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PARASITES
PROTOZOA



Toxoplasma

Toxoplasma Life Cycle Diagram - Dennis Jacobs & Mark Fox RVC
  • 1 major pathogenic species called Toxoplasma gondii
  • Causes disease in a wide range of animal species including humans
  • Important cause of abortion in sheep
  • Zoonotic
    • Can cause abortion
    • Can cause congenitally aquired defects
  • Forms a sporulated oocyst which is only 10μm
    • Contains 2 sporocysts with 4 sporozoites
  • Transmission through ingesting the intermediate host or via the faecal-oral route

Life Cycle

  • Complex
  • Usually indirect
  • Gametogeny (sexual stage) is host specific for felids
  • Any warm blooded animal can act as a facultative intermediate host
    • Asexual reproduction occurs in the intermediate host forming tissue cysts
    • Intermediate host swallows sporulated oocysts or tissue cysts
    • Can be transferred between intermediate hosts by carnivorism

Toxoplasma can cause acute interstitial pancreatitis in systemic toxoplasmosis

  • T. gondii in pneumonia
  • Toxoplasma gondii, Sarcocystis and Neospora caninum in myositis

Sarcocystis

  • Most infections are asymptomatic
  • Heavy infections are causes of chronic wasting in large animals, hide sondemnation and downgrading of carcasses
  • Sarcocystis should be differentiated from other tissue-cyst forming coccidia
  • There are many species of Sarcocystis
  • Sporulated oocyst has 2 sporocysts containing 4 sporozoites
    • Naked oocyst usually seen in faeces as the oocyst wall is very delicate
  • Indirect life cycle
  • Life cycle alternates between the final and the obligatory intermediate host
  • Only one final and one intermediate host

Neospora

  • 2 main species
    • Neospora caninum in the dog
    • Neospora hughesi in the horse
  • Sporulated oocysts measuring just 10μm
  • Oocyst contains 2 sporocysts with 4 sporozoites
  • Route of transmission not fully understood
  • Often misdiagnosed as Toxoplasma gondii
    • Sarcocystis cysts have thicker walls
  • Infection diagnosed by IFAT, ELISA or PCR
    • Identification of lesions and organisms in tissue using immunohistochemical staining
    • Eliminate other causes of abortion first

Life cycle

  • Life cycle similar to Toxoplasma gondii
  • Limited range of warm-blooded intermediate hosts
    • Asexual reproduction occurs in intermediate host forming tissue cysts
  • Host range of sexual stage is unknown for N.caninum
    • Intermediate host for N.hughesi is the horse, but the definitive host is unknown
  • Final host
    • Dogs pass oocysts
    • Role not fully understood in pathogenesis
    • 5 day prepatent period
    • Other wild canids may also act as final definitive hosts
  • Intermediate host
    • Mostly cattle
    • Natural infection has been documented in other herbivores
  • Transmission
    • Transplacental infection occurs in all intermediate hosts and in the canine final host
      • Transplacental can occur in successive pregnancies
    • In cattle, vertical transmission occurs
      • Post-natal infection occurs but is less common

Pathogenesis

  • Dogs
    • Occurs mainly in puppies
    • Causes ascending paralysis, especially of hind limbs, with muscle wasting
    • Causes sudden collapse due to myocarditis
    • More than puppy in a litter may be affected, although this may not occur simultaneously
    • Successive litters affected
  • Cattle
    • Commenest cause of infectious abortion in dairy cattle
    • Congenitally infected calves can have encephalomyelitis and paresis
    • Abortion usually occurs between 5-7 months of gestation but can occur as early as 3 months
    • No other clinical signs in the cow
    • Repeat abortions possible in same cow (persistently infected)
  • Horses
    • Myeloencephalitis
    • Transplacental infection occurs
    • Disease only diagnosed in USA

Prevention and Control

  • Do not allow dogs access to calving cows, placental membranes and aborted or dead calves
  • Do not allow dogs to defecate in cattle feeding areas
  • Identify and cull seropositive cattle, or do not breed from them or their progeny
  • Select seronegative cattle for breeding
  • Vaccinate
    • Only in the USA
    • Neoguard or Intervet
    • Killed protozoal vaccine for healthy, preganant cows
    • Dosed in first 3 weeks of pregnancy and then every 3-4 weeks during gestation
    • Revaccination with 2 doses during each subsequent pregnancy