Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in pet dogs in Kunming, Southwest China.
BACKGROUND
Toxoplasmosis is a zoonotic parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, which infects almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans, with a worldwide distribution. However, little is known of T. gondii seroprevalence in pet dogs in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province, southwest China. The objective of this investigation was to estimate the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection in pet dogs in this area.


METHODS
A total of 611 serum samples were collected from 7 pet hospitals in Kunming, and assayed for T. gondii antibodies by the indirect haemagglutination (IHA) using a commercially-marked kit.


RESULTS
132 (21.6%) pet dogs were positive for T. gondii antibodies, and the seroprevalence ranged from 17.3% to 34.7% among different sampling regions, the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The T. gondii seroprevalence in female and male dogs were 20.8% and 22.4%, respectively, the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The seroprevalence ranged from 17.5% to 23.6% among different age groups, but the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05), and there were no interactions in statistics (P > 0.05) between gender and age of pet dogs in the region.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings of the present survey indicate high T. gondii seroprevalance in pet dogs in Kunming, southwest China, posing significant public health concern. It is necessary to enhance integrated strategies and measures to prevent and control T. gondii infection in pet dogs in this area.
State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, People's Republic of China.
Gang
G
Duan
Yi-Ming
YM
Tian
Bi-Feng
BF
Li
Jian-Fa
JF
Yang
Zi-Li
ZL
Liu
Fei-Zhou
FZ
Yuan
Xing-Quan
XQ
Zhu
Feng-Cai
FC
Zou
D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology*; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D057805:Pets; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D014122:Toxoplasma; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology
D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan