Prevalence of Toxoplasma Gondii Infection in Domestic and Migrating Birds from Mazandaran Province, Northern Iran

Toxoplasma gondii is widely prevalent in most warm-blooded animals worldwide. This protozoan is transmitted to intermediate hosts through a variety of modes. Humans are mainly infected by eating undercooked or raw meat of birds or livestock and eating food or drinking water contaminated with oocysts. Our aim was to assess T. gondii antibodies in birds. Samples were collected from 335 free-range birds and 50 migrating birds from September 2014 to December 2015. T. gondii antibodies were assayed using the modified agglutination test (MAT). Seroprevalence were verified in 51.4% of 385 birds (MAT titer ≥ 1:20 was seen in 51.3% and 52% of domestic and migrating birds, respectively). Statistically significant differences were not observed among species of birds. Free-range chickens of the central region showed a higher positive level than those of the other regions. However, the study results showed that more than half of the birds in this area are infected with T. gondii and therefore, could be considered as one of the most important hosts and a potential threat for consumers.