Vieira Flávia Pereira, Alves Maria da Glória, Martins Livia Mattos, Rangel Alba Lucínia Peixoto, Dubey Jitender Prakash, Hill Dolores, Bahia-Oliveira Lilian Maria Garcia
Laboratório de Biologia do Reconhecer, Centro de Biociências e Biotecnologia, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brasil.
Laboratório de Engenharia Civil, Centro de Ciência e Tecnologia, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brasil.
Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz. 2015 Nov;110(7):929-35. doi: 10.1590/0074-02760150262.
We present a set of data on human and chicken Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence that was investigated and analysed in light of groundwater vulnerability information in an area endemic for waterborne toxoplasmosis in Brazil. Hydrogeological assessment was undertaken to select sites for water collection from wells for T. gondii oocyst testing and for collecting blood from free-range chickens and humans for anti-T. gondii serologic testing. Serologic testing of human specimens was done using conventional commercial tests and a sporozoite-specific embryogenesis-related protein (TgERP), which is able to differentiate whether infection resulted from tissue cysts or oocysts. Water specimens were negative for the presence of viable T. gondii oocysts. However, seroprevalence in free-range chickens was significantly associated with vulnerability of groundwater to surface contamination (p < 0.0001; odds ratio: 4.73, 95% confidence interval: 2.18-10.2). Surprisingly, a high prevalence of antibodies against TgERP was detected in human specimens, suggesting the possibility of a continuous contamination of drinking water with T. gondii oocysts in this endemic setting. These findings and the new proposed approach to investigate and analyse endemic toxoplasmosis in light of groundwater vulnerability information associated with prevalence in humans estimated by oocyst antigens recognition have implications for the potential role of hydrogeological assessment in researching waterborne toxoplasmosis at a global scale.
我们展示了一组关于人类和鸡的弓形虫血清阳性率的数据，这些数据是在巴西一个水源性弓形虫病流行地区，根据地下水脆弱性信息进行调查和分析的。进行了水文地质评估，以选择从井中采集水样进行弓形虫卵囊检测的地点，以及从散养鸡和人类身上采集血液进行抗弓形虫血清学检测的地点。人类样本的血清学检测使用传统商业检测方法以及一种子孢子特异性胚胎发生相关蛋白（TgERP），该蛋白能够区分感染是由组织囊肿还是卵囊引起的。水样中未检测到活的弓形虫卵囊。然而，散养鸡的血清阳性率与地下水对地表污染的脆弱性显著相关（p < 0.0001；优势比：4.73，95%置信区间：2.18 - 10.2）。令人惊讶的是，在人类样本中检测到高比例的抗TgERP抗体，这表明在这种流行环境中，饮用水持续受到弓形虫卵囊污染的可能性。这些发现以及根据与通过卵囊抗原识别估计的人类患病率相关的地下水脆弱性信息来调查和分析地方性弓形虫病的新方法，对水文地质评估在全球范围内研究水源性弓形虫病的潜在作用具有重要意义。
