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First Record of Giardia in Cattle in Denmark

Giardia observeret for første gang hos kvæg i Danmark

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 37, pages 337–341 (1996)Cite this article

Abstract

Faecal samples from asymptomatic dairy cows and calves from a farm on the Island Falster, Denmark, were examined by a sucrose gradient flotation technique. Giardia cysts were found in 7.6% of the 92 samples, and estimated cyst excretion rates ranged from 50-200 cysts per gram faeces. Given that Giardia has the potential to cause clinical disease in cattle and to be transmitted to other animal species and humans, finding the parasite in cattle may be of major epidemiological significance. Future work should focus on elucidating the pathogenicity, transmission patterns and the genetic structure of Giardia populations in cattle in Denmark.

Sammendrag

Faecesprøver (n=92) fra en malkekvægsbesætning på Falster i Danmark er undersøgt med sukkrose gradient flotation. Giardia cyster blev påvist i 7,6% af prøverne, primært fra voksne køer. Udskillelsen af cyster varierede fra 50-200 cyster pr. g. fæces, hvilket synes relativt lavt sammmenlignet med fund rapporteret fra udlandet. Det er så vidt vides første gang, at infektion med Giardia er påvist hos kvæg i Danmark. I betragtning af, at Giardia er i stand til at forårsage klinisk sygdom hos kvæg og at Giardia repræsenterer en potentiel smittekilde for andre dyr og mennesker, kan dette fund have stor epidemiologisk betydning.

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Acknowledgment

Support from the Danish Research Academy (DAN- VIS no. D930061) is gratefully acknowledged (RBG).

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Author notes

  1. T. Iburg

    Present address: State Veterinary Institute for Virus Research, Lindholm, Denmark

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Danish Veterinary Laboratory, Bülowsvej 27, DK-1790, Copenhagen V, Denmark

    T. Iburg & S.A. Henriksen

  2. Danish Centre for Experimental Parasitology, The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    R.B. Gasser

  3. Department of Veterinary Science, The University of Melbourne, Werribee, Victoria, Australia

    R.B. Gasser

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  1. T. Iburg
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Correspondence to S.A. Henriksen.

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Iburg, T., Gasser, R. & Henriksen, S. First Record of Giardia in Cattle in Denmark. Acta Vet Scand 37, 337–341 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548099

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Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica

ISSN: 1751-0147