Avaliação da ocorrência de anticorpos anti-Toxoplasma gondii, em soros de caprinos do estado de São Paulo, e associação com variáveis epidemiológicas, problemas reprodutivos e riscos à saúde pública

Abstract

The study evaluated the anti-Toxplasma gondii antibodies occurrence in dairy goats in São Paulo State, and also verified likely associations with age, sex, presence of cats, occurrence of reproductive problems, and potential risks to public health. Serum was obtained from 923 animals of both sex, over three months of age from 17 properties in different cities. For the diagnosis, the indirect immunofluorescence reaction (RIFIe"16) and a questionnaire about health to collect epidemiological information and the reproductive cycle of every goat were used. Among all properties, 15 foci of T. gondii were diagnosed with seropositivity ranging from 2.70% to 81.25%. Neither association between the frequency of seropositivity and the sex of animals nor occurrence of reproduction failure of goats was identified. There was positive influence of anti-T. gondii antibody rate due to the older age of the animals and the presence of cats in pens. The risk of transmitting T. gondii to the public health must be considered, once in some properties where the positive serology was verified natural, products such as milk and/or meat are commercialized. Results were discussed at 5% level of significance. © 2009 Colégio Brasileiro de Patologia Animal.