Abdalla Mohamed Ibrahim, Ahmed Ali Ismail, Tamador Elkhansa Elnour Angara, Osman Mukhtar Osman
Toxoplasmosis is an important cause of reproductive failure in man and farm animals resulting in significant socio-economic losses worldwide. The aim of this work was to assess the sero-prevalence of T. gondii infection in dairy cows using the commercially available Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The study revealed that, the overall seroprevalence of T. gondii infection at herd level of the investigated dairy herds was 89.3% (117/131). The within herd seroprevalence was ranging from 12% up to 100% with mean of 56.3% in different herds of different dairy farms. The differences in the seroprevalence rate among the three districts and the seven localities examined were statistically significant (p<0.05). The overall sero-prevalence of T. gondii infection in dairy cows at individual level was 49.9% (371/744). Omdurman District scored the highest seroprevalence rate (53.7%) followed by Khartoum North (51.9%), with statistically significant differences (p<0.05). This is the first area-wide and large scale report on seroprevalence of T. gondii infection in dairy cows from the Sudan using ELISA. It was concluded that dairy cows in the Sudan are widely exposed to T. gondii and the possible role of this parasite in the economical losses in dairy farm industry in the country should be taken in mind. Moreover, a possible role of dairy cattle in the epidemiology of human toxoplasmosis in the Sudan may not be excluded. Research on clinical toxoplasmosis in dairy cows is recommended for building strategy for sustainable control of human and animal toxoplasmosis.
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