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.
Nielsen MK, Betancourt A, Lyons ET, Horohov DW, Jacobsen S.Cyathostomins can cause a severe inflammation of equine large intestine characterized by substantial ventral edema and pronounced protein loss. Anthelmintic treatment of horses can result in a localized inflammatory response in the colonic mucosa of clinically normal horses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the systemic inflammatory response of ponies naturally infected with cyathostomins to single dose representatives of three anthelmintic drug classes, namely, oxibendazole, pyrantel pamoate, and moxidectin. Thirty ponies aged between 1 and 18 years of age were allocated to one of three ...
Kaabia Z, Dervilly-Pinel G, Popot MA, Bailly-Chouriberry L, Plou P, Bonnaire Y, Le Bizec B.Nandrolone (17β-hydroxy-4-estren-3-one) is amongst the most misused endogenous steroid hormones in entire male horses. The detection of such a substance is challenging with regard to its endogenous presence. The current international threshold level for nandrolone misuse is based on the urinary concentration ratio of 5α-estrane-3β,17α-diol (EAD) to 5(10)-estrene-3β,17α-diol (EED). This ratio, however, can be influenced by a number of factors due to existing intra- and inter-variability standing, respectively, for the variation occurring in endogenous steroids concentration levels in a si...
Brighton C, Olsen E, Pfau T.Standalone 'low-cost' inertial measurement units (IMUs) could facilitate large-scale studies into establishing minimal important differences (MID) for orthopaedic deficits (lameness) in horses. We investigated accuracy and limits of agreement (LoA) after correction of magnitude-dependent differences of a standalone 6 degree-of-freedom IMU compared with an established IMU-based gait analysis system (MTx) in six horses for two anatomical landmarks (sacrum and sternum). Established symmetry measures were calculated from vertical displacement: symmetry index (SI), difference between minima (MinDif...
Kulbrock M, Lehner S, Metzger J, Ohnesorge B, Distl O.Equine recurrent uveitis (ERU) is a common eye disease affecting up to 3-15% of the horse population. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) using the Illumina equine SNP50 bead chip was performed to identify loci conferring risk to ERU. The sample included a total of 144 German warmblood horses. A GWAS showed a significant single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) on horse chromosome (ECA) 20 at 49.3 Mb, with IL-17A and IL-17F being the closest genes. This locus explained a fraction of 23% of the phenotypic variance for ERU. A GWAS taking into account the severity of ERU, revealed a SNP on ECA18 n...
Niedźwiedź A, Kubiak K, Nicpoń J.The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of 8-hour road transport on plasma total antioxidant status (PTAS) and general clinical appearance in horses. Results: The study was conducted on a group of 60 horses of different breeds aged from 4 to 10 years. Venous blood was collected and a clinical examination was performed immediately before loading horses onto trailers for an 8 hour transport (I), immediately after unloading them from the trailer (II), and after a subsequent 24 hour stall rest (III). The ferric-reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) was used to determine PTAS. The transpor...
Meyer W, Schoennagel B, Kacza J, Busche R, Hornickel IN, Hewicker-Trautwein M, Schnapper A.We studied the esophageal epithelium for keratinization characteristics from samples of domesticated mammals of three nutrition groups (herbivores: horse, cattle, sheep; omnivores: pig, dog, rat; carnivores: cat) using histochemistry (keratins, disulfides), sulfur measurements, and cryo-SEM. Keratins were found in all esophageal layers of all species, except for the equine Stratum corneum. The positive reaction staining of Pan-keratin was remarkable, but decreased in intensity toward the outer layers, whereas in the pig and cat, staining was confined to the corneal layer. The herbivores reveal...
Santos VG, Beg MA, Bettencourt EM, Ginther OJ.The effects of inhibition of PGF2α synthesis on luteolysis in mares and on the incidence of prolonged luteal activity were studied in controls and in a group treated with flunixin meglumine (FM), a PGF2α inhibitor (n = 6/group). The FM was given every 8 hours (1.0 mg/kg) on each of Days 14.0 to 16.7. Concentration (pg/mL) of PGF2α metabolite averaged over 8 hours of hourly blood sampling at the beginning of each day, was lower in the FM group than in the controls on Day 14 after ovulation (6.7 ± 1.3 vs. 13.8 ± 2.9, P < 0.05), Day 15 (15.0 ± 3.9 vs. 35.2 ± 10.4, P < 0.10), and Day 16 (21...
Croser EL, Marsh GA.The Henipavirus genus represents a group of paramyxoviruses that are some of the deadliest of known human and veterinary pathogens. Hendra and Nipah viruses are zoonotic pathogens that can cause respiratory and encephalitic illness in humans with mortality rates that exceed 70%. Over the past several years, we have seen an increase in the number of cases and an altered clinical presentation of Hendra virus in naturally infected horses. Recent increase in the number of cases has also been reported with human Nipah virus infections in Bangladesh. These factors, along with the recent discovery of...
Khurelbaatar N, Krueger WS, Heil GL, Darmaa B, Ulziimaa D, Tserennorov D, Baterdene A, Anderson BD, Gray GC.In recent years, Mongolia has experienced recurrent epizootics of equine influenza virus (EIV) among its 2·1 million horses and multiple incursions of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus via migrating birds. No human EIV or HPAI infections have been reported. In 2009, 439 adults in Mongolia were enrolled in a population-based study of zoonotic influenza transmission. Enrollment sera were examined for serological evidence of infection with nine avian, three human, and one equine influenza virus strains. Seroreactivity was sparse among participants suggesting little human risk of zoo...
Sevigny LM, Booth BJ, Rowley KJ, Leav BA, Cheslock PS, Garrity KA, Sloan SE, Thomas W, Babcock GJ, Wang Y.Diphtheria antitoxin (DAT) has been the cornerstone of the treatment of Corynebacterium diphtheriae infection for more than 100 years. Although the global incidence of diphtheria has declined steadily over the last quarter of the 20th century, the disease remains endemic in many parts of the world, and significant outbreaks still occur. DAT is an equine polyclonal antibody that is not commercially available in the United States and is in short supply globally. A safer, more readily available alternative to DAT would be desirable. In the current study, we obtained human monoclonal antibodies (h...
Galvão AM, Szóstek AZ, Skarzynski DJ, Ferreira-Dias GM.Normal reproductive function involves the expression of inflammatory mediators. Regarding the corpus luteum (CL), cytokines promote the cross-talk between immune, vascular and steroidogenic cells, among others. Moreover, TNF, IFNG and FASL were shown to regulate equine CL establishment and regression. We hypothesized that cytokines action on equine CL may be mediated by nitric oxide (NO), through the regulation of endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) expression. TNF increased eNOS mRNA level and NO metabolite (nitrite) production during CL growth. Cytokines combined action (TNF+IFNG+FASL) promoted e...
Westcott D, Wescott DG, Mildenberg Z, Bellaiche M, McGowan SL, Grierson SS, Choudhury B, Steinbach F.Equine encephalosis virus (EEV) distribution was thought to be limited to southern Africa until 2008 when we reported EEV in Israel. It was then assumed that the clinical presentation resembled the initial incursion in Israel. To investigate further we conducted a retrospective analysis of equine sera, which had been collected for diagnosis of other suspected diseases, via serum neutralisation test. The data demonstrated that EEV was circulating as early as 2001 with incidence ranging from 20-100% for time period 2001-2008. As the symptoms of EEV can be similar to other equine notifiable disea...
Bombardi C, Grandis A, Gardini A, Sorteni C, Clavenzani P, Chiocchetti R.The activity of the gastrointestinal tract is regulated through the activation of adrenergic receptors (ARs). Since data concerning the distribution of ARs in the horse intestine is virtually absent, we investigated the distribution of β2-AR in the horse ileum using double-immunofluorescence. The β2-AR-immunoreactivity (IR) was observed in most (95%) neurons located in submucosal plexus (SMP) and in few (8%) neurons of the myenteric plexus (MP). Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-IR fibers were observed close to neurons expressing β2-AR-IR. Since β2-AR is virtually expressed in most neurons located...
Ball BA, Scoggin KE, Troedsson MH, Squires EL.Biological effects of prostaglandin E2 are mediated via one of four receptors designated EP1, EP2, EP3 and EP4 which are encoded by separate genes. In general, EP1 and EP3 induce smooth muscle contraction whereas EP2 and EP4 induce smooth muscle relaxation. The objective of the current study was to characterize the expression of the genes for PGE2 receptors (EP2 and EP4) in the horse oviduct based upon immunohistochemistry (IHC) and quantitative PCR (qPCR). Oviductal tissue was collected from mares at estrus (n=5), at 5 days post-ovulation (n=4), and from prepubertal mares (n=5). Isthmic and a...
Salciccia A, Sandersen C, Grulke S, de la Rebière de Pouyade G, Caudron I, Serteyn D, Detilleux J.The objectives of this study were to describe and relate perioperative changes in blood leukocyte counts to the outcome of surgical colic horses, determine a cut-off value in the early postoperative period to obtain an indicator of the outcome, and compare the obtained value to a validation population of horses. Fifty-three horses undergoing colic surgery were included in the descriptive part of the study. Total leukocyte counts were performed before, during and serially after surgery. A receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed on the leukocyte counts of 45 of these horses to d...
Davies Morel MC, Lawlor O, Nash DM.Endometritis is an important cause of sub-fertility in mares. The critical indicator of reproductive success and financial return for commercial studs is live foaling rate. Endometrial bacteriology and/or cytology are used to diagnose endometritis and thus identify mares at risk of early embryonic death. However, mares with endometritis may conceive but then abort in late gestation. The aims of this study were to establish, as part of a standard breeding examination (1) whether a threshold percentage of uterine polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) exists above which a significant reduction in ...
van Beest FM, Uzal A, Vander Wal E, Laforge MP, Contasti AL, Colville D, McLoughlin PD.Density is a fundamental driver of many ecological processes including habitat selection. Theory on density-dependent habitat selection predicts that animals should be distributed relative to profitability of habitat, resulting in reduced specialization in selection (i.e. generalization) as density increases and competition intensifies. Despite mounting empirical support for density-dependent habitat selection using isodars to describe coarse-grained (interhabitat) animal movements, we know little of how density affects fine-grained resource selection of animals within habitats [e.g. using res...
Chesnel MA, Clutton RE.Previous studies indicated that perioperative morphine improves recovery quality after general anaesthesia in horses. This clinical trial investigated whether this effect was dose-dependant. Twenty-six horses anaesthetised for surgery were block-randomised to receive one of two intraoperative morphine treatments: Treatment M1 consisted of a constant rate infusion (CRI) of morphine at 0.1mg/kg/h, begun after a loading dose (LD) of 0.15 mg/kg. Treatment M2 was a CRI of 0.2mg/kg/h preceded by an LD of 0.3mg/kg. During recovery, times at the first attempt and at achieving sternal recumbency and st...
Bäumer W, Herrling GM, Feige K.To test the efficacy of the recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rt-PA) alteplase in horses, the thrombolytic effect was tested in in vitro generated equine thrombi. The extent of lysis was determined by measuring the decrease in thrombi weight over a period of 4 hours. In vivo pharmacokinetics of alteplase were determined in 6 healthy horses. A single dose (1 mg/kg) was applied via intravenous infusion over a period of 30 minutes Coagulation-related variables, blood count and clinical parameters were taken before the treatment and until 48 h after treatment. In addition, plasma rt-P...
Cluzel C, Blond L, Fontaine P, Olive J, Laverty S.Adult articular cartilage (AC) has a well described multizonal collagen structure. Knowledge of foetal AC organisation and development may provide a prototype for cartilage repair strategies, and improve understanding of structural changes in developmental diseases such as osteochondrosis (OC). The objective of this study was to describe normal development of the spatial architecture of the collagen network of equine AC using 1.5 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and polarised light microscopy (PLM), at sites employed for cartilage repair studies or susceptible to OC. T2-weighted fast-spin e...
Singha H, Goyal SK, Malik P, Khurana SK, Singh RK.Equine infectious anemia (EIA)-a retroviral disease caused by equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV)-is a chronic, debilitating disease of horses, mules, and donkeys. EIAV infection has been reported worldwide and is recognized as pathogen of significant economic importance to the horse industry. This disease falls under regulatory control program in many countries including India. Control of EIA is based on identification of inapparent carriers by detection of antibodies to EIAV in serologic tests and "Stamping Out" policy. The current internationally accepted test for diagnosis of EIA is the ...
Schwarz B, Klang A, Bezdekova B, Sárdi S, Kutasi O, Hoven R.Equine multinodular pulmonary fibrosis (EMPF), a progressive fibrosing interstitial lung disease has been associated with gammaherpesviruses. This case series describes five horses with EMPF. Three of the horses (two in Hungary, one in the Czech Republic) were diagnosed with EMPF ante mortem. They presented with typical clinical signs of EMPF including dyspnoea and weight loss. Arterial blood gas analysis revealed hypoxaemia. Blood work showed signs of inflammation like neutrophilia and hyperfibrinogenaemia. An endoscopic examination of the respiratory tract including cytology and culture of t...
Foster DL.This article discusses the primary odontogenic problems of the mature performance horse, including wolf teeth; hooks; overbite, overjet, underjet, and wry bite; equine odontoclastic tooth resorption and hypercementosis; infundibular caries; and secondary oral problems. It outlines the author's methods of taking the history, oral examination, and use of diagnostic nerve blocks.
Earley E, Rawlinson JT.This article discusses the classification systems for dental fractures and how the assessment affects treatment options. Diagonal incisor malocclusion is discussed in relation to skull asymmetry and how this commonly relates to premolar and molar occlusion. Oral and radiographic assessment of incisive bone fracture and incisor avulsion is reviewed for determining treatment options. A summary of incisor and canine resorption and hypercementosis is presented. Clinical presentations, staging, and classifications of tooth resorption as well as canine odontoplasty are discussed. Excessive plaque an...
Casey M.Equine dental disease has a high prevalence. Because of developmental, functional, and anatomic differences, limited inference can be made from brachydont dental pathology to that of equine cheek teeth. This article reviews the pathology of equine cheek teeth and their associated oral tissues, with specific information on periodontitis, pulpitis, maxillary infundibular changes, dental fractures, dental overgrowths, mucosal ulceration, and the regenerative capacity of equine teeth.
Dixon PM, du Toit N, Staszyk C.There have been many significant and interesting developments in equine dental anatomy during the past 20 years that are of major clinical significance in better understanding the physiology of equine mastication, the etiopathogenesis of some dental disorders, and their safe treatment. The many recent significant developments include descriptions of the enamel infolding of cheek teeth and of infundibular anatomy, including the frequent absence of cementum infilling in many infundibulae, which can lead to infundibular caries. Many important developments in equine dental anatomy are summarized i...
Vairo S, Favoreel H, Scagliarini A, Nauwynck H.Currently, little is known on the cellular pathogenesis of equine arteritis virus (EAV). The purpose of the present study was to identify the target cells in ponies experimentally inoculated with EAV 08P178 (EU, clade-1). EAV-target organs (respiratory tissues with associated lymphoid tissues and large intestines), collected at 3 and 7 days post inoculation (dpi) and with virus titers≥10(5.0) TCID50/g, were processed with double immunofluorescence staining for the simultaneous detection of EAV N-protein and one of the following cell markers: CD172a (myeloid cells), CD3 (T lymphocytes), IgM (...
Perryman LE, Bjorneby JM.Immunotherapy for persistent infection caused by Cryptosporidium parvum was attempted in two immunodeficient animal models. BALB/c Athymic (nude) mice were infected with two oral doses of 2 x 10(7) C. parvum oocysts, and subsequently treated with monoclonal antibody (MAb) 17.41 that neutralizes sporozoites and merozoites. Persistent infection was established in all exposed mice. Daily oral treatment with MAb 17.41 for 10 days significantly reduced (p less than 0.005) the number of C. parvum organisms observed by microscopic study of intestinal tracts of infected mice. Young horses with severe ...
Dimaio Knych HK, Stanley SD.To characterize pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of detomidine gel administered sublingually in accordance with label instructions to establish appropriate withdrawal guidelines for horses before competition. Methods: 12 adult racehorses. Methods: Horses received a single sublingual administration of 0.04 mg of detomidine/kg. Blood samples were collected before and up to 72 hours after drug administration. Urine samples were collected for 5 days after detomidine administration. Plasma and urine samples were analyzed via liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, and resulting data were anal...
Bellas E, Rollins A, Moreau JE, Lo T, Quinn KP, Fourligas N, Georgakoudi I, Leisk GG, Mazan M, Thane KE, Taeymans O, Hoffman AM, Kaplan DL....Soft-tissue regeneration methods currently yield suboptimal clinical outcomes due to loss of tissue volume and a lack of functional tissue regeneration. Grafted tissues and natural biomaterials often degrade or resorb too quickly, while most synthetic materials do not degrade. In previous research we demonstrated that soft-tissue regeneration can be supported using silk porous biomaterials for at least 18 months in vivo in a rodent model. In the present study, we scaled the system to a survival study using a large animal model and demonstrated the feasibility of these biomaterials for soft-tis...
Palencia P, Quiroz-Rothe E, Rivero JL.Equine motor neuron disease (EMND) is a neurodegenerative disorder similar to the sporadic form of human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This study was conducted to quantify myofiber plasticity in response to EMND. Deep M. gluteus medius biopsy samples from eight horses with an ante mortem diagnosis of EMND, which in five cases was later confirmed by post mortem examination of spinal cord and peripheral nerves, were examined by combined methodologies of electrophoresis of myosin heavy chains (MyHC), muscle enzymes and substrate biochemistry, immunohistochemistry of MyHCs and sarcoendoplasmic Ca...
Niinistö KE, Ruohoniemi MO, Freccero F, Raekallio MR.Enteropathy associated with sand accumulation in the large colon of horses has been reported worldwide. Intestinal sand accumulations are commonly treated medically, but randomised controlled clinical trials on horses are scarce. This prospective study evaluated the efficacy of an enterally administered combination of psyllium and magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) for the removal of large colonic sand accumulations in horses without clinical signs of acute colic. The two groups comprised 20 untreated control horses and 20 horses treated with 1g/kg bodyweight (bwt) of psyllium and 1g/kg bwt of MgSO4 a...
Mair TS, Stokes CR, Bourne FJ.Lavage procedures were used to obtain samples of respiratory secretions from the nasal cavity, trachea, bronchi and bronchoalveolar level of apparently normal conscious horses, and the cellular composition of the lavage fluids was assessed. There was a progressive increase in total cell count of the secretions obtained from the upper to the lower respiratory tracts. Nasal lavage fluid was composed chiefly of epithelial cells, whereas tracheal, bronchial and bronchoalveolar fluids contained higher proportions of macrophages, lymphocytes and neutrophils. Eosinophils and mast cells were identifie...
Couroucé-Malblanc A, Fortier G, Pronost S, Siliart B, Brachet G.This study was designed to compare the efficacy of oral prednisolone and intramuscular (IM) dexamethasone in heaves-affected horses with environmental control. A total of 16 horses, aged 8-20years, with heaves were included in the study. Complete examinations were performed on Day 0 (before treatment), Day 13 (after treatment) and Day 30. Clinical variables, arterial blood gases, mucus scoring and carina evaluation (during endoscopy), and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cytological analysis were all assessed. The horses were randomly assigned to receive either oral prednisolone (1mg/kg) or IM dex...
Thomson K, Eskola K, Eklund M, Suominen K, Määttä M, Junnila J, Nykäsenoja S, Niinistö K, Grönthal T, Rantala M.Extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing Enterobacterales (ESBL-E) are important causative agents for infections in humans and animals. At the Equine Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the University of Helsinki, the first infections caused by ESBL-E were observed at the end of 2011 leading to enhanced infection surveillance. Contact patients were screened for ESBL-E by culturing infection sites and rectal screening. This study was focused on describing the epidemiology and microbiological characteristics of ESBL-E from equine patients of the EVTH during 2011-2014, and analysing putative risk fac...
Flaminio MJ, Rush BR, Shuman W.Inactivated Propionibacterium acnes is a biologic response modifier for treatment of non-specific respiratory disease in horses. The objectives of this investigation were to determine alterations in phagocytic activity, phenotypic expression of lymphocyte subpopulations and lymphokine-activated killing cell response in healthy young horses. Samples were collected on day 0, 7 and 14 of the investigation. Blood samples were obtained via jugular venipuncture and pulmonary leukocytes were recovered via bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Commercially available P. acnes (Eqstim) was administered intraven...
Porter MB, Long M, Gosche DG, Schott HM, Hines MT, Rossano M, Sellon DC.The West Nile (WN) virus, present in the United States since 1999, is a cause of encephalomyelitis in birds, alligators, humans, and horses. No data exist regarding detection of anti-WN virus immunoglobins in equine cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The aims of this study were to evaluate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in WN virus-infected (WNE) horses, to compare diagnostic testing in serum and CSF, and to describe the immunoglobulin M (IgM) response in serum and CSF of vaccinated horses. CSF was collected from the lumbosacral (LS) space (n = 13) or the allanto-occipital (AO) space (n = 14) of WNE ho...
Bonilla-Gutiérrez AF, Castillo-Franz C, López C, Álvarez ME, Giraldo CE, Carmona JU.The aim of this study was to evaluate the release of pro- and anti-inflammatory as well as anabolic mediators stimulated by a leukocyte-reduced platelet-rich gel supernatant (Lr-PRGS) and a leukocyte-reduced plasma supernatant (Lr-PL) at two concentrations (25 and 50%) on normal equine suspensory ligament explants (SLEs) and tendon explants (TEs). SLEs and TEs from six horses were independently incubated for 48 h with Lr-PRGS and Lr-PL at concentrations of 25 and 50%, respectively. Samples were collected from the incubated tissues at 1 h and 48 h, which were employed for ELISA determinat...
Mizukoshi F, Maeda K, Hamano M, Iwata H, Matsumura T, Kondo T, Sugiura T.In this study, IgG subclass responses against equine herpesvirus type 4 (EHV-4) were examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using a type-specific region of EHV-4 glycoprotein G (gG). ELISA using sera collected from horses experimentally infected with EHV-4 revealed that IgGa and IgGb antibodies were detected at high level, but IgGc and IgG(T) antibody responses were detected at low level or were undetectable. The IgGa antibody response reached its peak on day 10 post-infection, and then dropped. The IgGb antibody response reached its maximum level on day 12 post-infection, and t...
Brinsko SP, Varner DD.Artificial insemination is an effective technique for improving utilization of stallions in breeding programs. When proper semen handling and insemination procedures are used, optimal pregnancy rates are attainable. When AI techniques are employed for mares and stallions with marginal fertility, pregnancy rates may be improved in comparison with natural mating. Preservation of stallion semen in the liquid or frozen state reduces the costs and potential health hazards incurred by transporting mares and provides easier access to genetic material that may otherwise be unavailable. Acceptable preg...
Abitbol M, Legrand R, Tiret L.The seven donkey breeds recognised by the French studbook are characterised by few coat colours: black, bay and grey. Normand bay donkeys seldom give birth to red foals, a colour more commonly seen and recognised in American miniature donkeys. Red resembles the equine chestnut colour, previously attributed to a mutation in the melanocortin 1 receptor gene (MC1R). We used a panel of 124 donkeys to identify a recessive missense c.629T>C variant in MC1R that showed a perfect association with the red coat colour. This variant leads to a methionine to threonine substitution at position 210 in th...
Sánchez-Calabuig MJ, Fernández-González R, Hamdi M, Smits K, López-Cardona AP, Serres C, Macías-García B, Gutiérrez-Adán A.Equine embryos exhibit an unusual pattern of glucose tolerance in vitro and are currently cultured in hyperglycaemic conditions. Objective: Our main objective was to analyse the effect of different glucose concentrations on in vitro-produced equine embryo development and quality. Methods: Experiments comparing in vitro and in vivo produced embryos. Methods: Oocytes (n = 641) were collected from post-mortem ovaries, matured in vitro and fertilised by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Embryo culture was divided from Day 0 to Day 4 and from Day 4 to Day 9 in three groups: 5-10 (5 and 10...
Munhoz AD, Souza MA, Costa SCL, Freitas JS, Silva AND, Lacerda LC, Cruz RDS, Albuquerque GR, Pereira MJS.The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and factors associated with Toxoplasma gondii in naturally infected equids in northeastern Brazil. Serum samples from 569 equids (528 horses, 8 mules and 33 donkeys) were subjected to the indirect fluorescent antibody test. Generalized linear models were used to evaluate associated factors. Among the 569 animals sampled, 118 (30.6%) living in rural areas and 14 (26.42%) in urban areas were seropositive (p>0.05). Seropositive animals were observed on 95% of the farms and in all the municipalities. Donkeys/mules as the host, presence of dom...
Badial PR, Cisneros-Àlvarez LE, Brandão CV, Ranzani JJ, Tomaz MA, Machado VM, Borges AS.The aim of this study was to compare ocular dimensions, corneal curvature, and corneal thickness between horses affected with hereditary equine regional dermal asthenia (HERDA) and unaffected horses. Methods: Five HERDA-affected quarter horses and five healthy control quarter horses were used. Methods: Schirmer's tear test, tonometry, and corneal diameter measurements were performed in both eyes of all horses prior to ophthalmologic examinations. Ultrasonic pachymetry was performed to measure the central, temporal, nasal, dorsal, and ventral corneal thicknesses in all horses. B-mode ultrasound...
Tearney CC, Guedes AG, Brosnan RJ.Accurate blood pressure measurement is essential for effective clinical assessment and appropriate interventions in anaesthetised horses. Information on the accuracy of oscillometry for blood pressure measurement on the appendages of mature horses is limited. Objective: To assess equivalence between invasive and oscillometric blood pressures at different anatomic locations in horses. Methods: Prospective experimental study using 6 healthy mature horses. Methods: Blood pressure was measured invasively in the right transverse facial artery and noninvasively by oscillometry in nondependent limbs ...
Huang L, Zhu W, Saunders CP, Macleod JN, Zhou M, Stromberg AJ, Bathke AC.Identification of biomarkers among thousands of genes arrayed for disease classification has been the subject of considerable research in recent years. These studies have focused on disease classification, comparing experimental groups of effected to normal patients. Related experiments can be done to identify tissue-restricted biomarkers, genes with a high level of expression in one tissue compared to other tissue types in the body. Results: In this study, cartilage was compared with ten other body tissues using a two color array experimental design. Thirty-seven probe sets were identified as...
Kareskoski M, Venhoranta H, Virtala AM, Katila T.Artificial insemination (AI) with cooled stallion semen has increased markedly during the last decades in all countries, but fertility is often lower than when fresh semen or natural mating is used. The objective of this study was to examine field data (1634 ,cycles 523 Standardbred (SB) mares, 575 Finnhorse (FH) mares, and 90 stallions) using multivariable logistic regression for factors influencing the pregnancy rate (PR) after AI with cooled transported semen from SB and FH stallions. The PR per cycle for the material was 47%: Finnhorses 42% and Standardbreds 53%. When assessed with multiva...
Baudena MA, Chapman MR, French DD, Klei TR.Cyathostome development and survival on pasture in subtropical climates of the US have yet to be completely defined and available data on seasonal transmission are minimal. In an attempt to study this phenomenon, a group of pony mares and their foals was maintained on a naturally contaminated pasture in southern Louisiana. Fecal egg counts (FEC) and numbers of infective third stage larvae (L3) kg(-1) dry herbage were recorded biweekly during two time periods, from January 1986 through December 1988, and September 1996 through October 1997. A FEC rise occurred during the late summer-early autum...
Olsen E, FouchÉ N, Jordan H, Pfau T, Piercy RJ.Agreement among experienced clinicians is poor when assessing the presence and severity of ataxia, especially when signs are mild. Consequently, objective gait measurements might be beneficial for assessment of horses with neurological diseases. Objective: To assess diagnostic criteria using motion capture to measure variability in spatial gait-characteristics and swing duration derived from ataxic and non-ataxic horses, and to assess if variability increases with blindfolding. Methods: Cross-sectional. Methods: A total of 21 horses underwent measurements in a gait laboratory and live neurolog...
Tiley HA, Geor RJ, McCutcheon LJ.To determine the effects of dexamethasone treatment on selected components of insulin signaling and glucose metabolism in skeletal muscle obtained from horses before and after administration of a euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp (EHC). Methods: 6 adult Standardbreds. Methods: In a balanced crossover study, horses received either dexamethasone (0.08 mg/kg, IV, q 48 h) or an equivalent volume of saline (0.9% NaCl) solution, IV, for 21 days. A 2-hour EHC was administered for measurement of insulin sensitivity 1 day after treatment. Muscle biopsy specimens obtained before and after the EHC were a...
Vandenput S, Duvivier DH, Votion D, Art T, Lekeux P.The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that stabled COPD horses can be maintained in clinical remission by replacing hay by grass silage and bedding made of wood shavings (Period B) and of wheat straw (Period C) during 6 weeks, respectively. At the end of these different periods, the pulmonary function of the horses was assessed by mechanics of breathing and arterial blood analyses. These results were compared to those measured in clinical remission obtained after 2 months in pasture (Period A). No significant difference was observed between these 3 periods neither to values ob...
Nilson JH, Bokar JA, Clay CM, Farmerie TA, Fenstermaker RA, Hamernik DL, Keri RA.Expression of the glycoprotein hormone alpha-subunit gene occurs in the pituitary of all mammals but in placenta of only primates and horses. In humans, two different elements, termed upstream regulatory element (URE) and cAMP response element (CRE), are required for placenta-specific expression of the alpha-subunit gene. The URE binds a protein unique to placenta whereas the CRE binds a ubiquitous protein. Comparative analysis of the promoter-regulatory region of the alpha-subunit gene from a number of mammals indicates that a functional URE has been retained and suggests the potential for pl...
van Zadelhoff C, Liuti T, Dixon PM, Reardon RJM.The performance of cone-beam CT (CBCT) systems compared to conventional helical multidetector CT (MDCT) imaging of the equine head is unknown. The aim of this prospective, method-comparison study was to compare the ability of CBCT and MDCT to detect abnormalities in equine cadaver heads. Eleven equine cadaver heads were scanned using a CBCT scanner and a 64-slice MDCT scanner. Consensus evaluations for CBCT and MDCT scans were performed by three observers. Identified abnormalities were grouped into subcategories with a focus on dental abnormalities. Kappa agreement values between detected abno...
Ley WB, Scott Pleasant R, Dunnington EA.Studies evaluating nutritional and seasonal influences on hoof strength and composition in horses, as well as the scientific justification for feeding supplements to improve hoof quality, are lacking. The horseman and veterinarian need controlled studies in this area to make informed decisions. This project quantified, in 2 trials, relative elasticity, tensile strength, % moisture, and mineral composition of hooves of 48 mature Thoroughbred mares maintained on different nutritional/management regimens, sampled quarterly over 12 month periods. Tensile strength was positively associated with sul...
Fernandez-Fuertes B, Sánchez JM, Bagés-Arnal S, McDonald M, Yeste M, Lonergan P.This study aimed to determine the effect of bull seminal plasma (SP) and sperm on endometrial function. Bovine endometrial explants were incubated with: ejaculated sperm with or without SP, epididymal sperm, or SP alone. Neither ejaculated nor epididymal sperm induced differential expression of IL1A, IL1B, IL6, IL8, PTGES2, TNFA, and LIF. Interestingly, SP had a detrimental effect on endometrial RNA integrity. Addition of an RNase inactivation reagent to SP blocked this effect, evidencing a role for a SP-RNase. Because bulls deposit the ejaculate in the vagina, we hypothesized that the bovine ...
Hyldahl Laursen S, Andersen PH, Kjelgaard-Hansen M, Wiinberg B.There is a paucity of information about the analytical performance of thromboelastography (TEG) in horses, specifically concerning components of variation among different analytical methods. Such data may be obtained by nested analysis of repetitive standardized sampling of healthy individuals. Objective: The objectives were (1) to assess the relative susceptibility to sources of preanalytical variation in a highly standardized setting, (2) to directly compare and evaluate the observed analytical variation, and (3) to assess the applicability of population-based reference intervals. Methods: B...
