RESUMO
Q fever/coxiellosis poses a significant threat to both human and animal health, with goats serving as important reservoirs for disease transmission. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of coxiellosis and identify associated risk factors within meat goat herds in northeastern Thailand. A total of 39 meat goat herds were examined, with 84.61% of these herds experiencing reproductive disorders suggestive of Coxiella burnetii infection. Serum samples (n = 513) and vaginal swabs (n = 334) were collected from 522 goats for serological and molecular analyses, respectively. Results unveiled an overall herd prevalence of 74.35% (29/39), with a within-herd prevalence of 15.49% (95% CI: 10.86-20.12). Univariate analysis indicated that knowledge about the transmission of coxiellosis in herd owners serves as a protective factor against C. burnetii infection at the herd level (OR: 0.10; 95% CI: 0.01-0.92; p = 0.04). Multivariable analysis identified two significant risk factors associated with C. burnetii infection at the herd level, including herd establishment exceeding 5 years (OR: 7.14; 95% CI: 1.05-48.4; p = 0.04), as well as reproductive failures including abortion, infertility, and weak offspring (OR: 17.65; 95% CI: 1.76-177.45; p = 0.01). Individual-level risk factors included female gender (OR: 8.42; 95% CI: 1.14-62.42; p = 0.03), crossbreeding (OR: 2.52; 95% CI: 1.32-4.82; p = 0.005), and clinical signs of anaemia (OR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.01-2.64; p = 0.04). These findings underscore the widespread prevalence of Q fever in meat goat herds within the study area and emphasize the necessity of implementing targeted control strategies.
RESUMO
Bovine neosporosis is among the main causes of abortion in cattle worldwide, causing serious economic losses in the beef and dairy industries. A highly sensitive and specific diagnostic method for the assessment of the epidemiology of the disease, as well as it surveillance and management, is imperative, due to the absence of an effective treatment or vaccine against neosporosis. In the present study, the immunodiagnostic performance of Neospora caninum peroxiredoxin 2 (NcPrx2), microneme 4 (NcMIC4), and surface antigen 1 (NcSAG1) to detect IgG antibodies against N. caninum in cattle were evaluated and compared with that of the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT). The results revealed that NcSAG1 had the highest sensitivity and specificity, with values of 88.4% and 80.7%, respectively, followed by NcPrx2, with a high sensitivity of 87.0% but a low specificity of 67.0%, whereas NcMIC4 showed sensitivity and specificity of 84.1% and 78.9%, respectively, when compared with IFAT. A high degree of agreement was observed for NcSAG1 (k = 0.713) recombinant protein, showing the highest diagnostic capability, followed by NcMIC4 (k = 0.64) and NcPrx2 (k = 0.558). The present study demonstrates that NcSAG1 is helpful as an antigen marker and also demonstrates the potential immunodiagnostic capabilities of NcPrx2 and NcMIC4, which could serve as alternative diagnostic markers for detecting N. caninum infection in cattle. These markers may find utility in future treatment management, surveillance, and risk assessment of neosporosis in livestock or other animal host species. Further research should be directed toward understanding the in vivo immune response differences resulting from immunization with both recombinant proteins.
RESUMO
The objective of this study was to identify risk factors related to reproductive disorders caused by bacterial infections in goats in northeastern Thailand. Two hundred twenty farms were investigated, and 49 herds were found to have clinical reproductive disorders. Moreover, 96% (47/49) of herds showing clinical reproductive failure preferred to circulate bucks between herds. A total of 118 sera, including 85 clinical reproductive disorder cases such as abortion (n = 70), abortion with arthritis (n = 1), orchitis (n = 3), repeat breeder (n = 6), sterile (n = 1), and weak kids (n = 4), and 33 bucks' circulations were serologically tested for bacterial infections caused by Coxiella burnetii, Chlamydophila abortus, and Brucella spp. Results showed 69% (81/118 cases) were seropositive for Q fever (n = 55; 46.61%), brucellosis (n = 8; 6.78), and chlamydiosis (n = 18; 15.25%), respectively; 82% of herds (40/49 herds) were infected with at least one of those diseases. Moreover, 40% of infected herds (16/40) had coinfection among the three of those diseases. Approximately 60% (20/33) of buck circulation showed seropositivity to at least one of the diseases, and 85% of infected bucks were seropositive for Q fever (17/20). Buck circulation between herds is a risk factor for diseases on farms (p=0.001); odds ratio (OR = 109.29; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 6.61-1,807.38). Moreover, the annual brucellosis test is a protective factor against reproductive failure cases on farms (p=0.022; OR = 0.45; 95% CI = 0.23-0.89). Reproductive disorder cases can be caused by sexual transmission, so buck circulation can yield Q fever, brucellosis, and chlamydiosis in communities. This investigation is the first report of chlamydiosis infection in our area. Concerning Q fever, chlamydiosis, and brucellosis are zoonotic diseases that impact animal health and production losses. Control and prevention measures related to risk factors together with active surveillance programs should be incorporated into client education.
