Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Research and Animal Science (May 2020)

Seroprevalence of Brucella ovis-epididymitis, smooth-Brucella, leptospirosis, toxoplasmosis, and Maedi-Visna in sheep slaughtered in Minas Gerais State, Brazil

  • Elaine Maria Seles Dorneles,
  • Alessandro Sá Guimarães,
  • Aurora Maria Gumarães Gouveia,
  • Fernanda Morcatti Coura,
  • Filipe Borges Carmo,
  • Rebeca Barbosa Pauletti,
  • Vasco Azevedo,
  • Walter Lilenbaum,
  • Ricardo Wagner Almeida Vitor,
  • Raymundo Rizaldo Pinheiro,
  • Amanda Carvalho Rosado Ferreira,
  • Mauricio Gauterio Dasso,
  • Andrey Pereira Lage,
  • Marcos Bryan Heinemann

DOI
https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1678-4456.bjvras.2020.164278
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 57, no. 2

Abstract

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The present study aimed to estimate the prevalence of antibodies against Brucella ovis-epididymitis, smooth-Brucella, leptospirosis, toxoplasmosis and Maedi-visna in sheep slaughtered in Minas Gerais, Brazil and to study their simultaneous occurrence, including caseous lymphadenitis, at sheep and flock levels. The study was conducted at a sheep slaughterhouse with Federal Inspection Service. Sera from 594 animals from 21 flocks were collected, in 2007. The agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) was employed to detect anti-B. ovis and anti-Maedi Visna antibodies, whereas Rose Bengal (RB) and the 2-mercaptoethanol test (2ME) were used to test anti-smooth Brucella antibodies. For the detection of anti-Leptospira antibodies, sera were examined by microscopic agglutination test (MAT), while for the detection of IgG antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii ELISA was used. Prevalence of antibodies against smooth Brucella, B. ovis-epididimitis, Leptospira spp., toxoplasmosis and Maedi-Visna found in sheep from Minas Gerais was 0.00%, 24.04%, 25.96%, 10.46% and 3.08%, respectively; whereas the seroprevalence in flocks was 0.00%, 80.95%, 90.48%, 71.43% and 23.81%, respectively. Moreover, when data on antibodies anti-Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, previously obtained, were included, about 60% of the flocks showed animals that were exposed to four or more of the studied agents. However, only 25.47% of the sheep exhibited simultaneously antibodies against more than one pathogen. Thus, data from the present study on sheep slaughtered in Minas Gerais, Brazil, showed no antibodies to smooth-Brucella and a low frequency of antibodies anti-Maedi Visna lentivirus, and a high and widespread seroprevalence of B. ovis, Leptospira spp., and T. gondii among animals and flocks.

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