Abstract
The prevalence of antibodies to morbilliviruses, Brucella and Toxoplasma was studied in the Black Sea bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus ponticus and the beluga whale Delphinapterus leucas from the Sea of Okhotsk. The blood serum of 74 dolphins and 147 beluga whales was tested in 2002–2007. Antibodies to morbilliviruses were detected in 15 (20.3%) bottlenose dolphins and 20 (13.6%) beluga whales. Antibodies to Brucella were detected in 17 (23.0%) bottlenose dolphins and 10 (6.8%) beluga whales. Toxoplasma-specific antibodies were detected in 39 (52.7%) bottlenose dolphins and 7 (4.8%) beluga whales. Some animals had antibodies to two, or even three, of the pathogens. A high level of incidence of the pathogens in the sea animals was found in the densely populated coastal areas with high economic development.
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Original Russian Text © A.Yu. Alekseev, A.Yu. Reguzova, E.I. Rozanovab, A.V. Abramov, Yu.V. Tumanov, I.N. Kuvshinova, A.M. Shestopalov, 2009, published in Biologiya Morya.
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Alekseev, A.Y., Reguzova, A.Y., Rozanova, E.I. et al. Detection of specific antibodies to morbilliviruses, Brucella and Toxoplasma in the Black Sea dolphin Tursiops truncatus ponticus and the beluga whale Delphinapterus leucas from the Sea of Okhotsk in 2002–2007. Russ J Mar Biol 35, 494–497 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074009060078
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074009060078