Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-hc48f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T12:22:15.441Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Neospora caninum infection in birds: experimental infections in chicken and embryonated eggs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 August 2007

P. I. FURUTA ,
T. W. P. MINEO ,
A. O. T. CARRASCO ,
G. S. GODOY ,
A. A. PINTO  and
R. Z. MACHADO
P. I. FURUTA
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
T. W. P. MINEO
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
A. O. T. CARRASCO
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
G. S. GODOY
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
A. A. PINTO
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
R. Z. MACHADO*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV), Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP), Via de Acesso Prof. Paulo Donato Castellane s/n, Campus de Jaboticabal, Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil
*
*Corresponding author: Immunoparasitology Laboratory, Department of Veterinary Pathology, FCAV/UNESP, Jaboticabal, SP, Brazil 14.884-900. Tel: +55 16 3209 2662. E-mail: zacarias@fcav.unesp.br
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Neospora caninum causes economical impact in cattle-raising farms since it is implicated as the major cause of bovine abortions. Although infection by the parasite has been widely described in mammals, the role of birds in its life-cycle is still obscure. Therefore, this work aimed to evaluate the infection by N. caninum in different chicken models. Experimental infections were conducted in 7-day-old chicks, laying hens and embryonated eggs, where samples were analysed for parasite burden, IgG antibodies and lesions promoted. Chickens demonstrated an asymptomatic infection, although with seroconversion and systemic replication of the parasite. In laying hens, no signs of vertical transmission were observed. However, embryonated eggs inoculated by the allantoic cavity route demonstrated susceptibility to infection, with mortality rates around 50% independent of the inoculum dose. Additionally, dogs became infected after ingestion of different amounts of inoculated eggs, producing either oocysts or specific IgG antibodies. The results herein presented demonstrate that chickens may be intermediate hosts of N. caninum and that embryonated eggs could be a useful model to study the parasite's biology.

Keywords

Neospora caninumchickenembryonated eggslaying hensdogsexperimental infections
Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 134 , Issue 14 , December 2007 , pp. 1931 - 1939
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2007

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

American Veterinary Medical Association (2003). Report of the AVMA panel on Euthanasia. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 218, 669–696.Google Scholar
Baker, D. G., Morishita, T. Y., Brooks, D. L., Shen, S. K., Lindsay, D. S. and Dubey, J. P. (1995). Experimental oral inoculations in birds to evaluate potential definitive hosts of Neospora caninum. Journal of Parasitology 81, 783–785.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Barber, J. S., Gasser, R. B., Ellis, J. T., Reichel, M. P., McMillan, D. and Trees, A. J. (1997). Prevalence of antibodies to Neospora caninum in different canid populations. Journal of Parasitology 83, 1056–1058.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bartels, C. J. M., Wouda, W. and Schukken, Y. H. (1999). Risk factors for Neospora caninum-associated abortion storms in dairy herds in The Netherlands (1995–1997). Theriogenology 52, 247–257.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bartels, C. J. M., Arnaiz-Seco, J. I., Ruiz-Santa-Quitera, A., Björkman, C., Frössling, J., von Blumröder, D., Conraths, F. J., Schares, G., van Maanen, C., Wouda, W., Ortega-Mora, L. M. (2006). Supranational comparison of Neospora caninum seroprevalences in cattle in Germany, The Netherlands, Spain and Sweden. Veterinary Parasitology 137, 17–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bartley, P. M., Wright, S., Sales, J., Chianini, F., Buxton, D. and Innes, E. A. (2006). Long-term passage of tachyzoites in tissue culture can attenuate virulence of Neospora caninum in vivo. Parasitology 133, 421–432.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berchieri Junior, A., Murphy, A., Marston, K. and Barrow, P. A. (2001). Observations on the persistence and vertical transmission of Salmonella enterica serovars Gallinarum and Pullorum in chickens: effect of bacterial and host genetic background. Avian Pathology 30, 221–231.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Biancifiori, F., Rondini, C., Grelloni, V. and Frescura, T. (1986). Avian toxoplasmosis: experimental infection of chicken and pigeon. Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases 9, 337–346.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bjerkås, I., Mohn, S. F. and Presthus, J. (1984). Unidentified cyst-forming sporozoon causing encephalomyelitis and myositis in dogs. Zeitschrift für Parasitenkunde 70, 271–274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buttitta, P. L. (1951). Biology of Toxoplasma hominis in the guinea pig, mouse and embryonated egg. Bollettino della Società Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale 27, 83–84.Google ScholarPubMed
Davidson, T. F. (2003). The immunologists' debt to the chicken. British Poultry Science 44, 6–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dubey, J. P., Carpenter, J. L., Speer, C. A., Topper, M. J. and Uggla, A. (1988). Newly recognized fatal protozoan disease of dogs. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 192, 1269–1285.Google ScholarPubMed
Dubey, J. P., Schares, G. and Ortega-Mora, L. M. (2007). Epidemiology and control of neosporosis and Neospora caninum. Clinical and Microbiological Reviews 20, 323–367.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fernández-García, A., Risco-Castillo, V., Zaballos, A., Álvarez-García, G. and Ortega-Mora, L. M. (2006). Identification and molecular cloning of the Neospora caninum SAG4 gene specifically expressed at bradyzoite stage. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology 146, 89–97.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gondim, L. F. (2006). Neospora caninum in wildlife. Trends in Parasitology 22, 247–252.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gondim, L. F., Gao, L. and McAllister, M. M. (2002). Improved production of Neospora caninum oocysts, cyclical oral transmission between dogs and cattle, and in vitro isolation from oocysts. Journal of Parasitology 88, 1159–1163.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gondim, L. F., McAllister, M. M. and Gao, L. (2005). Effects of host maturity and prior exposure history on the production of Neospora caninum oocysts by dogs. Veterinary Parasitology 134, 33–39.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gondim, L. F., McAllister, M. M., Pitt, W. C. and Zemlicka, D. E. (2004). Coyotes (Canis latrans) are definitive hosts of Neospora caninum. International Journal for Parasitology 34, 159–161.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Howe, D. K., Crawford, A. C., Lindsay, D. S. and Sibley, L. D. (1998). The p29 and p35 immunodominant antigens of Neospora caninum tachyzoites are homologous to the family of surface antigens of Toxoplasma gondii. Infection and Immunity 66, 5322–5328.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaneto, C. N., Costa, A. J., Paulillo, A. C., Moraes, F. R., Murakami, T. O. and Meireles, M. V. (1997). Experimental toxoplasmosis in broiler chicks. Veterinary Parasitology 69, 203–210.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McAllister, M. M., Dubey, J. P., Lindsay, D. S., Jolley, W. R., Willis, R. A. and McGuire, A. M. (1998). Dogs are definitive hosts of Neospora caninum. International Journal for Parasitology 28, 1473–1478.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGarry, J. W., Stockton, C. M., Williams, D. J. and Trees, A. J. (2003). Protracted shedding of oocysts of Neospora caninum by a naturally infected foxhound. Journal of Parasitology 89, 628–630.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGuire, A. M., McAllister, M. M., Wills, R. A. and Tranas, J. D. (1999). Experimental inoculation of domestic pigeons (Columbia livia) and zebra finches (Poephila guttata) with Neospora caninum tachyzoites. International Journal for Parasitology 29, 1525–1529.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mello, M. N. and Deane, M. P. (1976). Patterns of development of Trypanosoma cruzi in the embryonated chicken egg. Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology 70, 380–388.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mineo, T. W. P., Alenius, S., Näslund, K., Montassier, H. J. and Björkman, C. (2006). Distribution of antibodies against Neospora caninum, BVDV, and BHV-1 among cows in Brazilian dairy herds with reproductive disorders. Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Parasitology 15, 188–192.Google ScholarPubMed
Mineo, T. W. P., Silva, D. A. O., Costa, G. H. N., von Ancken, A. C., Kasper, L. H., Souza, M. A., Cabral, D. D., Costa, A. J. and Mineo, J. R. (2001). Detection of IgG antibodies to Neospora caninum and Toxoplasma gondii in dogs examined in a veterinary hospital from Brazil. Veterinary Parasitology 98, 239–245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Que, X., Wunderlich, A., Joiner, K. A. and Reed, S. L. (2004). Toxopain-1 is critical for infection in a novel chicken embryo model of congenital toxoplasmosis. Infection and Immunity 72, 2915–2921.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reichel, M. P. and Ellis, J. T. (2006). If control of Neospora caninum infection is technically feasible does it make economic sense? Veterinary Parasitology 142, 23–34.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Risco-Castillo, V., Fernández-García, A. and Ortega-Mora, L. M. (2004). Comparative analysis of stress agents in a simplified in vitro system of Neospora caninum bradyzoite production. Journal of Parasitology 90, 466–470.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roiron, V. and Galistin, P. (1963). Culture of Trichomonas vaginalis and Trichomonas foetus in the embryonated egg. Revue de Pathologie Générale et de Physiologie Clinique 63, 267–273.Google ScholarPubMed
Schares, G., Heydorn, A. O., Cuppers, A., Conraths, F. J. and Mehlhorn, H. (2001). Cyclic transmission of Neospora caninum: serological findings in dogs shedding oocysts. Parasitology Research 87, 873–877.Google ScholarPubMed
Trees, A. J. and Williams, D. J. L. (2005). Endogenous and exogenous transplacental infection in Neospora caninum and Toxoplasma gondii. Trends in Parasitology 21, 558–561.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Maanen, C., Wouda, W., Schares, G., von Blumröder, D., Conraths, F. J., Norton, R., Williams, D. J., Esteban-Redondo, I., Innes, E. A., Mattsson, J. G., Björkman, C., Fernández-García, A., Ortega-Mora, L. M., Müller, N., Sager, H. and Hemphill, A. (2004). An interlaboratory comparison of immunohistochemistry and PCR methods for detection of Neospora caninum in bovine foetal tissues. Veterinary Parasitology 126, 351–364.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Warren, J. and Russ, S. B. (1948). Cultivation of toxoplasma in embryonated eggs – an antigen derived from chorioallantoic membrane. Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine 67, 85–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wouda, W., Bartels, C. J., Moen, A. R. (1999). Characteristics of Neospora caninum-associated abortion storms in diary herds in The Netherlands (1995 to 1997). Theriogenology 52, 233–245.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wunderlin, E., Wild, P. and Eckert, J. (1997). Comparative reproduction of Cryptosporidium baileyi in embryonated eggs and in chickens. Parasitology Reasearch 83, 712–715.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Yamane, I., Kitani, H., Kokuho, T., Shibahara, T., Haritani, M., Hamaoka, T., Shimizu, S., Koiwai, M., Shimura, K. and Yokomizo, Y. (2000). The inhibitory effect of interferon gamma and tumour necrosis factor alpha on intracellular multiplication of Neospora caninum in primary bovine brain cells. Journal of Veterinary Medical Sciences, Series B 62, 347–351.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed