Seroprevalence, Detection of DNA in Blood and Milk, and Genotyping ofToxoplasma gondiiin a Goat Population in Italy

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii is the causative agent of a major zoonosis with cosmopolitan distribution and is known to be transmitted mainly by the ingestion of undercooked or raw animal products. Drinking unpasteurized goat's milk is a risk factor associated with human toxoplasmosis. However, very little is known about the excretion of DNA in goat milk. Aim of the present study was to determine the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection using a modified agglutination test (MAT), to detect T. gondii DNA by nested-PCR (n-PCR) in samples of blood and milk from seropositive goats, and to genotype DNA isolates using 11 molecular markers in 127 adult lactating goats from 6 farms in Italy. Positive MAT results were found in 60.6% of goats while 13% of blood and milk samples from seropositive goats were positive to n-PCR. A kappa coefficient of 1 indicated a perfect agreement between blood and milk n-PCR. Genetic characterization of isolates revealed the occurrence of genotype III (n = 7), genotype I (n = 1), and atypical genotypes with hints for genotype I (n = 2). Our results suggest that the risk of excretion of Toxoplasma tachyzoites might frequently occur in milk of seropositive goats testing positive to n-PCR on blood.

Spread and genotype of Toxoplasma gondii in naturally infected alpine chamois (Rupicapra r. rupicapra)

“…This is the first report of a T. gondii genotype in wild Italian ungulates. Despite having used different protocols, Verin et al (2013) demonstrated the occurrence of polymorphic strains (combination of different type I and III alleles) in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and Mancianti et al (2013Mancianti et al ( , 2014 detected genotypes I and III and atypical genotypes (with hints of genotype I) in goats and genotypes II and III in donkeys. Therefore, all the T. gondii genotypes appear to be present in Italy.…”

A preliminary study on the quality and safety of milk in donkeys positive for Toxoplasma gondii

“…All serum samples were screened with a threshold dilution of 1 : 20, and the positive sera were end-titrated using two-fold dilutions. Blood and milk (50 ml) specimens from seropositive jennies were processed for molecular analysis (Mancianti et al, 2013). A nested-PCR assay was used to screen blood and milk samples for T. gondii DNA, as described by Jones et al (2000).…”

Toxoplasma gondii in milk of naturally infected dairy ewes on west mesoregion of Santa Catarina state, Brazil

“…The PCR was used to search the agent in milk, because it is a good indicator of parasite presence in the analyzed material (Mancianti et al, 2013). Although the presence of DNA of the parasite does not indicate the viability of the agent nor its potential infectivity, Moura et al (2007) observed that PCR have advantages over traditional methods (bioassay) and research shows a good correlation between PCR and bioassay (Homan et al, 2000;Dehkordi et al, 2013.…”