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Topic:Equine Health
Equine health encompasses the study and management of diseases, disorders, and overall well-being of horses. It involves understanding various physiological systems, preventive care, and treatment strategies to maintain optimal health in equine populations. Common areas of focus include nutrition, infectious diseases, orthopedic conditions, and reproductive health. Research in equine health aims to advance knowledge on diagnostic methods, therapeutic interventions, and management practices that improve horse welfare and performance. This page collects peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse aspects of equine health, offering insights into current findings and advancements in the field.
Isolation of a compound from Eupatorium adenophorum (Spreng.) [Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.)] causing hepatotoxicity in mice. Regular ingestion of Eupatorium adenophorum [Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.)] or Crofton weed causes chronic pulmonary disease in horses mainly in Australia, New Zealand, and the Himalayas. The disease is characterized by pulmonary interstitial fibrosis, emphysema, alveolar epithelisation and reduced tolerance to exercise. Horses apparently are the only animals affected and there are numerous reports of farms losing all their horses. The disorder was produced experimentally in horse feeding trials, and it was shown that characteristic lesions occurred in the lungs. In studies with laboratory an...
A note on the concurrent isolation, from horses and ponies, of influenza A/EQ-1 and A/EQ-2 viruses from an epidemic of equine influenza in India. A/eq-1 and A/eq-2 influenza viruses were isolated simultaneously from an epidemic of equine influenza in north India. Evidently, both types of equine influenza viruses circulated in the equine population at the same time.
Different fibrillar architectures coexisting in Haversian bone. Samples of compact bone were deproteinated by heat treatment and analysed by SEM. This technique removes very effectively cells and vascular structures and brings into full view the mineralization front along the wall of the Havers canal. The present study was confined to samples of equine bone that are known to be subjected to different functional requirements. Bone subjected to high tensile stress exhibited collagen fibrils substantially aligned with the stress direction, and the vast majority of its osteons appeared made of almost parallel fibrils crossing at very narrow angles. On the cont...
The prevalence and epidemiology of Anoplocephala perfoliata infection in Norway. The caecum and the adjacent 30 cm lengths of ileum and large colon of 201 horses from two different regions of Norway (Ostlandet and Trøndelag) were examined for the presence of Anoplocephala perfoliata. In all, 20% of the horses were infested with the cestode (27% in Ostlandet and 7% in Trøndelag). The mean number of worms in infected horses from the two regions was 18 and 6, respectively. Information was obtained on the age, sex, breed, type of pasture and anthelmintic treatment after the grazing season for 183 of the 20 horses. The degree of infestation with A. perfoliata was not influenc...
Activity of praziquantel (0.5 mg kg-1) against Anoplocephala perfoliata (Cestoda) in equids. Praziquantel injectable formulation was administered at 0.5 mg k-1 per os to 24 equids naturally infected with 1-183 (average 40) Anoplocephala perfoliata. Drug activity was evaluated by a modified critical test method with necropsy 24 h after treatment. There was variable efficacy of 0-100% (aggregate average 85%); for 18 equids, 93-100%, for three equids, 70-85%, and for three equids, 0-20%.
Prostaglandin F2 alpha metabolite levels following an embryo transfer procedure in the mare. Hormonal, chemical, and mechanical stimuli can activate the arachidonic acid cascade and result in formation of prostaglandins and related substances. These compounds can have a profound role in the initiation of the inflammatory process (Higgins & Lees 1984). Prostaglandin (PG) F2α is the key hormone in reproductive physiology with well-known effects on reproductive performance e.g. luteolysis and abortion. An activation of the arachidonic acid cascade, caused by mechanical manipulation during an embryo transfer procedure, might be one explanation for early embryonic loss.
Diagnosis of equine gammaherpesvirus 2 and 5 infections by polymerase chain reaction. Nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays were developed for the detection of equine herpesvirus 2 (EHV2) and equine herpesvirus 5 (EHV5) using the nucleotide sequences from the glycoprotein B (gB) gene of EHV2 and the thymidine kinase (TK) gene of EHV5. The simultaneous use of EHV2 specific and EHV5 specific primers in one nested amplification assay (multiplex PCR) enabled a rapid, specific and sensitive diagnosis for each virus. PCR was found to be 10(3) times more sensitive than virus isolation by cell culture for EHV2 and 10(6) for EHV5. In separate PCR assays, the routine detection li...
Crystalline composition of equine urinary sabulous deposits. The composition and crystal morphology of 141 equine sabulous deposits were determined by infrared spectroscopy (IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX). The IR analysis revealed that all investigated deposits contained calcium carbonates (calcite, CaCO3, and/or vaterite, CaCO3) as major constituents; 42 samples were composed of calcite and vaterite, 33 of calcite, 18 of calcite/vaterite and calcium oxalate, and 17 of vaterite. The remaining specimens contained calcite/vaterite and other compounds (calcium phosphates, sulphate and/or oxalates and/or s...
Endothelial lipopigment as an indicator of alpha-tocopherol deficiency in two equine neurodegenerative diseases. Two spontaneous neurodegenerative diseases of the horse, equine motor neuron disease (EMND) and equine degenerative myeloencephalopathy (EDM), have been associated with alpha-tocopherol deficiency, and both were characterized by prominent accumulations of endothelial lipopigment in the small vessels of the spinal cord. These endothelial pigment deposits appear to be reversible. In EMND horses pasture-supplemented for 9 months or more after the progression of weakness and wasting had arrested, there was very little endothelial lipopigment. The origin and the potential effects of these endotheli...
Flow-cytometric studies of the phagocytic capacities of equine neutrophils. Methodological aspects of flow-cytometric evaluation of the phagocytic properties of equine neutrophils were elucidated. The kinetics of attachment and ingestion were studied, and the phagocytic process was more rapidly completed when serum-opsonized yeast cells were used than with use of IgG-opsonized yeast cells. Trypan blue was successfully used to quench fluorescence of non-ingested yeast cells. There were only minor differences in the kinetics of phagocytosis between quenched and unquenched samples, indicating that attachment is rapidly followed by ingestion. Trypan blue quenching caused ...
Capacitation in vitro of stallion spermatozoa: comparison of progesterone-induced acrosome reactions in fertile and subfertile males. Mammalian sperm that have completed capacitation are capable of undergoing the acrosome reaction in response to a number of biological and chemical stimuli. In the present report, we have investigated the ability of progesterone to stimulate acrosome reactions of stallion sperm capacitated in vitro. Motile sperm were selected by a two-layer Percoll gradient centrifugation and were incubated in TALP medium modified by the 1:1 (v/v) addition of TEST-yolk medium for 5 hours at 39 degrees C, under 5% CO2 in humidified air. Sperm incubated in vitro in TALP-TEST medium had a higher percentage of acr...
Absorption and dosage of theophylline in the horse after single and repeated administration of a microencapsulated preparation. The kinetics of 2 formulations of theophylline were studied in horses. In an initial cross-over study (Phase I) serum concentration-time curves were determined for granulated and microencapsulated theophylline after a single oral administration (5 mg/kg bwt). In Phase II microencapsulated theophylline was administered at 5 mg/kg bwt/12 h for 10 days at feeding time, as in normal clinical practice. Although no significant differences between the 2 preparations were found with respect to the main kinetic parameters, the microencapsulated form was more evenly and completely absorbed from the dige...
Fumonisins: their implications for human and animal health. Fusarium moniliforme is one of the predominant fungi associated with corn intended for human and animal consumption world-wide. Fumonisins, food-borne carcinogens that occur naturally in corn, were first isolated and chemically characterized in South Africa in 1988. The major metabolite, fumonisin B1 (FB1), was subsequently shown to cause leukoencephalomalacia (LEM) in horses, pulmonary edema syndrome (PES) in pigs, and liver cancer in rats. FB1 is also a cancer promoter and initiator in rat liver; hepatotoxic to horses, pigs, rats, and vervet monkeys; cytotoxic to mammalian cell cultures; and...
Major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte responses in horses infected with equine herpesvirus 1. An experimental system that permits sensitive and reproducible detection of equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1)-specific cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) activity in the horse was developed. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) collected from immune horses were restimulated in vitro by culture with live EHV-1. Cytotoxic activity against virus-infected, pokeweed mitogen-stimulated lymphoblast targets was assessed in a 4-h 51Cr release assay. The optimal conditions for in vitro stimulation of equine memory CTLs and for preparation of EHV-1-infected target cells expressing viral antigens were systemati...
Stimulation of KCl co-transport in equine erythrocytes by hydrostatic pressure: effects of kinase/phosphatase inhibition. The effects of hydrostatic pressure on the KCl co-transporter of equine erythrocytes were studied to determine factors involved in its regulation. Pressure (0.1-40MPa) increased Cl-dependent K+ transport; in the presence of the putative kinase inhibitor N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) which stimulates the transporter, or the phosphatase inhibitor calyculin A, pressure had no significant effect. The sequential application of NEM and calyculin A clamped the transporter at about 30% of maximal flux compared to NEM alone; pressure also had no further effect. These results suggest that pressure acts on the ...
In vitro assessment of two species of nematophagous fungi (Arthrobotrys oligospora and Arthrobotrys flagrans) to control the development of infective cyathostome larvae from naturally infected horses. The ability of two species of nematophagous fungi, Arthrobotrys oligospora and Arthrobotrys flagrans (syn. Trichothecium flagrans, Duddingtonia flagrans), to control the development of infective larvae in feces from naturally infected horses was assessed in vitro. The horses were from a farm where it had been previously established that cyathostomes accounted for 100% of the strongyle egg output. The feces from these naturally infected horses were mixed with spores of each fungal species at four concentrations: 0 (control), 1, 10, and 100 spores per egg. Five replicates for each group were inc...
Fetal and maternal plasma lipids in chronically catheterized mares in late gestation: effects of different nutritional states. The effects of different nutritional states on plasma lipid concentrations have been examined in pregnant mares and their fetuses. Maternal and fetal arterial catheters were inserted into 12 pony mares between 244-303 days' gestation (term 320-360 days) and observations made from 5 days following the insertion of catheters. After recovery from surgery maternal and fetal arterial samples were withdrawn from 7 mares with normal feeding patterns (Group IA), from four of these mares at the end of a 30 h fast and 3 h later following refeeding (Group IB) and six mares who failed to re-establish norm...
Spermatophagy in the stallion epididymis: a scanning and transmission electron microscopy study. The occurrence of phagocytosis of spermatozoa in the epididymis is a controversial issue in male reproductive biology. In this paper we documented, by scanning and electron microscopy, the presence of spermatophages in the lumen of the proximal region of stallion epididymis. Sperm phagocytosis involving the principal cells that line the cauda epididymidis region was also observed. The possible meaning of this process in the removal of damaged, aged or surplus spermatozoa is discussed. These observations were made in samples obtained from random cases, during the course of research work carried...
Voltage-gated ion channelopathies: inherited disorders caused by abnormal sodium, chloride, and calcium regulation in skeletal muscle. The pathological genetic defects in the inherited myotonias and periodic paralyses were recently elucidated using molecular genetic studies. These disorders are usually transmitted as a dominant trait from an affected parent to a child. The many clinical symptoms include cold-induced uncontrollable contraction of muscle, potassium-induced contraction and paralysis, myotonia with dramatic muscular hypertrophy, muscle stiffness, and insulin-induced paralysis (in males). Horses afflicted with the disorder can suddenly collapse, despite an impressive physique. In the past three years, these clinic...
Response of ponies to adjuvanted EHV-1 whole virus vaccine and challenge with virus of the homologous strain. Five yearling ponies were vaccinated with inactivated Equid herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) in Freund's complete adjuvant as a double emulsion and revaccinated 6 weeks later with EHV-1 in Freund's incomplete adjuvant. These ponies and three age-matched controls were challenged intra-nasally after a further 6 weeks with homologous live virus and monitored clinically, biologically and serologically. After challenge, clinical signs were mild in both groups. No cell-associated viraemias were detected in vaccinated ponies. Vaccination induced high levels of complement-fixing (CF) and virus-neutralizing ...
Use of sodium monoiodoacetate to fuse the distal hock joints in horses. Intra-articular injection of sodium monoiodoacetate (MIA) was investigated as an agent for chemical arthrodesis of the distal hock joints in the horse. Five horses diagnosed with either spavin (three horses), a small tarsal bone fracture or a failed surgical arthrodesis, had 150 mg of MIA injected into the tarsometatarsal (TMT) joint of the affected hock(s). Eight joints were treated in the five horses. Follow-up evaluation by clinical and radiological examination took place over 9 to 14 months. Two of the five horses were sound at the conclusion of the study and one horse, although lame after...
Outbreak of larval cyathostomiasis among a group of yearling and two-year-old horses. Larval cyathostomiasis was diagnosed as the cause of an outbreak of illness in a group of five young horses. One had the typical clinical signs of larval cyathostomiasis--sudden onset diarrhoea, weight loss, ventral abdominal oedema and pyrexia, but the other four suddenly started to lose weight rapidly and had limb and ventral abdominal oedema and pyrexia, in the absence of diarrhoea. Large numbers of cyathostome larvae were found in the faeces. Four of the five horses recovered after being treated with anthelmintics and steroids.
Evaluation of factors associated with postoperative ileus in horses: 31 cases (1990-1992). Medical records of horses that underwent surgical treatment for colic between 1990 and 1992 were reviewed. Horses with a pulse rate of > or = 60 beats/min or signs of abdominal pain, which were also accompanied by a volume of > 2 L of material that refluxed from the stomach during the postoperative period (excluding horses with anterior enteritis), comprised the postoperative ileus (POI) group. Horses that had 3 days after surgery comprised the reference population. The association of preoperative and intraoperative clinical variables with development of POI was evaluated by use of logi...
Pleural effusion associated with acute and chronic pleuropneumonia and pleuritis secondary to thoracic wounds in horses: 43 cases (1982-1992). Case records of 43 horses with pleural effusion associated with acute pleuropneumonia, chronic pleuropneumonia, or pleuritis secondary to a penetrating thoracic wound were reviewed to determine the predisposing factors, diagnosis, and treatment of this condition. Acute pleuropneumonia was diagnosed in 36 horses, the majority of which were Thoroughbreds (89%). Of 22 (61%) horses that were in race training at the onset of illness, 11 (31%) had been recently transported a long distance and 4 (11%) had evidence of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage. Physical examination findings and hematologic...
[Differential diagnosis of non-healing ‘fungal’patches in horses]. Dermatophytosis is the most common equine skin disease. Mycotic-like lesions that do not disappear are suspected of being sarcoids. The clinical symptoms and therapeutic interventions for both affections are discussed. A short review of the differential diagnoses is presented.
