title: First cross-sectional serological survey on Besnoitia besnoiti in cattle in Italy.
abstract: A cross-sectional serological survey was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of besnoitiosis in cattle farms located in a region of southern Italy. A geographical information system (GIS) was used in order to uniformly sample the bovine farms (n=88) throughout the entire region. Blood samples were collected from 528 autochthonous cattle and sera were tested for antibodies to Besnoitia besnoiti using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test. The farm prevalence was 83.0% (73/88), and the individual animal prevalence was 44.1% (233/528). The availability of geo-referenced point or areal data on bovine besnoitiosis and the construction of prevalence maps by GIS are suggested for dissemination of information to veterinarians on this emerging infection in cattle.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Naples Federico II, CREMOPAR Regione Campania, Via Della Veterinaria 1, 80137, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rinaldi
authors.forename: Maria Paola
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Maurelli
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Musella
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bosco
authors.forename: Helder
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cortes
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cringoli
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D003048:Coccidiosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D021745:Sarcocystidae / Q000276:immunology*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan