seroprevalence of neospora spp. in horses in north east of iran

background: neospora caninum , an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite, is recognized as a major cause of abortion in cattle, while limited information is presently available on the seropreva­lence of neospora antibodies in horses' worldwide .the aim of the present study was to de­termine serologic prevalence of neospora infection in horses in iran. methods: sera from 150 horses from mashhad suburb in razavi khorasan province, northeast iran were examined for antibodies to neospora spp . using neospora modified direct agglutina­tion test (n-mat). results: antibodies to this parasite were detected in 45 (30%) of the examined serum samples. thirty four percent of the samples had titer of 1:40 while then reduced to 30% when 1:80 serum dilution was applied as significant cut off titer. conclusion: this study is the first investigation carried out on the neospora in horses in iran and indi­cates that horses in iran are exposed to this parasite.