| detection of mycoplasma agassizii in the texas tortoise (gopherus berlandieri). | mycoplasma agassizii causes upper respiratory tract disease (urtd) in texas tortoises (gopherus berlandieri). to determine exposure to and shedding of m. agassizii, we collected blood samples and nasal swabs from 40 free-ranging texas tortoises on public and private lands in texas, usa, from may to october 2009. we used an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) to detect m. agassizii-specific antibodies. eleven (28%) tortoises were antibody positive, three (8%) were suspect, and the remaining ... | 2013 | 23778626 |