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Toxoplasma gondii, Dirofilaria immitis, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infections in stray and pet cats (Felis catus) in northwest China: co-infections and risk factors

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Abstract

This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii, Dirofilaria immitis, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infections among stray and pet cats in Lanzhou, northwest China, and to identify the influence of age, gender, and regions on seropositivity. T. gondii antibodies were examined in cat sera by the modified agglutination test (MAT). The circulating antigens of D. immitis and FeLV and specific antibodies to FIV were examined using kits commercially available. The overall prevalence of T. gondii, FIV, FeLV, and D. immitis was 19.34, 9.12, 11.33, and 3.04 %, respectively. For the genetic characterization of T. gondii genotypes in cats, genomic DNA was extracted from the seropositive cats and the T. gondii B1 gene was amplified using a semi-nested PCR. DNA samples giving positive B1 amplification were then genotyped using multilocus PCR-RFLP. Two T. gondii genotypes (ToxoDB#9 and ToxoDB#1) were identified. Results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that older cats are more likely to be seropositive than juveniles for T. gondii, FIV, FeLV, and D. immitis. This is the first report of T. gondii genotypes in cats in northwest China. Moreover, the present study is the first study of retrovirus and D. immitis seroprevalence in cats in China. The results revealed that T. gondii, FIV, and FeLV infections are common in stray and pet cats in northwest China.

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Acknowledgments

Project support was provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 31228022), the Science Fund for Creative Research Groups of Gansu Province (Grant No. 1210RJIA006), and the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program (ASTIP) (Grant No. CAAS-ASTIP-2014-LVRI-03). Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie, Centre National de Référence de la Toxoplasmose, Centre de Ressources Biologiques Toxoplasma, Hôpital Maison Blanche, Reims Cédex, France, is thanked for providing the Toxoplasma MAT antigen. Associate Professor Chunlei Su at the Department of Microbiology, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, USA, is thanked for providing reference Toxoplasma gondii DNA samples used in the present study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Animal Science and Technology, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, Jilin Province, 130118, People’s Republic of China

    Wei Cong & Ai-Dong Qian

  2. State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, 730046, People’s Republic of China

    Wei Cong & Xing-Quan Zhu

  3. Jilin Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, Changchun, Jilin Province, 130118, People’s Republic of China

    Qing-Feng Meng

  4. Unité d’Epidémiologie, Laboratoire de Santé Animale, ANSES, Maisons-Alfort, France

    Radu Blaga

  5. Laboratoire de Parasitologie, EA3800, IFR53, CHU Reims, Centre National de Référence (CNR) Toxoplasmose/Toxoplasma Biological Resource Center (BRC), Reims, USC Epitoxo, Anses Lerpaz, France

    Isabelle Villena

  6. Jiangsu Co-innovation Center for the Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, College of Veterinary Medicine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, 225009, People’s Republic of China

    Xing-Quan Zhu

Authors
  1. Wei Cong
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  2. Qing-Feng Meng
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  3. Radu Blaga
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  4. Isabelle Villena
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  5. Xing-Quan Zhu
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  6. Ai-Dong Qian
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Xing-Quan Zhu or Ai-Dong Qian.

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Cong, W., Meng, QF., Blaga, R. et al. Toxoplasma gondii, Dirofilaria immitis, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infections in stray and pet cats (Felis catus) in northwest China: co-infections and risk factors. Parasitol Res 115, 217–223 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4738-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-015-4738-y

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