The Prevalence of Tocoplasma gondii in Cats (Felis Catus) in the Eastern Upper Peninsula

The Prevalence of Tocoplasma gondii in Cats (Felis Catus) in the Eastern Upper Peninsula

Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite that typically infects cats and rodents. Reported infection rates within the United States vary by geographic region, however there have been no reports on the prevalence in Michigan. I estimated prevalence of T. gondii in cats from Chippewa County during both the winter and summer seasons of 2012, examining both the blood and feces of cats, using a modified agglutination test to test for T. gondii antibodies, while the feces were analyzed with a fecal floatation technique to determine if oocysts were present. An overall prevalence of 32% was found. During winter 17 of the 50 (34%) cats and 16 of the 53 (30%) cats during summer were positive for T. gondii antibodies. None of the feces contained T. gondii oocysts. There was no major difference between the infected cats as far as age, sex, origin, or between seasons. Likely, the rural environment, with a large amount of mice and people allowing their cats outdoors, may have had an impact the small amount of variation.

Connor, Hannah

Biology

Lake Superior State University

2012

Dr. Jason Garvon

Copyright Hannah Connor: All rights reserved. LSSU use only.

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S20230127003