Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum infections in households sheep "Elevage en case" in Dakar, Senegal

Abstract

Aim: The study aimed to evaluate the occurrence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii and anti-Neospora caninum antibodies in sheep breeding in a particular husbandry system called "Elevage en case" in Dakar, Senegal. Materials and Methods: Blood samples were collected from 278 sheep. Serum was harvested and used for analysis. For the detection of T. gondii antibodies, 278 sera were analyzed using the modified agglutination test, while the enzyme linked-immunosorbent assay was used on 174 sheep sera to look for N. caninum antibodies. Results: This study showed that 29.4±6.8% of sheep carried both T. gondii and N. caninum antibodies. The overall prevalence was 60.1±5.7% and 41.9±7.3% for toxoplasmosis and neosporosis, respectively. For toxoplasmosis, the prevalence was higher in Gueule Tapée (63.3%) than in Medina (58.9%), but the variation was not significant (p=0.45). Regarding the age of animals, the prevalence was significantly higher in animals over 2 years old compared to those under 2 years old (p=0.002). For neosporosis, the prevalence was significantly higher in Medina (48.67%) than Gueule Tapée (16.7%) (p=0.001), but non-significant variation was noted according to animal age. Conclusion: The study showed that sheep reared in households have carried antibodies of T. gondii and N. caninum. The prevalence was high and it means that consumption of meat from these animals is risky if the meat is eaten undercooked.

Pathogens with potential impact on reproduction in captive and free-ranging European bison (Bison bonasus) in Poland - a serological survey

“…Our findings indicate that neither sex or age had any significant effect on the occurrence of antibodies to Chlamydia spp., N. caninum or T. gondii in the studied European bison. They also confirm previous findings or N. caninum antibodies in cattle [ 36 ] or sheep [ 37 ]. However, other studies have found that both of these factors or only age was found to have a significant effect on N. caninum antibody levels in sheep or goats [ 38 , 39 ].…”

“…Elsewhere, depending on the species, studies have found that neither sex or age had any significant effect on the occurrence of T. gondii antibodies [ 39 ], or that both factors were significant [ 40 ], or that only age played a role [ 37 ]. In addition, age and sex appear to be significant factors for C. abortus seropositivity in livestock [ 41 ].…”

ELISA-based monitoring of Toxoplasma gondii among retail sheep meat in Erbil Governorate, Kurdistan region, Iraq

“…Sheep of 1-2 years of age showed the high prevalence (20.7%) of T. gondii antibodies than younger and older sheep (Table 3). The same observation was reported from Pakistan (Hanif and Tasawar, 2016), and Senegal (Dahourou et al, 2019).…”

“…This finding is in good agreement with a recent Canadian study (Iqbal et al, 2018). However, locations near mountainous regions may show higher prevalence due to shortage of veterinary care (Dahourou et al, 2019) and/or frequent contact with wild animals or their feces and other potential sources of T. gondii (Sroka et al, 2019). Similar findings have also been reported in medical surveys (Al-Shaibani et al, 2018;Ibrahim, 2018).…”

Neosporosis in Farm Animals

“…Recently, they are threatening because of poor feeding and management practices, stressful circumstances, and decreased resistance to opportunistic diseases like N. caninum (Tamponi et al, 2015). Despite the fact that N. Caninum has been identified in sheep and goats all around the world (Dahourou et al, 2019 andVillagra-Blanco et al, 2017).…”