title: Toxoplasma gondii in fresh pork sausage and seroprevalence in butchers from factories in Londrina, Paraná State, Brazil.
abstract: The aims of this study were to verify the presence of Toxoplasma gondii cysts in fresh pork sausage and the presence of antibodies against T. gondii in serum of workers from factories with Municipal Inspection Service, in Londrina, PR, Brazil. 149 samples of sausage were collected from eight factories and blood samples from 47 workers. We also took information about the practices that were adopted in the factories and the workers' habits that could influence the prevalence of toxoplasmosis. After bioassay in mice, 13 (8.7%) sausage samples were positive, in one of them T. gondii was isolated and in the other 12 the mice seroconverted. Of 47 workers, 36 (76.6%) worked in sausage production and 11 (23.4%) were involved in other functions; 59.5% (28/47), 55.5% (20/36) and 72.7% (8/11), respectively, had T. gondii antibodies. There were no significant differences in the variables of industries' practices and workers' habits related to T. gondii infection. We concluded that fresh pork sausage could be important in the transmission of toxoplasmosis.
authors.affiliation: Programa de Pos-Graduaçao em Ciência Animal, Sanidade Animal, DMVP, UEL, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rafael André Ferreira
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Dias
authors.forename: Italmar Teodorico
authors.initials: IT
authors.lastname: Navarro
authors.forename: Bruno Bergamo
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Ruffolo
authors.forename: Felipe Monteiro
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Bugni
authors.forename: Marcelo Viana de
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: Roberta Lemos
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Freire
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis; D016266:Food Parasitology; D005525:Food-Processing Industry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008461:Meat Products / Q000469:parasitology*; D051379:Mice; D015995:Prevalence; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013552:Swine; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014123:Toxoplasmosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan