Characterization of Toxoplasma and Trichinella isolates from muscles of black bears in Pennsylvania.
During the hunting season of 1992, 322 black bears from Pennsylvania were examined for Toxoplasma gondii- and Trichinella spp-induced infections. Toxoplasma gondii antibodies were found in 79.8% of 322 bears--titer < 1:25 in 65 (20.2%), 1:25 in 18 (5.6%), 1:50 in 11 (34.5%) and 1:500 in 128 (38.7%) bears--by use of the modified agglutination test. Muscle tissues from 89 of these bears were bioassayed for T gondii parasites. Muscles from 64 bears, including heart from 1 bear, and heart alone from another bear, were digested in pepsin, and the digested samples were bioassayed in mice. Toxoplasma gondii was isolated from 5 bears; from the heart of 1, heart and skeletal muscles of 1, and skeletal muscles of 3. The T gondii antibody titers for the 5 bears with detectable T gondii were: > or = 1:25 in all 5 bears by use of the modified agglutination test; < 1:10 (3 bears, considered Toxoplasma-negative), 1:20 and 1:320 by use of the Sabin-Feldman dye test; < 1:64 (3 bears, considered Toxoplasma-negative), 1:128, 1:512 by use of the indirect hemagglutination test, and < 1:16 (2 bears, considered Toxoplasma-negative), 1:32, 1:64, and 1:512 by use of the latex agglutination test. Toxoplasma gondii was not isolated from feces of 5 cats fed muscles from the remaining 25 bears with T gondii antibody titer < 1:25. Tissue cysts of the 4 T gondii isolates from bears were rendered noninfective by freezing at -13 C.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Dubey
J P
JP
Zoonotic Diseases Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350.
Briscoe
N
N
Gamble
R
R
Zarlenga
D
D
Humphreys
J G
JG
Thulliez
P
P
D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D016266:Food Parasitology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat / Q000469:parasitology; D009132:Muscles / Q000469:parasitology; D010414:Pennsylvania / Q000453:epidemiology; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D014234:Trichinella / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014235:Trichinellosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary; D001503:Ursidae / Q000469:parasitology*
D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan