PAKISTAN VETERINARY JOURNAL

Pak Vet J, 2024, 44(4): 1153-1160

Antioxidant Status and Biochemical Alterations in Chlamydia abortus and Coxiella burnetii Infected Small Ruminants

Muhammad Saadullah¹, Ishtiaq Ahmed¹*, Aziz ur Rehman¹, Muhammad Kashif², Muhammad Kamran Rafique¹, Muhammad Shahbaz Yousaf³, Muhammad Tahir Meraj¹_,Arfa Tehreem⁴, Muhammad Adnan Saeed⁴, Muhammad Kashif Saleemi⁵, Shahid Nazir⁶ and Tauseef Ur Rehman⁷

¹Department of Pathobiology, Section of Pathology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences Sub-Campus Jhang-35200, Pakistan; ²Department of Clinical Sciences, the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences Sub-Campus Jhang-35200, Pakistan; ³Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore-54000, Pakistan; ⁴Department of Pathobiology, Section of Microbiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences Sub-Campus Jhang-35200, Pakistan; ⁵Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan; ⁶School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale NSW 2351, Australia; ⁷Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Pakistan
*Corresponding author: ishtiaqahmed@uvas.edu.pk

Abstract

Chlamydia abortus and Coxiella burnetii are gram-negative abortifacient bacteria that cause abortion in livestock animals, thus, leading to severe economic losses to farmers. This study aimed to assess oxidative stress and serum-biochemical changes due to C. abortus and C. burnetii infection in small ruminants. A total of 168 serum samples from sheep (n=84) and goats (n=84) were tested for the presence of antigen-specific antibodies against C. abortus and C. burnetii using indirect ELISA. The serum samples of seropositive and healthy animals were tested to determine the concentration of catalase and malondialdehyde (MDA) using standard laboratory procedures. The concentration of total protein (TP) and albumin in serum was determined using commercially available kits. Results of ELISA showed that the number of positive samples of C. abortus was 2.4% in sheep and 7.1% in goats, whereas that of C. burnetii was 13.1% in sheep and 25% in goats. The catalase concentration in seropositive animals (1.39±0.27 kU/l) was significantly lower (P<0.05) whereas that of MDA (2.90±0.82 µM/l) was higher than in healthy animals i.e., 2.65±0.55 and 1.25±0.85, respectively. The total protein and albumin concentration of C. abortus affected animals was 6.4±0.4 g/dL and 3.1±0.4 g/dL, respectively and found significantly lower (P<0.05) than that of healthy ones (7.4±0.3 g/dL and 3.7±0.3 g/dL). Statistical analysis revealed that species and flock type played a significant part (P<0.05) in the prevalence of C. burnetii. However, no significant association was found between risk factors and infection due to C. abortus. This study's findings suggest that antioxidant treatments or vaccination strategies can be beneficial to counteract the adverse effects of these infections on small ruminants.

To Cite This Article: SaadullahM, AhmedI, RehmanAU, KashifM, RafiqueMK, YousafS, MerajMT_,TehreemA, SaeedMA, SaleemiMK, NazirS and Rehman TU, 2024. Antioxidant status and biochemical alterations in Chlamydia abortus and Coxiella burnetii infected small ruminants. Pak Vet J, 44(4): 1153-1160. http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2024.283

Abstract

ISSN 0253-8318 (Print)ISSN 2074-7764 (Online)

ISSN 0253-8318 (Print)
ISSN 2074-7764 (Online)