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Toxoplasma Gondii in Swine in South-Eastern Norway

Toxoplasma gondii hos svin i sørøstre deler av Norge

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 19, pages 574–587 (1978)Cite this article

Abstract

A total of 407 swine bred in south-eastern Norway have been tested for the presence of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in serum by use of the dye-test, and diaphragm muscle from all sero-positive and some sero-negative swine has been tested for the presence of mouse-infective cysts.

The prevalence of antibodies was as low as 10.1 %. The prevalence increased with the weight of the swine, but apparently with a decline after passing a weight of 140 kg. Only dye-test titres up to 50 were found. The prevalence of dye-test positive swine was higher in small herds (< 300 swine p.a.) than in larger ones (> 300 swine p.a.). The prevalence of herds with dye-test positive swine in the region surrounding the Oslo-fjord was higher in the coastal than in the inland zone. The incidence of infection was the same during the summer-autumn period as during the winter-spring period. Toxoplasma was recovered from the diaphragm muscle of about % of the dyeπtest positive swine. Parasites were isolated from some pigs with a dye-test titre of 4, and from all the pigs with a titre of 50. Toxoplasma was not isolated from dye-test negative swine. The epidemiological and food-hygienic significance of porcine toxoplasmosis in Norway is discussed according to the present results.

Sammendrag

Til sammen 407 svin slaktet ved Fellesslakteriet, Oslo, er testet for forekomst av Toxoplasma gondii antistoffer i serum ved bruk av dye-testen. Diafragma fra alle sero-positive og noen sero-negative svin er testet for forekomst av muse-infektive cyster.

Prevalensen av antistoffer var 10,t %. Prevalensen steg med økende slaktevekt, men med en ned gang for svin over 140 kg. Bare dye-test titere opp til 50 ble påvist. Prevalensen av dye-test positive svin var høyere i små besetninger (< 300 svin pr, år) enn i større (> 300 svin pr. år), Prevalensen av besetninger med dye-test positive svin var høyere i området ved Oslofjorden enn lenger inne i landet. Insidensen av infeksjon med Toxoplasma gondii var den samme i sommer- og høstmånedene som i vinter- og vårmånedene. Toxoplasma ble påvist i diafragmamuskulatur fra omkring to tredjedeler av de sero-positive svinene. Parasitter ble isolert fra noen svin med titer 4 og fra alle med titer 50. Toxoplasma ble ikke isolert fra sero-negative svin. Den epidemiologiske og næringsmiddelhygieniske betydning av toxoplasmose hos svin i Norge er diskutert med bakgrunn i de foreliggende resultatene.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Department of Food Hygiene, Veterinary College of Norway, P. O. Box 8146, Oslo Dep., Oslo 1, Norway

    Iυar Hellesnes, Sυein Fredrik Mohn & Brynjulf Melhuus

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  1. Iυar Hellesnes
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  2. Sυein Fredrik Mohn
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  3. Brynjulf Melhuus
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Hellesnes, I., Mohn, S.F. & Melhuus, B. Toxoplasma Gondii in Swine in South-Eastern Norway. Acta Vet Scand 19, 574–587 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03547597

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Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica

ISSN: 1751-0147