AUTHOR=Metwally Samy , Hamada Rania , Sobhy Kamel , Frey Caroline F. , Fereig Ragab M. 

TITLE=Seroprevalence and risk factors analysis of Neospora caninum and Toxoplasma gondii in cattle of Beheira, Egypt

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2023.1122092

DOI=10.3389/fvets.2023.1122092

ISSN=2297-1769

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p><italic>Neospora caninum</italic> and <italic>Toxoplasma gondii</italic> are closely related obligate intracellular protozoan parasites. They are considered to be the major causes of infectious abortions and congenital abnormalities in livestock worldwide resulting in huge economic losses. Currently, there are no reports on the prevalence of neosporosis or toxoplasmosis in cattle in Beheira, Egypt's most important region for cattle industry.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>The current study investigated the presence of anti-<italic>N. caninum</italic> and anti-<italic>T. gondii</italic> antibodies in apparent healthy cattle from eight localities representing the whole area of Beheira. A total of 358 plasma samples were randomly collected from 6 dairy and 10 beef farms and analyzed by commercially available ELISAs. Production type (dairy versus beef), sex (female vs male), age (&lt; 3 years, 3–5, and &gt; 5 years old), breed (mixed vs Holstein vs Colombian Zebu), and location (various locations) were assessed as risk factors for <italic>N. caninum</italic> and <italic>T. gondii</italic> infections.</p></sec><sec><title>Results and discussion</title><p>Of the samples, 88 (24.6%) and 19 (5.3%) were positive for anti-<italic>N. caninum</italic> and anti-<italic>T. gondii</italic> antibodies, respectively, and mixed infection was detected in 7. Of the 16 herds, 6 dairy and 7 beef herds were positive for antibodies to <italic>N. caninum</italic>. Antibodies to <italic>T. gondii</italic> were detected in 4, and 5 of dairy and beef herds, respectively. Production type (dairy) and, therewith, sex (female), age (aged over 5 years), and location were considered as risk factors for <italic>N. caninum</italic> infection. No factors statistically associated with <italic>T. gondii</italic> infection were identified. Overall, this study provided the first serological detection of <italic>N. caninum</italic> and <italic>T. gondii</italic> infections in cattle from Beheira, demonstrating the endemicity of both parasites in the main cattle rearing region of Egypt. This study also confirmed earlier reports of <italic>N. caninum</italic> being more present in dairy cattle than in beef cattle. Routine monitoring of <italic>N. caninum</italic> and <italic>T. gondii</italic> infections and the implementation of control strategies are urgently needed.</p></sec>