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Topic:Disease Transmission
Disease transmission in horses refers to the spread of infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites among equine populations. These pathogens can be transmitted through various routes, including direct contact, vector-borne transmission, or environmental exposure. Factors influencing disease transmission include horse density, management practices, and biosecurity measures. Understanding the mechanisms and conditions that facilitate the spread of diseases is essential for developing effective prevention and control strategies. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate the modes of transmission, risk factors, and management practices related to infectious diseases in horses.
Clonal spread of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci among horses, personnel and environmental sites at equine facilities. A cross-sectional study was carried out to investigate species distribution and clonality of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (MRCoNS) isolated from the nasal cavity of 39 horses and 32 veterinary or caretaker staff, and from 76 environmental surfaces at three equine facilities in Denmark. MRCoNS obtained by selective isolation were characterised by 16S rDNA sequencing, PCR detection of mecA, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). MRCoNS were found in 32 (82%) horses, 20 (63%) humans and 50 (66%) environmental samples. The most common species was S. vitulinus (n=56)...
Irrigation linked to a greater incidence of human and veterinary West Nile virus cases in the United States from 2004 to 2006. Identifying risk factors for West Nile virus transmission is vital for future public health control measures. This study investigated the effect of irrigation, expressed as percent irrigated land, and population density on the incidence of human and veterinary West Nile virus (WNV) cases using a sample of 2827 counties from the United States over a 3-year period. Zero-inflated Poisson regression models were selected because of the large number of counties reporting zero cases. The mean percentage of irrigated land for the entire sample was approximately 0.029, while counties reporting both hum...
Trichinella britovi and Trichinella spiralis mixed infection in a horse from Poland. Trichinella infections in horses continue to represent a health problem and, despite the rarity of infection, it is necessary to continue to control properly horse meat. In 2008, a 10-year-old horse imported from Poland to Italy for consumption found to have been positive at the digestion test. Both Trichinella britovi and Trichinella spiralis larvae in a proportion of 4:1 were detected in the horse muscles. This is the first report of a mixed Trichinella species infection in a horse. The epidemiological investigation revealed that the infected horse originated from a small farm about 120km fr...
Detection of virulent Rhodococcus equi in exhaled air samples from naturally infected foals. Virulent Rhodococcus equi causes pyogranulomatous bronchopneumonia in foals. The route of infection of foals has been considered to be inhalation of aerosolized bacteria from soil that is contaminated with equine feces. Thus, disease caused by R. equi has been regarded as an opportunistic infection of environmental origin and not a contagious disease. In this study, we report the exhalation of virulent R. equi from the respiratory tract of naturally infected foals. A handheld air-monitoring system was used to recover virulent R. equi from the exhaled breath of foals, and the concentration of v...
Epidemiologic analysis of nosocomial Salmonella infections in hospitalized horses. To examine the relationship between abdominal surgery and nosocomial Salmonella infections and the relationship between high caseload in combination with abdominal surgery and nosocomial Salmonella infections in hospitalized horses with signs of gastrointestinal tract disease. Methods: 140 horses. Methods: Case-control study. Methods: To accomplish the first objective, 1 to 4 control horses were matched with each nosocomial case horse on the basis of admission date of a primary case horse. The frequency of abdominal surgery and other investigated exposure factors were compared between nosocomi...
Effect of Amblyomma cajennense ticks on the immune response of BALB/c mice and horses. This work evaluated the effect of the Amblyomma cajennense tick on the immune response of BALB/c mice and on horse lymph node cell proliferation. We observed that mice do not develop resistance to nymphs of this tick species and that lymphocyte proliferation of this host is inhibited by tick saliva, nymphal extract, or infestations. Horse lymph node cell proliferation is inhibited by tick saliva as well. Mice lymphocytes under the effect of tick saliva, nymphal extract, or infestations display a predominantly Th-2 cytokine production pattern. Observed results partially explain this tick's dise...
Development of an indirect ELISA for the diagnosis of equine piroplasmosis. An indirect ELISA (iELISA) for the detection of specific anti-Theileria equi antibodies in horse serum was developed. Its performance showed good concordance (K= 0.79) when compared with a competitive ELISA recommended by the World Organisation for Animal Health. Horse serum samples from two provinces located in the north and east of Argentina (Formosa and Entre Rios, respectively) were analyzed by this iELISA. A high percentage of positive horses were found in Formosa, consistent with the climatic conditions of the region that are apt for the development of tick vectors. Surprisingly, seropos...
[Anti-influenza vaccination in animals]. Until recently, Influenza was considered as a veterinary problem in avian, swine and horse only. New influenza strains able to infect and cause a disease in dogs and cats emerged these last six years. The most widely used influenza veterinary vaccines are the inactivated adjuvanted vaccines which are based on whole or split virus. New technologies have allowed the development of new generation vaccines including modified-live and vector vaccines. Modified-live influenza vaccines are available for horses only but they are in development in other species. Vector vaccines are already in use in ch...
Transmission of Babesia caballi by Dermacentor nitens (Acari: Ixodidae) is restricted to one generation in the absence of alimentary reinfection on a susceptible equine host. The tropical horse tick, Dermacentor nitens, is a natural vector of Babesia caballi in the Americas. B. caballi, one of the etiologic agents of equine piroplasmosis, occurs widely throughout the world, but the United States and a few other countries are considered to be free of infection. B. caballi is transovarially transmitted by the one-host tick D. nitens; we tested the hypothesis that B. caballi can persist in multiple generations of D. nitens in the absence of opportunity to reacquire infection from a susceptible equine host. Partially engorged female D. nitens were collected from a B. c...
Serosurveillance for Japanese encephalitis, Akabane, and Aino viruses for Thoroughbred horses in Korea. Recent global warming trends may have a significant impact on vector-borne viral diseases, possibly affecting vector population dynamics and disease transmission. This study measured levels of hemagglutination-inhibition (HI) antibodies against Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) and neutralizing antibodies against Akabane virus (AKAV) and Aino virus (AINV) for Thoroughbred horses in Korea. Blood samples were collected from 989 racehorses in several provinces, between October 2005 and March 2007. Sera were tested using either an HI assay or a virus neutralization test. Approximately half (49.7%;...
Microbial quality of equine frozen semen. Bacteriological surveillance is little applied in management of equine frozen semen but it is quite important to verify the microbial contamination in order to find out the chance of transmission of pathology to the mare in AI. Authors describe a qualitative and quantitative analysis for bacterial contamination on long time (3-17 years) equine frozen semen stored in liquid nitrogen. The semen checked, produced in Italy and in another Europe country, was cryopreserved in liquid nitrogen inside sealed plastic straws. One hundred and ten straws were checked out for pathogenic and no pathogenic ba...
Clusters of infections in horses with MRSA ST1, ST254, and ST398 in a veterinary hospital. During 2006 and 2007 small clusters of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in horses were recorded in different clinical departments of a veterinary university. The infections were caused by different MRSA clones (ST1, ST254, and ST398). In the same time, nasal colonization of veterinarians, veterinary personnel, and students was observed indicating transmission to humans.
Environmental risk factors for equine West Nile virus disease cases in Texas. West Nile Virus (WNV) was first detected in the Texas equine population during June 2002. Infection has since spread rapidly across the state and become endemic in the equine population. Environmental risk factors associated with equine WNV attack rates in Texas counties during the period 2002 to 2004 were investigated. Equine WNV attack rates were smoothed using an empirical Bayesian model, because of the variability among county equine populations (range 46-9,517). Risk factors investigated included hydrological features (lakes, rivers, swamps, canals and river basins), land cover (tree, mos...
Detection of Lawsonia intracellularis by real-time PCR in the feces of free-living animals from equine farms with documented occurrence of equine proliferative enteropathy. The objective of this study was to determine whether Lawsonia intracellularis was present in the feces of free-living animals collected on two equine premises with documented occurrence of equine proliferative enteropathy (EPE). Fresh feces from black-tailed jackrabbits (Lepus californicus, n=100), striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis, n=22), feral cats (Felis catus, n=14), Brewer's Blackbirds (Euphagus cyanocephalus, n=10), Virginian opossums (Didelphis virginiana, n=9), raccoons (Procyon lotor, n=4), California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi, n=3), and coyotes (Canis latrans, n=2) were...
Trichinella spp. infection in horses of Romania: serological and parasitological survey. Herbivorous animals are usually, by virtue of their diet, outside the major transmission cycles of Trichinella spp. However, since 1975, the year of the first report of human trichinellosis caused by the consumption of infected horse meat, the domestic horse has appeared as a novel vector of Trichinella spp. infection to humans, with 15 outbreaks documented in France and Italy. Romania, one of the main countries exporting horses into the European Union (EU), experienced a dramatic increase of Trichinella spp. infection in both domestic pigs and humans in the 1990s. Some Trichinella spiralis-in...
Equine arteritis virus: a new isolate from the presumable first carrier stallion in Argentina and its genetic relationships among the four reported unique Argentinean strains. Equine arteritis virus (EAV) was isolated from a testicle of the presumable first stallion infected with EAV in Argentina. This virus isolate (named LT-LP-ARG) was confirmed by GP5-specific PCR and indirect immunofluorescence assays. The PCR product was sequenced, and the phylogenetic analysis revealed that the LT-LP-ARG strain of EAV forms a monophyletic group, together with other strains previously isolated in our laboratory (LP02 group). However, all Argentinean EAV strains belong to a polyphyletic group. We believe that the virus isolate presented in this report could be the origin of EAV ...
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and animals: zoonosis or humanosis? Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is increasing worldwide. Occasionally, animals are colonized or infected incidentally with human strains. Recently, however, new strains of MRSA emerging from within the animal kingdom, particularly in pigs, are causing human infection. MRSA has been reported in species as diverse as companion animals, horses and pigs, through to chinchillas, bats and parrots. In contrast, whereas strains of community-associated MRSA, the majority of which carry genes encoding Panton-Valentine leucocidin, are spreading rapidly in human populations, only sporad...
Anaplasma phagocytophilum in horses and ticks: a preliminary survey of Central Italy. Anaplasma phagocytophilum, the causative agent of granulocytic ehrlichiosis, affects several species of wild and domesticated mammals, including horses. In this work we compared direct and indirect methods to evaluate A. phagocytophilum presence in Central Italy: 135 sera were screened by IFA for A. phagocytophilum and other haemopathogens (Theileria equi and Babesia caballi). Each horse was also tested for A. phagocytophilum 16S rRNA with a nested-PCR technique. In order to examine the risk of A. phagocytophilum transmission, 114 ticks were examined for the presence of A. phagocytophilum by P...
[Molecular diagnostic of congenital babesiosis in neonates foals from State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil]. The aim of this study was to demonstrate, through nested PCR (nPCR) method, the occurrence of congenital babesiosis in two foals born of carrier mares. All mares were positive for T. equi based in visualization of intraerytrocytic parasites in blood smears, in indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and nPCR reactions. Just one mare was nPCR-positive for B. caballi. After the birth, all foals presented nPCR-positive for T. equi, while just one foal presented nPCR-positive for B. caballi. The present study prove the occurrence of congenital babesiosis in new-born foals, however, new studies a...
[Control of Anocentor nitens (Neumann, 1897) (Acari: Ixodidae) on equines]. This trial evaluated control practices of Anocentor nitens on equines, using spraying devices and application of acaricide paste formulation in the auricular pavilion and nasal diverticulum. The study was carried out from October 2003 to March of 2008 and the evaluations had been divided in the following stages: Phase 1--out/03 mar/04 and Phases 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively, correspondents to the month's periods until março/08. It was used score of 0 to 3 to classify infestation levels. From abr/04 to mar/06 was implanted a schedule of acaricide sprayings every seven days and divided in two se...
REVIEW paper: mare reproductive loss syndrome. An epidemic of early fetal loss (EFL), late fetal loss (LFL), fibrinous pericarditis, and unilateral uveitis which occurred during the spring of 2001, are together now known as the mare reproductive loss syndrome (MRLS). A similar epidemic with less intensity was reported during the same period of time from southern Ohio, West Virginia, and Tennessee. The same syndrome with lesser intensity recurred in 2002. The estimated economic loss from the syndrome in 2001 and 2002 together was approximately $500 million. Both EFL and LFL were characterized by the absence of specific clinical signs in abo...
The horse genome. Despite a late start, analysis of the horse genome has progressed rapidly during the past ten years. With synteny, genetic linkage, radiation hybrid, cytogenetic and comparative maps presently generated for all equine chromosomes including the Y chromosome, the map of the equine genome contains approximately 4,000 markers. The average resolution of the mapped markers is approximately 700 kb, which makes the horse gene map the densest among the domestic animal species hitherto not sequenced. This map is currently used by researchers worldwide to discover genes associated with various traits of ...
North American encephalitic arboviruses. Arboviruses continue to be a major cause of encephalitis in North America, and West Nile virus neuroinvasive disease is now the dominant cause of encephalitis. Transmission to humans of North American arboviruses occurs by infected mosquitoes or ticks. Most infections are asymptomatic or produce a flulike illness. Rapid serum or cerebrospinal fluid IgM antibody capture ELISA assays are available to diagnosis the acute infection for all North American arboviruses. Unfortunately, no antiviral drugs are approved for the treatment of arbovirus infection and current therapy is supportive.
Epidemic of equine influenza among vaccinated racehorses in Japan in 2007. On August 2007, we encountered equine influenza epidemic by Florida sub-lineage strain (H3N8) in Japan Racing Association's facilities where 4142 racehorses in total were stabled. The number of new febrile cases sharply increased, but the occurrence was rapidly calmed down within 2 weeks. The morbidity rate in these facilities was 12.8% and the subclinical infection rate of healthy racehorses examined by rapid antigen detection tests was 19.4% at the early stage of epidemic. The serological studies along with the low morbidity rate and the existence of numbers of asymptomatically infected race...
High occurrence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST398 in equine nasal samples. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections do occur in equine patients. Little is known, however, about their origin and the general equine MRSA colonization status. In West European horses in particular, neither the colonization rate nor the present strains or their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns are known. In the present study, a sample of 110 (Belgian, French, Dutch and Luxemburg) horses presented at a Belgian equine clinic was screened for nasal MRSA carriage. An indirect culturing protocol using a 0.001% colistin and nalidixic acid containing broth was compared t...
The economic impact of West Nile virus infection in horses in the North Dakota equine industry in 2002. This study estimated economic impacts associated with the West Nile virus (WNV) outbreak in horses for North Dakota in 2002. The 2002 epidemic in the United States was the largest meningoencephalitis epidemic reported in the Western Hemisphere. Over 15,257 horse cases were reported in 43 states with most cases occurring in central United States. North Dakota reported over 569 horse cases, with a mortality rate of 22%. The total costs incurred by the state were approximately US$1.9 million. The costs incurred by horse owners were about US$1.5 million. Of the US$1.5 million, about US$781,203 and...
