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Natural infection of free-range chickens with the ascarid nematode Toxocara sp.

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Abstract

Human toxocariasis may be acquired by eating raw chicken liver. However, there are no reports on the prevalence of natural infection of chickens with Toxocara. The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of anti-Toxocara antibodies as indicators of natural infection with Toxocara, in free-range chickens from Espírito Santo State, Brazil. An ELISA test with secretory and excretory Toxocara canis antigens was used. Negative controls were 20 industrial chickens reared in a high hygiene standard environment. Positive control serum was from a chicken infected with embryonated eggs of T. canis. Sera were adsorbed with Ascaridia galli extract to reduce cross-reactivity. Cut-off was the mean plus four times the standard deviation of optical density (OD) in negative group. One hundred and fifty-seven sera from free-range chicken were investigated. Results showed 58.5 % of the chickens were positive with ELISA test; 12.7 % had OD over the positive control and may be considered as true infected chickens. The results between the cut-off and the positive control may include infections with low titers of antibodies or may represent serum scar of past infection or may be the result of cross-reaction with other nematodes rather than A. galli which is used for the adsorption of sera. In conclusion, high prevalence of Toxocara sp. antibodies demonstrates natural infection of free-range chickens from Espírito Santo State which may represent a risk of infection with this nematode in people who have the habit of eating raw or undercooked chicken meat or viscera. The results also suggest that chickens may be useful as sentinels to detect soil contaminated with Toxocara eggs.

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Acknowledgements

We thank to Dr. Guita Rubinski-Elefant providing the TES antigen of Toxocara canis.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing of interest.

Ethical statement

The authors assert that all procedures contributing to this work comply with the ethical standards of the national and institutional guides on the care and use of laboratory animals. The research was approved by the Ethics, Bioethics, and Animal Welfare Committee of Vila Velha University.

Financial support

This research was supported by the Fundação Nacional de Desenvolvimento do Ensino Superior Particular (FUNADESP) and by the intramural funding of University Vela Velha.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Vila Velha University, Rua Comissário José Dantas de Melo, n°21, Boa Vista, 29102-770, Vila Velha, ES, Brazil

    Danielle R. Campos-da-Silva, Jeanne S. da Paz, Viviane R. Fortunato, Luis C. P. Valli & Fausto E. L. Pereira

  2. School of Veterinary Medicine, Vila Velha University, Rua Comissário José Dantas de Melo 21, Boa Vista, 29102-770, Vila Velha, ES, Brazil

    Marcus A. V. Beltrame

  3. Infectious Diseases Unit, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Av. Marechal Campos 1468, 29100, Vitoria, ES, Brazil

    Fausto E. L. Pereira

  4. Núcleo de Doenças Infecciosas, Universidade Federal do E Santo, Av. Marechal Campos 1468, 29100, Vitoria, ES, Brazil

    Fausto E. L. Pereira

Authors
  1. Danielle R. Campos-da-Silva
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  2. Jeanne S. da Paz
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  3. Viviane R. Fortunato
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  4. Marcus A. V. Beltrame
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  5. Luis C. P. Valli
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  6. Fausto E. L. Pereira
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fausto E. L. Pereira.

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Campos-da-Silva, D.R., da Paz, J.S., Fortunato, V.R. et al. Natural infection of free-range chickens with the ascarid nematode Toxocara sp.. Parasitol Res 114, 4289–4293 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4669-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4669-7

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