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Topic:Infection
Infections in horses encompass a range of diseases caused by various pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. These infections can affect different systems within the horse, such as the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and integumentary systems, leading to a variety of clinical signs depending on the pathogen and the severity of the infection. Common infectious diseases in horses include equine influenza, strangles, and equine herpesvirus. Diagnosis often involves clinical examination, laboratory testing, and sometimes imaging, to identify the causative agent and assess the extent of the disease. Treatment strategies may include antimicrobial therapy, supportive care, and preventive measures such as vaccination and biosecurity practices. This page aggregates peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of infectious diseases in equine populations.
Sarcocystis neurona: parasitemia in a severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) horse fed sporocysts. Sarcocystis neurona was isolated from the blood of a 5-month-old Arabian foal with severe combined immunodeficiency. The foal had been inoculated approximately 3 weeks previously with 5 x 10(5) sporocysts that were isolated from the intestines of an opossum and identified by restriction enzyme analysis of PCR products as S. neurona. The isolate obtained from the blood of this foal was characterized by genetic, serologic, and morphologic methods and identified as S. neurona (WSU1). This represents the first time that S. neurona has been isolated from any tissue after experimental infection of a...
[Glanders–a potential disease for biological warfare in humans and animals]. Infection with Burkholderia mallei (formerly Pseudomonas mallei) can cause a subcutaneous infection known as "farcy" or can disseminate to condition known as Glanders. It is primarily a disease affecting horses, donkeys and mules. In humans, Glanders can produce four types of disease: localized form, pulmonary form, septicemia, and chronic form. Necrosis of the tracheobronchial tree and pustular skin lesions characterize acute infection with B. mallei. Other symptoms include febrile pneumonia, if the organism was inhaled, or signs of sepsis and multiple abscesses, if the skin was the port of e...
Equid herpesvirus 1 infection of endothelial cells requires activation of putative adhesion molecules: an in vitro model. Antisera to activated equine endothelial cells, which detected surface molecules of 116 kD, 97 kD, 42 kD and 38 kD, were made to investigate the role of endothelial adhesion molecules in equid herpes virus 1 infection. These putative adhesion molecules could be induced by 17-beta oestradiol, chorionic gonadotrophin, or IL-2, as well as by LPS and PWM. In an in vitro flow system, using equine veins or arteries, equid herpesvirus 1 in leucocytes was only transferred to infect endothelial cells if both leucocytes and endothelial cells expressed these surface molecules. Blocking of the membrane mo...
Detection of natural infection of Boophilus microplus with Babesia equi and Babesia caballi in Brazilian horses using nested polymerase chain reaction. The potential role of Boophilus microplus as a natural tick vector of Babesia equi and Babesia caballi in Brazilian horses was assessed using nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based marker assay. B. equi merozoite-specific 218bp gene fragment was detected in almost 96% of horse blood samples, and 45.3-62.5% of females, eggs, larvae, and nymphs of B. microplus collected from 47 horses at Campo Grande in the State of Matto Grosso, Brazil. Except for the partially-fed female ticks, the B. caballi-specific 430bp gene fragment was amplified from horse blood samples, and all developmental stage...
Recommended terminology and advances in the systematics of the Cyathostominea (Nematoda: Strongyloidea) of horses. Terminology for common names for the Tribe Cyathostominea (cyathostomins), and disease caused by the nematodes (cyathostominosis), were recommended to replace the previously used names cyathostomes and cyathostomosis, which are ambiguous, inaccurate or synonymous, by the Third Internal Workshop on the Systematics of Cyathostominea of Horses, held in Stresa, Italy, 28 August 2001. The progress by this international working group at three workshops is reviewed briefly and a list of publications is provided. Included are an annotated checklist by genus and species of 93 species level names and th...
Evaluation of microbial culture techniques for the isolation of Pythium insidiosum from equine tissues. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of sample handling, storage, and culture techniques on the isolation of Pythium insidiosum from infected equine tissues. Tissue and kunker samples obtained immediately posteuthanasia from a horse with subcutaneous pythiosis were used to assess the effects of sample type (kunkers vs. tissues), media type (selective vs. nonselective), storage technique, and storage time on P. insidiosum isolation rate. Overall, isolation rates were higher from fresh kunkers (94.6%) and stored kunkers (76.4%) than from fresh tissues (8.3%) or stored tissues (4...
Paranasal meningioma in a horse. Paranasal meningioma was diagnosed in a 5-year-old Appaloosa gelding. The mass occupied the right maxillary, frontal, and sphenopalatine sinuses but did not invade the calvarium. The diagnosis was based on histologic evaluation, positive immunohistochemical staining for vimentin and cytokeratin, and ultrastructural features including the presence of interdigitating spindle cells with numerous desmosomes.
Granulocytic ehrlichiosis in Swedish dogs and horses. Granulocytic ehrlichiosis is a frequently diagnosed tick-borne disease in Swedish dogs and horses. The infection is caused by a granulocytic Ehrlichia species belonging to the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup. In the acute stage, the disease is mainly characterized as a febrile illness and diagnosis can be confirmed by the demonstration of ehrlichial inclusions in blood granulocytes. Seropositivity in many healthy dogs and horses indicate that the infection also can be transient without clinical signs. The infection can persist in experimentally inoculated animals for months, but to what ext...
Actinobacillus sp. bacteremia in foals: clinical signs and prognosis. Medical records of 101 blood culture-confirmed bacteremic foals were reviewed to determine whether foals with Actinobacillus sp. bacteremia are affected at an earlier age, have more severe signs of disease, and have a worse prognosis than do foals with bacteremia of other causes. Thirty percent (30/101) of bacteremic foals had Actinobacillus sp. cultured, and these were 2 times more likely to die (crude odds ratio [OR(CR)] 0.8, 4; P = .14), with a survival rate of 43% (13/30) compared to the overall survival rate of 55% (56/101). When compared to other bacteremic foals, foals with actinobacill...
Horses and Borrelia: immunoblot patterns with five Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato strains and sera from horses of various stud farms in Austria and from the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. Grazing animals are continuously exposed to tick bites. Consequently, one may expect that horses will become infected with the various pathogens carried by ticks including Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. Whether horses may develop clinical disease due to this pathogen is controversially discussed. We were interested to learn about the infection of horses with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato within one season by studying the dynamics of the humoral immune response in paired blood samples. The majority of horses examined were Lipizzaner from the stud farm in Piber/Steiermark, and from the Spani...
Multiple RNA splicing and the presence of cryptic RNA splice donor and acceptor sites may contribute to low expression levels and poor immunogenicity of potential DNA vaccines containing the env gene of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV). The env gene is an excellent candidate for inclusion in any DNA-based vaccine approach against equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV). Unfortunately, this gene is subjected to mutational pressure in E. coli resulting in the introduction of stop codons at the 5' terminus unless it is molecularly cloned using very-low-copy-number plasmid vectors. To overcome this problem, a mammalian expression vector was constructed based on the low-copy-number pLG338-30 plasmid. This permitted the production of full-length EIAV env gene clones (plcnCMVenv) from which low-level expression of the viral surface un...
Eimeria organisms develop in the epithelial cells of equine small intestine. Histopathologic and immunohistochemical examinations were performed to determine the origin of host cells parasitized by Eimeria in the small intestines collected from five foals. Eimeria organisms at various stages (mainly microgametes and macrogametes) were frequently found in the cytoplasm of hypertrophied host cells in the lamina propria at the tips of villi of the jejunum and ileum. The cytoplasm of the host cell was immunohistochemically positive for cytokeratin AE1/AE3 and cytokeratin 13 and was negative for vimentin, desmin, alpha-smooth muscle actin, chromogranin A, neuron-specific en...
Percutaneous retrieval of a jugular catheter fragment from the pulmonary artery of a foal. A 49-kg (107.8-lb) sexually intact male Arabian foal was evaluated at 3 days of age because of profuse watery diarrhea, anorexia, and signs of abdominal pain. Physical examination findings were unremarkable except for evidence of diarrhea. A catheter was placed in the right jugular vein for administration of antimicrobials and lactated Ringer's solution. The foal was discharged with instructions to the owner to continue antimicrobial administration and fluid therapy; at home, the owner inadvertently cut the catheter at the level of the hub during attempted removal, and the catheter fragment mi...
Mast cell and eosinophil mucosal responses in the large intestine of horses naturally infected with cyathostomes. From December 1998 to March 2000, caecum and ascendant colon of 42 horses naturally infected with cyathostomes were collected during routine necropsy or from a local slaughterhouse. Changes in the numbers of mucosal and submucosal mast cells (MMC and SMMC), intraepithelial, mucosal and submucosal eosinophils (IE, ME and SME) in the large intestine were investigated by histochemical techniques in relation to the worm burdens. The effect of age was examined in three subgroups: 6-24-month-old horses (group 1), 2-10-year-old horses (group 2) and horses more than 10 years of age (group 3). No globu...
Detection of antibodies against Sarcocystis neurona in cerebrospinal fluid from clinically normal neonatal foals. To determine whether antibodies against Sarcocystis neurona could be detected in CSF from clinically normal neonatal (2 to 7 days old) and young (2 to 3 months old) foals. Methods: Prospective study. Methods: 15 clinically normal neonatal Thoroughbred foals. Methods: Serum and CSF samples were obtained from foals at 2 to 7 days of age and tested for antibodies against S. neurona by means of western blotting. Serum samples from the mares were also tested for antibodies against S. neurona. Additional CSF and blood samples were obtained from 5 foals between 13 and 41 days after birth and between ...
Serological responses of mares and weanlings following vaccination with an inactivated whole virus equine herpesvirus 1 and equine herpesvirus 4 vaccine. Equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) is a major cause of respiratory disease and abortion in horses worldwide. Although some vaccines have been shown experimentally to reduce disease, there are few reports of the responses to vaccination in the field. This study measured antibody responses to vaccination of 159 mares (aged 4-17 years) and 101 foals (aged 3-6 months) on a large stud farm with a killed whole virus EHV-1/4 vaccine used as per the manufacturer's recommendations. Using an EHV glycoprotein D (gD)-specific ELISA and a type-specific glycoprotein G (gG) ELISA, respectively 13.8 and 28.9% of ma...
Use of lufenuron as a treatment for fungal endometritis in four mares. Lufenuron, a benzoylphenyl urea derivative, was evaluated as a treatment for endometrial fungal infections in 4 mares. Intrauterine lavage was performed with lufenuron suspended in sterile saline (0.9% NaCl) solution. Cytologic evaluation and fungal culture of the endometrium, as well as subsequent reproductive performance, were used to monitor efficacy of this treatment. Fungal endometritis in mares is associated with infertility. Treatment is often ineffective and costly, and recurrence following treatment is not uncommon. Intrauterine infusions of lufenuron were effective in eliminating fun...
Intradermal skin testing in Icelandic horses in Austria. Icelandic horses in Austria are commonly affected by an allergic inflammatory skin disease recurring during the summer seasons, which shares characteristic features with Culicoides hypersensitivity. However, the causative agents have not yet been identified. Therefore, intradermal skin testing (IDST) with a standardised extract of Culicoides variipennis and 21 other allergens relevant within Austria was performed in 81 Icelandic horses. All horses included into the study were treated regularly with ivermectin and had no history of administration of anti-inflammatory drugs. Forty-three of these...
Pharmacokinetics of marbofloxacin in horses. Marbofloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic expected to be effective in the treatment of infections involving gram-negative and some gram-positive bacteria in horses. In order to design a rational dosage regimen for the substance in horses, the pharmacokinetic properties of marbofloxacin were investigated in 6 horses after i.v., subcutaneous and oral administration of a single dose of 2 mg/kg bwt and the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) assessed for bacteria isolated from equine infectious pathologies. The clearance of marbofloxacin was mean +/- s.d. 0.25 +/- 0.05 l/kg/h and the termi...
Retrospective study of primary intention healing and sequestrum formation in horses compared to ponies under clinical circumstances. In accidental wounds, trauma and infection can result in dehiscence of primarily closed wounds and in sequestrum formation when cortical bone is exposed. In experimental studies, it has been shown that second intention healing is faster and occurs with less complications in ponies than in horses. Also, a greater initial inflammatory response was seen in ponies. Based on these experimental data, it was hypothesised that accidental wounds in ponies would heal with a lower incidence of wound dehiscence and/or sequestrum formation compared to horses. A retrospective study of 89 ponies and 422 hors...
Increased pulmonary activation of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) in foals inoculated with Rhodococcus equi is associated with increased expression of inflammatory cytokines. Previous studies revealed that foals inoculated with virulent Rhodococcus equi had significantly higher pulmonary levels of interleukin-1beta, interleukin-12 p40, interferon-gamma, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha mRNA compared to foals inoculated with an avirulent plasmid-cured derivative. The purpose of this study was to determine if the increases in cytokine expression were associated with increased pulmonary activation of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB). Electrophoretic mobility shift assays were performed on pulmonary nuclear protein extracted from foals treated with phosphate-buffered s...
[Hematogenous (suspected-)septic inflammation of the synovial fossa in the adult horse: rare but deceptive (3 case reports)]. Septic inflammation of the synovial fossa in the horse is a severe disorder that can lead to permanent invalidity. The synovitis can occur as a result of a perforating trauma, or via the blood (haematogenous). The latter route is rare in the adult horse. Three cases of suspected haematogenous septic synovitis are described in adult horses (older than 1 year). In two horses, timely and adequate treatment resulted in recovery, but this was followed by fatal recurrence. In one of these horses a persistent primary infection was found as cause; the other horse was not available for autopsy. The thi...
The classification of seven serotypes of equine encephalosis virus and the prevalence of homologous antibody in horses in South Africa. Selected isolates of equine encephalosis virus were shown to have comparable viral protein profiles and to represent seven distinct serotypes, based on cross-neutralization tests. Serotype-specific virus-neutralizing antibody in serum samples from horses confirmed the widespread occurrence of infection. The distribution and prevalence of individual serotypes however, varied considerably. Localised foci with an increased seasonal seroconversion in groups of horses to a specific serotype and the detection of an ongoing low level of infection from other serotypes within the population, confirmed ...
Transendoscopic electrosurgery of an equine pulmonary granular cell tumor. Description of transendoscopic electrosurgical treatment of a pulmonary granular cell tumor in a horse. Methods: Case report. Methods: A 12-year-old Standardbred mare. Methods: After endoscopic examination and transendoscopic biopsy, a granular cell tumor nodule was removed transendoscopically from the right principal bronchus of the sedated horse (0.02 mg/kg detomide intravenous) with a monopolar electrosurgical wire snare. Two days later, the surgical area was irradiated transendoscopically using a Nd-YAG laser. Results: After surgery, the horse had no further signs of respiratory disease. C...
