Clinical, genetic, and pathological features of male pseudohermaphroditism in dog

Male pseudohermaphroditism is a sex differentiation disorder in which the gonads are testes and the genital ducts are incompletely masculinized. An 8 years old dog with normal male karyotype was referred for examination of external genitalia abnormalities. Adjacent to the vulva subcutaneous undescended testes were observed. The histology of the gonads revealed a Leydig and Sertoli cell neoplasia. The contemporaneous presence of testicular tissue, vulva, male karyotype were compatible with a male pseudohermaphrodite (MPH) condition

Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) in a Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma of a Horse: Future Perspectives

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is one of the most frequent tumors of skin and muco-cutaneous junctions in the horse. Equine papillomavirus type 2 (EcPV2) has been detected in equine SCC of the oral tract and genitals, and recently also in the larynx. As human squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx (SCCL), it is strongly etiologically associated with high-risk papillomavirus (h-HPV) infection. This study focuses on tumor cells behavior in a naturally occurring tumor that can undergo the so-called epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). A SCCL in a horse was investigated by immunohistochemistry using antibodies against E-cadherin, pan-cytokeratin AE3/AE1, β-catenin, N-cadherin, vimentin, ZEB-1, TWIST, and HIF-1α. EcPV2 DNA detection and expression of oncogenes in SCC were investigated. A cadherin switch and an intermediate filaments rearrangement within primary site tumor cells together with the expression of the EMT-related transcription factors TWIST-1, ZEB-1, and HIF-1α were observed. DNA obtained from the tumor showed EcPV2 positivity, with E2 gene disruption and E6 gene dysregulation. The results suggest that equine SCCL might be a valuable model for studying EMT and the potential interactions between EcPV2 oncoproteins and the EMT process in SCCL

Exposure to amitraz, fipronil and permethrin affects cell viability and ABC transporter gene expression in an Ixodes ricinus cell line

Background: Over-expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins has been implicated in resistance of ticks to acaricides. Tick cell lines are useful for investigating resistance mechanisms, as development of an in vitro model for the study of acaricide resistance would contribute to improving knowledge of the molecular basis behind drug processing and exclusion in ticks. In the present study, cultures of the Ixodes ricinus-derived cell line IRE/CTVM19 were treated with the acaricides amitraz, permethrin or fipronil to determine modulation of ABC transporter gene expression. Cells were treated with different drug concentrations (25, 50, 100, 150 \u3bcM) and incubated for ten days. Cell morphology, viability, metabolic activity and relative expression of ABC (B1, B6, B8 and B10) genes were determined at day 10 post-treatment. Results: Cell morphology determined by light microscopy was altered following treatment with all drugs, but only at high concentrations, while total cell numbers decreased with increasing drug dose. Cell viability determined by trypan blue exclusion was not significantly different from untreated controls (P > 0.1) following treatment with amitraz and permethrin, but high concentrations of fipronil caused decrease (up to 37%, P < 0.01) in viability. At all drug concentrations, fipronil and permethrin induced dose-dependent reduction in cell metabolic activity measured by MTT assay (P < 0.01). Quantitative RT-PCR showed that the drugs significantly affected expression of ABC genes. In particular, fipronil treatment downregulated ABCB1 (P < 0.001) and upregulated ABCB6, ABCB8 and ABCB10 (P < 0.01); amitraz treatment down regulated ABCB1 (significant difference between 25 and 150 \u3bcM, P < 0.001) and upregulated ABCB8 and ABCB10 at lower concentrations (25 and 50 \u3bcM, P < 0.05); and permethrin upregulated ABCB6, ABCB8 and ABCB10 only at 150 \u3bcM (P < 0.01). Conclusions: The adverse effects on cell viability and metabolic activity, and changes in expression of different ABC transporter genes, detected in IRE/CTVM19 cells following treatment with amitraz, permethrin and fipronil, support the proposed application of tick cell lines as in vitro models for the study of resistance to these acaricides in ticks

GROSS EVALUATION, SAMPLING PROCEDURES AND HISTOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF FELINE MIDDLE EAR DISEASES

Introduction: Study of ear diseases is hampered by the difficult specimen preparation, resulting in the belief that these are uncommon in cats. The purpose of this study was to characterize gross and microscopic lesions of inflammatory and neoplastic origin, particularly of the middle ear. Materials and Methods: Ears from 26 cats were samplingduring necropsies, using a previously described technique (Sula et al. 2014) and were examined grossly and processed for routine histologic examination of the external, middle, and internal ear. Results: This sampling technique allows to have on a single slide the external, middle and internal ear andthis facilitates a single, complete and exhaustive evaluation of these structures. Gross and microscopic evaluation of feline ears highlighted numerous pathological conditions: 3 chronic external and medial otitis, 1 nasopharyngeal polyp, 1 ceruminous cystomatosis, 1 squamous cell carcinoma and 1 ceruminous adenocarcinoma with metastasis. Furthermore, we identified 1 case of mucoperiosteal exostoses. Conclusions: The sampling technique for the ear is simple to be performed and useful to evaluate all the anatomical structures. Focusing on middle ear alterations, these were frequently not reported in clinical history, but became evident during gross and, particularly, histopathological evaluations. We concluded that histologic evidence of middle ear diseases in cats is far greater than clinical literature reported; this suggests that ears, when possible, should be histologically evaluated. Furthermore, we reported for the first time mucoperiosteal exostoses in a domestic cat; this condition was described only in a single report in African lions