Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in domestic pigs reared under different management in systems in Zimbabwe

Serum samples from 474 domestic pigs (Sus scrola) from Zimbabwe were tested for anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibodies using the indirect fluorescent antibody test. The results showed that T gondii infection is widespread in Zimbabwean pigs. Seroprevalence was lowest in fattening pigs from large and small-scale commercial farms that practise good hygiene (19.75% of 238) and highest in backyard scavenging pigs (35.71% of 70). Only 11.7% (11) of the 127 positive samples had titres of >= 1:400 and nine (81.82%) of these 11 originated from pigs reared under poor hygienic conditions. A prevalence of 3.51 % was found in the same group of fattening pigs using an indirect IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay at the single serum dilution of 1:400. The serosurvey shows the importance of modern intensive husbandry systems in reducing the prevalences of T gondii infection in domestic pigs.