Parasites, Hosts and Diseases

The Korea Society for Parasitology and Tropical Medicine (대한기생충학·열대의학회)
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Molecular epidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii in cattle in Korea

  • Kyoo-Tae Kim (College of Veterinary Medicine, Kyungpook National University) ;
  • Min-Goo Seo (College of Veterinary Medicine, Kyungpook National University)
  • Received : 2022.02.07
  • Accepted : 2023.04.18
  • Published : 2023.05.31
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Abstract

Toxoplasmosis is a major public health concern, with raw or undercooked meat being the primary source of human infection. Knowledge regarding the molecular epidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii in cattle destined for human consumption in Korea is lacking. The present study aimed to genetically characterize the infectious strains of T. gondii. Overall, 455 cattle blood samples from 84 farms in the Gyeongnam-do (Province) were randomly collected in 2017. Nested PCR analysis revealed that only 3 (0.7%) samples were infected with T. gondii. The B1 gene sequence of T. gondii was observed to be similar (97.3-99.6%) to that of other T. gondii isolates. This is the first study to perform the molecular detection of T. gondii in cattle in Korea. Although the prevalence of infection was low, our findings suggest that cattle present a potential public health issue. It may be crucial to recognize the importance of T. gondii infection in cattle meat.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This research was supported by Kyungpook National University Research Fund, 2022.

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