Neospora caninum Infection in Rodents: A Molecular Study in Dairy Cattle Farms in Arak, Iran

Neospora caninum is an apicomplexan protozoa which is an important cause of abortion and economic loss in dairy and beef industries. This parasite follows an indirect prey-predator lifecycle, allowing both domestic and wild species to participate in its transmission. Ongoing research aims to ascertain the involvement of other vertebrates in the epidemiology and transmission of this parasite. Rodents,which are abundant in many habitats including livestock farms, although their role in the maintenance and spread of N. caninum remains unresolved. In this study, the potential role of feral rodents in the transmission of N. caninum, was investigated in wild rodents captured from several dairy farms with a history of abortion and neosporosis in Arak city, Iran. During the study, rodent samples were collected from 14 farms with high abortion rate. All trapped rodents were identified as Mus musculus. Following necropsy, brain samples were collected and tested using Nested-PCR. No evidence for N. caninum infection was detected in any of the rodents' samples.