Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence in dogs and cats
The recent increase in dog and cat toxoplasmosis outbreaks has prompted new zoonotic studies on infectious diseases transmitted through these companion animals. Human toxoplasmosis is attributed to ingestion of food contaminated with Toxoplasma gondii.
Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and polymerase chain reactions (PCR) was used to determine antigen and seroprevalences of T. gondii, along with analyzing B1 gene phylogeny. This study used 403 stray cats, 947 stray dogs, 909 domestic cats and 2,412 domestic dogs around South Korea to meausure T. gondii antibodies. Whole blood, feces and tissue samples were also collected on an array of stray and domestic dogs and cats in which T. gondii specific B1 PCR was performed.
Stray cats were revealed as the population with the highest infection rate of toxoplasmosis, followed by stray dogs, domestic cats, and domestic dogs. These findings reinforce the importance of preventive hygienic measures that are imperative at the One Health level in dogs and cats, domestic and stray, to minimize human toxoplasmosis infections.
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