title: Association between the presence of serum antibodies against Neospora spp. and fetal loss in equines.
abstract: A study of the association between the presence of serum antibodies against Neospora spp. and fetal loss was performed using serum samples of horses submitted to the laboratory for the detection of antibodies to Equine Herpesvirus-1 and Equine Infectious Anemia Virus. The sera submitted for equine infectious anemia testing were from horses declared healthy and those submitted for the detection of antibodies to Equine Herpesvirus-1 were from mares with late clinical signs of reproductive disorders or males living in close contact with diseased mares. For the detection of Neospora spp. infection, the immunofluorescent antibody test was employed, using a cut-off titer of 50 as significant for the presence of antibodies. Among the 483 mares in the diseased group, 15.1% (73/483) was reactant, while 5.8% (19/325) was seropositive in the healthy group. The results show that late clinical signs of reproductive disorders in mares are positively associated (p<0.001) to infection with protozoa belonging to the genus Neospora and point to the fact that the participation of this group of coccidia in the genesis of reproductive disorders in equine must be investigated.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Biológico, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Eliana Monteforte Cassaro
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Villalobos
authors.forename: Tatiana Evelyn Hayama
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Ueno
authors.forename: Silvio Luis Pereira
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.forename: Elenice Maria Sequetin
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: do Carmo Custódio de Souza Hunold Lara
authors.forename: Solange Maria
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Gennari
authors.forename: Rodrigo Martins
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Soares
mesh_terms: D000034:Abortion, Veterinary / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology*; D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000662:veterinary; D004861:Herpesvirus 1, Equid / Q000276:immunology; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D006736:Horses; D008297:Male; D018688:Neospora / Q000276:immunology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D015597:Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / Q000276:immunology*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D000914:Antibodies, Viral