Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in sheep, cattle and horses in Urmia north-west of Iran

Toxoplasma gondii is a zoonotic protozoan parasite found worldwide and responsible for major economic losses in most classes of livestock. This study was aimed to determine the prevalence of T. gondii infection in sheep, cattle and horses in Urmia, north-west of Iran, using MAT. Blood samples of 276 livestock and 26 horses were collected from July 2009 till April 2010. The data were analyzed by the Chi-square, Fisher's Exact and Cochran's and Mantel-Haenszel Tests. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05. Thirty-three [21.1%] sheep, 2 [1.6%] cattle and 3 [11.5%] horses were seropositive to T. gondii. Analysis showed that sheep were 15 times more likely to be seropositive comparing to cattle also 2 times more likely to be seropositive than horses. This study showed seroprevalence of equine T. gondii infection with a considerable rate in sheep in Urmia, northwest of Iran. More comprehensive studies on livestock toxoplasmosis are required for further analysis of the parasite reservoir for human infection

[Using human umbilical cord matrix cells [HUCM] for culturing Toxoplasma gondii for serological and molecular assays]

Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite and one of the most common parasites between human and animals. Nowadays the molecular methods are being used for the diagnosis. Many molecular and drug assays have been performed on this parasite. Many serological and molecular methods are available for detection of this parasite. The aim of this study was to use human umbilical cord matrix cells for propagation of Toxoplasma gondii for serological and molecular assays. In this experimental study, performed in Kerman Medical University, RH strain of tachyzoite of Toxoplasma gondii was isolated from mice and cultured in HUMC, A549 and Hep2 media. The growth and generation conditions of cultured parasite in different times were studied. DMEM medium was used to compare the viability of parasite. The obtained data were analyzed by variance analysis using SPSS software. Parasite entry to cell line was observed in the first 48 hours of culturing in all media. In day 3-6, propagation of parasites in HUMC cell line was better than other cultures. In the late 6[th] day volume of cultivated parasites in virulence was acceptable. Use of human umbilical cord matrix cells is a suitable and inexpensive method for proliferation of Toxoplasma gondii. Using these cell lines are useful in providing live parasite for research purposes, drug assays of making laboratory kits