Seroprevalence of Neospora caninum in cattle in Sudan

Abstract

Aim: This cross-sectional survey was conducted to detect anti- N. caninum antibodies in bovine dams' sera samples in nine States of the Sudan. Materials and Methods: Two hundred and seventy six bovine dams' sera samples collected from nine States in the Sudan were screened for anti-Neospora caninum antibodies using a commercial competitive ELISA (cELISA) kits. Results: The results showed an overall prevalence rate of 15.9% (range 6.7% - 70%) of Neospora caninum antibodies. The prevalence rates were high in White Nile (70%) and North Kordofan (30%), moderate in the Northern (15.6%), Red Sea (13.3%) States and was low in the South Kordofan (9.4%) and River Nile (6.7%). States with high values of percentage inhibition (PI) detected in White Nile State compared to other States. No antibodies were detected in El Gadarif, Kassala and South Darfur States. The prevalence was observed to be high in crossbred dams (70%) with statistically significant difference (P<0.05) compared to local ecotype (9.3%). However, no correlation was observed between infection rates in two age groups. Conclusion: Neosporosis is prevalent in cattle in most States of Sudan. Absence of evidence of infection in three of the States investigated may reflect the small number of herds and sera tested.