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Background Toxoplasmosis not only leads to abortion in humans but also in herbivores, which causes significant financial and quality-adjusted life-year losses. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of toxoplasmosis in aborted fetuses via serological and molecular assays. Moreover, the genotypes of the obtained isolates were detected. Methods Serological and molecular methods were used to study aborted fetuses from Bojnourd City, North Khorasan Province, Iran, which included 52 ovines and 16 bovines. Nested PCR of the B1 gene was used to detect parasite DNA in brain tissues. The PCR-RFLP method for the GRA6 gene was used to determine the genotype of T. gondii. Results Out of 68 aborted fetuses, 16.1% showed the presence of anti- T. gondii IgG. Among these, 11.7% were identified in bovine fetuses and 4.4% in ovine fetuses. Additionally, two (2.94%) samples of ovine tested positive for anti- T. gondii IgM. Our PCR analysis detected parasite DNA in two cases (2.94%) among 11 IgG-positive samples. All obtained isolates belong to type I of T. gondii . Conclusion Infection with Type I of T. gondii during the neonatal period may partly be responsible for abortion and economic losses in livestock farming in our studied region. To understand the molecular epidemiology and genotypes of T. gondii associated with abortion, further evaluation of aborted samples from different geographical locations is necessary.

Neospora caninum is a commonly diagnosed cause of reproductive losses in farmed ruminants worldwide. This study examined 495 and 308 samples (brain, heart and placenta) which were collected from 455 and 119 aborted cattle and sheep fetuses, respectively. DNA was extracted and a nested Neospora ITS1 PCR was performed on all samples. The results showed that for bovine fetuses 79/449 brain [17.6% (14.2–21.4)], 7/25 heart [28.0% (12.1–49.4)] and 5/21 placenta [23.8% (8.2–47.2)] were PCR positive for the presence of Neospora DNA. Overall 82/455 [18.0% (14.6–21.7)] of the bovine fetuses tested positive for the presence of N. caninum DNA in at least one sample. None (0/308) of the ovine fetal samples tested positive for the presence of Neospora DNA in any of the tissues tested. The results show that N. caninum was associated with fetal losses in cattle (distributed across South-West Scotland), compared to sheep in the same geographical areas where no parasite DNA was found. Neospora is well distributed amongst cattle in South-West Scotland and is the potential cause of serious economic losses to the Scottish cattle farming community; however, it does not appear to be a problem amongst the Scottish sheep flocks.

Background Neospora caninum is an obligate intracellular protozoan that is well established as a causative agent of abortion in dairy cattle worldwide. Objectives The objective of this study was to determine the role of N. caninum infection in the abortion in dairy cattle in the Khorasan Razavi Province, Iran. Methods From 2022 to 2024, 105 aborted bovine foetuses were collected from dairy cattle in Khorasan Razavi province. Brain samples of aborted foetuses were tested using nested PCR and histopathological examination. In addition, blood samples were collected from dairy cattle that had aborted PCR‐positive foetuses and were analysed using enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results and Conclusions In the present study, N. caninum infection was detected in 24.76% (26 out of 105) of aborted bovine foetuses by nested PCR analysis. The brain tissues of 20 bovine‐aborted foetuses were only suitable for histopathological examination. Lesions of the central nervous system were severe hyperaemia, perivascular cuffing, astrogliosis, mild encephalitis and focal necrosis. One foetus exhibited a 32‐µm N. caninum cyst within the brain tissue. IgG antibodies against N. caninum were identified in all dairy cattle that aborted infected foetuses through ELISA testing. Molecular, histopathological and serological findings strongly suggest that N. caninum plays a significant role in bovine abortion in dairy cattle in Khorasan Razavi Province, northeast Iran. Aborted bovine foetuses were collected from dairy cattle in Khorasan Razavi province. Brain samples of aborted foetuses were tested to detect N.caninum infection using nested PCR and histopathological examination. In addition, blood samples were collected from dairy cattle that had aborted PCR‐positive foetuses and were analysed using ELISA .

Background Bovine theileriosis, caused by the haemoprotozoan Theileria orientalis , is an emerging disease in East Asia and Australasia. Previous studies have demonstrated transplacental transmission of various Theileria spp. but molecular confirmation of transplacental transmission of T. orientalis has never been confirmed in the field. In this study, cow-calf (< 48 h old) pairs were sampled across 3 herds; opportunistic samples from aborted foetuses or stillborn calves were also examined. Molecular (multiplex qPCR) and serological (ELISA) methods were used to determine infection prevalence and the presence of anti- Theileria antibodies in each herd. In addition, pregnant heifers and foetal calves were sampled at abattoir and tested for the presence of T. orientalis by qPCR. Results The qPCR results indicated that, even though there was a high prevalence of T. orientalis infection in cows, the rate of transplacental transmission to their calves was low, with only one newborn calf from one herd and one foetus from the abattoir testing positive for T. orientalis DNA. Five aborted foetuses and stillborn calves, 3 of which were derived from a herd experiencing a high number of clinical theileriosis cases at the time of sampling, all tested negative for T. orientalis by qPCR. This suggests that in utero infection of calves with T. orientalis may not be a major driver of abortions during theileriosis outbreaks. Temporal monitoring of 20 calves born to T. orientalis -positive mothers indicated that T. orientalis was detectable in most calves between 10 and 27 days post-partum , consistent with prior field studies on adult cattle introduced to Theileria -affected herds. There was a positive correlation between the ELISA ratio of newborn calves and their mothers within 48 h of calving; however, maternal antibodies were only detectable in some calves and only for 4–4.5 weeks post-partum . All calves displayed high parasite loads peaking at 4–8 weeks post-partum , with only some calves subsequently mounting a detectable adaptive antibody response. Conclusions These findings indicate transplacental transmission of T. orientalis appears to play only a minor role in persistence of T. orientalis infection in the field; however calves are highly susceptible to developing high level T. orientalis infections at 4–8 weeks of age regardless of whether maternal antibodies are present post-partum .

Two hundred and fifty-five biological samples (106 aborted foetal tissue samples and 149 blood samples from aborted sheep and goats) were collected from 188 animals during the lambing season from September 2009 to April 2010 from the Mafraq region of Jordan. The sampled animals belonged to 93 goat and sheep flocks that had cases of abortion. A total of 169 (66.3%) biological samples were collected from sheep and 86 (33.7%) from goats. Seventy-six (29.8%) biological samples (45 blood and 31 tissue samples) were positive for Toxoplasma gondii by PCR assay. The positive samples were obtained from 43 sheep and 23 goats. The overall toxoplasma-specific prevalence rate was 35.1% (66/188). Forty flocks (43%) had at least one T. gondii PCR-positive animal. The risk factors related to flock health status and farm management that are hypothesized to be associated with T. gondii PCR positivity were also assessed using multiple logistic regressions. The presence of cats (OR = 4.74), a large flock size (OR = 2.76) and the method of disposing the aborted foetuses (OR = 3.77) were all statistically significant ( P  < 0.05) risk factors that were positively associated with toxoplasma positivity in goat and sheep flocks.

Neospora caninum is an important cause of abortion in cattle worldwide, but the isolation of a viable parasite from an abortus is difficult, and viable N. caninum has not been isolated from any host in China. In the present study, peripheral blood samples were collected from a jugular vein of an adult dairy cow that had aborted; the cow was seropositive to N. caninum antibodies by ELISA. White blood cells were separated and seeded onto Vero cell monolayer cultures for parasite isolation. Tachyzoites were first observed in cell culture on day 84 after initial inoculation. The parasite was confirmed to be N. caninum by gene sequencing and immunofluorescence, and by bioassays in BALB/c mice. The new N. caninum isolate (NC-Bj) has a unique pattern on microsatellite Cont-14. To our knowledge, this is the first successful isolation of N. caninum in China from any host.

Toxoplasma gondii, an obligatory intracellular protozoan parasite, is one of the causative agents of ovine abortion, as reported in many countries. Different techniques are being used to detect this pathogen in infected ovine fetuses. One of the most sensitive and specific diagnostic techniques is Nested-PCR amplification of the B1 target gene of the organism. In total, 200 brain samples of aborted ovine fetuses and maternal sera submitted from different parts of Khorasan Razavi province, Iran were investigated to track the role of Toxoplasma gondii in ovine abortion by a slightly modified Nested-PCR and IFAT assays, respectively. Among all samples, 27 (13·5%) were PCR-positive and 31 (15·5%) were IFAT-positive and the Toxoplasma-induced abortion prevalence calculated was 8·8% to18·2% with 95% confidence interval. Results show that high levels of congenital transmission may occur in 27/31(87%) of pregnancies with an excellent logical agreement (ĸ=0·9) between 2 different tests. According to the results of this study, the Nested-PCR employed in this investigation could be recommended as an applied routine test for the routine examination and confirmation of Toxoplasma gondii-induced ovine abortion.

Neospora caninum infection is a significant cause of abortion in cattle. We investigated the tissue distribution of N. caninum in aborted bovine fetuses and dam blood samples by a nested PCR assay, and compared the nested PCR with ELISA in the diagnosis of N. caninum infection. In total, 26 aborted fetuses and 813 blood samples were collected from 8 dairy herds in Beijing (n=212) and Tianjin (n=601), China. Fifteen fetuses (57·7%) were tested N. caninum-positive by the nested PCR. N. caninum DNA was detected from the brain of 52%, kidneys of 22%, skeletal muscle of 18%, and heart of 4% of the aborted fetuses. The PCR-positive cases (55%, 11/20) were higher than seropositive cows (40%, 8/20) in a subset of 20 fetuses, but the PCR results of blood samples of the 20 cows were all negative. The seroprevalence of the 813 samples was 15·5% (43·4% of samples from Beijing, 5·7% of samples from Tianjin), compared to the PCR-positive blood samples of 0·9%. Our study showed that the nested PCR is a valuable diagnostic tool for the primary diagnosis of N. caninum in aborted fetuses, while ELISA is the preferred assay for testing blood samples collected from cows. The two assays are complementary in determining whether abortions are associated with N. caninum infection in cattle.

Necropsies were performed on 354 fetuses from dairy and beef herds submitted from 1994 to 2000 to the diagnostic laboratories at Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria, Balcarce, Argentina. Samples from the fetuses were examined for pathogenic organisms and processed for microscopic examination. An aetiological diagnosis was made for 161 (45.5%) of the fetuses. No diagnosis was made for 193 (54.5%) fetuses. Infectious agents were isolated from 122 (34.4%) of the fetuses, bacterial agents being involved in 80 (22.6%) of these. The most common bacterial agents isolated from the fetuses were Brucella abortus in 28 fetuses, Campylobacter fetus in 26 cases, and Escherichia coli in 9 cases. Bovine herpesvirus and bovine viral diarrhoea virus were found in 9 and 6 cases, respectively. Neospora caninum was detected by an immunohistochemical technique in 26 cases (7.3%). Congenital abnormalities, dystocia and mummifications were found in 8, 19 and 11 cases, respectively.

Neospora caninum is a major cause of abortion in cattle worldwide. However, little information is available for Algeria. Accordingly, 799 cattle from 87 farms in the north and northeast of Algeria were enrolled in a seroepidemiological survey. An indirect fluorescence antibody test (IFAT) revealed a seroprevalence of 19.6%. The animals were divided into 3 groups according to their breed: imported European cattle, local breeds, and crossed animals (European × local). Seroprevalences were 16.0%, 34.3%, and 18.6% in groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. A case control study was performed to investigate the link between global seropositivity to N. caninum and abortion risk in those cattle farms. There was a significant (P < 0.01) association between the seroprevalence against N. caninum and the occurrence of abortion in those farms (odds ratio [OR]  =  12.03). This was also observed at the individual level (OR  =  2.79). The analysis of results according to the breed revealed a significant association between seroprevalence and abortion in groups 1 and 3, but not for group 2, despite the fact that the highest seroprevalence was observed in group 2. Cerebral tissues from 5 aborted fetuses were available for histology and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). One sample was found positive both by histology and by PCR, 2 samples were positive by PCR only, and 2 samples were negative in both tests.