The prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in sheep in the Western Cape, South Africa
Date
2015-11-03
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
AOSIS Publishing
Abstract
The seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in a sample of 292 merino sheep farmed
in a semi-intensive manner in the Overberg region of the Western Cape, South Africa, was
investigated. Antibody seroprevalence was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent
assay. Of the total sample, 23 sheep tested positive for T. gondii antibodies (8%; 95% CI: 4.7688–
10.9846). There was no statistically significant relationship between seroprevalence and age
of the sheep. The highest seroprevalence was found in sheep between 28 and 40 months old;
a total of 19 sheep were seropositive by 40 months. No seropositive sheep were found in the
age group between 16 and 28 months. The seroprevalence reported in this study is higher
than what has previously been reported for the Western Cape (6%) and across South Africa
on average (4.7%). As sheep farming is economically significant in South Africa, the presence
of T. gondii amongst sheep may pose a production threat to the small-stock industry as well as
to public health and food security. We therefore recommend further surveillance to identify
high-risk animal populations so that local control measures can be put in place.
Description
CITATION: Hammond-Aryee, K., Van Helden, L. S. & Van Helden, P. D. 2015. The prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in sheep in the Western Cape, South Africa. Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research, 82(1),
Art. #993, doi:10.4102/ojvr.v82i1.993.
The original publication is available at http://www.ojvr.org
The original publication is available at http://www.ojvr.org
Keywords
Toxoplasma gondii -- Serodiagnosis, Sheep -- Diseases -- South Africa -- Western Cape, Antibodies against toxoplasma gondii, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
Citation
Hammond-Aryee, K., Van Helden, L. S. & Van Helden, P. D. 2015. The prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in sheep in the Western Cape, South Africa. Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research, 82(1),
Art. #993, doi:10.4102/ojvr.v82i1.993.