A diagnostic survey of Neospora caninum infection in aborted fetuses in the Middle Black Sea Region and Sivas Province, Turkey

Abstract

Neospora caninum is a major, cosmopolitan, protozoan parasite associated with abortion in cattle and water buffaloes. In this study, real-time PCR was used for the detection and quantification of the burden of N. caninum infections in aborted fetuses in the Middle Black Sea Region and Sivas Province of Turkey. In total, N. caninum DNA was detected in 44 of the 89 (49.4%) aborted fetuses of the cattle and water buffalo from 89 different farms. The authors conclude that the pervasiveness of neosporosis is a threat to cattle breeding in the Middle Black Sea Region and Sivas Province. Real-time PCR testing gave consistently reliable results, which suggests that this procedure can be used for the molecular diagnosis of abortion cases in bovine livestock.