Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Meta-Analysis
. 2020 Feb 17;13(1):82.
doi: 10.1186/s13071-020-3954-1.

The global serological prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in felids during the last five decades (1967-2017): a systematic review and meta-analysis

Mahbobeh Montazeri  1   2   3 , Tahereh Mikaeili Galeh  1   2   3 , Mahmood Moosazadeh  4 , Shahabeddin Sarvi  1   2 , Samira Dodangeh  1   2   3 , Javad Javidnia  3   5 , Mehdi Sharif  1   2 , Ahmad Daryani  6   7
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

The global serological prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in felids during the last five decades (1967-2017): a systematic review and meta-analysis

Mahbobeh Montazeri et al. Parasit Vectors. .

Abstract

Background: Felids (domestic and wild cats) are important in the epidemiology of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii because they are the only hosts that can excrete the environmentally resistant oocysts. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the global prevalence of T. gondii in species of the family Felidae.

Methods: We searched seven databases (PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Proquest and Web of Science) for studies reporting seroprevalence of T. gondii in felids from 1967 to 31 December 2017. A total of 217 published papers, containing 223 datasets were eligible for inclusion in the meta-analysis, comprised 59,517 domestic and 2733 wild cats from 1967 to 2017.

Results: The pooled global T. gondii seroprevalence was estimated to be 35% (95% CI: 32-38%) and 59% (95% CI: 56-63%) in domestic cats and wild felids, respectively, using random effects model. The seroprevalence was higher in Australia and Africa where the T. gondii seropositivity in domestic cats was 52% (95% CI: 15-89%) and 51% (95% CI: 20-81%), respectively. The lowest seroprevalence was estimated in Asia 27% (95% CI: 24-30%). The seroprevalence values for T. gondii in wild felids were 74% (95% CI: 62-83%) in Africa, 67% (95% CI: 23-111%) in Asia, 67% (95% CI: 58-75%) in Europe and 66% (95% CI: 41-91%) in South America.

Conclusions: Our study provides the global prevalence of T. gondii in species of the family Felidae and is a source of information to aid public health workers in developing prevention plans.

Keywords: Domestic cat; Meta-analysis; Serology; Toxoplasma gondii; Wild cat.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
PRISMA chart of the study design process
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Worldwide Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence in domestic cats and wild felids from different continents. Data are reported as mean (range)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Forest plot for the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in wild Felidae in different countries
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Forest plots for the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in male (a) and female (b) wild felids
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Dubey JP. History of the discovery of the life cycle of Toxoplasma gondii. Int J Parasitol. 2009;39:877–882. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2009.01.005. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hotez PJ. Neglected parasitic infections and poverty in the United States. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2014;8:e3012. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003012. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hoffmann S, Batz MB, Morris JG., Jr Annual cost of illness and quality-adjusted life year losses in the United States due to 14 foodborne pathogens. J Food Prot. 2012;75:1292–1302. doi: 10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-11-417. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Pappas G, Roussos N, Falagas ME. Toxoplasmosis snapshots: global status of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence and implications for pregnancy and congenital toxoplasmosis. Int J Parasitol. 2009;39:1385–1394. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2009.04.003. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Jones JL, Parise ME, Fiore AE. Neglected parasitic infections in the United States: toxoplasmosis. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2014;90:794–799. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.13-0722. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Substances

LinkOut - more resources