Isolation and genetic characterization of viable Toxoplasma gondii from tissues and feces of cats from the central region of China

Yurong Yang; Yuqing Ying; S K Verma; A B M Cassinelli; O C H Kwok; Hongde Liang; A K Pradhan; X Q Zhu; C Su; J P Dubey

doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.05.006

Isolation and genetic characterization of viable Toxoplasma gondii from tissues and feces of cats from the central region of China

Vet Parasitol. 2015 Jul 30;211(3-4):283-8. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.05.006. Epub 2015 May 15.

Authors

Yurong Yang¹, Yuqing Ying², S K Verma³, A B M Cassinelli³, O C H Kwok³, Hongde Liang¹, A K Pradhan⁴, X Q Zhu⁵, C Su⁶, J P Dubey⁷

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory of Veterinary Pathology, College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agriculture University, Zhengzhou 450002, PR China.
² Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
³ United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350, USA.
⁴ Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; Center for Food Safety and Security Systems, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
⁵ State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences,Lanzhou, Gansu Province 730046, PR China.
⁶ Department of Microbiology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0845, USA.
⁷ United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350, USA. Electronic address: Jitender.Dubey@ars.usda.gov.

PMID: 26033402
DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.05.006

Abstract

Cats are important in the epidemiology of toxoplasmosis because they are the only definitive hosts that excrete environmentally resistant Toxoplasma gondii oocysts. Little is known of feline toxoplasmosis in China and most of the literature is in Chinese. Here we summarized all published reports on feline toxoplasmosis in English and report first identification of oocyst excretion by naturally infected cats in China. Unfrozen tissues of 42 cats and feces of 360 cats from China were bioassayed in mice for isolation of T. gondii. Antibodies to T. gondii were found in 21 of 42 (50%) of cats by the modified agglutination test (cut-off 1:25). Viable T. gondii was isolated from tissues of eight of 21 seropositive but not from 21 seronegative (<1:25) cats. Viable T. gondii was isolated from feces of one cat. DNA derived from cell cultured tachyzoites of all nine T. gondii isolates was characterized by PCR-RFLP at 10 loci (SAG1, SAG2, SAG3, BTUB, GRA6, c22-8, c29-2, L358, PK1, and Apico). Four genotypes were found; the genotypes of tissue isolates were ToxoDB #9 in six, ToxoDB #2 in one, and ToxoDB #17 in one. The fecal isolate was ToxoDB #1.To our knowledge, the present study is the first isolation of T. gondii from cat feces from China.

Keywords: Cat (Felis catus); China; Feces; Genotype; Isolation; Toxoplasma gondii.

MeSH terms

Animals
Antibodies, Protozoan / blood
Cat Diseases / epidemiology
Cat Diseases / parasitology*
Cats
China / epidemiology
Feces / parasitology*
Toxoplasma / genetics*
Toxoplasmosis, Animal / epidemiology
Toxoplasmosis, Animal / parasitology*

Substances

Antibodies, Protozoan