Seroprevalence and Risk Factors ofInfection of Cattle and Goats in Farms of Hunan Province, China.

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is one of the most widespread foodborne parasitic zoonoses caused by the obligate intracellular protozoan. Although a number of studies have reported on the seroprevalence and risk factors ofinfection in ruminants in China, information aboutinfection in cattle in Hunan province of China is not available.Sera of 985 cattle and 1147 goats were examined for the presence of specific antibodies againstusing the indirect hemagglutination test. Some risk factors related to the presence of cats, herd size, gender, age, and geographical origin were determined using a binary logistic regression.Specific IgG againstwere detected in 8.3% (82/985) and 13.3% (153/1147) of the cattle and goats, respectively. Based on statistical analysis, the presence of cats and gender were considered important risk factors forinfection in cattle and goats in the farms in this study (< 0.05).Our results provide a baseline for future prevention and control ofinfection in cattle and goats in Hunan province, subtropical China. This is the first report ofseroprevalence in cattle in Hunan province, China.