2003 Volume 56 Issue 10 Pages 645-648
An immunofluorescent antibody test for Neospora caninum was applied to 41 sera from Japanese Black beef cattle and to 39 sera from Holstein cattle in Kagoshima. The possible presence of neosporosis was suspected in both groups. The results of the tests showed that none of the Japanese-Black sera was Neospora-positive and that 28.2% of sera from Holstein cattle were Neospora-positive. A follow-up study was conducted on 225 sera from Holstein cattle on farm A and 58 sera from cattle on farm B. Sera from both farms were found to be Neospora-positive. Neosporosis-prevalence rate on farm A was 23.6%; the corresponding rate for farm B was 29.3%. In dam-daughter analysis on farm A, 65.2% of daughters from Neospora-positive dams were strongly suspected of vertical transmission, although the possibility of horizontal transmission was not excluded. Investigation showed 54.5% of the dams of 22 aborted calves to be Neospora-positive. Sera from 9 dogs on 3 farms, including farms A and B, were all Neospora-negative. Histopathological examinations of 2 aborted fetuses from farm A showed no Neospora-related lesions.
