Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in aborted goats in Kerala

Toxoplasmosis, is a cosmopolitan zoonotic parasitic infection prevalent throughout the world affecting all warm blooded animals and man. A total of 72 serum samples from goats belonging to the organised,unorganised and small holder farms that had aborted recently or had a history of abortion were collected from the central districts of Kerala viz., Palakkad, Thrissur and Ernakulam. The samples were subjected to indirect Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) for the detection of IgG antibodies of Toxoplasma gondii. Factors predisposing to the prevalence of infection such as age, grazing behaviour and stage of gestation were also taken into account during the study. Out of 72 serum samples examined, 31(43 per cent) were negative, 13 (18 per cent) were weakly positive and 28 (38.88 per cent) were highly positive. A higher prevalence was noticed in goats above four years of age, in those with regular grazing behaviour and in those that had aborted in the second stage of gestation. District-wise prevalence revealed relatively higher prevalence in Ernakulam district (62.5 per cent) compared to Thrissur (56.09 per cent) and Palakkad (53.33 per cent), even though the difference was not statistically significant