Seroprevalence of Neospora caninum Infection in Camels (Camelus dromedarius) in Isfahan Province, Center of Iran

Background: the aim of this study was to investigate the sero-prevalence of neospora caninum infectionin camelus dromedarius; the most popular camel species in iran.methods: totally, 310 serum samples were collected from camels in isfahan province during 2008and tested in shahrekord university using indirect fluorescent antibody test (ifat) for serodiagnosis ofanti-n. caninum igg antibodies as a cross-sectional study.results: among evaluated serum samples, 10 (3.22%) had anti-n. caninum antibodies detectable indilutions of 1:50 and 1:100. to rule out false positive results due to cross-reactivity of this protozoanparasite with the closely related protozoan parasite toxoplasma gondii, an ifa was also performed fort. gondii infection in dilution of 1:16 for positively reacted serum samples against n. caninum. no concordantinfections of these two protozoan parasites were detected.conclusion: presence of anti-n. caninum antibodies in camels in iran emphasizes the necessity of furtherstudies to detect the role of this organism as a pathogen and possibly economic importance in camelspopulation.