Al-Kappany Y M, Rajendran C, Ferreira L R, Kwok O C H, Abu-Elwafa S A, Hilali M, Dubey J P
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Animal and Natural Resources Institute, Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Building 1001, Beltsville, Maryland 20705-2350, USA.
J Parasitol. 2010 Dec;96(6):1115-8. doi: 10.1645/GE-2554.1. Epub 2010 Jul 14.
Cats are important in the epidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii because they are the only hosts that excrete environmentally resistant oocysts in feces. In the present study, 158 feral cats from Giza, Egypt, were examined for T. gondii infection. Antibodies to T. gondii were found in 97.4% with the modified agglutination test. Viable T. gondii was isolated from tissues (brain, heart, tongue) of 115 of 137 cats by bioassay in mice. These isolates were designated TgCatEg 1-115; none of these isolates was virulent to out-bred Swiss Webster mice. Of the 112 seropositive cats whose tissues were bioassayed individually, T. gondii was isolated from the hearts of 83 (74.1%), tongues of 53 (47.3%), and brains of 36 (32.1%). Toxoplasma gondii oocysts were not detected in rectal contents of any of the 158 cats, probably related to high seropositivity (chronic infection) of cats surveyed. The high prevalence of T. gondii in feral cats in Egypt reported here indicates a high environmental contamination with oocysts.
猫在刚地弓形虫的流行病学中很重要，因为它们是唯一会在粪便中排出具有环境抵抗力的卵囊的宿主。在本研究中，对来自埃及吉萨的158只野猫进行了刚地弓形虫感染检测。采用改良凝集试验，在97.4%的猫中检测到了针对刚地弓形虫的抗体。通过小鼠生物测定法，从137只猫中的115只猫的组织（脑、心脏、舌头）中分离出了活的刚地弓形虫。这些分离株被命名为TgCatEg 1 - 115；这些分离株对远交系瑞士韦伯斯特小鼠均无致病性。在112只血清学阳性且组织被单独进行生物测定的猫中，从83只（74.1%）猫的心脏、53只（47.3%）猫的舌头和36只（32.1%）猫的脑中分离出了刚地弓形虫。在158只猫的直肠内容物中均未检测到刚地弓形虫卵囊，这可能与所调查的猫的高血清学阳性率（慢性感染）有关。此处报道的埃及野猫中刚地弓形虫的高流行率表明环境中卵囊污染程度很高。
