Disease prevention in horses encompasses strategies and practices aimed at minimizing the occurrence and spread of infectious and non-infectious diseases within equine populations. These practices include vaccination programs, biosecurity measures, and regular health monitoring. Vaccination helps to stimulate the horse's immune system to protect against specific pathogens, while biosecurity measures, such as quarantine and sanitation, reduce the risk of disease transmission. Regular health monitoring, including physical examinations and diagnostic testing, aids in early detection and management of potential health issues. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various methods and their effectiveness in preventing diseases in horses, as well as the development and implementation of prevention programs in different equine settings.
Dorneles EMS, Santana JA, Costa ACTRB, Junqueira DG, Heinemann MB, Lage AP.Brucellosis in equines, including horses, donkeys, and mules, is characterized by abscesses in tendons, bursae, and joints. Reproductive disorders, which are common in other animals, are rare in both males and females. Joint breeding of horses, cattle, and pigs was found as the main risk factor for equine brucellosis, with the transmission from equines to cattle or among equines possible, although unlikely. Hence, evaluation of the disease in equines can be considered an indirect indicator of the effectiveness of brucellosis control measures employed for other domestic species. Generally, the ...
Cao X, Yang D, Parvathareddy J, Chu YK, Kim EJ, Fitz-Henley JN, Li X, Lukka PB, Parmar KR, Temrikar ZH, Dhole P, Adcock RS, Gabbard J, Bansal S....Venezuelan and eastern equine encephalitis viruses (VEEV and EEEV, respectively) are mosquito-borne, neuroinvasive human pathogens for which no FDA-approved therapeutic exists. Besides the biothreat posed by these viruses when aerosolized, arthropod transmission presents serious health risks to humans, as demonstrated by the 2019 outbreak of EEE disease in the United States that resulted in 38 confirmed cases, 19 deaths, and neurological effects in survivors. Here, we describe the discovery of a 2-pyrrolidinoquinazolinone scaffold, efficiently synthesized in two to five steps, whose structural...
Dilling SC, TenBroeck SH, Hogsette JA, Kline DL.Mosquitoes are pests of horses, but mosquito trap efficacy data, especially the ability of traps to protect horses, are lacking. Studies were conducted to investigate the comparative attraction between traps and horses, increase trap attraction by adding horse odors to the airstream of a trap, determine the spatial distribution of adult mosquitoes, estimate the numbers of mosquitoes feeding on horses, determine the relative attraction of horses to mosquitoes, and estimate the range of mosquitoes' attraction between two horses. When a horse and a mosquito trap were placed 3.5 m apart, there was...
Schneider ST, Meemken D, Gehlen H, Merle R, Langkabel N.In Europe, equines destined for human consumption (hereafter called slaughter equines) are subject to the same restrictions of usage of veterinary drugs as other food-producing animals, with amendments regulated in the so-called 'positive list', Regulation (EC) No. 1950/2006. Due to the complex legal requirements for drug administration in slaughter equines, it might be that specific knowledge regarding the legislation of slaughter equines may be insufficient among veterinarians, equine owners, and equine keepers. To study this assumption, three target group-specific surveys were conducted in ...
Nts'aoana ME, Molapo S, Kompi P, Phalatsi M.Parasitic infection is one of the major problems in equines which negatively influence their health. It hinders working performance of equines. This study was conducted to evaluate donkey owners' knowledge and control measures on prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites (GIPs) in three agro-ecological zones (AEZs) of Maseru district. A total of 144 donkey owners were selected for individual interviews through a stratified random sampling. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to analyze data. The significance (p <0.05) of different AEZs was tested using a post-hoc cell-wise ad...
Yu YY, Xu MS, Liang H, Wang HY, Yu CQ, Liu Q.Despite over 40 years of research on the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) vaccine, we still lack a considerable progress. Equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) is a lentivirus in the Retroviridae family, akin to HIV-1 in genome structure and antigenicity. EIA is an important infectious disease in equids, characterized by anemia, persistent infection, and repeated fevers. The EIAV attenuated vaccine in China is the only lentiviral vaccine used on a large scale. Elucidating the mechanism of waning and induction of protective immunity from this attenuated vaccine strain will provide a ...
Chhabra D, Bhatia T, Goutam U, Manuja A, Kumar B.Strangles, caused by Streptococcus equi subspecies equi, is a highly infectious respiratory disease affecting horses and other equines. The disease is economically important and compromises the productivity of equine farm significantly. The disease is characterized by pyrexia, mucopurulent nasal discharge, and abscess formation in the lymph nodes of the head and neck of horses. The disease transmission occurs either directly by coming in contact with infectious exudates or indirectly via fomite transmission. Besides this, carrier animals are the primary and most problematic source of disease i...
Trigg LE, Lyons S, Mullan S.The development of exertional heat illness (EHI) is a health, welfare and performance concern for racehorses. However, there has been limited multivariable assessment of the possible risk factors for EHI in racehorses, despite such information being vital for regulators to effectively manage the condition. Consequently, this study aimed to identify the risk factors associated with the occurrence of EHI in Thoroughbred racehorses and assess the ability of the risk factor model to predict the occurrence of EHI in racehorses to assist in early identification. Runners at British racecourses record...
Persistent post-breeding induced endometritis (PPBIE) is considered a major cause of subfertility in mares. It consists of persistent or delayed uterine inflammation in susceptible mares. There are many options for the treatment of PPBIE, but in this study, a novel approach aimed at preventing the onset of PPBIE was investigated. Stallion semen was supplemented with extracellular vesicles derived from amniotic mesenchymal stromal cells (AMSC-EVs) at the time of insemination to prevent or limit the development of PPBIE. Before use in mares, a dose-response curve was produced to evaluate the eff...
McGilloway M, Manley S, Aho A, Heeringa KN, Whitacre L, Lou Y, Squires EJ, Pearson W.Equine leaky gut syndrome is characterized by gastrointestinal hyperpermeability and may be associated with adverse health effects in horses. The purpose was to evaluate the effects of a prebiotic Aspergillus oryzae product (SUPP) on stress-induced gastrointestinal hyperpermeability. Eight horses received a diet containing SUPP (0.02 g/kg BW) or an unsupplemented diet (CO) (n = 4 per group) for 28 days. On Days 0 and 28, horses were intubated with an indigestible marker of gastrointestinal permeability (iohexol). Half the horses from each feeding group underwent 60 min of transport by trailer ...
Walshe N, Burrell A, Kenny U, Mulcahy G, Duggan V, Regan A.In view of the rising threat of anthelmintic resistance in parasite populations and the planned change of classification of anthelmintics in Ireland for food animals to prescription-only medicines, there is a need for increased focus on parasite control strategies for horses. Effective parasite control programs (PCPs) are complex, necessitating the application of risk-assessment based on host immune status, infection pressure, type of parasite and seasonality to determine the requirement for anthelmintic administration and an understanding of parasite biology to employ effective, non- therapeu...
Carnet F, Perrin-Cocon L, Paillot R, Lotteau V, Pronost S, Vidalain PO.Vaccination is one of the most widely used strategies to protect horses against pathogens. However, available equine vaccines often have limitations, as they do not always provide effective, long-term protection and booster injections are often required. In addition, research efforts are needed to develop effective vaccines against emerging equine pathogens. In this review, we provide an inventory of approved adjuvants for equine vaccines worldwide, and discuss their composition and mode of action when available. A wide range of adjuvants are used in marketed vaccines for horses, the main fami...
Humblet MF, Saegerman C.The present paper proposes a tool to follow up the compliance of staff and students with biosecurity rules, as enforced in a veterinary faculty, i.e., animal clinics, teaching laboratories, dissection rooms, and educational pig herd and farm. Unassigned: Starting from a generic list of items gathered into several categories (personal dress and equipment, animal-related items, infrastructures, waste management, management of material/equipment and behavior), a checklist was created for each sector/activity mentioned above, based on the rules and procedures compiled in the Faculty biosecurity st...
Singh S, Kumar B, Dilbaghi N, Devi N, Prasad M, Manuja A.Isometamidium chloride (ISM) is a trypanocide for the prophylactic and therapeutic use against vector-borne animal trypanosomosis (mainly Surra caused by ) and African animal trypanosomosis caused by //). ISM was found to be an efficient trypanocide for therapeutic/prophylactic use against trypanosomosis; however, it produces some local and systemic detrimental effects in animals. We synthesized isometamidium chloride-loaded alginate gum acacia nanoformulation (ISM SANPS) to lessen the detrimental side effects of isometamidium chloride (ISM) while treating trypanosomal diseases. We intended to...
Terschuur JA, Coomer RPC, Handel I, Pressanto MC, McKane SA.Skin closure of laparotomy incisions using topical 2-octyl cyanoacrylate (2-OCA) mesh provides a secure bactericidal barrier in humans, which may reduce the risk of postoperative incisional complications. However, the benefits of using this mesh have not been objectively assessed in horses. Methods: From 2009 to 2020, three methods of skin closure were used following laparotomy for acute colic, including metallic staples (MS), suture (ST) and cyanoacrylate mesh (DP). The closure method was not randomised. Owners were contacted 3 months or more after the surgery to record any postop...
Poh KC, Cole ZT, Smarsh DN, Springer HR, Kelly K, Kenny LB, Machtinger ET.To evaluate the safety of repeated applications of permethrin concentrations (0% control, 1.5%, 5%, and 10%) to the necks and faces of horses and assess the efficacy and longevity of permethrin as an equine tick repellent. Methods: 5 healthy adult Quarter Horses. Methods: Each treatment was applied to the neck of each horse (0.01 m2) 4 times a day, for up to 10 days. An 8-mm biopsy was taken to evaluate postexposure dermal responses. Any treatments that were not withdrawn were applied to a quadrant of the horse's face 4 times a day, for up to 5 days. For tick bioassays, a treatment was applied...
Caro T, Fogg E, Stephens-Collins T, Santon M, How MJ.Stripes deter horseflies (tabanids) from landing on zebras and, while several mechanisms have been proposed, these hypotheses have yet to be tested satisfactorily. Here, we investigated three possible visual mechanisms that could impede successful tabanid landings (aliasing, contrast and polarization) but additionally explored pattern element size employing video footage of horseflies around differently patterned coats placed on domestic horses. We found that horseflies are averse to landing on highly but not on lightly contrasting stripes printed on horse coats. We could find no evidence for ...
Easterwood L, Cohen ND.Evaluating the body temperature of horses is an essential tool for monitoring horse health and biosecurity in groups of horses. Temperatures of horses and foals are determined most often using rectal thermometry. Rectal thermometry has limitations that include safety considerations for horses and humans. Thus, we investigated the agreement between a noncontact infrared thermometer (NCIT) and a rectal digital thermometer in 142 horses and 34 foals. For each horse and foal, measurements using the NCIT were collected from the forehead (n = 2) or neck (n = 1) and with a rectal digital thermome...
Ryan CA, McNeal CD, Credille BC.Equine practitioners require recommendations that support antimicrobial stewardship and avoid generating resistance to medically important antibiotics. This review examines current inadequacies in antimicrobial stewardship standards within the veterinary community, related to antimicrobial categorisation and prescribing practices. Resistance to cephalosporin antibiotics in horses is also described. Properties of cephalosporin antibiotics are outlined and equine-specific studies of ceftiofur, a third-generation cephalosporin antibiotic with medical importance, are detailed. Readers are provided...
Karamendin K, Abishov A, Kydyrmanov A, Akhmetzhanova M.In 2011, there was an outbreak of a disease with mass abortions among horses in southeastern Kazakhstan. The AK-2011 strain was isolated from an aborted fetus and subsequently identified as equid alphaherpesvirus 1. Here, we describe the nearly complete genome sequence of the AK-2011 strain, attenuated for vaccine development.
Sewgobind S, Johnson N, Mansfield KL.Japanese encephalitis (JE) is an infection that occurs predominantly in Asia and the Pacific Islands. It is transmitted by mosquito bites, with the main vector being Culex tritaeniorhynchus, and is maintained in enzootic cycles involving pigs, wild birds and mosquitoes. JE is caused by infection with Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), a zoonotic pathogen that also causes disease in mammals such as pigs and horses. In humans, most symptoms are mild or flu-like but can progress to encephalitis. Pigs are considered amplification hosts, and sows may have gestational complications. Horses may exhib...
Wang X, Wise JC, Stewart AJ.Hendra virus (HeV) emerged as a zoonotic pathogen in the 1990s, causing low morbidity but high mortality in humans and horses. Pteropid bats are the natural reservoir of HeV and other important zoonotic viruses such as Nipah and Ebola viruses. Equivac HeV, manufactured by Zoetis (Parkville, Victoria, Australia), is the only commercially available vaccine for horses. There is no commercial vaccine for humans. The epidemiology, clinical features, pathology, diagnosis, management, and prevention of HeV will be reviewed.
Kopper JJ.Equine rotavirus is one of the most common causes of infectious diarrhea in foals. Although the infection itself is self-limiting, the resulting diarrhea is due to multiple mechanisms and can be severe, requiring supportive care including fluid and electrolyte support. Prompt diagnosis is important for treatment and biosecurity decisions and can be achieved by several means. Prevention, while imperfect, currently relies on vaccination of pregnant mares before parturition, ingestion of adequate colostrum from vaccinated mares and biosecurity measures.
Burgess BA.Managing Salmonella in equine populations can be challenging due to the epidemiology of this disease. In particular, due to the range of clinical outcomes, the occurrence of subclinical infections, and intermittent shedding. This greatly affects the ability to detect shedding and can lead to widespread environmental contamination and transmission. The veterinary profession can reduce the risk to stablemates and their caretakers, while meeting their ethical obligation, by appropriately managing these risks within animal populations and environments.
Ogorek TJ, Golden JE.Venezuelan, western, and eastern equine encephalitic alphaviruses (VEEV, WEEV, and EEEV, respectively) are arboviruses that are highly pathogenic to equines and cause significant harm to infected humans. Currently, human alphavirus infection and the resulting diseases caused by them are unmitigated due to the absence of approved vaccines or therapeutics for general use. These circumstances, combined with the unpredictability of outbreaks-as exemplified by a 2019 EEE surge in the United States that claimed 19 patient lives-emphasize the risks posed by these viruses, especially for aerosolized V...
Lv S, Zhang Y, Zhang Z, Meng S, Pu Y, Liu X, Liu L, Ma Y, Liu W, Jiang L.The gut microbiomes of equine are plentiful and intricate, which plays an important part in the growth. However, there is a relative lack of information on the microbial diversity in the pony's gut. Unassigned: In this article, 118 fecal samples from DeBa pony, NiQi pony and GuZh horse were studied by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Unassigned: Diversity analysis was used to determine the difference of gut microbiota composition among different breeds. Alpha diversity analysis showed that the gut microbiota of NiQi ponies were abundant and various. Beta diversity analysis showed that the microor...
Hainisch EK, Jindra C, Kirnbauer R, Brandt S.Papillomaviruses (PVs) are a family of small DNA tumor viruses that can induce benign lesions or cancer in vertebrates. The observation that animal PV capsid-proteins spontaneously self-assemble to empty, highly immunogenic virus-like particles (VLPs) has led to the establishment of vaccines that efficiently protect humans from specific PV infections and associated diseases. We provide an overview of PV-induced tumors in horses and other equids, discuss possible routes of PV transmission in equid species, and present recent developments aiming at introducing the PV VLP-based vaccine technology...
Han H, Randhawa IAS, MacHugh DE, McGivney BA, Katz LM, Dugarjaviin M, Hill EW.Thousands of years of natural and artificial selection since the domestication of the horse has shaped the distinctive genomes of Chinese Mongolian horse populations. Consequently, genomic signatures of selection can provide insights into the human-mediated selection history of specific traits and evolutionary adaptation to diverse environments. Here, we used genome-wide SNPs from five distinct Chinese Mongolian horse populations to identify genomic regions under selection for the population-specific traits, gait, black coat colour, and hoof quality. Other global breeds were used to identify r...
Crew CR, Brennan ML, Ireland JL.Biosecurity measures are designed to prevent the introduction and spread of pathogens, and play a vital role in the equine industry, controlling endemic diseases and reducing the threat of exotic disease incursion. Equestrian premises differ with respect to disease risks, biosecurity requirements and available facilities. This narrative review summarises reported frequency of implementation for selected biosecurity measures, as well as evidence relating to potential barriers to implementation of biosecurity on equestrian premises. Possible opportunities for improvement in the adoption of equin...
DeNotta S, McFarlane D.The equine population in the United States and worldwide now includes a higher percentage of geriatric horses than ever previously recorded, and as methods to treat and manage elderly equids are developed and refined, this aging population will likely continue to expand. A better understanding of how horses age and the effect of age on immunity and disease susceptibility is needed to enable targeted preventative healthcare strategies for aged horses. This review article outlines the current state of knowledge regarding the effect of aging on immunity, vaccine responsiveness, and disease risk i...
Tarazona AM, Ceballos MC, Broom DM.Excessive human population growth, uncontrolled use of natural resources, including deforestation, mining, wasteful systems, biodiversity reduction by agriculture, and damaging climate change affect the existence of all animals, including humans. This discussion is now urgent and people are rethinking their links with the animals we use for clothing, food, work, companionship, entertainment, and research. The concepts of one health, one welfare, and one biology are discussed as a background to driving global change. Nothing should be exploited without considering the ethics of the action and t...
Payne SL, Fang FD, Liu CP, Dhruva BR, Rwambo P, Issel CJ, Montelaro RC.The extent and nature of genomic variation among nine antigenically distinct EIAV isolates recovered during sequential clinical episodes from two experimentally infected ponies were examined by restriction fragment analysis and nucleotide sequencing. Only minor variations in restriction enzyme patterns were observed among the viral genomes. In contrast, env gene sequences of four isolates from one pony revealed numerous clustered base substitutions. Divergence in env gene nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences between pairs of virus isolates ranged from 0.62 to 3.4% env gene mutation rate...
Thiel PG, Marasas WF, Sydenham EW, Shephard GS, Gelderblom WC.Contamination of corn with the fungus Fusarium moniliforme and its secondary metabolites, the fumonisins, has been associated with several human and animal diseases. This paper summarizes present knowledge and presents new data on the levels of fumonisins present in foods and feeds associated with these diseases as well as in commercial corn and corn-based products. The doses of fumonisins to which humans and animals consuming these products would be exposed are compared with those doses known to produce LEM in horses and hepatocarcinogenesis in rats. It is concluded that the known naturally o...
Rico-Hesse R, Weaver SC, de Siger J, Medina G, Salas RA.One of the most important questions in arbovirology concerns the origin of epidemic Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) viruses; these viruses caused periodic, extensive epidemics/epizootics in the Americas from 1938-1973 (reaching the United States in 1971) but had recently been presumed extinct. We have documented the 1992 emergence of a new epidemic/epizootic VEE virus in Venezuela. Phylogenetic analysis of strains isolated during two outbreaks indicated that the new epidemic/epizootic virus(es) evolved recently from an enzootic VEE virus in northern South America. These results suggest co...
Giguère S, Cohen ND, Chaffin MK, Hines SA, Hondalus MK, Prescott JF, Slovis NM.Pneumonia is a major cause of disease and death in foals. Rhodococcus equi, a gram-positive facultative intracellular pathogen, is a common cause of pneumonia in foals. This article reviews the clinical manifestations of infection caused by R. equi in foals and summarizes current knowledge regarding mechanisms of virulence of, and immunity to, R. equi. A complementary consensus statement providing recommendations for the diagnosis, treatment, control, and prevention of infections caused by R. equi in foals can be found in the same issue of the Journal.
El Garch H, Minke JM, Rehder J, Richard S, Edlund Toulemonde C, Dinic S, Andreoni C, Audonnet JC, Nordgren R, Juillard V.Successful vaccination against West Nile virus (WNV) requires induction of both neutralizing antibodies and cell-mediated immune responses. In this study, we have assessed the ability of a recombinant ALVAC-WNV vaccine (RECOMBITEK WNV) to elicit neutralizing antibodies and virus-specific cell-mediated immune responses in horses. In addition, we examined whether prior exposure to ALVAC-WNV vaccine would inhibit B and cell-mediated immune responses against the transgene product upon subsequent booster immunizations with the same vaccine. The results demonstrated that the recombinant ALVAC-WNV va...
Salem SE, Maddox TW, Berg A, Antczak P, Ketley JM, Williams NJ, Archer DC.Colic (abdominal pain) is a common cause of mortality in horses. Change in management of horses is associated with increased colic risk and seasonal patterns of increased risk have been identified. Shifts in gut microbiota composition in response to management change have been proposed as one potential underlying mechanism for colic. However, the intestinal microbiota in normal horses and how this varies over different seasons has not previously been investigated. In this study the faecal microbiota composition was studied over 12 months in a population of horses managed at pasture with minima...
Gramiccia M.The leishmanioses are diseases caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, parasites infecting numerous mammal species, including humans, and transmitted by the bite of phlebotomine sand flies. They are a large group of diseases ranging over inter-tropical zones of America and Africa, and extend into temperate regions of Latin America, Europe and Asia. Pet animals are found infected with different Leishmania species but Leishmania infantum is the most widespread being dogs the main reservoir of zoonotic visceral leishmaniosis (ZVL). Dogs are very susceptible to this parasite and may suffer fro...
Giguère S, Cohen ND, Chaffin MK, Slovis NM, Hondalus MK, Hines SA, Prescott JF.Rhodococcus equi, a gram-positive facultative intracellular pathogen, is one of the most common causes of pneumonia in foals. Although R. equi can be cultured from the environment of virtually all horse farms, the clinical disease in foals is endemic at some farms, sporadic at others, and unrecognized at many. On farms where the disease is endemic, costs associated with morbidity and mortality attributable to R. equi may be very high. The purpose of this consensus statement is to provide recommendations regarding the diagnosis, treatment, control, and prevention of infections caused by R. equi...
BMC research notesSeptember 2, 2015
Volume 8 400 doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1357-8
Digafe RT, Kifelew LG, Mechesso AF.Rabies is a fatal animal disease of significant public health importance. Domestic dogs are the main reservoir and transmitter of this disease particularly in developing countries. Even though rabies is a highly fatal disease, it is a preventable disease. Community awareness about rabies is one of the key components for prevention. This study describes the knowledge, attitudes and practices of a rural community in Gondar Zuria District, Ethiopia. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted from March to June, 2013. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data through face to face...
Pusterla N, Vin R, Leutenegger CM, Mittel LD, Divers TJ.A new enteric virus of adult horses, equine coronavirus (ECoV), has recently been recognized. It is associated with fever, lethargy, anorexia, and less frequently, colic and diarrhea. This enteric virus is transmitted via the feco-oral route and horses become infected by ingesting fecally contaminated feed and water. Various outbreaks have been reported since 2010 from Japan, Europe and the USA. While the clinical signs are fairly non-specific, lymphopenia and neutropenia are often seen. Specific diagnosis is made by the detection of ECoV in feces by either quantitative real-time PCR, electron...
Huang ZY, de Boer WF, van Langevelde F, Olson V, Blackburn TM, Prins HH.Hosts species for multi-host pathogens show considerable variation in the species' reservoir competence, which is usually used to measure species' potential to maintain and transmit these pathogens. Although accumulating research has proposed a trade-off between life-history strategies and immune defences, only a few studies extended this to host species' reservoir competence. Using a phylogenetic comparative approach, we studied the relationships between some species' life-history traits and reservoir competence in three emerging infectious vector-borne disease systems, namely Lyme disease, W...
Paillot R, Hannant D, Kydd JH, Daly JM.Equine influenza virus is a leading cause of respiratory disease in the horse. Equine influenza vaccines containing inactivated virus were first developed in the 1960s. Despite their intensive use, equine influenza outbreaks still continue to occur and therefore new strategies of vaccination are necessary to improve vaccine efficacy. Numerous methods of vaccination have been evaluated and commercialised in the horse, the most recent being the cold-adapted influenza virus and poxvirus-based vaccines. As a large animal model, the horse is also a useful species in which to evaluate the potential ...
Kandeil A, Gomaa M, Shehata M, El-Taweel A, Kayed AE, Abiadh A, Jrijer J, Moatasim Y, Kutkat O, Bagato O, Mahmoud S, Mostafa A, El-Shesheny R....Dromedary camels are natural host of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). However, there are limited studies of MERS-CoV infection of other domestic mammals exposed to infected dromedaries. We expanded our surveillance among camels in Egypt, Tunisia, and Senegal to include other domestic mammalian species in contact with infected camels. A total of 820 sera and 823 nasal swabs from cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys, buffaloes, mules, and horses were collected. Swabs were tested using RT-PCR and virus RNA-positive samples were genetically sequenced and phylogenetically analy...
Julliand V, Grimm P.In the early 1990s, the equine hindgut microbial ecosystem looked like a "black box." Its vital role in hydrolyzing and fermenting fiber, thus providing energy to the host, was recognized. Although there was a critical lack of information on the hindgut microbes, their role in preventing intestinal diseases was suggested. Traditionally, the microbes of the horse hindgut were studied using culture-dependent techniques. More recently, culture-independent methods have been used and provided further insight. This review presents the history and updated knowledge regarding the microbes that live in...
Minke JM, Siger L, Karaca K, Austgen L, Gordy P, Bowen R, Renshaw RW, Loosmore S, Audonnet JC, Nordgren B.An ALVAC (canarypoxvirus)-based recombinant (vCP2017) expressing the prM and E genes derived from a 1999 New York isolate of West Nile virus (WNV) was constructed and assessed for its protective efficacy in horses in two different experiments. In the first trial, a dose titration study was conducted to evaluate both serum neutralising antibody responses to WNV and duration of immunity. In the second trial the onset of protection was determined. Twenty-eight adult horses received two doses of vCP2017 administered intramuscularly at 5-week intervals and sixteen horses comprised age-matched non-v...
Davidson AH, Traub-Dargatz JL, Rodeheaver RM, Ostlund EN, Pedersen DD, Moorhead RG, Stricklin JB, Dewell RD, Roach SD, Long RE, Albers SJ, Callan RJ....To compare neutralizing antibody response between horses vaccinated against West Nile virus (WNV) and horses that survived naturally occurring infection. Methods: Cross-sectional observational study. Methods: 187 horses vaccinated with a killed WNV vaccine and 37 horses with confirmed clinical WNV infection. Methods: Serum was collected from vaccinated horses prior to and 4 to 6 weeks after completion of an initial vaccination series (2 doses) and 5 to 7 months later. Serum was collected from affected horses 4 to 6 weeks after laboratory diagnosis of infection and 5 to 7 months after the first...
Leathwick DM, Besier RB.In many countries the presence of anthelmintic resistance in nematodes of small ruminants, and in some cases also in those infecting cattle and horses, has become the status quo rather than the exception. It is clear that consideration of anthelmintic resistance, and its management, should be an integral component of anthelmintic use regardless of country or host species. Many years of research into understanding the development and management of anthelmintic resistance in nematodes of small ruminants has resulted in an array of strategies for minimising selection for resistance and for dealin...
Labruna MB, Kerber CE, Ferreira F, Faccini JL, De Waal DT, Gennari SM.From December 1998 to March 1999, 40 stud farms were studied in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. During visits to farms, horses reared under grazing conditions were examined for the presence of ticks. On each farm visit, horse pastures were closely inspected and a questionnaire was given to the farm supervisor with the purpose of gaining information about ecological and management variables (independent variables) that could be associated with the presence and infestation levels of ticks on the farm (dependent variables). Three tick species were found during the study. Anocentor nitens, Amblyo...
Goehring LS, Wagner B, Bigbie R, Hussey SB, Rao S, Morley PS, Lunn DP.Equine herpesvirus-1 is a cause of outbreaks of abortion and neurological disease. The pathogenesis of both these diseases depends on establishment of viremia. An experiment was performed to determine the protective efficacy of two commercially available vaccines used with an optimized 3-dose vaccination regime: a modified-live viral (MLV) and a high antigen load killed vaccine licensed for abortion control. The study design was a blinded, randomized challenge trial. Three groups of 8 yearling ponies received one of three treatments: MLV vaccine (Rhinomune, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc....
Issel CJ, Horohov DW, Lea DF, Adams WV, Hagius SD, McManus JM, Allison AC, Montelaro RC.We report here on a series of vaccine trials to evaluate the effectiveness of an inactivated equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) whole-virus vaccine and of a subunit vaccine enriched in EIAV envelope glycoproteins. The inactivated vaccine protected 14 of 15 immunized ponies from infection after challenge with at least 10(5) 50% tissue culture-infective doses of the homologous prototype strain of EIAV. In contrast, it failed to prevent infection in any of 15 immunized ponies that were challenged with the heterologous PV strain. Levels of PV virus replication and the development of disease, ho...
Ravichandran K, Anbazhagan S, Karthik K, Angappan M, Dhayananth B.Avian chlamydiosis is one of the important neglected diseases with critical zoonotic potential. Chlamydia psittaci, the causative agent, affects most categories of birds, livestock, companion animals, and humans. It has many obscured characters and epidemiological dimensions, which makes it unique among other bacterial agents. Recent reports on transmission from equine to humans alarmed the public health authorities, and it necessitates the importance of routine screening of this infectious disease. High prevalence of spill-over infection in equines was associated with reproductive losses. New...
Kauter A, Epping L, Semmler T, Antao EM, Kannapin D, Stoeckle SD, Gehlen H, Lübke-Becker A, Günther S, Wieler LH, Walther B.Understanding the complex interactions of microbial communities including bacteria, archaea, parasites, viruses and fungi of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) associated with states of either health or disease is still an expanding research field in both, human and veterinary medicine. GIT disorders and their consequences are among the most important diseases of domesticated Equidae, but current gaps of knowledge hinder adequate progress with respect to disease prevention and microbiome-based interventions. Current literature on enteral microbiomes mirrors a vast data and knowledge imbalance, w...
van der Geize R, Grommen AW, Hessels GI, Jacobs AA, Dijkhuizen L.Rhodococcus equi causes fatal pyogranulomatous pneumonia in foals and immunocompromised animals and humans. Despite its importance, there is currently no effective vaccine against the disease. The actinobacteria R. equi and the human pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis are related, and both cause pulmonary diseases. Recently, we have shown that essential steps in the cholesterol catabolic pathway are involved in the pathogenicity of M. tuberculosis. Bioinformatic analysis revealed the presence of a similar cholesterol catabolic gene cluster in R. equi. Orthologs of predicted M. tuberculosis vi...
Morgan R, Keen J, McGowan C.Laminitis is one of the most common and frustrating clinical presentations in equine practice. While the principles of treatment for laminitis have not changed for several decades, there have been some important paradigm shifts in our understanding of laminitis. Most importantly, it is essential to consider laminitis as a clinical sign of disease and not as a disease in its own right. Once this shift in thinking has occurred, it is logical to then question what disease caused the laminitis. More than 90 per cent of horses presented with laminitis as their primary clinical sign will have develo...
