Omneity® Pellets
All-In-One Vitamin & Mineral Pellet
Topic:Equine Diseases
Equine diseases encompass a wide range of health conditions that can affect horses, including infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, and genetic conditions. These diseases can impact the overall health, performance, and well-being of horses. Common equine diseases include equine influenza, equine herpesvirus, laminitis, and equine metabolic syndrome. Diagnosis and management of these diseases often require a combination of clinical evaluation, laboratory testing, and appropriate treatment strategies. This page gathers peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the etiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment options for various equine diseases, providing valuable insights for veterinarians and researchers in the field.
The effect of oxytocin on contractility of the equine oesophagus: a potential treatment for oesophageal obstruction. This study was performed to determine the effect of administration of i.v. oxytocin on the contractility of the musculature associated with the equine oesophagus. Nine clinically normal horses were fitted with a nasogastric tube modified with inflatable latex cuffs. These cuffs were connected to piezoelectric pressure recording devices. Oxytocin in 3 different doses or saline controls were administered i.v. in a randomised block pattern. Systolic blood pressure, ECG, heart rate and nasogastric tube cuff pressures were then measured for 60 min. Administration of oxytocin i.v. at 0.11 and 0.22 i...
Spontaneous production of nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin (PGE2) and neutral metalloproteinases (NMPs) in media of explant cultures of equine synovial membrane and articular cartilage from normal and osteoarthritic joints. Nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and the activity of neutral metalloproteinases (NMPs) were measured in conditioned media of equine synovial membrane and articular cartilage explant cultures from horses with normal joints (n = 7) and from horses affected with moderate (n = 7) or severe osteoarthritis (n = 14) as judged by macroscopic appearance. Normal articular cartilage appeared glossy and bluish-white, was of normal thickness and showed no evidence of discolouration, fibrillation or other cartilage discontinuity. Slight discolouration and fibrillation or minor clefts of the carti...
[Demonstration of Chlamydia from an equine abortion]. The isolation and identification of a chlamydial agent from an equine fetus is reported. The fetus was aborted by a mare with respiratory disease and fever in the 9th month of pregnancy. The serum of the mare was investigated by the compliment fixation test. Specific antibodies were detected for chlamydial antigen in a titer of > 1:40 and for equine herpes virus 1 antigen in a titer of 1:32. Pathological lesions were not found in the organs of the fetus. Chlamydiae were detected in the placenta by ELISA and subsequently isolated by cell culture. Using PCR technique the agent was identified ...
Occurrence of Thelazia lacrymalis (Nematoda, Spirurida, Thelaziidae) in native horses in Abruzzo region (central eastern Italy). A survey on the prevalence of Thelazia spp. in Abruzzo region (Italy) in slaughtered native horses was conducted from August 29, 1997 to August 28, 1998. Both eyes from 128 eight-month to 11 year-old native animals were examined. 50 horses (39.06%) were found parasitized by Thelazia lacrymalis. 502 specimens (371 females, 88 males and 12 larvae) were collected. In the infected horses the numbers of T. lacrymalis ranged from 1 to 48, with a mean count burden of 3.92 per head (SD = 7.79). T. lacrymalis specimens were mainly in the excretory ducts of the Harderian gland, and also in the ducts of ...
Melanin affinity: a possible explanation of isoxsuprine retention in the horse. Isoxsuprine is used in veterinary medicine as a vasodilating agent. The drug has been detected in the urine of horses up to 6 weeks after the cessation of administration. In the present study, the distribution pattern of 3H-isoxsuprine was investigated using whole body autoradiography in mice to find a possible site of retention. Melanin was the only place of retention identified. Additional in vitro studies showed an affinity of isoxsuprine to both melanin and keratin. The K(d) values were 0.02 mmol/l and 1 mmol/l, and the B(max) values were 0.2 micromol/mg and 2 micromol/mg, respectively. A ...
Affinity of isoxsuprine for adrenoreceptors in equine digital artery and implications for vasodilatory action. We used isolated equine digital arteries to study the vasodilatory mechanism of isoxsuprine, and fowl caecum preparations to investigate the affinity of the drug for beta-adrenoceptors. Isoxsuprine is a potent vasodilator of arterial smooth muscle that has been precontracted by an alpha-adrenoceptor agonist such as noradrenaline (log EC50 = -6.33 [-5.98; -6.68]). The present study indicates that its effect is due to alpha-adrenoceptor blockade since: (1) after a long lasting exposure to cumulative doses of isoxsuprine the vasoconstricting action of noradrenaline cannot be restored; (2) isoxsup...
Nitric oxide inhibits aggrecan degradation in explant cultures of equine articular cartilage. Arthroses are debilitating diseases of articular joints which result in erosion of the cartilage extracellular matrix. Nitric oxide (NO) is a major component of the inflammatory response, and has been implicated as a mediator of some of the effects of the proinflammatory cytokine, interleukin-1 (IL-1). In this study, we investigated the role of NO in the regulation of proteoglycan degradation in equine articular cartilage. NO fully mediated the suppressive effect of IL-1 on proteoglycan synthesis. However, NO was also antagonistic to proteoglycan degradation, irrespective of whether degradatio...
Adaptive explanation in socio-ecology: lessons from the Equidae. Socio-ecological explanations for intra- and interspecific variation in the social and spatial organization of animals predominate in the scientific literature. The socio-ecological model, developed first for the Bovidae and Cervidae, is commonly applied more widely to other groups including the Equidae. Intraspecific comparisons are particularly valuable because they allow the role of environment and demography on social and spatial organization to be understood while controlling for phylogeny or morphology which confound interspecific comparisons. Feral horse (Equus caballus Linnaeus 1758) p...
Esophageal obstruction in horses: a retrospective study of 34 cases. The major purpose of this investigation was to describe the causes, possible complications, and prognoses of horses with esophageal obstruction. Of 34 cases presenting with esophageal obstruction, 28 cases were due to impaction of ingesta. Obstruction due to pre-existing esophageal disease occurred in 4 horses with megaesophagus, in 1 horse with stricture in the upper third of the esophagus, and in 1 horse with esophageal diverticulum. There was no significant difference in the contamination of the trachea between horses that subsequently developed aspiration pneumonia and those that did not. ...
Functional and histopathological evidence of cardiac parasympathetic dysautonomia in equine grass sickness. The parasympathetic terminal cardiac ganglia were examined in three normal horses and in five horses with grass sickness. Histopathological changes, consistent with those observed in other ganglia of horses with grass sickness, were identified in the terminal cardiac ganglia of the affected horses. A functional analysis of cardiac autonomic control by time domain analysis (TDA) of heart rate variability was applied to eight horses with grass sickness, and double-paired to 16 normal horses on the basis of their age, sex and breed, and the time of day at which the electrocardiographs were obtain...
The suitability of echotexture characteristics of the follicular wall for identifying the optimal breeding day in mares. Ultrasonically detected changes in the equine preovulatory follicle were characterized for the 3 d preceding ovulation early (n = 47) and late (n = 14) in the ovulatory season. Values for the following follicle end points increased progressively over the 3 d: diameter, incidence of nonspherical shape, echogenicity of the apparent granulosa layer, and prominence of an anechoic layer beneath the granulosa. The latter 2 echotexture end points were scored from 1 to 3 (minimal to maximal). Follicle diameter and the 2 echotexture characteristics were more prominent early than late in the ovulatory s...
Effects of density on displacement, falls, injuries, and orientation during horse transportation(1). Three groups of slaughter-type horses, totaling 30 mares and 29 geldings, were used to determine density effects on displacement (distance moved during a stop), falls, injuries, and orientation using a single-deck, open-topped commercial semi-trailer. Each horse was assigned to one of two treatments: high density (1.28 m(2)/horse with 14 horses) or low density (2.23 m(2)/horse with eight horses). Both treatments occurred sequentially on the same day (treatment order was alternated each trial), using the middle 2.44x7.32 m compartment of a large semi-tractor trailer. The horses were transported...
Diarrhoea associated with cryptosporidial oocyst shedding in a quarterhorse stallion. Cryptosporidial oocyst shedding was detected in a 2.5-year-old Quarterhorse stallion with diarrhoea. Based on the detection of cryptosporidial oocysts, and the absence of other aetiological agents or enteropathogens, cryptosporidiosis was presumptively diagnosed. This case was unusual because cryptosporidial oocyst shedding is primarily found in some immunocompromised or immature horses, and has not been reported in healthy mature horses.
The relationship of increased susceptibility of sperm DNA to denaturation and fertility in the stallion. The relationship between fertility and susceptibility of sperm DNA to denaturation was determined in a group of 84 actively breeding, clinically fertile stallions. Susceptibility of DNA to denaturation was determined using the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA). The SCSA measures, mean of alpha-t (mean alpha t), standard deviation of alpha-t (SD alpha t), and the COMP of alpha-t (cells outside the main population)] were significantly correlated with the percentage seasonal pregnancy rate (SPR; mean alpha t, r = -0.24, P < or = 0.05; % COMP alpha t, r = -0.27, P < or = 0.05); percentage pre...
Application of the restricted-access precolumn packing material alkyl-diol silica in a column-switching system for the determination of ketoprofen enantiomers in horse plasma. The group of LiChrospher ADS (alkyl-diol silica) sorbents that make part of a unique family of restricted-access materials, have been developed as special packings for precolumns used in the LC-integrated sample processing of biofluids. The advantage of these sorbents lies in the direct injection of untreated biological fluids, that is without sample clean-up, the elimination of the protein matrix with a quantitative recovery together with an on-column enrichment. The present method is based on previous work applying UV detection at 260 nm for ketoprofen determinations. Plasma samples introduc...
Delayed insemination is successful with a new extender for storing fresh equine semen at 15 degrees C under aerobic conditions. Milk-based semen diluents are known to be practical and effective in protecting equine spermatozoa during storage before artificial insemination. Milk is a biological fluid with a complex composition and contains components which are beneficial or harmful to spermatozoa. The aim of this study was to test the fertility of stallion semen after long-term storage using different milk diluents (INRA 82 or Kenney's diluent) vs one diluent chemically defined (INRA 96), which is composed of efficient milk components and optimized for sperm survival and storage temperature. The milk fraction used was t...
Differences in uterine position of reproductively normal mares and those with delayed uterine clearance detected by scintigraphy. The position of the uterus within the abdomen may affect a mare's ability to rapidly clear the uterine lumen of contamination. In this study, the position of the uterus was determined from left and right lateral flank scintigrams taken 1 and 2 h after intrauterine infusion of radiocolloid. Scintigraphy was performed during estrus in 44 mares, 24 were reproductively normal and 20 exhibited a delay in uterine clearance. Reproductively normal mares were nulliparous (n = 14) or pluriparous (n = 10), 3 to 21 yr of age, had no history of persistent uterine infections and cleared > 50% of a radioc...
Uterine clearance and resistance to persistent endometritis in the mare. The objective of this article is to review the role of uterine defense mechanisms in natural resistance to chronic or persistent endometritis. A breakdown of uterine physical clearance mechanisms is currently believed to play a major role in susceptibility to persistent endometritis. Mares with increased susceptibility to persistent endometritis have impaired myometrial contractility in response to an acute inflammation, resulting in an accumulation of fluid and inflammatory products within the uterine lumen. The origin of this defect remains unknown. Recent studies have demonstrated that sper...
Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of equine seminal plasma proteins and their correlation with fertility. The objectives of this study were to 1) identify proteins found in stallion seminal plasma utilizing two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE) in conjunction with Western blot analysis; and 2) to determine if any of these individual proteins were correlated with stallion fertility utilizing regression analysis. Fertility was quantified by assigning a breeding score for each stallion. Each score was calculated by dividing the number of conceptions by the number of breedings for each stallion for four successive breeding seasons (1992-1995). Ejaculates from stallions of known ...
Generation of an equine oviductal epithelial cell line for the study of sperm-oviduct interactions. Equine oviductal epithelial cells (OEC) were transformed with simian virus 40 large T antigen (SV 40 T-ag) to create a cell line for the study of the interaction of equine spermatozoa with oviductal epithelium. One cell line was established based on the expression of the SV 40 T-ag and extended lifespan in culture. Immortalized equine OEC retained the characteristics of differentiated OEC such as the formation of monolayers with characteristic epithelial morphology and cell polarization as well as expression of cytokeratin and equine major histocompatibility complex I. Monolayers of immortaliz...
Study of early pregnancy factor (EPF) in equine (Equus caballus). Early pregnancy factor (EPF) is an immunosuppressive protein detected in the early pregnancy serum. We have already reported that we developed the rosette inhibition test for mare EPF and detected EPF in thoroughbreds. The aim of this study was to determine whether or not our method could be used clinically. Methods: The rosette inhibition test for equine EPF was carried out on serum from six nonpregnant and six pregnant Shetland ponies, a female and a male Chinese pony, and four nonpregnant and 13 pregnant thoroughbred mares. In the thoroughbreds sera were collected during the pregnancy perio...
Sperm transport and survival in the mare: a review. After the deposition of semen in the mare's uterus, spermatozoa must be transported to the site of fertilization, be maintained in the female tract until ovulation occurs, and be prepared to fertilize the released ovum. Sperm motility, myometrial contractions, and a spontaneous post-mating uterine inflammation are important factors for the transport and survival of spermatozoa in the mare's reproductive tract. Fertilizable sperm are present in the oviduct within 4 h after insemination. At this time, the uterus is the site of a hostile inflammatory environment. Our data suggest that spermatozoa...
Heme orientation affects holo-myoglobin folding and unfolding kinetics. Native myoglobin (Mb) consists of two populations which differ in the orientation of the heme by 180 degrees rotation (as verified by nuclear magnetic resonance) but have identical absorption spectra and equilibrium-thermodynamic stability. Here, we report that these two fractions of native oxidized Mb (from horse) both unfold and refold (chemical denaturant, pH 7, 20 degrees C) in two parallel kinetic reactions with rate constants differing 10-fold. In accord, the oxidized heme remains coordinated to unfolded horse Mb in up to 4 M guanidine hydrochloride (pH 7, 20 degrees C).
Dynamics of prostaglandin secretion, intrauterine fluid and uterine clearance in reproductively normal mares and mares with delayed uterine clearance. Two experiments were performed to investigate relationships between oxytocin, prostaglandin release, uterine emptying and fluid accumulation in the uterus. In Experiment 1, the effect of oxytocin on the pattern of prostaglandin release during uterine clearance of radiocolloid was measured in 5 normal mares and 5 mares with delayed uterine clearance. Uterine clearance was measured during estrus by scintigraphy at 0, 60 and 120 min after colloid infusion. After the 120-min reading, 20 IU, i.v., oxytocin were given, and the amount of colloid cleared was measured at 135, 150 and 180 min. Plasma wa...
Measurement of early pregnancy factor activity for monitoring the viability of the equine embryo. The viability of embryos before flushing from donor mares (n = 5) and after transfer to recipient mares (n = 7) was monitored in mare serum by detecting early pregnancy factor (EPF) using the rosette inhibition test (RIT). The EPF activity was measured in donor mares before and after natural mating at natural estrus; after ovulation on Days 2, 5 and 8; and after embryo flushing (Day 8) on Days 8, 9, 10 and 13 after ovulation. The collected embryos were transferred immediately after flushing. The EPF activity in recipient mares were measured on the day of transfer and after embryo transfer on D...
