Abstract
Toxoplasmosis in sheep is a disease of great importance in veterinary medicine, which causes economic losses in livestock and has a great impact on human health, since consumption of infected meat facilitates transmission of zoonotic infections. Blood samples from sheep (n = 360) were collected from 13 farm properties in the municipality of Lages, Santa Catarina, to estimate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis and identify risk factors associated with Toxoplasma gondii infection. T. gondii, antibodies were investigated by means of the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Animals infected with T. gondii were found on 100% of the farms. IFA detected 56.9% (205/360) and ELISA 42.5% of the infected sheep. Breed was the only risk factor associated with the presence of T. gondii antibodies. ELISA showed sensitivity of 61%, specificity of 82% and kappa of 0.41, which was considered moderate. This allows use of ELISA as an alternative technique for diagnosing T. gondii in sheep.
Highlights
Toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis that is usually asymptomatic
Considering the importance of this infection and the lack of health data relating to the sheep industry in the state of Santa Catarina, the present study was conducted with the aims of estimating the prevalence of T. gondii infection among sheep in the municipality of Lages using immunofluorescence assay (IFA), and evaluating enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as the test for diagnosing toxoplasmosis in sheep and identifying risk factors associated with T. gondii infection in these animals
Animals infected with T. gondii were found on all of the 13 farm properties assessed
Summary
Toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis that is usually asymptomatic It is caused by the coccidian Toxoplasma gondii and has worldwide distribution. The municipality of Lages is prominent because of its sheep population Toxoplasma gondii IFA and ELISA sheep are primarily raised in semi-extensive farming systems, and there is no individual control over breeding on the farm properties. Considering the importance of this infection and the lack of health data relating to the sheep industry in the state of Santa Catarina, the present study was conducted with the aims of estimating the prevalence of T. gondii infection among sheep in the municipality of Lages using IFA, and evaluating ELISA as the test for diagnosing toxoplasmosis in sheep and identifying risk factors associated with T. gondii infection in these animals
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