62 research outputs found
Seizure disorders in 43 cattle
BACKGROUND: Large animals have a relatively high seizure threshold, and in most cases seizures are acquired. No published case series have described this syndrome in cattle. OBJECTIVES: To describe clinical findings and outcomes in cattle referred to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the University of Turin (Italy) because of seizures. ANIMALS: Clientâowned cattle with documented evidence of seizures. METHODS: Medical records of cattle with episodes of seizures reported between January 2002 and February 2014 were reviewed. Evidence of seizures was identified based on the evaluation of seizure episodes by the referring veterinarian or 1 of the authors. Animals were recruited if physical and neurologic examinations were performed and if diagnostic laboratory test results were available. RESULTS: Fortyâthree of 49 cases fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The mean age was 8 months. Thirtyâone animals were male and 12 were female. Piedmontese breed accounted for 39/43 (91%) animals. Seizures were etiologically classified as reactive in 30 patients (70%) and secondary or structural in 13 (30%). Thirtyâsix animals survived, 2 died naturally, and 5 were euthanized for reasons of animal welfare. The definitive cause of reactive seizures was diagnosed as hypomagnesemia (n = 2), hypocalcemia (n = 12), and hypomagnesemiaâhypocalcemia (n = 16). The cause of structural seizures was diagnosed as cerebrocortical necrosis (n = 8), inflammatory diseases (n = 4), and lead (Pb) intoxication (n = 1). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: The study results indicate that seizures largely are reported in beef cattle and that the cause can be identified and successfully treated in most cases
Classical and Atypical Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy: Epidemiology, Pathogenesis and Diagnosis
Classical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (C-BSE) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle, detected in the United Kingdom and many other countries since the 1980s. The origin of C-BSE is uncertain, but epidemiological studies suggest that the source of this disease was cattle feed prepared from prion-infected animal tissues. To date, cattle populations have been monitored through passive and active surveillance programs. From 2004, two different forms of BSE termed as L-BSE, also known as bovine amyloidotic spongiform encephalopathy (BASE), and H-BSE have been discovered in Italy and France. All these atypical cases have been detected in animals over 8 years of age. To date, there is no comprehensive information about the origin of the atypical BSEs (sporadic vs. acquired). Moreover, there are only very limited data available, concerning the pathogenesis of both atypical forms, as compared to C-BSE. This chapter provides a well-organized overview of what is known about classical and atypical BSE. It will review information on the main epidemiological features, pathogenesis, and the criteria for the routine diagnosis based on rapid tests, histological, immunohistochemical, and Western blot examinations
Final results of project on feline spongiform encephalopathy
Feline spongiform encephalopathy (FSE) is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy associated with the
accumulation of an abnormal isoform of the prion protein (PrPsc) in the Central Nervous System.
This research allowed to identify other neurological diseases affecting the Italian cat population
Isolation and molecular characterisation of Halicephalobus gingivalis in the brain of a horse in Piedmont, Italy
Background: A fatal case of meningoencephalitis was reported in a 13-year-old Koninklijk Warmbloed Paard
Nederland stallion, suspected of West Nile virus (WNV) infection, in the Piedmont region of Italy. Clinical signs
included right head tilt and circling, depression alternated with excitability, fever and lateral strabismus. Combined
treatment consisting of dimethylsulfoxide, dexamethasone, sulphonamides and sedative was administered, but
because of the poor conditions the horse was euthanatized and submitted for necropsy.
Results: At post-mortem examination no skin lesions were observed, all organs appeared normal on gross
evaluation and only head and blood samples were further investigated. Neuropathological findings consisted of
granulomatous meningoencephalitis and larvae and adult females of Halicephalobus gingivalis were isolated and
identified from the digested brain. Frozen brain was submitted to PCR amplification and 220 bp multiple sequence
alignment was analysed by Bayesian phylogenetic analysis.
Conclusions: Phylogenetic inference revealed that the isolate belongs to H. gingivalis Lineage 3. WN surveillance
can help to deepen our knowledge of horse neurological disorders investigating their causes and incidence.
Moreover, it can help to understand the geographic distribution of the H. gingivalis, to unravel epidemiological
information, and to estimate risk for humans
Zoonoses Surveillance in Italy (2000-2009): Investigation on Animals with Neurological Symptoms
Zoonoses are defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as \u201cThose diseases
and infections naturally transmitted between vertebrae animals and man\u201d (WHO 1959)
(Palmer et al., 1998). They may be caused by viruses, bacteria, including chlamidiae and
rickettsiae, fungi, protozoa, helminths and arthropods (Krauss et al., 2003), and transmitted
directly (through contact with skin, hair, eggs, blood or secretions) or indirectly (by
insect vectors and ingestion of contaminated food). Currently, 1415 pathogens for humans
have been identified and of these approximately 61% (868) are agents of zoonoses, some of
which manifest with neurological signs; 132 agents are also associated with emerging
zoonoses (Asjo et al., 2007; Matassa, 2007; Taylor et al. , 2001). Neurological zoonoses are
widespread, especially in the developing countries where they are not even diagnosed in
most cases.
Emerging zoonoses of recently identified pathogens are Lyme disease, cryptosporidiosis,
West Nile disease, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, and possible variants of the
avian influenza virus, which have found new favourable conditions for spreading. In
contrast, re-emerging zoonoses are well-known diseases considered as eradicated in a given
country but recur with an exponentially increasing incidence, such as tuberculosis,
leptospirosis, rabies (Matassa, 2007)
Detection of Invasive Borrelia burgdorferi Strains in North-Eastern Piedmont, Italy.
SummaryFollowing reports of human cases of Lyme borreliosis from the Ossola Valley, a mountainous area of Piemonte, northâwestern Italy, the abundance and altitudinal distribution of ticks, and infection of these vectors with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato were evaluated. A total of 1662 hostâseeking Ixodes ricinus were collected by dragging from April to September 2011 at locations between 400 and 1450 m above sea level. Additional 104 I. ricinus were collected from 35 hunted wild animals (4 chamois, 8 roe deer, 23 red deer). Tick density, expressed as the number of ticks per 100 m2, resulted highly variable among different areas, ranging from 0 to 105 larvae and from 0 to 22 nymphs. A sample of 352 ticks (327 from dragging and 25 from wild animals) was screened by a PCR assay targeting a fragment of the 16S rRNA gene of B. burgdorferi s.l. Positive samples were confirmed with a PCR assay specific for the 5Sâ23S rRNA intergenic spacer region and sequenced. Four genospecies were found: B. afzelii (prevalence 4.0%), B. lusitaniae (4.0%), B. garinii (1.5%) and B. valaisiana (0.3%). Phylogenetic analysis based on the ospC gene showed that most of the Borrelia strains from pathogenic genospecies had the potential for human infection and for invasion of secondary body sites
Immunohistochemical investigations on Brucella ceti-infected, neurobrucellosis-affected striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba)
Bacteria of the genus Brucella cause brucellosis, an infectious disease common to humans as well as to terrestrial and aquatic mammals. Since 1994 several cases of Brucella spp. infection have been reported in marine mammals worldwide. Indeed, since human brucellosis ranks as one of the most common bacterial zoonotic infections on a global scale, it is necessary to increase our knowledge about it also in the marine environment. Brucella ceti, which is phenotypically similar to other smooth brucellae as B. abortus and B. melitensis, shares with the latter two the same surface antigens that are routinely used for the serological diagnosis of Brucella spp. infection. Marine mammal Brucella spp. infections are characterized by a pathogenicity similar to their terrestrial counterparts, with the occurrence of abortion, stillbirth and orchitis and an involvement of the hostâs central nervous system (CNS), similarly to what happens in mankind. While sero-epidemiological data suggest that Brucella spp. infection is widespread globally, detecting Brucella spp.-associated antigens by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in tissues from infected animals is often troublesome. The present study was aimed at investigating, by means of IHC based upon the utilization of an anti-Brucella LPS monoclonal antibody (MAb), the CNS immunoreactivity (IR) shown by B. ceti-infected, neurobrucellosis-affected striped dolphins
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