The developed Real Time PCR was proved to be appropriate to detect B. canis subspecies in endemic areas. The authors thank CNPq (The Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development) for the fellowship to Livio M. Costa-Júnior, and CAPES and DAAD for the financial support given for personnel exchanging during the project (Project 182/04). “
“Neospora caninum (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) is an obligate intracellular protozoon that is considered to be the main cause of neonatal

mortality and abortion among dairy cattle worldwide, capable of infecting both mammals and birds ( Anderson et al., 2000 and Dubey, 2003). The presence of antibodies to N. caninum see more in serum indicates exposure to the parasite and can be identified by serological tests, such as the indirect fluorescence antibody test (IFAT), considered the gold standard test and immunoenzymatic

assay (ELISA) ( Dubey, 2003). Prevalence studies on N. caninum in sheep are scarce. In Brazil, studies on the seroprevalence Selleck Everolimus (IFAT) of natural infection due to N. caninum in sheep have presented a wide range, going from rates of less than 10% ( Figliuolo et al., 2004 and Machado et al., 2011) to a rate of 30% ( Aguiar et al., 2004 and Andreotti et al., 2009) in asymptomatic sheep. The state Minas Gerais is the largest state and has the second biggest sheep population of the four states of southeastern Linifanib (ABT-869) region of Brazil, with 223,434 head (IBGE, 2009), mostly aimed at meat production (Anualpec, 2008). With an area of 588,383.6 km2, Minas Gerais presents significant climatic and socioeconomic differences. Since 2000, sheep-husbandry has been taking on an important role within livestock farming in Brazil. With acquisition of animals from different regions, commercial

meat sheep-rearing has increased considerably in areas with no traditional culture in sheep production, like the central-western-southern region of Minas Gerais. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence and risk factors associated with seropositivity to N. caninum among sheep in commercial herds in the homogenous central-western-southern region of the state Minas Gerais, Brazil. This region has well-defined dry and rainy seasons, mean annual temperature of 21.2 °C and annual rainfall ranging from 1000 to 2000 mm. Sampling was organized at two levels: farms and animals. Based on a combined list of sheep herds from the Association of Sheep and Goat Farmers of the State Minas Gerais (ACCOMIG) and the state government agency for animal health (Instituto Mineiro de Agropecuária, IMA), a non-probabililistic sampling was used to select the farms. Animals were randomly selected and a fixed sampling of eight sheep from each property was used ( Bennett et al., 1991). Blood was collected by jugular vein puncture and the serum was separated and stored at −20 °C until used for analysis.