Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in Wild American Mink (Neogale vison): The First Serological Study in Germany and Poland

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan that causes toxoplasmosis in warm-blooded animals. Although most infections in humans and animals are subclinical, an infection can nevertheless be fatal. One of the important characteristics in the epidemiology of this parasite is waterborne transmission. The American mink (Neogale vison), a mammal closely adapted to freshwater ecosystems, is a potential sentinel for T. gondii. We analysed meat juice from the heart of 194 wild minks collected between 2019 and 2022 in five study areas from Germany and Poland and tested for the presence of antibodies against T. gondii. The analysis was performed using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test (ELISA). Antibodies were detected in 45.36% (88/194, 95% confidence interval (CI): 38.39–52.41%) of the analysed animals. While the prevalence values ranged from 37.50% to 49.30%, there was no significant difference in seroprevalence between the study areas. Juveniles were less likely to carry T. gondii antibodies than adults (odds ratio: 0.216), whereas there was no significant difference in prevalence between the sexes (odds ratio: 0.933). The results of our study show that contact with T. gondii is widespread in minks, and the parasite is common in inland freshwater ecosystems in Germany and Poland. This indicates that watercourses play an important role in the spread of T. gondii oocysts.

Exposure of Urban European Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) to Toxoplasma gondii in Highly Populated Areas of Northeast Spain

“…Omnivorous and carnivorous animals have been increasingly drawn to urban or suburban areas due to easy access to food or shelter [ 25 ]. Previous studies have used such high trophic level species, such as American minks as sentinels or indicators for the circulation of T. gondii in semiaquatic freshwater ecosystems [ 15 , 26 ], sea otters in marine environments [ 27 ] and hedgehogs as sentinels in urban areas [ 18 ]. Our results agree with the previous report on hedgehogs in urban areas in the Czech Republic [ 18 ] and suggest that hedgehogs can be used as an indicator for the presence of T. gondii circulating in areas located near human settlements.…”