cho
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