Seroprevalence of <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> in Pinnipeds under Human Care and in Wild Pinnipeds
Micaela Martins,
Nuno Urbani,
Carla Flanagan,
Ursula Siebert,
Stephanie Gross,
Jitender P. Dubey,
Luís Cardoso,
Ana Patrícia Lopes
Affiliations
Micaela Martins
Zoomarine Portugal, 8201-864 Guia, Portugal
Nuno Urbani
Zoomarine Portugal, 8201-864 Guia, Portugal
Carla Flanagan
Zoomarine Portugal, 8201-864 Guia, Portugal
Ursula Siebert
Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 25761 Buesum, Germany
Stephanie Gross
Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 25761 Buesum, Germany
Jitender P. Dubey
Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
Luís Cardoso
Department of Veterinary Sciences and Animal and Veterinary Research Centre (CECAV), School of Agrarian and Veterinary Sciences, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Ana Patrícia Lopes
Department of Veterinary Sciences and Animal and Veterinary Research Centre (CECAV), School of Agrarian and Veterinary Sciences, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Toxoplasma gondii infection has been reported in numerous species of marine mammals, some of them with fatal consequences. A serosurvey for T. gondii infection was conducted in pinnipeds from an oceanographic park in Portugal (n = 60); stranded pinnipeds on the Portuguese coast (n = 10); and pinnipeds captured in Lorenzensplate, Germany (n = 99). Sera from 169 pinnipeds were tested for the presence of antibodies to T. gondii by the modified agglutination test with a cut-off titre of 25. An overall seroprevalence of 8.9% (95% confidence interval: 5.1–14.2) was observed. Antibody titres of 25, 50, 100, 1600 and ≥3200 were found in five (33.3%), two (13.3%), five (33.3%), one (6.7%) and two (13.3%) animals, respectively. Pinnipeds under human care had a seroprevalence of 20.0% (12/60), in contrast to 2.8% (3/109) in wild pinnipeds (p T. gondii, while the seroprevalence found in pinnipeds under human care highlights the importance of carrying out further studies. This is the first serological survey of T. gondii in pinnipeds in Portugal and the first infection report in South African fur seal (Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus).
