The protozoa Nesporora caninum is a parasite that causes great economic and reproductive losses in cattle worldwide. The objective of this study was to verify the association between abortion and the presence of antibodies against N. caninum and the vertical transmission as a means of maintaining the infection in cattle herds in Rio Grande do Sul by matching the serology of mothers and daughters. Sampling was performed in 60 dairy farms of two regions of the state, where blood was collected from 40% of the herds for the detection of anti-N. caninum by indirect immunofluorescence (IFI). To verify the association between abortion and seropositivity we used the univariate logistic regression test, and for the serology of mothers and daughters the chi-square McNemar test for paired data. In comparing serology and abortion data, a prevalence of 58.5% (24/41) among cattle with history of abortion, and 16.4% (199/1215) prevalence between those with no history of abortion was found; seropositive animals were 7.21 times more likely (95% CI, 3.65-14.32) to have previously aborted (Wald statistic χ 2=44.93, P<0.001). The fraction affected by neosporosis in the population studied was estimated as 9.73% (λpop). The serologic result of each mother was paired with her daughter and showed by the McNemar chi-square (χ2=59.84, P<0.001) significant association between the serology of mothers and daughters, suggesting vertical transmission. It is worth to note the importance of serological monitoring for N. caninu to avoid maintenance of animals that may serve as carries of the parasite reservoir on the farms.
Neospora caninum; abortion; vertical transmission; etiological fraction
