Neospora Caninum Infections in Livestock

Neospora caninum is an intracellular protozoan parasite recognised as a leading cause of reproductive failure in cattle, with emerging significance in sheep and goats. Infection occurs horizontally via ingestion of oocysts shed by canine definitive hosts and vertically through transplacental transmission, ensuring parasite persistence within herds. Clinical outcomes range from abortion, stillbirth and birth of weak neonates to asymptomatic chronic infection. Economic repercussions include reduced calving rates, increased culling and decreased milk yield. Pathogenesis involves rapid proliferation of tachyzoites in placental and foetal tissues, triggering local inflammation and necrosis. The balance between proinflammatory and regulatory maternal immune responses at the materno-foetal interface influences foetal survival. Diagnosis combines serological screening and molecular detection of parasite DNA in tissues. Control strategies emphasise biosecurity to limit canine exposure, management practices to reduce horizontal transmission and development of vaccines and therapeutics. Recent advances in genomics, transcriptomics and gene-editing are shedding light on virulence determinants, host immune modulation and novel intervention targets, with important implications for global livestock health and food security.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent work has elucidated the epidemiology and risk factors of Neospora caninum infection in dairy cattle within an intensive production system. A large-scale serosurvey employing ELISA detected a seroprevalence of nearly 30 per cent. Multivariate analysis identified significant associations between infection and factors including a history of abortion, repeated oestrus, contact with farm dogs and advanced age. Herds practising manual milking exhibited elevated odds of infection. These findings highlight the substantial economic burden of neosporosis in dairy operations and underscore the need for integrated control measures, combining routine serological monitoring with targeted biosecurity to mitigate both vertical and horizontal transmission pathways.

Neospora Caninum Infections in Livestock publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in neospora caninum infections in livestock across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Seroprevalence: Proportion of animals with detectable antibodies against Neospora caninum, indicating exposure or infection.

Tachyzoite: Rapidly dividing life stage of the parasite responsible for acute infection and tissue dissemination.

Transplacental transmission: Passage of parasites from the dam to the foetus across the placenta, leading to congenital infection.

Transcriptome: Complete set of RNA transcripts expressed in a tissue, used to analyse host and parasite gene expression during infection.

CRISPR–Cas9: Genome-editing technology used to disrupt specific parasite genes for functional studies of virulence factors.

References

1. Whole-transcriptome analysis reveals virulence-specific pathogen−host interactions at the placenta in bovine neosporosis. Frontiers in Immunology (2023).
2. Neospora caninum surface antigen 1 is a major determinant of the pathogenesis of neosporosis in nonpregnant and pregnant mice. Frontiers in Microbiology (2024).
3. Neospora caninum infection in dairy cattle in Egypt: a serosurvey and associated risk factors. Scientific Reports (2023).