Endemic avian toxoplasmosis on a farm in Illinois: Clinical disease, diagnosis, biologic and genetic characteristics of Toxoplasma gondii isolates from chickens (Gallus domesticus), and a goose (Anser anser)

“…In the past, few studies have been investigated soil contamination with T. gondii in scale farms and most studies were focused on free range chicken farms, specifically about the prevalence of T. gondii infection in chickens [32–34]. Until now, data on the soil contamination of T. gondii in chicken farms from China were missing.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection of Toxoplasma gondii in chicken and soil of chicken farms in Nanjing region, China

Liu

Han

et al. 2017

Infect Dis Poverty

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BackgroundSoil is increasingly recognized as an important source in the transmission of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii). The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of T. gondii in the soil and to grasp the relationships between the contamination of soil and chicken infections.MethodsPCR method based on T. gondii-conserved gene internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS-1) as target gene and ELISA method (sGRA8-ELISA) using the recombinant protein of shortened GRA8 gene of T. gondii as antigen were developed and applied. From April 2013 to March 2014, a total of 700 soil samples were collected at various sites located in thirty farms categorized as free range farm and scale farm in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China, in different seasons. Additionally, a total of 350 sera of chickens were collected from free range farms to determine the presence of antibodies against T. gondii using sGRA8-ELISA.ResultsThe serological results showed that, antibodies were found in 194 of 250 (67.14%) samples from farms with T. gondii positive in soil and 41 of 100 samples from farms with T. gondii negative in soil (41.00%) (P < 0.01). The PCR detection of soil samples showed that, 7 (2.0%) of 350 samples collected from feeding zone in free range farms were found positive of T. gondii, whereas no sample was positive in scale farms. In the seasonal detections, T. gondii was found in 6 (3.33%) samples collected in autumn and 1 (0.56%) collected in winter.ConclusionsThe results indicated that the contamination of T. gondii in soil in the free range farms was higher than that in the scale farms and seroprevalence of T. gondii in chickens in the farm with soil contamination was higher than that with no soil contamination. The soil contamination might be an effective indicator of T. gondii infection in chickens.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40249-017-0277-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…A ϐim de analisar os possí-symptoms of toxoplasmosis in birds, even those infected with virulent strains, are rarely reported (Hepding 1939, Fankhauser 1951, Nobrega et al 1967, Dubey et al 2002, Dubey et al 2006, thus chickens are considered resistant to clinical toxoplasmosis. Torticollis, inability to stand, lateral recumbency and anorexia are clinical signs already described (Dubey et al 2007, Dubey 2010.…”

mentioning

confidence: 83%

Occurrence of infection with Toxoplasma gondii and factors associated with transmission in broiler chickens and laying hens in different raising systems

Millar

Alves²,

Teixeira³

et al. 2012

Pesq. Vet. Bras.

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Toxoplasmosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. The aim of the present study was to determine the occurrence and identify the risk factors associated with transmission of T. gondii to chickens raised in different systems (free-ranged and conϐined) to produce eggs or meat. The 810 animals were allocated in two experimental groups according to the production system purpose: 460 broiler chickens (Group 1) and 350 layer chickens (Group 2). In order to analyze the possible factors involved in T. gondii infection in the chickens, an epidemiological questionnaire was developed for all properties.The serological detection of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies was performed by Indirect Immunoϐluorescence (IFAT) and by Enzime Linked Imunossorbent Assay (ELISA). Since the agreement index (kappa) between these two serological techniques was considered high, 21.2% of the 810 animals were considered reactive. In Group 1, 12.2% (56/460) were positive, while in the Group 2 the positivity rate was 33.1% (116/350). The production system may be inϐluencing the seropositivity of the animals in both groups. However, only in Group 2 it was possible to notice a statistically signiϐicant relationship between the breeding system and the frequency of positive sera. This result indicates that, at least for laying hens, the production system is directly involved in T. gondii infection. The contact with cats in Group 1 did not inϐluence the distribution of seroreactive animals, but in Group 2 a signiϐicant relationship was observed. The occurrence of anti-T. gondii antibodies was high in both groups (broiler and posture chickens). Free-ranged chickens raised for egg production proved to be the most exposed group to the T. gondii infection. This can be related to the fact that these animals stay for longer periods in the farms, in direct contact with possibly contaminated soil by the presence of domestic cats.INDEX TERMS: Toxoplasma gondii, broiler chickens, laying hens, transmission.RESUMO.-[Ocorrência da infecção por Toxoplasma gondii e fatores associados à sua transmissão em aves de corte e postura produzidas em diferentes tipos de criação.] A toxoplasmose é uma zoonose causada pelo protozoário Toxoplasma gondii. O objetivo deste estudo foi determinar a ocorrência e identiϐicar os fatores de risco associados à transmissão de T. gondii para frangos criados em diferentes sistemas (caipira e conϐinado) para produzir ovos ou carne. Os 810 animais foram divididos em dois grupos experimentais de acordo com o propósito do sistema de produção: 460 frangos de corte (Grupo 1) e 350 galinhas poedeiras (Grupo 2). A ϐim de analisar os possí- symptoms of toxoplasmosis in birds, even those infected with virulent strains, are rarely reported (Hepding 1939, Fankhauser 1951, Nobrega et al. 1967, Dubey et al. 2002, Dubey et al. 2006, thus chickens are considered resistant to clinical toxoplasmosis. Torticollis, inability to stand, lateral recumbency and anorexia are clinical signs already described (Dubey et al. 2007, Dubey 201...

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Endemic avian toxoplasmosis on a farm in Illinois: Clinical disease, diagnosis, biologic and genetic characteristics of Toxoplasma gondii isolates from chickens (Gallus domesticus), and a goose (Anser anser)

Cited by 56 publications

References 21 publications

Molecular and serological diagnosis of Toxoplasma gondii infection in experimentally infected chickens

Molecular and serological diagnosis of Toxoplasma gondii infection in experimentally infected chickens

Detection of Toxoplasma gondii in chicken and soil of chicken farms in Nanjing region, China

Occurrence of infection with Toxoplasma gondii and factors associated with transmission in broiler chickens and laying hens in different raising systems

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