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Title: Neospora caninum antibodies detected in Midwestern white-tailed deer

Author
item ANDERSON, T - UNIV. OF WISCONSIN
item DEJARDIN, A - UNIV. OF WISCONSIN
item HOWE - UNIV. OF KENTUCKY
item Dubey, Jitender
item MICHALSKI, M - UNIV. OF WISCONSIN

Submitted to: Veterinary Parasitology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/15/2006
Publication Date: 4/1/2007
Citation: Anderson, T., Dejardin, A., Howe, Dubey, J.P., Michalski, M.L. 2007. Neospora caninum antibodies detected in Midwestern white-tailed deer. Veterinary Parasitology. 145:152-155.

Interpretive Summary: Neospora caninum is a single celled parasite. It causes abortion in cattle and paralysis in companion animals. It is the most important cause of abortion in dairy cattle. Dogs and coyotes are its definitive hosts and main reservoirs of infection. This parasite is transmitted efficiently from the cow to the calf transplacentally. Scientists at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center and from Univ. of Wisconsin report the detection of Neospora antibodies in white tailed deer from Wisconsin and Missouri.The results will be of interest to biologists, parasitologists, and veterinarians.

Technical Abstract: White tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) serve to maintain the Neospora caninum life cycle in the wild. Sera from white tailed deer from south central Wisconsin and southeastern Missouri, USA were tested for antibodies to N. caninum. Seroreactivity against N. caninum surface antigens was observed in 30 of 147 (20%) of WI deer and 11 of 23 (48%) of MO deer using Western blot analysis. Two indirect ELISAs were evaluated to facilitate screening of deer serum samples, but compared to Western blot, were uninformative due to degradation of field collected samples. The results indicate the existence of N. caninum antibodies in MO and WI deer and that Western blot is superior to ELISA when using degraded blood samples collected from deer carcasses.