Nguyen Thuy Thi-Dieu, Choe Se-Eun, Byun Jae-Won, Koh Hong-Bum, Lee Hee-Soo, Kang Seung-Won
National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service, Anyang-si, Korea.
Acta Parasitol. 2012 Mar;57(1):7-12. doi: 10.2478/s11686-012-0010-0. Epub 2012 Feb 25.
Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum are closely related protozoan parasites, they share many common hosts, and can cause neurological diseases in dogs. Dogs can have close contacts with humans and livestock and therefore they can act as reservoirs of these parasites. The aim of this study was to survey the seroprevalence of antibodies against T. gondii and N. caninum and their co-infection rate in dogs in Korea. In total, sera from 553 domestic dogs were collected from different breeds, sexes, and ages of dogs from nine provinces across the country of Korea during 2006 and 2007. The presence of antibodies against T. gondii and N. caninum was analyzed using the latex agglutination test (LAT) with a cut-off value of 1:32, and the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) using a serum titer of 1:100. In the total dog population, 71 (12.8%) dogs were positive for anti-T. gondii antibodies and only 20 (3.6%) were positive for anti-N. caninum antibodies. Relatively higher seropositive frequencies of antibodies against T. gondii (20.1%) and N. caninum (4.9%) were detected in the dog population from the Gyeonggi. A higher proportion of animals seropositive for anti-T. gondii antibodies was found in stray dog populations as compared to household dog populations: 18.5% (59/319) vs 5.1% (12/234), respectively. The Chi-square tests revealed significant differences in the seropositive frequencies of antibodies against T. gondii between stray and household dogs in the total population (p<0.0001), and in dogs from the Gyeonggi (p<0.01). No significant differences were observed for the presence of antibodies against T. gondii or N. caninum when compared across the sex or age (p>0.05). The first serological survey on antibodies against both T. gondii and N. caninum parasites across the entire country showed that co-infection was not common in these canine populations with a seropositive level of 0.72%. The significantly higher positive frequency of T. gondii antibodies in stray dogs in both, Gyeonggi and in the total dog populations suggests that further investigation on the seroprevalence of parasites should focus on stray dogs.
刚地弓形虫和犬新孢子虫是密切相关的原生动物寄生虫，它们有许多共同的宿主，并且可在犬类中引起神经疾病。犬类可与人类和家畜密切接触，因此它们可充当这些寄生虫的储存宿主。本研究的目的是调查韩国犬类中抗刚地弓形虫和抗犬新孢子虫抗体的血清流行率及其合并感染率。2006年至2007年期间，从韩国九个省份不同品种、性别和年龄的犬类中总共采集了553份家犬血清。使用乳胶凝集试验（LAT）（临界值为1:32）和间接荧光抗体试验（IFAT）（血清滴度为1:100）分析抗刚地弓形虫和抗犬新孢子虫抗体的存在情况。在整个犬类群体中，71只（12.8%）犬抗刚地弓形虫抗体呈阳性，仅20只（3.6%）抗犬新孢子虫抗体呈阳性。在京畿道的犬类群体中检测到相对较高频率的抗刚地弓形虫抗体（20.1%）和抗犬新孢子虫抗体（4.9%）。与家养犬群体相比，流浪犬群体中抗刚地弓形虫抗体血清阳性动物的比例更高：分别为18.5%（59/319）和5.1%（12/234）。卡方检验显示，在整个群体中流浪犬和家养犬之间抗刚地弓形虫抗体的血清阳性频率存在显著差异（p<0.0001），在京畿道的犬类中也存在显著差异（p<0.01）。在性别或年龄之间比较抗刚地弓形虫或抗犬新孢子虫抗体的存在情况时，未观察到显著差异（p>0.05）。首次在全国范围内对同时针对刚地弓形虫和犬新孢子虫寄生虫的抗体进行血清学调查显示，在这些犬类群体中合并感染并不常见，血清阳性率为0.72%。京畿道和整个犬类群体中流浪犬抗刚地弓形虫抗体的阳性频率显著更高，这表明对寄生虫血清流行率的进一步调查应侧重于流浪犬。
