Seroprevalence of toxoplasma gondii infection in pet dogs in Anhui Province, China

Abstract

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular parasite, which can infect all nucleated cells in a variety of vertebrate animals, including hu-man, causing toxoplasmosis. Although a number of studies have reported on the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection in dogs in China, however, infor-mation about T. gondii infection in pet dogs in Anhui, China is not available. Methods: The modified agglutination test (MAT) was used to detect antibodies in sera samples from 468 pet dogs at Anhui Province in China from November 2013 to April 2017. Results: 18.6% animals were T. gondii seropositive, indicating a slightly higher prevalence of T. gondii infection in pet dogs in Anhui, China in comparison with other provinces in China. Conclusion: Our present study provided epidemiological data on T. gondii seroprevalence in pet dogs in Anhui, China for the effective prevention and control of the parasite prevalence in this area.