Infection Status Of Toxoplasma Gondii And Neospora Caninum And Genetic Characterization Of T. Gondii In Beef Cattle In Hunan Province

Background: Cattle is an important intermediate host of Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum,both of which can cause abortion after infection in female cattle and result in significant economic losses for the cattle farming industry.In addition,T.gondii is an important zoonotic parasite.This study aimed to understand the current infection status of T.gondii and N.caninum in beef cattle in Hunan province and to determine the genotype of T.gondii.Method: we used indirect hemagglutination assay(IHA)and indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)to detect a total of 985 serum samples from beef cattle in Hunan province.The B1 gene for T.gondii and NC5 gene for N.caninum were determined in 160 muscle tissues from beef cattle by polymerase chain reaction(PCR).Finally,the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism technology(PCR-RFLP)was used to identify the genotypes of T.gondii in beef cattle in Hunan province.Results: The seroprevalence of T.gondii and N.caninum was 8.32%(82/985)and 2.13%(21/985),respectively.The molecular prevalence of T.gondii and N.caninum in beef were1.9%(3/160)and 0.6%(1/160),respectively.Moreover,the genotypes of the two samples were identified as Toxo DB#164(first reported in China)and Toxo DB#10.Conclusion: T.gondii infection in beef cattle is prevalent in Hunan province,and the prevalence of Neospora caninum is low.It provides important clues for the prevention and control of T.gondii and N.caninum in beef cattle in Hunan province.