The study of diseases in horses encompasses a wide range of conditions affecting equine health, including infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, and genetic abnormalities. These diseases can impact various systems within the horse, such as respiratory, gastrointestinal, and musculoskeletal systems, and can lead to significant health challenges. Research in this area focuses on understanding the pathophysiology, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of equine diseases. Common diseases studied include equine influenza, equine herpesvirus, and laminitis. This page provides access to peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the etiology, clinical presentation, and management strategies of diseases in horses, contributing to the advancement of equine veterinary medicine.
Preston SA, Riggs CM, Singleton MD, Troedsson MH.Exercise-induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH) is reported as a performance limiting condition in racehorses, yet few longitudinal studies characterising EIPH have been reported. Objective: To characterise EIPH during training and racing in the absence of prophylactic medication with furosemide among horses imported to Hong Kong during 2007-2012. Methods: Retrospective descriptive study of clinical endoscopy, EIPH status, and racing records. Methods: Thoroughbred geldings (n = 822) imported from New Zealand between 2007 and 2012 were retrospectively assigned to 4 groups: diagnosed with EIPH via...
Hollyer JA, McGuinness E, Bowers LC, Didier ES, Giudice C, Perl DP, Fogarty U.A case of encephalitis of unknown origin in the horse was investigated. Postmortem examination findings revealed a nonsuppurative granulomatous meningoencephalitis in the right hemisphere of the cerebral cortex. Testing for West Nile virus, equine herpes virus, equine infectious anemia, , , and were negative. The horse had a titer for , and sections from the affected area of the brain tested positive for the organism using both polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunohistochemistry. Amplicons generated using PCR were sequenced, and genotype II was identified. This is the first case of gen...
Jacobsen S, Top Adler DM, Bundgaard L, Sørensen MA, Andersen PH, Bendixen E.The objective of the study was to assess global expression of proteins in equine saliva using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Saliva was obtained from seven horses with and six horses without evidence of systemic inflammatory disease. Tryptic peptides from saliva were analysed by LC-MS/MS. Of 195 unique proteins identified, 57 were detected only in saliva samples from horses with systemic inflammation (in two to six of the seven horses). Among the differentially expressed proteins were several acute phase proteins (APPs) such as serum amyloid A, fibrinogen, haptoglob...
Smet A, Cools P, Krizova L, Maixnerova M, Sedo O, Haesebrouck F, Kempf M, Nemec A, Vaneechoutte M.We previously reported the presence of an OXA-23 carbapenemase in an undescribed species of the genus Acinetobacter isolated from horse dung at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Belgium. Here we include six strains to corroborate the delineation of this taxon by phenotypic characterization, DNA-DNA hybridization, 16S rRNA gene and rpoB sequence analysis, % G+C determination, MALDI-TOF MS and fatty acid analysis. The nearly complete 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain UG 60467(T) showed the highest similarities with those of the type strains of Acinetobacter bouvetii (98.4 %)...
Guimarães T, Miranda C, Pinto M, Silva E, Damásio L, Costa AL, Correia MJ, Duarte JC, Cosinha C, Lopes G, Thompson G, Rocha A.A possible role of breeding activities in the composition of the microbial population in stallions' external genitalia (EG) and the relationship between micro-organisms colonizing the skin of the abdomen and the ones colonizing the EG have not been studied. In experiment 1, EG microbiological samples were collected from 41 stallions used for both natural cover and semen collection (BST) and from 18 non-breeding stallions (NBST). A higher (p < 0.05) frequency of isolation of potentially pathogenic species was found for BST. Age did not influence number of micro-organism species isolated both in...
Di Sabatino D, Bruno R, Sauro F, Danzetta ML, Cito F, Iannetti S, Narcisi V, De Massis F, Calistri P.West Nile virus (WNV) transmission has been confirmed in the last four years in Europe and in the Mediterranean Basin. An increasing concern towards West Nile disease (WND) has been observed due to the high number of human and animal cases reported in these areas confirming the importance of this zoonosis. A new epidemiological scenario is currently emerging: although new introductions of the virus from abroad are always possible, confirming the epidemiological role played by migratory birds, the infection endemisation in some European territories today is a reality supported by the constant r...
Dixon PM, Froydenlund T, Luiti T, Kane-Smyth J, Horbal A, Reardon RJ.Empyema of the nasal conchal bullae has recently been identified in horses suffering from chronic unilateral nasal discharge. The diagnosis and management of such cases has not been reported previously. Objective: To describe the diagnosis and treatment of cases suffering from empyema of the nasal conchal bullae and report the frequency of diagnosis from a population of horses referred for head computed tomography (CT). Methods: Retrospective case review. Methods: Records from cases diagnosed with nasal conchal bulla disease using CT were reviewed. Results: Abnormalities of the nasal conchal b...
Tanaka T, Kasai H, Yamashita A, Okuyama-Dobashi K, Yasumoto J, Maekawa S, Enomoto N, Okamoto T, Matsuura Y, Morimatsu M, Manabe N, Ochiai K....Equine hepacivirus (EHcV) has been identified as a closely related homologue of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, but not in Asian countries. In this study, we genetically and serologically screened 31 serum samples obtained from Japanese-born domestic horses for EHcV infection and subsequently identified 11 PCR-positive and 7 seropositive serum samples. We determined the full sequence of the EHcV genome, including the 3' untranslated region (UTR), which had previously not been completely revealed. The polyprotein of a Japanese EHcV strain showed ap...
Mählmann K, Hamza E, Marti E, Dolf G, Klukowska J, Gerber V, Koch C.Recent studies suggest that regulatory T cells (Tregs) are associated with disease severity and progression in papilloma virus induced neoplasia. Bovine papilloma virus (BPV) is recognised as the most important aetiological factor in equine sarcoid (ES) disease. The aim of this study was to compare expression levels of Treg markers and associated cytokines in tissue samples of ES-affected equids with skin samples of healthy control horses. Eleven ES-affected, and 12 healthy horses were included in the study. Expression levels of forkhead box protein 3 (FOXP3), interleukin 10 (IL10), interleuki...
Armstrong SK, Woodgate RG, Gough S, Heller J, Sangster NC, Hughes KJ.This study was performed to estimate the prevalence of patent Parascaris equorum infections and determine the efficacy of ivermectin, pyrantel and fenbendazole against P. equorum infection in foals on farms in southern Australia. Foals aged >3 months on five farms in the south-western slopes region of New South Wales were used. Faeces were collected from each foal and foals with a P. equorum faecal egg count (FEC) of >100 eggs per gram (EPG) were used to measure anthelmintic efficacy using the FEC reduction (FECR) test, after random allocation to a control group or an ivermectin, pyrante...
Wilson AD.Horses are affected by a wide variety of arthropod ectoparasites, ranging from lice which spend their entire life on the host, through ticks which feed over a period of days, to numerous biting insects that only transiently visit the host to feed. The presence of ectoparasites elicits a number of host responses including innate inflammatory responses, adaptive immune reactions and altered behaviour; all of which can reduce the severity of the parasite burden. All of these different responses are linked through immune mechanisms mediated by mast cells and IgE antibodies which have an important ...
Trewby H, Ayele G, Borzacchiello G, Brandt S, Campo MS, Del Fava C, Marais J, Leonardi L, Vanselow B, Biek R, Nasir L.Papillomaviruses are a family of slowly evolving DNA viruses and their evolution is commonly linked to that of their host species. However, whilst bovine papillomavirus-1 (BPV-1) primarily causes warts in its natural host, the cow, it can also cause locally aggressive and invasive skin tumours in equids, known as sarcoids, and thus provides a rare contemporary example of cross-species transmission of a papillomavirus. Here, we describe the first phylogenetic analysis of BPV-1 in equine sarcoids to our knowledge, allowing us to explore the evolutionary history of BPV-1 and investigate its cross...
Lee JH, Lee T, Lee HK, Cho BW, Shin DH, Do KT, Sung S, Kwak W, Kim HJ, Kim H, Cho S, Park KD.Genetics is important for breeding and selection of horses but there is a lack of well-established horse-related browsers or databases. In order to better understand horses, more variants and other integrated information are needed. Thus, we construct a horse genomic variants database including expression and other information. Horse Single Nucleotide Polymorphism and Expression Database (HSDB) (http://snugenome2.snu.ac.kr/HSDB) provides the number of unexplored genomic variants still remaining to be identified in the horse genome including rare variants by using population genome sequences of...
Armstrong SK, Raidal SL, Hughes KJ.Three foals, aged between 5 and 10 days, were presented for assessment of lethargy, abdominal pain and joint effusion. Fibrinous pericarditis and pericardial effusion (PE) were recognised in each foal and considered as sequelae to systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and suspected or confirmed septicaemia. Unassigned: Diagnosis of pericarditis was made in two foals by echocardiographic examination and analysis of pericardial fluid, and during postmortem examination of the third foal. In both of the foals that underwent pericardiocentesis, PE was an exudate, no bacteria were identifie...
Razmi GR, Abedi V, Yaghfoori S.Toxoplasmosis is an important zoonotic disease with worldwide distribution. The infection is observed in an unusually wide range of warm-blooded animals, including most of the livestock and humans. Many studies have shown high prevalence of toxoplasmosis in man and animals in Iran. The present study was conducted to investigate the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in Turkoman horses in the North Khorasan Province. During 2011-2012, 100 blood samples from horses were collected and tested for antibodies against toxoplasmosis using indirect fluorescent antibody test. The seroprevalence of toxoplas...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Kuzmina TA, Dzeverin II, Nielsen MK, McDowell KJ.The main purpose of the research was to determine if three weekly samplings would produce consistent results for low strongyle egg shedders, generally associated with older horses. Strongyle egg counts per gram of feces (EPG) were done for 661 Thoroughbred mares on 14 farms in 2012-2013 once a week for three consecutive weeks. None of the mares had been treated with ivermectin or moxidectin for more than 90 days and with fenbendazole, oxibendazole, or pyrantel pamoate for more than 60 days. Strongyle EPG count data indicated that 38.3% of the mares were positive at first and second sampling, a...
Rebordão MR, Carneiro C, Alexandre-Pires G, Brito P, Pereira C, Nunes T, Galvão A, Leitão A, Vilela C, Ferreira-Dias G.Besides the classical functions, neutrophils (PMNs) are able to release DNA in response to infectious stimuli, forming neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) and killing pathogens. The pathogenesis of endometritis in the mare is not completely understood. The aim was to evaluate the in vitro capacity of equine PMNs to secrete NETs by chemical activation, or stimulated with Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus (Szoo), Escherichia coli (Ecoli) or Staphylococcus capitis (Scap) strains obtained from mares with endometritis. Ex vivo endometrial mucus from mares with bacterial endometritis wer...
Moorman VJ, Reiser RF, Mahaffey CA, Peterson ML, McIlwraith CW, Kawcak CE.To determine intralimb orientation changes with an inertial measurement unit (IMU) in hooves of horses at a walk and trot after induction of weight-bearing single forelimb lameness and to determine whether hoof orientations are similar to baseline values following perineural anesthesia. Methods: 6 clinically normal horses. Methods: 3-D hoof orientations were determined with an IMU mounted on the right forelimb hoof during baseline conditions, during 3 grades of lameness (induced by application of pressure to the sole), and after perineural anesthesia. Linear acceleration profiles were used to ...
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offer promise as therapeutic aids in the repair of tendon and ligament disorders in sport horses. Equine allogeneic MSCs derived from umbilical cord blood (eUCB-MSCs) can be obtained in a minimally invasive fashion with successful propagation of MSCs. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the applicability and therapeutic effect of eUCB-MSCs on tendinitis of the superficial digital flexor tendon, desmitis of the suspensory ligament, tendinitis of the deep digital flexor tendon, and desmitis of the inferior check ligament in clinical cases. Method...
Dong J, Cook FR, Haga T, Horii Y, Norimine J, Misawa N, Goto Y, Zhu W.Although equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) poses a major threat to the equine industry worldwide, the molecular epidemiology of this virus is poorly understood. Recently, an EIAV strain (EIAVMiyazaki2011-A) representing a new monophyletic group was discovered in feral horses in southern Japan. In the present study, the EIAVMiyazaki2011-A proviral genome is compared with evolutionarily divergent EIAV isolates to investigate conservation of functional elements or motifs within the long terminal repeats (LTRs) and structural genes. This analysis represents a significant step forward in increa...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC.The prevalence of patent Strongyloides westeri infections was determined by examination for eggs in fecal samples collected from 513 Thoroughbred (TB) foals between February 25 and June 3, 2014. The study was conducted with 244 colts and 269 fillies from 11 well-managed farms in Central Kentucky. Foals ranged from 17 to 117 days of age and had never been dewormed. The mean prevalence of patent S. westeri infection was 30% (156/513 foals). This prevalence was substantially greater than historical reports from the same sampling area during the late 1990s and early 2000s. It is hypothesized that ...
Bergström K, Grönlund U.Detection of nosocomial methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections in horses in Sweden has increased attention on infection control (IC) in equine hospitals. This study established baseline data on IC programmes within such settings, evaluated compliance with some IC procedures before and after an education intervention, and examined barriers to compliance.The study was carried out between 2008 and 2011 in four Swedish equine hospitals. Data on current IC of each hospital, purchase data on hand sanitisers and disposable gloves per patient, and direct observations of compliance with...
Fernandes CB, Ball BA, Loux SC, Boakari YL, Scoggin KE, El-Sheikh Ali H, Cogliati B, Esteller-Vico A.Anatomical and molecular changes in the cervical barrier in women are a fundamental part of the pathogenesis of pregnancy loss associated with chorioamnionitis. However, there is little information regarding changes in the cervix associated with ascending infection in pregnant mares. To better characterize morphological and molecular changes in the cervix during placentitis, we examined full thickness histology and mRNA expression for a number of inflammatory and endocrine factors in the mucosa and stroma of the cervix of mares (n = 5) after experimental induction of placentitis via transc...
Walther B, Friedrich AW, Brunnberg L, Wieler LH, Lübke-Becker A.The problem of nosocomial infections is of increasing importance in veterinary medicine. As an example, this review summarizes current knowledge regarding methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as a typical example, as these pathogens are the most important agents of nosocomial infections in human medicine worldwide and are being increasingly reported in veterinary medicine. MRSA are classified by their ability to be resistant against oxacillin/methicillin, this feature being confered by mecA, a gene which was acquired by horizontal gene transfer of the staphylococcal gene cassette...
Negi NJ, Swanberg JE, Clouser JM, Harmon-Darrow C.The American agricultural industry is heavily reliant on Latina/o workers, yet there is scant understanding regarding the mental health of this population. This gap in the literature is glaring as Latina/o farmworkers are a highly vulnerable group who experience high rates of occupational risks and health hazards. This study is the first, to our knowledge, to examine individual, social and work-related correlates of depression among Latina/o horse workers. Methods: A community survey ( = 225) administered by lay health workers was implemented with Latina/o horse workers who were employed in th...
Sauvage AC, Monclin SJ, Elansary M, Hansen P, Grauwels MF.Equine recurrent uveitis (ERU) has been associated with Leptospira spp. infection. No information exists concerning the prevalence of Leptospira-associated ERU in Belgium and about the sensitivity of detection of Leptospira in different ocular media. Objective: To establish the prevalence of intraocular Leptospira spp. in ERU-affected and healthy eyes of horses examined at the Equine Clinic of the University of Liège by real-time PCR and to compare the results of the aqueous and vitreous humour of the same eye. Methods: Cross-sectional. Methods: Sixty-six eyes from 59 client-owned horses with...
Bianchi MV, Mello LS, Wentz MF, Panziera W, Soares JF, Sonne L, Driemeier D, Pavarini SP.Diseases related to the alimentary system are the main cause of death in horses. This retrospective study aimed to describe the pathological findings of fatal parasite-induced enteritis and typhlocolitis caused by cyathostominae, Eimeria leuckarti, Balantidium coli, and Strongyloides westeri in horses. The records of parasite-induced intestinal lesions in horses necropsied in Southern Brazil between 2005 and 2017 were reviewed. Ten horses had fatal parasitic enteritis and/or typhlocolitis, and the main causes were: cyathostominae typhlocolitis (6/10), E. leuckarti enteritis (1/10), S. westeri ...
Rühl-Teichner J, Jacobmeyer L, Leidner U, Semmler T, Ewers C. is an opportunistic pathogen that causes severe infections in humans and animals, including horses. The occurrence of dominant international clones (ICs), frequent multidrug resistance, and the capability to form biofilms are considered major factors in the successful spread of in human and veterinary clinical environments. Since little is known about isolates from horses, we studied 78 equine isolates obtained from clinical samples between 2008 and 2020 for their antimicrobial resistance (AMR), clonal distribution, biofilm-associated genes (BAGs), and biofilm-forming capability. Based on ...
Aharonson-Raz K, Singh B.Endotoxemia causes significant mortality and morbidity in horses. The mechanisms underlying this complex pathophysiology remain unclear. Therefore, effective tools to treat endotoxemia in horses are lacking. Furthermore, the multifactorial and multiorgan pathophysiology of equine endotoxemia has not been fully addressed, especially the lung injury associated with endotoxemia. Within the context of the broader picture of endotoxemia and lung injury, we offer a perspective on the roles of pulmonary intravascular macrophages in endotoxin-induced lung inflammation in horses. L’endotoxémie est u...
Grosche A, Morton AJ, Graham AS, Polyak MM, Freeman DE.To determine the effect of large colon ischemia and reperfusion on concentrations of the inflammatory neutrophilic protein calprotectin and other clinicopathologic variables in jugular and colonic venous blood in horses. Methods: 6 healthy horses. Methods: Horses were anesthetized, and ischemia was induced for 1 hour followed by 4 hours of reperfusion in a segment of the pelvic flexure of the large colon. Blood samples were obtained before anesthesia, before induction of ischemia, 1 hour after the start of ischemia, and 1, 2, and 4 hours after the start of reperfusion from jugular veins and ve...
Murphy AJ, Mansfield LS.Sarcocystis neurona is a protozoan parasite that causes a neurological disease in horses called equine protozoal myeloencephalitis. The route of transmission is speculated to be by fecal-oral transfer of sporocysts shed from opossums. Controversy exists regarding both the natural life cycle for this parasite as well as the species identity of opossum Sarcocystis. To provide stage-specific material for species comparison, 27 opossums from southern Michigan were screened for Sarcocystis spp. sporocysts. Seven opossums were positive for Sarcocystis sporocysts by fecal flotation. A simplified, eff...
Pauwels FF, Hawkins JF, MacHarg MA, Rothenbuhler RD, Baird DK, Moulton JS.3 Horses were examined and treated because of sudden onset of signs of abdominal pain. Results: All horses had a retrosternal (Morgagni) hernia involving the right side of the diaphragm. In each horse, the large colon was incarcerated in a right muscular defect in the diaphragm with a large hernial sac. Results: Definitive surgical repair of the hernia was not performed during the initial celiotomy. The hernia was repaired with mesh herniorrhaphy, but without resection of the hernia sac in 2 horses. For 1 horse, conservative management was applied. In the 2 horses treated with surgical correct...
Schaffartzik A, Weichel M, Crameri R, Björnsdóttir TS, Prisi C, Rhyner C, Torsteinsdóttir S, Marti E.Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is an allergic dermatitis of horses caused by bites of Culicoides and sometimes Simulium spp. The aim of this investigation was to identify Simulium allergens associated with IBH. A phage surface display cDNA library expressing recombinant Simulium vittatum salivary gland proteins was screened using sera of IBH-affected horses sensitized to S. vittatum salivary gland proteins as shown in immunoblot, resulting in the identification of seven cDNAs encoding IgE-binding proteins. The deduced amino acid sequences of these proteins showed sequence similarities to a...
Jacobsen S, Kjelgaard-Hansen M.The aim of this study was to investigate the reliability of an immunoturbidometric assay for measuring the acute phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA) in horses in clinical practice. The assay was compared to a previously validated assay, and overlap performance was assessed by measuring the concentration of SAA in clinically healthy horses and horses with inflammatory and non-inflammatory diseases. In pools of serum with low and high SAA concentrations the assay's intra-assay coefficients of variation were 11.7 per cent and 4.6 per cent, and its interassay coefficients of variation were 9.1 per...
Monego F, Maboni F, Krewer C, Vargas A, Costa M, Loreto E.This study evaluated the molecular characteristics of Rhodococcus equi isolates obtained from horses by a multiplex PCR assay that amplifies the vap gene family (vapA, -B, -C, -D, -E, -F, -G, and -H). A total of 180 R. equi isolates were studied from four different sources, namely healthy horse feces (112), soil (12), stalls (23), and clinical isolates (33) from horse-breeding farms. The technique was performed and confirmed by sequencing of amplified vap gene family controls. Thirty-two (17.8%) of the R. equi isolates were positive for the vapA gene and carried at least three other vap genes....
Zhou J, Spier SJ, Beech J, Hoffman EP.It is often suggested that polygenic or environmental factors are responsible for clinical variability between patients with identical mutations. However, most dominant diseases are caused by a change-of-function alteration in the mutant allele's protein product. All patients are heterozygous and presumably express both mutant and normal proteins from the corresponding genes. Thus, a possible molecular mechanism for clinical variability could be the difference in relative levels of mutant vs. normal mRNA in different patients with the same mutation. To investigate this hypothesis, it is necess...
Savage CJ.Urinary specific gravity (USG) measurements are underused by equine ambulatory veterinarians. Urinary dipstick and USG findings can assist in the diagnosis and prognosis of many disease processes in the horse. Simple methods for measurement of the glomerular filtration rate and urinary biochemical markers can improve equine urinary diagnostic abilities in critical care patients. Fractional excretion of electrolytes and minerals assists in fluid care and in management of nutrition of horses.
Hussey GS, Giessler KS.Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) myeloencephalopathy (EHM) is a devastating consequence of EHV-1 infection that has significant economic consequences. However, clinical EHM is relatively rare and occurs in only approximately 10% of infected horses. While there is a positive correlation between the duration and magnitude of viremia and incidence of EHM, it is likely that a combination of host and viral factors determine whether EHM occurs. The identification of these factors is of high interest for the equine community and has been the topic of much research for vaccine development and to predict w...
Muraro LS, Souza AO, Leite TNS, Cândido SL, Melo ALT, Toma HS, Carvalho MB, Dutra V, Nakazato L, Cabezas-Cruz A, Aguiar DM.The genus includes tick-borne bacterial pathogens affecting humans, domestic and wild mammals. has been identified in different animal species and geographical locations, suggesting that this is a widely distributed and generalist . In the present study, we evaluated infection in 148 Equidae presented to the Medical Clinic Department of a Veterinary Hospital from a midwestern region of Brazil. Blood samples and ticks collected from the animals were tested by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) for the presence of spp. A multigenic approach including Anaplasmataceae-specific (i.e., 16S rRNA, , ...
Bishop RM, Scott I, Gee EK, Rogers CW, Pomroy WE, Mayhew IG.To ascertain whether resistance was present in Parascaris equorum to the macrocyclic lactone anthelmintic ivermectin, using faecal egg count reduction tests. Methods: Thirty-nine foals aged between 11 and 28 weeks on three Thoroughbred stud farms (Farms A; n=20, B; n=5 and C; n=14) were treated with ivermectin (Day 0) and faecal egg counts (FEC) were monitored before and for 21 (Farms A and B) or 14 (Farm C) days after treatment. On Farms A and B, the foals were treated with a macrocyclic lactone/benzimidazole/praziquantel combination on Day 21 and FEC assessed on Day 35. The three farms were ...
Jannatabadi AA, Mohammadi GR, Rad M, Maleki M.The objective of this study was to evaluate the existence of Streptococcus equi subsp. equi and Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus as probable agents associated with naturally occurring infection of the equine upper respiratory disease in Mashhad area. Nasal swabs samples from thirty horses with upper respiratory tract infections were collected. The bacteria isolated and identified were Streptococcus equi subsp. equi (1 isolate), Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus (25 isolates), Pasteurella sp. (11 isolates), Staphylococcus sp. (17 isolates), Bacillus sp. (4 isolates), Pseudomonas sp...
Aslantas Ö, Türkyilmaz S, Yilmaz MA, Erdem Z, Demir C.The present study was carried out to assess the frequency of methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) among racehorses (n=209) and veterinary personnel (n=13) as well as environmental surfaces (n=14) at an equine hospital in Adana, Turkey. In addition, species distribution, antimicrobial susceptibility, resistance genes, staphylococcal chromosomal cassette mec (SCCmec) type and clonality of these isolates were also investigated. MRS were identified by 16S rRNA sequencing, and typed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). As a result, MRS was isolated in horses (48.3%), clinic staff (92.3%...
Hoyles L, Falsen E, Foster G, Rogerson F, Collins MD.A polyphasic taxonomic study was performed on a previously unidentified gram-positive, facultatively anaerobic, diphtheroid-shaped organism isolated from a vaginal discharge of a horse. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing demonstrated that the strain was a member of the genus Arcanobacterium, but sequence divergence values of >4% with described species of this genus (viz: Arcanobacterium haemolyticum, Arcanobacterium bernardiae, Arcanobacterium phocae, Arcanobacterium pluranimalium and Arcanobacterium pyogenes) demonstrated that the isolate represented a novel species. The unknown bacteriu...
Ramalho Sousa S, Anastácio S, Nóvoa M, Paz-Silva A, Madeira de Carvalho LM.In Portugal, equine parasitism in pasture animals is characterized by high parasitic burden and high helminthic biodiversity; both factors are potentially pathogenic for their hosts. The decrease in the number of donkeys over the last years in Portugal, their importance in rural lowland and mountain ecosystems and pastures and the scarce information regarding their parasitism led to this research, which aimed to evaluate the parasitological status of a Miranda donkey breed population, a native breed mainly located in the northeast of Portugal. This study provides better knowledge of their gast...
Hepworth-Warren KL, Wong DM, Fulkerson CV, Wang C, Sun Y.To determine clinical characteristics, clinicopathologic data, and bacterial culture and antimicrobial susceptibility results associated with septic arthritis in foals ≤ 180 days old. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: 83 foals with septic arthritis. Methods: Medical records at 2 teaching hospitals between 1998 and 2013 were searched to identify those for foals ≤ 180 days old with confirmed infection of ≥ 1 synovial structure. Data extracted from the records included signalment, clinicopathologic information, bacteriologic culture and antimicrobial susceptibility results, and o...
Grønbaek LM, Angen O, Vigre H, Olsen SN.Streptococcus equi is the cause of strangles in horses. To improve diagnostic sensitivity, development and evaluation of DNA-based methods are necessary. Objective: To evaluate diagnostic methods and observe the pattern of bacterial shedding during natural outbreaks. Methods: Two herds with natural outbreaks of strangles were visited over a period of 15 weeks and 323 samples originating from 35 horses investigated. The diagnostic use of a nested PCR test was evaluated using a collection of 165 isolates of Lancefield group C streptococci (species specificity) and swabs from nasal passages or fr...
Breathnach CC, Yeargan MR, Timoney JF, Allen GP.Immunological protection of horses from equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) infection and disease depends on the cooperation of virus-specific humoral and cellular immune responses. EHV-specific mucosal immunity may be an important component of such immune responses. This study demonstrates the induction of anti-EHV cytotoxic cellular immune responses in various mucosal and systemic lymphoid tissues associated with the upper respiratory tract (URT) of the horse. Four young horses (1-2 years of age) were inoculated intranasally with the Army 183 strain of EHV-1 and euthanized 1 week later. One untreat...
Shen Z, Zhang MZ, Stich RW, Mitchell WJ, Zhang S.Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Rickettsia spp., and Lyme disease associated Borrelia spp. are the most common tick-borne pathogens reported to infect human beings worldwide and other animals, such as dogs and horses. In the present study, we developed a broad-coverage SYBR Green QPCR panel consisting of four individual assays for the detection and partial differentiation of the aforementioned pathogens. All assays were optimized to the same thermocycling condition and had a detection limit of 10 copies per reaction. The assays remained sensitive when used to test canine and equine blood DNA s...
Gardner RB, Nydam DV, Mohammed HO, Ducharme NG, Divers TJ.The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that horses with right dorsal displacement of the large colon (RDDLC) have elevations in serum gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) activity when compared with horses with left dorsal displacement of the large colon (LDDLC). Medical records from 37 horses with RDDLC and 48 horses with LDDLC were reviewed. Horses were included for study if the RDDLC or LDDLC was confirmed by exploratory laparotomy or postmortem examination and if a serum GGT measurement was obtained within 24 hours before surgery. The proportion of horses with GGT activity within...
Hammerschmitt ME, Henker LC, Lichtler J, da Costa FVA, Soares RM, Llano HAB, Pavarini SP.Sarcocystis neurona is the main agent associated with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM). Apart from horses, S. neurona has been occasionally described causing neurologic disease in several other terrestrial animals as well as mortality in marine mammals. Herein, we describe the clinical, pathological, and molecular findings of a fatal case of S. neurona-associated meningoencephalitis in a domestic cat. The causing agent was analyzed by multilocus genotyping, confirming the presence of S. neurona DNA in the tissue samples of the affected animal. Significant molecular differences were fou...
Wohlfender FD, Barrelet FE, Doherr MG, Straub R, Meier HP.The development of clinical illness in foals is usually predetermined by perinatal history, management or stressful environmental conditions. Objective: To determine potential risk factors for an increased incidence of infectious diseases during the first 30 days post partum. Methods: The population consisted of Thoroughbred foals born on stud farms in the Newmarket (UK) area in 2005 (n = 1031). They were followed for their first 30 days. Factors suspected to influence the incidence of infectious neonatal diseases were examined in a logistic regression approach for each of the 3 outcomes (tota...
Wallraf A, Hamann H, Deegen E, Ohnesorge B, Distl O.The prevalence of pastern dermatitis was investigated in 917 German Coldblood horses aged 2.5 to 26 years. Pastern dermatitis was prevalent in Black Forest Draught horses with 47.5% and in South German Draught horses with 58.5%. High prevalences were found in Mecklenburg (76.4%), Saxon-Thuringa (84.3%), Schleswig (86.0%), and Rhenisch German Coldblood (96.1%) horses. All four legs or both hind legs were affected most frequently. The most prevalent forms of pastern dermatitis were crusted and hyperkeratotic-hyperplastic. The occurrence of pastern dermatitis was dependent of age. The statistical...
