Find in Library

<i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> constitutes a major zoonotic agent but also has been frequently identified as an important cause of clinical disease (e.g., abortion, pneumonia, encephalitis) in wildlife; specifically, <i>T. gondii</i> has been associated with neurological disease in cetaceans. This study investigated the genetic diversity of <i>T. gondii</i> strains involved in infections in dolphins found stranded in the Mediterranean coastlines of Italy. Tissue samples from 16 dolphins (<i>Stenella coeruleoalba</i> and <i>Tursiops truncatus</i> species) positive for <i>T. gondii</i>-DNA presence by PCR were examined by histology and subjected to further genetic characterization of strains detected by PCR-RFLP and multilocus PCR-sequencing assays. According to fully genotyped samples, the genotypes ToxoDB#3 (67%) and #2 (22%) were detected, the latter being reported for the first time in cetaceans, along with a mixed infection (11%). Subtyping by PCR-seq procedures provided evidence of common point mutations in strains from southwestern Europe. Despite evidence of <i>T. gondii</i> as a cause of neurological disease in dolphins, sources of infections are difficult to identify since they are long-living animals and some species have vast migration areas with multiple chances of infection. Finally, the genetic diversity of <i>T. gondii</i> found in the dolphins studied in the Mediterranean coastlines of Italy reflects the main genotypes circulating inland in the European continent.