The aim of this study was to investigate Q fever seroprevalence in sheep and goats in the Marmara region. Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii. In ruminants, the disease causes reproductive disorders, premature births and stillbirths. Blood samples of sheep and goats were collected from the Marmara region of Turkey and a commercial ELISA was used for detection of specific antibodies to C. burnetii. A total of 832 samples (627 from sheep and 205 from goats) obtained from 126 herds located in 110 villages in 63 municipalities across all 11 provinces were utilised. Total seroprevalence was found to be 13.22%, while the proportion of seropositive herds was determined to be over threefold higher at 42.85%. The seroprevalence for sheep was found to be 14.19%, and for goats 10.24%. The herd seropositivity rate for sheep of 46.31% and for goats of 32.25% were also over threefold higher than the species-level seroprevalences. The provincial seroprevalence varied between 1.38% and 21.79%. This study confirms the presence of C. burnetii in sheep and goat herds in the Marmara region and provides original seroprevalence data in hitherto uninvestigated provinces. The data gathered are beneficial for evaluation and elaboration of the seroprevalence of Q fever in sheep and goats in the Marmara region. Surveillance studies should be maintained, particularly in provinces with high seropositivity rates.

BACKGROUND: Giardia and Cryptosporidium species are significant zoonotic parasites of humans and domesticated animals. OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to determine the prevalence of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in livestock and dogs of the Magude District. METHOD: The flotation technique (Willis), modified Ziehl-Neelsen (mZN) and direct and indirect immunofluorescence (DIF and IIF) techniques were applied to determine the prevalence of Giardia and Cryptosporidium species in faecal samples of dog pups (156), goat kids (60) and calves (480) from the Magude District of Mozambique from February to September 2015. RESULTS: Using Willis, IIF and DIF, the prevalence of Giardia in calves was 0%, 8.1%, and 6.0%; in dogs 0.6%, 8.3% and 5.7% and for goats 0% and 13.3% (IIF was not performed), respectively. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium in calves using Willis, mZN, IIF and DIF was 0%, 3.8%, 4.7% and 0.4% and in dogs 0%, 0.6%, 6.4% and 0.6%, respectively. The parasite was not detected in goats. CONCLUSION: Results from the present study showed that IIF performed better diagnosis of Giardia and Cryptosporidium, and that the mZN can be used as an alternative for Cryptosporidium because of the high cost of IIF. There is a need for identification of genotypes or subtypes of these parasites through application of molecular techniques in order to determine their zoonotic potential, and we advocate a 'one health' approach in the control and prevention of these parasites.