title: Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum in sika deer from eastern Hokkaido, Japan.
abstract: Brain and serum were collected from 120 and 12 free-ranging sika deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis), respectively, from six regions in eastern Hokkaido during controlled hunts in the autumn of 2003. Brains were tested for Neospora caninum and Toxoplasma gondii DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays. Antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii were measured by means of a latex agglutination test. No brain tested positive for either type of DNA, and no antibody to Toxoplasma gondii was detected in serum, suggesting a low prevalence of infection with these organisms in free-ranging sika deer from eastern Hokkaido. Further examination of multiple tissues by PCR and serologic surveys will be necessary to confirm this.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Veterinary Physiology, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Japan. yomata@obihiro.ac.jp
authors.forename: Yoshitaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Omata
authors.forename: Naotaka
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ishiguro
authors.forename: Rika
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kano
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Masukata
authors.forename: Akimasa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kudo
authors.forename: Hikaru
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kamiya
authors.forename: Haruka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fukui
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Igarashi
authors.forename: Ryuichiro
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: Masakazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nishimura
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saito
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D001921:Brain / Q000469:parasitology*; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000032:analysis; D003670:Deer; D005260:Female; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D007841:Latex Fixation Tests / Q000662:veterinary; D008297:Male; D018688:Neospora / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D015995:Prevalence; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D016054:DNA, Protozoan