Abstract
Neosporosis is recognized as one of the major causes of bovine abortion worldwide. Canids are the main definitive host for this parasite and the presence of dogs in the farm is an important factor for the Neospora caninum infection in bovines. Since, in the province of Lecce, located in the Apulia region of Southern Italy, there are no studies showing the presence of the infection in farm animals, the objective was to perform a serological evaluation for anti-N. caninum antibodiesin serum from 706 dairy cattle and 21 farm dogs located in 40 farms uniformlydistributed over the territory.The presence of N. caninum infection was confirmed in 90.0% (36/40) of the 40 farms examined. The results obtained on all serum samples by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ID Screen® Neospora caninum competition ELISA kit) for anti-N. caninum antibodies showed a seropositivity rate of 21.1% (149/706) among dairy cows, with a statistically significant higher percentage of positive subjects in the animals over two years old and a positivity rate of 42.9% (9/21) in tested dogs. The obtained data confirmed the presence of neosporosis even in the Lecce area, where it could therefore represent an important cause of abortion and economic losses.
Highlights
Neospora caninum are obligate, intracellular, protozoan parasites of the phylum Apicomplexa that have intermediate hosts and definitive hosts such as dogs.Infection can cause a clinical disease that has been recognized as a major cause of reproductive disorders in cows worldwide, including abortion, estrus repetitions, and temporary anestrus [1,2,3,4,5]
Few studies have been conducted regarding the diffusion of Neospora in Southern Italy [12,46,63] and no data were found in literature regarding the diffusion of N. caninum in the province of Lecce in dairy cows and in farm dogs
All serum samples were tested for antibodies against N. caninum by a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using commercial test kit based on purified extract of N. caninum
Summary
Intracellular, protozoan parasites of the phylum Apicomplexa that have intermediate hosts (e.g., ruminants) and definitive hosts such as dogs. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) are the most widely marketed serological tests They are suitable for the detection of Neospora infection in large-scale surveillance studies because they are low cost and fast to perform. In Italy, the prevalence of neosporosis and the relationship between N. caninum infections in dogs and cattle was analyzed with both serological and molecular methods [12,13,25,48,49,50,51,52]. Few studies have been conducted regarding the diffusion of Neospora in Southern Italy [12,46,63] and no data were found in literature regarding the diffusion of N. caninum in the province of Lecce in dairy cows and in farm dogs. Dogs were analyzed for neosporosis on the farms where they were present to assess whether there was a correlation between the immune status of dogs and cattle against this disease
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