Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Toxoplasma gondii infection found in German shepherd dogs and stray
By Lee, J Y et al.·Published in Research in veterinary science·2008·Research Institute of Veterinary Medicine, South Korea·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Nested PCR-based detection of Toxoplasma gondii in German shepherd dogs and stray cats in South Korea.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of German shepherd dogs in South Korea was tested for a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii, which can cause health issues. Out of 138 dogs, 64 were found to be positive for this parasite, indicating a high prevalence. The study showed that both male and female dogs of different ages were affected equally. The findings suggest that many dogs may carry this parasite without showing symptoms, and a specific test (nested PCR) can help detect it early.
People also search for: German shepherd Toxoplasma gondii symptoms · dog parasite testing · Toxoplasma treatment for dogs
Abstract
The prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii was surveyed by using a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that was targeted to T. gondii B1 gene in German shepherd dogs and stray cats. Sixty-four (46.3%) out of 138 German shepherd dogs and 50 (47.2%) out of 106 stray cats were tested positive by the nested PCR assay, respectively. There was no significant difference in gender or age in German shepherd dogs and stray cats. In the five positive dogs and five positive cats, the nucleotide partial sequence of the T. gondii B1 gene was identified by direct sequence analysis. All the sequences were identical to each other and the corresponding sequence, T. gondii B1 gene (Accession No. AF179871). The results suggest that the prevalence of T. gondii is high, and the nested PCR assay is useful for early detection of T. gondii for asymptomatic dogs and cats.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17949762/