Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy.
Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy - VisMederi S.r.l., Strada del Petriccio e Belriguardo, 35, 53100 Siena, Italy.
Parasite. 2020;27:2. doi: 10.1051/parasite/2019080. Epub 2020 Jan 14.
Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide health problem. Infection in pregnant women can result in severe fetal morbidity or in subclinical neonatal infection; most subclinical cases develop ocular and neurological sequelae. The purpose of this serological study was to assess the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in two populations of women of childbearing age in Siena (Tuscany, Central Italy) and Bari (Apulia, Southern Italy) between 2013 and 2017 and in a group of pregnant women in Bari in 2016-2017. Serum samples were tested for the presence of specific anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibodies by a commercially available ELISA test. The percentage of seropositive subjects in Bari was significantly higher than in Siena (22.4% vs. 12.4%) and an age-related trend was observed. A low prevalence of T. gondii infection (13.8%) was observed among the pregnant women tested. In addition to showing a significant difference between Central and Southern Italy, this study provides updated data on T. gondii seroprevalence in women during childbearing age and pregnancy. The results confirm a trend toward a decrease, especially in younger people and pregnant women.
弓形虫病是一个全球性的健康问题。孕妇感染可导致严重的胎儿发病率或亚临床新生儿感染；大多数亚临床病例会发展为眼部和神经系统后遗症。本血清学研究的目的是评估 2013 年至 2017 年在意大利托斯卡纳锡耶纳（Tuscany）和普利亚巴里（Apulia）的两个育龄妇女人群以及 2016-2017 年在巴里的一组孕妇中弓形虫（Toxoplasma gondii）的流行率。通过市售的 ELISA 检测试剂盒检测血清样本中是否存在特定的抗弓形虫 IgG 抗体。巴里的血清阳性率明显高于锡耶纳（22.4%比 12.4%），且呈年龄相关性趋势。在所检测的孕妇中，弓形虫感染率较低（13.8%）。除了显示意大利中部和南部之间存在显著差异外，本研究还提供了育龄妇女和孕妇中弓形虫血清流行率的最新数据。结果证实了感染率呈下降趋势，尤其是在年轻人和孕妇中。
