Detection of Toxoplasma Gondii and Neospora Caninum Antibodies in Wild Boars (Sus Scrofa) in Eastern Turkey

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine for the presence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum antibodies in wild boars and to study the impact of infection between the sylvatic and domestic life cycles of these apicomplexan parasites. For this purpose, sera were collected from hunter-killed wild boars (Sus scrofa) during the winter period of 2011 from Erzurum province of Turkey. Collected sera were examined for antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum by Sabin Feldman dye test (SFDT) and competitive-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA), respectively. Out of 12 collected samples, 4 (33.3%) of sera were found to be seropositive at the dilution of 1:16 for Toxoplasma gondii however no seropositivity in any of the samples was detected against Neospora caninum. To the best knowledge of the authors, this is the first serologic study to detect anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in wild boars in Turkey.