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Title:   Author  item
                                            GENNARI, SOLANGE - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            NIEYMEYER, CLAUDIA - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            CATAO-DIAS, JOSE - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            SOARES, HERBERT - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            ACOUSTA, IGOR - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            DIAS, RICARDO - Universidade De Sao Pauloitem
                                            RIBEIRO, JESSICA - Sabina Escola Parque Do Conhecimentoitem
                                            LASSALVIA, CHRISTIANE - Aquario Municipal De Santositem
                                            KOLESNIKOVAS, CHRISTIANE - R3 Animalitem
                                            MAYORGA, LUIS - Instituto De Pesquisa E Reabilitacao De Animais Marinhositem
                                            Dubey, Jitender
  Submitted to: Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine
                                    Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 12/21/2015
                                    Publication  Date: 3/1/2016
                                    Citation: Gennari, S., Nieymeyer, C., Catao-Dias, J., Soares, H., Acousta, I., Dias, R., Ribeiro, J., Lassalvia, C., Kolesnikovas, C., Mayorga, L., Dubey, J.P. 2016. Survey of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus Forster, 1781). Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine. 47:364-6.Interpretive Summary: Toxoplasma gondii an obligate, single-celled, protozoan parasite continues to be a major zoonotic health concern in human and veterinary medicine because it is capable of infecting any warm-blooded vertebrate intermediate host. As the definitive host, cats are fundamental in  the epidemiology of toxoplasmosis. Millions of oocysts can be excreted in the feces of a single cat and oocysts can survive outdoors for months. It causes mortality in many species of endangered species, including penguins. Many aspects of this parasite transmission are unknown, including the possibility of transmission to remote areas without cats. Penguins migrate across oceans. The Magellanic penguins breed on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America. In the present study the authors found antibodies to T. gondii in 28% of 100 penguins in a rehabilitation center in Brazil, suggesting contamination of waters with oocysts of the parasite. The results will be of interest to biologists, veterinarians, and parasitologists.
                                Technical Abstract: Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) breed on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the southernmost parts of South America and migrate northwards up to Peru and Brazil. Serum samples (n = 100) from Magellanic penguins from 3 zoos and 2 rehabilitation centres in Brazil were assayed for the presence of antibodies to T. gondii by means of the modified agglutination test (MAT, cut-off = 20). The penguins were categorized as young (= 4 years old) or adults (= 4 years old), sexed (male, female, or sex not recorded), and data were analysed using the chi-square test (p = 0.05). Toxoplasma gondii antibodies were found in 28% of panguins; in 25.8% males, in 27.8% females, in 30.3% of unknown gender, in 25.4% of young and 31.1% of adults birds. Statistical analyses did not find any difference with respect to age, gender or the source of the birds. This is the first report of T. gondii antibodies in Spheniscus magellanicus.


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