SURVEY OF ANTIBODIES AGAINST VARIOUS INFECTIOUS-DISEASE AGENTS IN RACING CAMELS IN ABU-DHABI, UNITED-ARAB-EMIRATES

Prevalence of antibodies against some important disease agents in sera from racing camels in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) is reported. Antibodies against Brucella abortus were detected in 1.5% of racing camels, but only 0.76% had titres sufficient for the animals to be considered infected. The complement fixation test revealed antibodies against Coxiella burnetii (causative agent of Q fever) in 7.9% of camels (with a geometrical mean titre of 13) and against parainfluenza virus type 3 in 5.6% of camels (with a geometrical mean titre of 20). Serological evidence did not show the presence of Aspergillus spp., while antibodies against Leptospira interrogans were seen in 4.1% of camels. Antibodies against Echinococcus polymorphus were observed in 2.6% of the animals, while a large number of racing camels (30.9% and 36.4%) possessed antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii, as determined by direct agglutination and indirect haemagglutination, respectively.