title: Serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii in wild waterfowl in Chukotka, Kamchatka, Russia and Hokkaido, Japan.
abstract: Antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii were assayed by ELISA in 22 experimentally inoculated domestic ducks. In addition, a serological assay was carried out at Obihiro, Hokkaido, Japan, in 2004 and 2005, on 221 wild ducks of 5 species: Anas platyrhynchus (n = 111); A. poecilorhyncha (n = 27); A. acuta (n = 58); A. penelope (n = 16); and A. crecca (n = 9). Assays were also conducted using sera from 197 wild geese of 2 species, i.e., Anser albifrons (n = 162) and Ans. fabalis (n = 35). Birds were collected between 2003 and 2005 from 3 different areas: Lake Miyajima-numa, Hokkaido, Japan, regions around Anadyr city of Chukotka autonomous okrug, and Lake Makobetukoe, Kamchatka oblast, Russia. The ELISA cutoff value (OD) was > or =0.395 based on results from uninfected ducks; the final dilution ratio recognized as positive was represented by the end titer. The end titer in the experimentally infected ducks ranged from 1:400 to 1:3,200. Antibodies to T. gondii were found in 49 of the 221 wild duck samples from Japan: A. platyrhynchus (22/74); A. poecilorhyncha (2/15); A. penelope (3/16); A. acuta (4/58); and A. crecca (0/9), all in 2004. In 2005, T. gondii was found in A. platyrhynchus (13/37); and A. poecilorhyncha (5/12). Thirty-two of 197 wild goose samples were seropositive, i.e., Ans. albifrons (7/51) in 2004 and (11/72) in 2005 in Miyajima-numa, Japan and 9/39 in Chukotka, Russia as well as in Ans. fabalis (5/35) in Kamchatka, for which the end titer ranged from 1:100 to 1:3,200. In immunoblotting, the A. platyrhynchus samples showed specific IgG antibody binding to several antigens in the T. gondii lane, i.e., at 30 and 43 kDa, but not in the Neospora caninum lane. No specific bands were noted in samples for which antibody activity was not detected. These results suggest that wild waterfowl inhabiting Hokkaido, Chukotka, and Kamchatka may be exposed to T. gondii.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Veterinary Science, School of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Japan.
authors.forename: Takehiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Murao
authors.forename: Yoshitaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Omata
authors.forename: Rika
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kano
authors.forename: Shiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Murata
authors.forename: Tsukasa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okada
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Konnai
authors.forename: Mitsuhiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Asakawa
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohashi
authors.forename: Misao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Onuma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D004372:Ducks / Q000469:parasitology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000662:veterinary; D005260:Female; D005777:Geese / Q000469:parasitology*; D015151:Immunoblotting / Q000662:veterinary; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology*; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D007074:Immunoglobulin G