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No detection of Besnoitia besnoiti DNA in the semen of chronically infected bulls

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Abstract

Bovine besnoitiosis is a chronic and debilitating disease observed in many European countries that may cause important economic losses in cattle. The recent widespread of the parasite in Europe had led the European Food Safety Authority to declare bovine besnoitiosis as a re-emerging disease in Europe. Many aspects of the epidemiology of bovine besnoitiosis such as the main routes of transmission are still unclear and need to be further studied. Among the different hypotheses, a sexual transmission has not yet been investigated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of Besnoitia besnoiti DNA in the semen of naturally infected bulls by using a highly sensitive method (real-time qPCR). Both pre-sperm and sperm fractions of 40 bulls, including seronegative (n = 11), seropositive subclinically (n = 17), and seropositive clinically (n = 12) infected animals, were collected by electroejaculation and analyzed by real-time qPCR. No B. besnoiti DNA was detected in 27 pre-sperm and 28 sperm fractions of the 40 examined bulls, suggesting that the transmission of B. besnoiti infection by the semen of chronically infected bulls is very unlikely.

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Acknowledgments

We want to thank the farmers for their voluntary participation in the study. The authors are very grateful to Marie Planas, Jean-Luc Champion, and Laure Eon for their assistance during the field study. This work has been financially supported by FRGDS and Regional Council of the Region Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur and the GDS of Alpes de Haute-Provence.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical considerations

The electroejaculation technique is occasionally used in France to detect sterility in bulls. Blood and skin samples are commonly used in the diagnosis of infectious and parasitic diseases. All these samples were done by veterinarians (Pr Nicole Picard-Hagen for the electroejaculation and Pr Philippe Jacquiet for the blood and skin samples).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Animal Pathology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Zaragoza, Miguel Servet 177, 50013, Zaragoza, Spain

    A. Esteban-Gil & J. A. Castillo

  2. Laboratoire de Parasitologie, UMR INRA/DGER 1225, INP—Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, 23 chemin des Capelles, 31076, Toulouse Cedex 03, France

    C. Grisez, F. Prevot, E. Liénard, E. Bouhsira, M. Franc & P. Jacquiet

  3. Unité de Pathologie de la Reproduction, Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Institut National Polytechnique de Toulouse, Université de Toulouse, 31076, Toulouse, France

    S. Florentin, A. Decaudin, N. Picard-Hagen, X. Berthelot & P. Ronsin

  4. Toxalim, Research Center in Food Toxicology, Unité Mixte de Recherche 1331, Institut National de Recherche Agronomique, 31027, Toulouse, France

    N. Picard-Hagen

  5. Laboratoire vétérinaire départemental de l’Ariège, rue de Las Escoumes, 09008, Foix CDIS, France

    J. P. Alzieu

  6. Groupement de Défense Sanitaire des Alpes de Haute-Provence (GDS 04), 66 Boulevard Gassendi, 04004, Digne, France

    M. Marois & C. Vilardell

  7. FRGDS PACA, 570 avenue de la libération, 04100, Manosque, France

    N. Corboz & M. Peglion

Authors
  1. A. Esteban-Gil
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  2. C. Grisez
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  3. F. Prevot
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  4. S. Florentin
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  5. A. Decaudin
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  6. N. Picard-Hagen
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  7. X. Berthelot
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  8. P. Ronsin
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  9. J. P. Alzieu
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  10. M. Marois
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  11. N. Corboz
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  12. M. Peglion
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  13. C. Vilardell
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  14. E. Liénard
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  15. E. Bouhsira
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  16. J. A. Castillo
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  17. M. Franc
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  18. P. Jacquiet
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to P. Jacquiet.

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Esteban-Gil, A., Grisez, C., Prevot, F. et al. No detection of Besnoitia besnoiti DNA in the semen of chronically infected bulls. Parasitol Res 113, 2355–2362 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-3894-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-014-3894-9

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