"Horses" is a broad topic that encompasses various aspects of equine biology, behavior, and management. This category includes studies on the anatomy, physiology, and genetics of horses, as well as their behavior, nutrition, and care. Research in this area may also cover the historical and cultural significance of horses, their roles in agriculture, sport, and therapy, and the challenges associated with their conservation and welfare. The page aggregates peer-reviewed research articles and scholarly studies that explore the multifaceted relationships between humans and horses, examining both scientific and socio-economic perspectives.
Castaneda C, Radović L, Felkel S, Juras R, Davis BW, Cothran EG, Wallner B, Raudsepp T.Structural rearrangements like copy number variations in the male-specific Y chromosome have been associated with male fertility phenotypes in human and mouse but have been sparsely studied in other mammalian species. Here, we designed digital droplet PCR assays for 7 horse male-specific Y chromosome multicopy genes and SRY and evaluated their absolute copy numbers in 209 normal male horses of 22 breeds, 73 XY horses with disorders of sex development and/or infertility, 5 Przewalski's horses and 2 kulans. This established baseline copy number for these genes in horses. The TSPY gene showed the...
Melo UP, Palhares MS, Ferreira C, Leme FOP, Gheller VA.This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the total parenteral nutrition associated with glutamine, enteral fluid therapy with or without glutamine, and fluid therapy on the acid-base and electrolyte balance of horses starved after exploratory laparotomy. Sixteen healthy male and female adult horses of mixed breed, aged between 4 and 14 years, and having a mean body weight of 248.40 ± 2.28 kg and a body score index of 3-4 (scale of 1-5) were divided into four groups with four animals per group. After an adaptation period of 30 days, they were randomly divided into four experimental groups: ...
Costa MHDS, Medeiros PR, Melo UP, de Souza RF, da Silva GEL, Ferreira C, de Assis DB, da Silva LP, de Brito EL.Horse owners are crucial in recognizing colic because they are responsible for identifying the signs of colic and deciding whether to seek veterinary intervention. Common reasons for delayed response to clinical issues include lack of understanding or knowledge of the subject and difficulty in recognizing subtle clinical signs of abdominal pain. Examining horse owners' basic knowledge of colic, their motivations, obstacles in seeking veterinary care, and their responses to the various clinical symptoms manifested during colic will identify current knowledge gaps and decision-making barriers. T...
Adair S.This article serves as an introduction into integrative case management as it applies to the horse's mental health, pain management, and tissue healing. The integrative philosophy pertains to the combination of conventional Western medicine and complementary and alternative therapies to provide the best patient care possible using currently available evidence. The goal is to improve the health of the patient in a more holistic manner.
Goodrich EL, Behling-Kelly E.The clinical evaluation of lipid metabolism in equids is often limited to the measurement of total cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations. This provides a limited picture of metabolic state and general health, given the continuous exchange of lipid species between various lipoproteins. Major lipoprotein classes in equids include high-density lipoprotein (HDL), intermediate-density lipoprotein (IDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), and chylomicrons (CM). Unlike large breed horses, donkeys are highly susceptible to hepatic lipidosis. Currently, serum trig...
Nielsen MK, Steuer AE, Anderson HP, Gavriliuc S, Carpenter AB, Redman EM, Gilleard JS, Reinemeyer CR, Poissant J.Macrocyclic lactones have been the most widely used drugs for equine parasite control during the past four decades. Unlike ivermectin, moxidectin exhibits efficacy against encysted cyathostomin larvae, and is reported to have persistent efficacy with substantially longer egg reappearance periods. However, shortened egg reappearance periods have been reported recently for both macrocyclic lactones, and these findings have raised several questions: (i) are egg reappearance period patterns different after ivermectin or moxidectin treatment? (ii) Are shortened egg reappearance periods associated w...
Haussler KK, Holt TN.There is a growing body of evidence to support the use of spinal mobilization and manipulation techniques in equine practice. Outcome parameters reported across studies include measures of joint motion, nociception, muscle tone, and performance. Spinal examination procedures include static and dynamic assessments of the quantity and the quality of both active and passive movements. Tiered treatment approaches are recommended to stage the application of various therapies based on ease, cost, and efficacy.
Henneman K.Addressing poor performance issues in horses is a common yet challenging request to veterinarians. Often, there are limited field diagnostic or therapy choices. Growing lay popularity in integrative therapies, as well as increasing clinical incorporation, is creating more awareness of their clinical applications. Many modalities are showing increasing evidence of positive outcomes with minimal harm, but additional safety and efficacy evaluation is needed. Integrative modalities have unique ways of perceiving disease patterns that are different from more modern approaches, and these different p...
Luomala T.Fascia is a complex and intriguing tissue, which can take on structural properties of being loose or dense, irregular or regular. Fascia functions by connecting, separating, and uniting different structures of the body. Myofascial dysfunction can be a significant source of pain and can be categorized as densification, adhesion, and fibrosis. Digital palpation and treatment of myofascial disorders can be provided via superficial or deep techniques. Different myofascial treatment techniques include slow and fast techniques, which can be applied at different depths, angles, and rhythms.
Haussler KK.Integrative medicine is based on a model of being proactive and promoting health and wellness, rather than being reactive and solely focusing on episodic disease processes. Integrative medicine incorporates a holistic approach to clinical practice that encourages owner involvement with a focus on individualized care, maintained wellness, optimized performance, and disease prevention. Health promotion and preventative care require a different set of clinical skills and perspectives than is typically provided by a traditional veterinary education. Productive interprofessional collaborations are ...
Boldt E.Horses 15 years of age and older now account for a significant portion of the equine population. Integrative therapies can provide important diagnostic and treatment tools for managing and maintaining the health of geriatric horses. Aged horses are often afflicted with chronic disease processes that are difficult to effectively manage with conventional medicinal approaches, such as laminitis and osteoarthritis. Diagnostic and therapeutic approaches using integrative therapies, such as acupuncture and spinal manipulation, are presented in this article for managing aged horses with metabolic dis...
Hepworth-Warren KL, Nelson N, Dembek KA, Young KAS.Thoracic ultrasonography (TUS) is widely used in equine practice but comparison to radiography is limited in horses. Unassigned: To validate a novel, objective scoring system for TUS in adult horses and to compare ultrasonographic and radiographic findings. Unassigned: 13 healthy horses and 9 with confirmed bacterial pneumonia. Unassigned: Prospective study in which TUS and radiography were performed on healthy horses and those with bacterial pneumonia confirmed by clinical signs and results of transtracheal wash analysis. Ultrasonography was scored utilizing a novel scoring system evaluating ...
Repac J, Mangan E, Xie H.Acupuncture is an inexpensive nonpharmacological modality that has a variety of musculoskeletal, neurologic, and internal medicine applications for the equine practitioner. Common uses include back pain colic, laminitis, laryngeal hemiplegia, and suprascapular neuropathy. Although there is a growing body of literature supporting the use of acupuncture in equids, there remains a need for further robust, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical efficacy trials.
Legg KA, Bolwell CF, Gee EK, Gibson MJ, Rogers CW.This study aimed to determine the incidence of, and risk factors for race-day horse falls in Thoroughbred jumps (hurdle and steeplechase) racing in New Zealand. Incidence rates for race-day horse falls in jumps races from 2005/6 - 2018/19 racing seasons (n = 13,648 race day starts) were calculated per 1000 starts. Univariable and multivariable analyses of race-, horse- and jockey-level risk factors for horse falls were conducted using Poisson regression in a generalised linear mixed model. The incidence rate of horse falls in jumps races was 42 (95 % confidence intervals [CI], 39 - 45) per 1...
Schliewert EC, Hooijberg EH, Steyn JS, Potgieter C, Fosgate GT, Goddard A.African Horse Sickness (AHS) is a vector-borne disease endemic to sub-Saharan Africa caused by African Horse Sickness Virus (AHVS). Infections in naïve horses have high morbidity and mortality rates. AHS pathogenesis is not well understood; neither the hematologic changes nor acute phase response occurring during infection has been fully evaluated. The study's objective was to characterize the hematologic changes and acute phase response during experimental infection with AHSV. Methods: 4 horses negative for AHSV group-specific antibodies. Methods: In this prospective, longitudinal study cond...
Story MR.Equine cervical pain and dysfunction may be difficult to diagnose and effectively manage. Understanding techniques in integrative medicine often allows the practitioner to observe and palpate areas of pain and dysfunction in the horse being evaluated in ways often not taught or used in conventional medicine. There are many integrative therapies that also may be utilized to more effectively manage these horses, resulting in a more comfortable and functional horse.
Narinx F, Monclin S, Sauvage A, Vercruysse E, Heimann M, Alloway E, Vandersmissen M, Grauwels M.To describe the clinical presentation and treatment of an ectopic periorbital lymph node in two young horses. Two warm-blood horses were presented at the equine clinic of the University of Liège with a periorbital non-painful mass. Differential diagnosis included neoplasm (lymphoma), (sterile) abscess, cyst, ectopic lacrimal gland tissue, hematoma, adipose tissue, or ectopic lymphoid tissue. Information collected included physical and ophthalmic examination findings, results of the ocular and periocular ultrasound, surgical procedure, histopathology, and follow-up. Masses of 2 × 2 cm and 3 ...
Cender AN, Mählmann K, Ehrle A, Merle R, Pieper L, Lischer CJ.Digital flexor tendon sheath (DFTS) pathology is an important cause of lameness in horses. The outcome after surgical treatment is variable and depends on the exact diagnosis. Objective: To (1) describe the prevalence of lesions associated with lameness caused by nonseptic DFTS tenosynovitis in a large population of German sports and pleasure horses; (2) determine the sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic imaging techniques for identifying lesions within the DFTS with tenoscopic diagnosis being the gold standard; (3) explore associations between tenoscopically diagnosed lesions and signalm...
Figuerola J, Jiménez-Clavero MÁ, Ruíz-López MJ, Llorente F, Ruiz S, Hoefer A, Aguilera-Sepúlveda P, Jiménez-Peñuela J, García-Ruiz O....Reports of West Nile virus (WNV) associated disease in humans were scarce in Spain until summer 2020, when 77 cases were reported, eight fatal. Most cases occurred next to the Guadalquivir River in the Sevillian villages of Puebla del Río and Coria del Río. Detection of WNV disease in humans was preceded by a large increase in the abundance of in the neighbourhood of the villages where most human cases occurred. The first WNV infected mosquitoes were captured approximately one month before the detection of the first human cases. Overall, 33 positive pools of and one pool of were found. Se...
Gilger BC.This review, which is part of the "Currents in One Health" series, describes the importance of the study of immune-mediated ocular disease in the development of innovative therapeutics, such as cell and gene therapy for the eye. Recent examples of cell and gene therapy studies from the author's laboratory are reviewed to emphasize the importance of One Health initiatives in developing innovative therapies for ocular diseases. Spontaneous immune-mediated corneal disease is common in horses, cats, dogs, and humans. Autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) injected subconju...
McTigue FE, Mansbridge SC, Pyatt AZ.Equine anthelmintic resistance poses a threat to the health and welfare of horses worldwide. With no new imminent anthelmintic classes, it is vital to decrease the resistance rate and preserve available classes. Traditional indiscriminate anthelmintic use is not synonymous with a strategic control ideology; however, many continue to implement outdated practices. In comparison to livestock farmers, there have been few social science studies examining horse owner behaviours. This study aimed to understand the perceived barriers faced by horse owners and yard managers to adopting a strategic appr...
Budsuren U, Ulaangerel T, Shen Y, Liu G, Davshilt T, Yi M, Bold D, Zhang X, Bai D, Dorjgotov D, Davaakhuu G, Jambal T, Li B, Du M, Dugarjav M, Bou G.Myostatin (MSTN), a member of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily, inhibits the activation of muscle satellite cells. However, the role and regulatory network of MSTN in equine muscle cells are not well understood yet. We discovered that MSTN knockdown significantly reduces the proliferation rate of equine muscle satellite cells. In addition, after the RNA sequencing of equine satellite cells transfected with MSTN-interference plasmid and control plasmid, an analysis of the differentially expressed genes was carried out. It was revealed that MSTN regulatory networks mainly involve ge...
Pathak A, Gulati BR, Maan S, Mor S, Kumar D, Soman R, Punia S, Chaudhary D, Khurana SK.Rotaviruses are the most common viral agents associated with foal diarrhea. Between 2014 and 2017, the annual prevalence of rotavirus in diarrheic foals ranged between 18 and 28% in Haryana (India). Whole-genome sequencing of two equine rotavirus A (ERVA) isolates (RVA/Horse-wt/IND/ERV4/2017 and RVA/Horse-wt/IND/ERV6/2017) was carried out to determine the genotypic constellations (GCs) of ERVAs. The GCs of both the isolates were G3-P[3]-I8-R3-C3-M3-A9-N3-T3-E3-H6, a unique combination reported for ERVAs so far. Both the isolates carried VP6 of genotype I8, previously unreported from equines. U...
Graham H, van Kalsbeek P, van der Goot J, Koene MGJ.Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is a tick-borne disease affecting horses, donkeys, mules and zebras, caused by the intracellular apicomplexan protozoa and . The geographical distribution of EP is closely related to the distribution of its vector tick species belonging to the genera of and . Since the discovery of ticks in 2007 and the first reported autochthonous cases in the South of the Netherlands in 2012, no data on the (sero)prevalence of EP in horses in the Netherlands have been reported and it remains unclear whether and have been able to establish themselves in the Netherlands. This stu...
Kirkwood NC, Hughes KJ, Stewart AJ.Substantial morbidity results from pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID) which is often underestimated by owners and veterinarians. Clinical signs, pathophysiology, diagnostic tests, and treatment protocols of this condition are reviewed. The importance of improved recognition of early clinical signs and diagnosis are highlighted, as initiation of treatment will result in improved quality of life. Future research should be targeted at improving the accuracy of the diagnosis of PPID, as basal adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) concentration can lack sensitivity and thyrotropin releasing ...
Thurston CC, Stefanovski D, MacKinnon MC, Chapman HS, Richardson DW, Levine DG.The objective of this study was to determine the diagnostic ability of serum amyloid A (SAA) and fibrinogen for early detection of surgical site infection (SSI) after equine internal fixation. Horses undergoing internal fixation for fracture, arthrodesis, or osteotomy with internal fixation for limb deformity were included in the study. SAA and fibrinogen were measured on blood samples preoperatively and on days 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 14 postoperatively. Statistical analysis included use of Spearman's rank correlation, logistic regression, and calculating the area under the receiver operating cha...
Alaql FA, Alhafufi AN, Kasem S, Alhammad YMO, Albaqshi H, Alyousaf A, Alsubaie FM, Alghamdi AN, Abdel-Moneim AS, Alharbi SA.Equine influenza is a major cause of respiratory infections in horses and can spread rapidly despite the availability of commercial vaccines. This study aimed to screen the incidence of equine influenza virus (EIV) and molecularly characterize the haemagglutinin and neuraminidase from positive EIV field samples collected from Saudi Arabia. Six-hundred twenty-one horses from 57 horse barns were screened for the presence of the clinical signs, suggestive for equine influenza, from different parts of Saudi Arabia. Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from each horse showing respiratory distress. S...
Leclercq A, Byström A, Söderlind M, Persson E, Rhodin M, Engell MT, Hernlund E.Lameness, a wellknown issue in sport horses, impedes performance and impairs welfare. Early detection of lameness is essential for horses to receive needed treatment, but detection of hindlimb lameness is challenging. Riding instructors and trainers observe horses in motion in their daily work and could contribute to more efficient lameness detection. In this cross-sectional and prospective study, we evaluated the ability of riding instructors and trainers to assess hindlimb lameness. We also evaluated different feedback methods for improved lameness detection. For the cross-sectional part, =...
Li WJ, Huang ZF, Zhu HQ, Liu Y, Zhang RF, Li GP, Xu M, Hao CL, Zhang SP, Yu YM, Huang DM, Ren HL, Sun X, Sun Y, Ma JH, Li XL, Sun BQ.Objective: A multicenter Chinese mainland survey was conducted to investigate the sensitization distribution characteristics of cat, dog and horse dander in patients with allergic diseases, so as to provide clinicians with epidemiological data of common animal allergens and useful information for the prevention and treatment of allergies in cats, dogs and horses. Methods: The epidemiological investigation and design was adopted. This study is based on the national epidemiological survey of allergic diseases led by the first affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University. From January to D...
Meister TL, Tegtmeyer B, Brüggemann Y, Sieme H, Feige K, Todt D, Stang A, Cavalleri JV, Steinmann E.An equine parvovirus-hepatitis (EqPV-H) has been recently identified in association with equine serum hepatitis, also known as Theiler's disease. The disease was first described by Arnold Theiler in 1918 and is often observed with parenteral use of blood products in equines. However, natural ways of viral circulation and potential risk factors for transmission still remain unknown. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of EqPV-H infections in Thoroughbred horses in northern and western Germany and aimed to identify potential risk factors associated with viral infections. A total of 392...
Boerboom D, Brown KA, Vaillancourt D, Poitras P, Goff AK, Watanabe K, Doré M, Sirois J.Luteolysis in domestic species is mediated by the release of luteolytic pulses of prostaglandin (PG) F(2alpha) by the uterus at the end of diestrus, which must be suppressed by the conceptus to permit maternal recognition of pregnancy. In many species, including the horse, both the conceptus and the endometrium also synthesize PGE(2), which may antagonize PGF(2alpha) by playing a luteotropic and/or antiluteolytic role. While the release of PGE(2) and PGF(2alpha) by the equine endometrium in late diestrus and early pregnancy has been previously studied, the underlying prostaglandin synthase gen...
Pisello L, Rampacci E, Stefanetti V, Beccati F, Hyatt DR, Coletti M, Passamonti F.This study aimed to describe bacteria isolated from the reproductive tract of mares and to identify changes in antimicrobial susceptibility patterns to those antibiotics commonly used for the treatment of equine endometritis. A total of 4122 equine uterine swabs were collected from mares suffering from reproductive tract disorders in the period 2010-2017. Aerobic culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing using agar disc diffusion were performed on each sample. Aerobic bacteria were isolated from 3171 of 4122 (76.9 per cent) samples. The most frequently isolated microorganisms were (885...
Risner K, Ahmed A, Bakovic A, Kortchak S, Bhalla N, Narayanan A.Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a category B select agent pathogen that can be aerosolized. Infections in murine models and humans can advance to an encephalitic phenotype which may result in long-term neurological complications or death. No specific FDA-approved treatments or vaccines are available for the treatment or prevention of VEEV infection. Neurotropic viral infections have two damaging components: neuronal death caused by viral replication, and damage from the subsequent inflammatory response. Reducing the level of inflammation may lessen neurological tissue damage tha...
Paillot R, Grimmett H, Elton D, Daly JM.In the horse, conventional inactivated or subunit vaccines against equine influenza virus (EIV) induce a short-lived antibody-based immunity to infection. Alternative strategies of vaccination have been subsequently developed to mimic the long-term protection induced by natural infection with the virus. One of these approaches is the use of immune-stimulating complex (ISCOM)-based vaccines. ISCOM vaccines induce a strong antibody response and protection against influenza in horses, humans, and a mouse model. Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) has been demonstrated in humans and mice after ISCOM vacc...
Nollet H, Van Ham L, Deprez P, Vanderstraeten G.Transcranial magnetic stimulation is rapidly developing as a powerful, non-invasive tool for studying the descending motor tracts in humans. The applications of the test in animals are for the moment restricted to small animals. However, this non-invasive, sensitive and painless technique appears promising as a test of motor tract function in horses where the neurological examination is mainly restricted to clinical evaluation and some ancillary tests, such as radiography, cerebrospinal fluid analysis and electromyography. In this review, we want to discuss the history, basic principles, techn...
Smith BL, Jones JH, Hornof WJ, Miles JA, Longworth KE, Willits NH.Stress associated with road transport is believed to be a significant contributor to the pathogenesis of post transport respiratory disease in horses. To determine the effects of road transport on pulmonary function, pulmonary aerosol clearance rates were measured in 4 horses 24 h before, and immediately after, 24 h of road transport by delivering aerosolised 99mtechnetium-labelled diethylenetriaminepentacetate (99mTc-DTPA) to the lungs and monitoring its washout. Each horse was transported twice, once while the trailer was equipped with a leaf-spring suspension and bias-ply tyres (trailer's o...
Levine JM, Adam E, MacKay RJ, Walker MA, Frederick JD, Cohen ND.Cervical vertebral compressive myelopathy (CVCM) is a common cause of myelopathy in horses aged 6 months to 4 years. Little information is available regarding the types of lesions, treatment, and outcomes in horses with CVCM that are > or =4 years old. Methods: Twenty-two affected horses (10 with a confirmed diagnosis of CVCM and 12 presumptive cases) and 210 contemporaneous control horses. Methods: Horses > or =4 years old that were diagnosed with CVCM between January 1992 and January 2004 were identified from medical records at Texas A&M University and the University of Florida. Data analyze...
Laan TT, Bull S, Pirie R, Fink-Gremmels J.When challenged with allergens and pro-inflammatory agents, such as Aspergillus fumigatus (AF), hay dust solution (HDS) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the innate immune response will not only activate the immune system but also increase the amount of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the bronchoalveolar space. The aim of this study was to assess the response of equine alveolar macrophages to different aerosolized challenges and to investigate the differences in this response between horses susceptible or nonsusceptible to recurrent airway obstruction (RAO). Seven susceptible and 5 nonsusceptible ho...
Dawson TRMY, Horohov DW, Meijer WG, Muscatello G.Rhodococcus equi is recognised to cause chronic purulent bronchopneumonia in foals of less than 6 months of age. Virulent strains of the bacteria possess a large 80-90 kb plasmid encoding several virulence-associated proteins, including virulence-associated protein A (VapA), which is associated with disease. R. equi pneumonia can represent significant costs and wastage to the equine breeding industry, especially on stud farms where the disease is endemic. This article reviews knowledge of the equine immune response, both in the immune adult and susceptible neonate, with respect to this pathoge...
Meisfjord Jørgensen GH, Mejdell CM, Bøe KE.Horse owners may lack knowledge about natural thermoregulation mechanisms in horses. Horses are managed intensively; usually stabled at night and turned out during the day. Some are clipped and many wear a blanket, practices which reduce the horse's ability to regulate heat dissipation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between hair coat characteristics, body condition and infrared surface temperatures from different body parts of horses. Under standard conditions, the body surface temperature of 21 adult horses were investigated using infrared thermography. From severa...
Kamran K, Ali A, Villagra C, Siddiqui S, Alouffi AS, Iqbal A.Zoonotic diseases are significant public health issues. There is an urgent need to focus our efforts on the development of strategies that prevent and control potential arthropod vector-borne pathogens. Hard ticks transmit a variety of viral, bacterial and protozoan pathogens to their vertebrate hosts. This is becoming of more concern, as anthropogenic alterations of the environment may unleash the spread of tick-borne diseases throughout the world. Developing countries that are highly dependent on the livestock economy are a hot spot for tick-borne infectious diseases. In this work, through a...
Wolter R, Stefanski V, Krueger K.Social bond analysis is of major importance for the evaluation of social relationships in group housed horses. However, in equine behaviour literature, studies on social bond analysis are inconsistent. Mutual grooming (horses standing side by side and gently nipping, nuzzling, or rubbing each other), affiliative approaches (horses approaching each other and staying within one body length), and measurements of spatial proximity (horses standing with body contact or within two horse-lengths) are commonly used. In the present study, we assessed which of the three parameters is most suitable for s...
Wagner HM, Balasuriya UB, James MacLachlan N.In an effort to further characterize the humoral immune response of horses to equine arteritis virus (EAV), direct and competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (c-ELISAs) were developed using monoclonal and polyclonal anti-sera to structural (G(L), N and M) and non-structural (nsp1) viral proteins. A nsp1-specific monoclonal antibody was produced to facilitate development of a c-ELISA to this protein. Data obtained using the various c-ELISAs confirm that the M protein is a major target of the antibody response of horses to EAV. However, none of the c-ELISAs that were developed were as se...
Napp S, Llorente F, Beck C, Jose-Cunilleras E, Soler M, Pailler-García L, Amaral R, Aguilera-Sepúlveda P, Pifarré M, Molina-López R, Obón E....The surveillance for West Nile virus (WNV) in Catalonia (northeastern Spain) has consistently detected flaviviruses not identified as WNV. With the aim of characterizing the flaviviruses circulating in Catalonia, serum samples from birds and horses collected between 2010 and 2019 and positive by panflavivirus competition ELISA (cELISA) were analyzed by microneutralization test (MNT) against different flaviviruses. A third of the samples tested were inconclusive by MNT, highlighting the limitations of current diagnostic techniques. Our results evidenced the widespread circulation of flaviviruse...
Bellone RR, Forsyth G, Leeb T, Archer S, Sigurdsson S, Imsland F, Mauceli E, Engensteiner M, Bailey E, Sandmeyer L, Grahn B, Lindblad-Toh K, Wade CM.Leopard Complex spotting occurs in several breeds of horses and is caused by an incompletely dominant allele (LP). Homozygosity for LP is also associated with congenital stationary night blindness (CSNB) in Appaloosa horses. Previously, LP was mapped to a 6 cm region on ECA1 containing the candidate gene TRPM1 (Transient Receptor Potential Cation Channel, Subfamily M, Member 1) and decreased expression of this gene, measured by qRT-PCR, was identified as the likely cause of both spotting and ocular phenotypes. This study describes investigations for a mutation causing or associated with the Le...
Pacholewska A, Drögemüller M, Klukowska-Rötzler J, Lanz S, Hamza E, Dermitzakis ET, Marti E, Gerber V, Leeb T, Jagannathan V.Complete transcriptomic data at high resolution are available only for a few model organisms with medical importance. The gene structures of non-model organisms are mostly computationally predicted based on comparative genomics with other species. As a result, more than half of the horse gene models are known only by projection. Experimental data supporting these gene models are scarce. Moreover, most of the annotated equine genes are single-transcript genes. Utilizing RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) the experimental validation of predicted transcriptomes has become accessible at reasonable costs. To...
Madigan JE, Bell SA.To determine signalment, history, clinical signs, duration, seasonality, and response to various treatments reported by owners for headshaking in horses. Methods: Owner survey. Methods: 109 horses with headshaking. Methods: Owners of affected horses completed a survey questionnaire. Results: 78 affected horses were geldings, 29 were mares, and 2 were stallions. Mean age of onset was 9 years. Headshaking in 64 horses had a seasonal component, and for most horses, headshaking began in spring and ceased in late summer or fall. The most common clinical signs were shaking the head in a vertical pla...
York A, Matusiewicz J, Padalino B.This review aims to provide practical outcomes on how to minimise the incidence of transport-related problem behaviours (TRPBs) in horses. TRPBs are unwanted behaviours occurring during different phases of transport, most commonly, a reluctance to load and scrambling during travelling. TRPBs can result in injuries to horses and horse handlers, horse trailer accidents, disruption of time schedules, inability to attend competitions, and poor performance following travel. Therefore, TRPBs are recognised as both a horse-related risk to humans and a human-related risk to horses. From the literature...
Guthrie AJ, Maclachlan NJ, Joone C, Lourens CW, Weyer CT, Quan M, Monyai MS, Gardner IA.Blood samples collected from 503 suspect cases of African horse sickness (AHS) and another 503 from uninfected, unvaccinated South African horses, as well as 98 samples from horses from an AHS free country, were tested with an AHS virus (AHSV) specific duplex real-time reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) assay and virus isolation (VI). The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of this AHSV RT-qPCR assay and VI were estimated using a 2-test 2-population Bayesian latent class model which made no assumptions about the true infection status of the tested animals and allowed for the p...
Mach N, Moroldo M, Rau A, Lecardonnel J, Le Moyec L, Robert C, Barrey E.Endurance exercise has a dramatic impact on the functionality of mitochondria and on the composition of the intestinal microbiome, but the mechanisms regulating the crosstalk between these two components are still largely unknown. Here, we sampled 20 elite horses before and after an endurance race and used blood transcriptome, blood metabolome and fecal microbiome to describe the gut-mitochondria crosstalk. A subset of mitochondria-related differentially expressed genes involved in pathways such as energy metabolism, oxidative stress and inflammation was discovered and then shown to be associa...
Cavallini D, Penazzi L, Valle E, Raspa F, Bergero D, Formigoni A, Fusaro I.Dry hay (composed of grass, legumes, or a mixture of the two) provides the primary source of alimentary fiber in stabled horses with limited access to fresh pasture. However, hay can also give rise to health problems in the horse, depending on the quality and quantity of its components. Pathologies may be rooted in biological problems, such as inadequate digestion disturbances, or reflect mechanical difficulties-for example, due to the presence of sharp plant parts that irritate the oral mucosa, or due to physical intake problems that inhibit consumption. Unwanted plants in the hay may cause s...
Nakamura Y, Kishi M, Nakaya T, Asahi S, Tanaka H, Sentsui H, Ikeda K, Ikuta K.Borna disease (BD) is a progressive poliomeningoencephalomyelitis which occurs naturally in horses and sheep. Here, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) derived from 57 healthy horses in Japan were examined by a nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to determine the prevalence of BD virus (BDV) infection. Seventeen (29.8%) of the samples were positive by this examination and the specificity of the amplified product was confirmed by hybridization with authentic oligomer probes. About 60% of the BDV RNA-positive individuals also showed seropositivity by Western blotting. Th...
Marr CM, Love S, Boyd JS, McKellar Q.Ultrasonographic examination was used to define the severity of injuries to the superficial digital flexor tendon in 73 National Hunt or point-to-point racehorses and the factors influencing the outcome of the cases were examined. Thirty-four of the horses (46 per cent) returned to work with an average time out of training of 13.5 months. The rate of recurrence of the injury was 35 per cent. The severity of the lesions was related to the outcome; all the mildly affected horses returned to work, with 63 per cent of them racing and an average time out of training of 10.2 months; 50 per cent of t...
Wilmink JM, Stolk PW, van Weeren PR, Barneveld A.Second-intention healing of deep wounds was studied in 5 horses and 5 ponies. Standardised wounds were created on the distal limbs and hind quarters. Wounds on the metatarsi extended onto the metatarsal bone; the depth of the wounds in the femoral biceps muscle was 18 mm. The wound margins were marked by tattoos. Photographs were taken at weekly intervals to determine the wound area. The relative contribution of contraction and epithelialisation to wound closure was quantified by means of the tattoos. Swelling of the limbs was measured; and regularity and aspect of the granulation tissue were ...
Clayton HM, Hobbs SJ.Gaits are typically classified as walking or running based on kinematics, the shape of the vertical ground reaction force (GRF) curve, and the use of inverted pendulum or spring-mass mechanics during the stance phase. The objectives of this review were to describe the biomechanical characteristics that differentiate walking and running gaits, then apply these criteria to classify and compare the enhanced natural gait of collected trot with the artificial gaits of passage and piaffe as performed by highly trained dressage horses. Limb contact and lift off times were used to determine contact se...
Mönki J, Hewetson M, Virtala AM.Equine gastric glandular disease (EGGD) is a term used to classify erosive and ulcerative diseases of the glandular mucosa of the equine stomach. Epidemiologic studies of risk factors for EGGD have not been reported. Objective: To determine risk factors for EGGD. Methods: Cases (n = 83) had endoscopic evidence of EGGD; controls (n = 34) included healthy horses and horses with equine squamous gastric disease (ESGD) without EGGD. Methods: Retrospective case-control study. The data were analyzed by multivariable logistic regression modeling. Analysis was performed on the full dataset. An addi...
Bredtmann CM, Krücken J, Murugaiyan J, Kuzmina T, von Samson-Himmelstjerna G.Human and animal health is globally affected by a variety of parasitic helminths. The impact of co-infections and development of anthelmintic resistance requires improved diagnostic tools, especially for parasitic nematodes e.g., to identify resistant species or attribute pathological effects to individual species or particular species combinations. In horses, co-infection with cyathostomins is rather a rule than an exception with typically 5 to 15 species (out of more than 40 described) per individual host. In cyathostomins, reliable morphological species differentiation is currently limited ...
