Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite of the phylum Apicomplexa. It is an
obligate intracellular protozoan that affects humans and a diverse range of vertebrate
hosts. The infection of herbivores occurs primarily through ingestion of oocysts in food
and contaminated soils and water. Natural infection by T. gondii in cattle was originally
reported in Ohio, USA, which also reported the first experimental infection by this
protozoan in cattle. The congenital transmission of T. gondii in cattle was originally
described in 1980. The congenital transmission may frequently be affected by the
pathogenicity of the T. gondii strain and this zoonotic parasite is example of
endogenous and exogenous transplacental infection, which emphasizes the need for
greater precision in describing field or experimental research that describes infection
passing from cows to fetuses, as well as the actual importance of cattle, in different
countries, on the epidemiology of toxoplasmosis.
Keywords: Abortion, Bioassay, Cat, Diagnosis, ELISA, Endogenous
transplacental infection, Exogenous transplacental infection, IFA, Oocysts,
Pathogenicity, PCR, Prevalence, Tachyzoites, Toxoplasma gondii, Transmission.
