Infectious diseases in horses encompass a range of illnesses caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites. These diseases can affect various systems within the equine body, leading to symptoms that range from mild discomfort to severe systemic illness. Common infectious diseases in horses include equine influenza, strangles, equine herpesvirus, and West Nile virus. These diseases can be transmitted through direct contact with infected animals, contaminated surfaces, or vectors such as insects. Understanding the mechanisms of transmission, pathogenesis, and immune response is essential for effective prevention and control. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and management of infectious diseases in horses.
Fu ZF, Denby L, Lien DH, Robinson AJ.An indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the detection of antibodies against equine herpesvirus type 2 (EHV-2) in equine sera. The optimal conditions of antigen concentration, and serum and conjugate dilutions were established by chequerboard titrations. When the standard ELISA test was used for titration of test sera, it was found to give titres approximately 1500 times higher than those obtained in the virus neutralization (VN) test, and a correlation coefficient of 0.815 was obtained between these two tests on 42 equine sera. All the positive serum samples by ...
Kuttler KL, Zaugg JL, Gipson CA.The therapeutic efficacies of imidocarb and parvaquone were tested against Babesia equi of European origin in carrier horses and for induced acute infections in splenectomized ponies. Imidocarb, at a dosage of 4 mg/kg of body weight, given IM at 72-hour intervals 4 times, was ineffective in eliminating B equi-carrier infection in 9 mature geldings. A single IM administration of 4 mg/kg was not therapeutic in acutely infected splenectomized ponies. When given at 3 different dosages and treatment schedules, parvaquone was ineffective in clearing carrier infection. Parvaquone given IM once at a d...
Nakazawa M, Isayama Y, Kashiwazaki M, Yasui T.A protein antigen that reacted in the agar gel diffusion (AGD) test and which had equi factor(s) activity, was partially purified from the culture supernatant of Rhodococcus equi by successive column chromatography on diethylaminoethyl cellulose and Sepharose 4B. Employing a standard foal serum, the concentration of this antigen was adjusted for the AGD test. Optimal dilutions of the antigen reacted in the AGD test with sera from foals naturally infected with serologically different R. equi. The antigen prepared was considered suitable for use in field surveys of R. equi infection. Accordingly...
Perdrizet JA, Callihan DR, Rebhun WC, Shin SJ.The clinical course and successful therapeutic management of a horse with malignant edema caused by Clostridium septicum is described. This is believed to be the first report of a horse surviving malignant edema caused by C. septicum. A discussion of this disease syndrome, including etiology, pathogenesis, clinical signs, therapy, and diagnostic methods is presented.
Chirino-Trejo JM, Prescott JF, Yager JA.Two groups of three one to three week old foals were immunized orally on four occasions over five weeks with two strains of Rhodococcus equi, a clinical isolate from a pneumonic foal and a laboratory passaged Congo red negative variant of this strain. Three nonimmunized foals of similar age acted as controls. Three weeks after the last immunization, all foals were challenged on five occasions over seven days by aerosol infection with about 10(10) of the pneumonic foal isolate on each occasion. Control foals became seriously ill and were euthanized. Immunization with either strain protected foa...
Gearhart MA, Webb PA, Knight AP, Salman MD, Smith JA, Erickson GA.Two doses of a formalin-killed, cell culture-derived vesicular stomatitis virus (vsv)-New Jersey serotype vaccine were administered intramuscularly, 30 days apart, to all lactating and nonlactating cows in a 350-cow dairy herd. Serum specimens were obtained serially from 96 cows before vaccination and at 30, 52 and 80 days after vaccination and from 24 of these cows 175 days after vaccination. Serum neutralizing antibody titers to vsv-New Jersey serotype were determined from serum-dilution, plaque-reduction tests. Serum neutralizing antibody titers also were determined during the same period f...
Schumacher J, Honnas C, Smith B.Primary paranasal sinusitis complicated by inspissated exudate within the ventral conchal sinus was diagnosed in five horses. Clinical signs included a unilateral, foul-smelling, mucopurulent nasal exudate of 2 to 7 months' duration. Two of the horses had partial nasal obstruction from distortion of the ventral concha. Radiographs of the skull showed a mass of soft tissue density dorsal to the roots of the superior third and fourth or fourth and fifth cheek teeth. Treatment included bone flap maxillary sinusotomy with exposure of the ventral nasal concha and removal of inspissated exudate. Res...
Lane JG, Gibbs C, Meynink SE, Steele FC.The radiographic procedures used for examination of the facial area and paranasal sinuses of 235 horses are reported. Clinical indications for these examinations and the diagnoses made are reviewed. Unilateral nasal discharge was the commonest reason for radiography, accounting for about one third of cases, most of which had radiological signs of paranasal sinus disease recognisable on erect lateral films. Oblique projections were required to obtain further information about the maxillary dental arcades and ventro-dorsal views demonstrated sinus expansion and extension of disease into the nasa...
Morris DD.The medical records of 19 horses with cutaneous vasculitis were reviewed. Most (73.7%) affected horses were between 3 and 10 years old, and there were significantly more mares (14) than stallions or geldings (5) (P less than 0.01). Subcutaneous edema of the limbs, body, and/or head was the predominant clinical sign (18/19 horses; 94.7%). The single most prevalent laboratory abnormality was neutrophilia (greater than 7,000 neutrophils/microliter), which was detected in 10 horses (52.6%). Leukocytoclastic vasculitis was evident in skin biopsy specimens from 12 of 14 horses (85.7%). All horses we...
Madigan JE, Higgins RJ.Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) is a disease that produces neurologic signs of brain or spinal cord dysfunction. The causative organism is believed to be a Sarcocystis species of protozoa. A definitive diagnosis can only be made on histopathology of affected spinal cord or brain. No preventive measures or documented treatment is available at this time for suspected cases of EPM.
Barragry TB.The avermectins were introduced in 1981 and constitute a potent new class of anthelmintic agents. They are naturally-derived products of microbial action displaying an exceptionally wide range of antiparasitic efficacy against internal and external parasites of domestic animals. This paper reviews their isolation and chemistry, mechanism of action, chemical efficacy and safety in cattle, sheep, swine, horses and dogs.
Hietala SK, Ardans AA.The interaction of Rhodococcus equi with alveolar macrophages from adult horses, foals experimentally exposed to R. equi (sensitized foals) and non-exposed foals was studied using in vitro bactericidal assays, cytochemical staining and transmission electron microscopy. It was demonstrated that R. equi is a facultative intracellular parasite, able to survive and multiply within the alveolar macrophages of the host by interfering with phagosome-lysosome fusion. Opsonization of R. equi with antibody against capsular components was associated with increased phagosome-lysosome fusion and significan...
Prescott JF.Current understanding of the epidemiology of Rhodococcus equi infection on horse farms is reviewed. Infection is widespread in herbivores and their environment, because herbivore manure supplies the simple organic acid substrates on which the organism thrives. There is a progressive development of infection in the soil on horse farms with prolonged use, because: (1) there is a continual supply of nutrients; (2) the organism multiplies progressively as temperatures rise; (3) the bacterium has a robust nature. While this aerobic organism fails to multiply in the largely anaerobic intestine of th...
Debey MC, Bailie WE.Horse farms in Kansas were surveyed for the incidence of Rhodococcus equi. Fecal specimens and soil or cobweb samples were collected from each farm and cultured on selective media. One control farm (with no history of R. equi infection), one farm which had an outbreak 3 and 4 years previously and 2 farms which had R. equi-infected foals that season were surveyed. In addition, fecal samples from 21 horses hospitalized in the Kansas State University Veterinary Hospital were cultured. There was no significant difference in the incidence of R. equi in fecal samples from the 2 farms with recent dis...
Yager JA, Duder CK, Prescott JF, Zink MC.Polymorphonuclear neutrophil leukocytes (PMNL) from 8 healthy foals (2-14 weeks of age) and 2 foals with bacterial pneumonia were separated from whole blood using a 2 step Percoll gradient. Purified PMNL were tested for bactericidal function against Rhodococcus equi and Staphylococcus aureus in the presence of normal horse serum. The percentage uptake after a 15-min pre-incubation of PMNL and bacteria was also calculated. Ultrastructural examination of the interaction of R. equi and normal foal PMNL was performed after 15 min incubation. Results indicated that foal PMNL effectively phagocytose...
Takai S, Fujimori T, Katsuzaki K, Tsubaki S.Quantitative culture of R. equi in the feces of dams and foals, in the air of the stalls and in the soil of the paddocks was carried out on three horse-breeding farms during the foaling season. The isolation rates of R. equi from the feces of dams from the 3 farms suddenly increased to approximately 80% at the end of March, when the snow in the paddocks finished melting, and remained at that level during April and May. The mean number of R. equi and the isolation rate of R. equi from the feces of dams on the farms were investigated for 5 weeks before and 5 weeks after delivery. During the 10 w...
Yager JA.The pathogenesis of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals is reviewed. The main routes of infection are respiratory and alimentary. The latter is probably the chief route of exposure in all foals and probably leads to development of specific immunity. Susceptible foals, those whose maternal immunity wanes before generation of their own immune response, readily develop disease if exposed aerogenously to sufficient numbers of R. equi. Management and environmental circumstances have a major role to play in determining the magnitude of this challenge and, therefore, in the prevalence of the disease....
Keane DP, Little PB.Rabies, equine herpesvirus type I, and eastern and western encephalomyelitis viruses, known causes of equine neurological disease, are reviewed with emphasis on epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical signs, and diagnosis.Several arboviruses known to be active in Canada and capable of producing neurological disease in humans (Powassan, St. Louis encephalitis, snowshoe hare, and Jamestown Canyon viruses) are discussed as potential causes of encephalomyelitis in horses.
Hall J, Zha XH, Yu L, Yu CA, Millett F.The interaction of the Rhodobacter sphaeroides cytochrome bc1 complex with Rb. sphaeroides cytochrome c2 and horse cytochrome c was studied by using specific lysine modification and ionic strength dependence methods. The rate of the reactions with both cytochrome c and cytochrome c2 decreased rapidly with increasing ionic strength above 0.2 M NaCl. The ionic strength dependence suggested that electrostatic interactions were equally important to the reactions of the two cytochromes, even though they have opposite net charges at pH 7.0. In order to define the interaction domain on horse cytochro...
Jones RL, Adney WS, Shideler RK.Clostridium difficile was isolated from the feces of 27 of 43 diarrheic foals (63%), and cytotoxin was detected in feces from 28 diarrheic foals (65%). The foals had not received any antimicrobial treatment before the onset of diarrhea. C. difficile was not isolated from feces of 18 normal foals without diarrhea and 62 adult horses (P less than 0.005). This finding of C. difficile and its toxins in association with diarrhea in foals adds another possible cause to the list of infectious agents which may cause diarrhea in foals.
Ripatti T, Koskela P, Kotimaa M, Koskinen E, Mäenpää PH.Over periods of 22 and 14 months, IgG antibody concentrations in serum samples obtained monthly from 14 mares and 19 foals, respectively, were measured by use of ELISA against antigens of the following environmental microbes: Aspergillus umbrosus, Penicillium brevicompactum, Rhodotorula glutinis, Absidia corymbifera, Aspergillus fumigatus, Humicola grisea, Micropolyspora faeni, and Thermoactinomyces vulgaris. The mares and foals were on pasture from early June until early October, then were stabled during the winter season until the following June. In the mares, increased antibody concentratio...
Giles C, Cavanagh HM, Noble G, Vanniasinkam T.There are currently two known serotypes of equine adenovirus (EAdV), equine adenovirus type 1 (EAdV1) and equine adenovirus type 2 (EAdV2); EAdV1 is predominantly associated with upper respiratory tract infections while EAdV2 appears to have a higher association with gastrointestinal infection, however, very little is known about the prevalence of these viruses in horse populations in Australia. In this study we tested 122 serum samples obtained from horses in New South Wales, Australia, using a standard serum neutralization (SN) assay and ELISA. Ninety-seven of the 122 sera displayed had mode...
Lee HS, Heo EJ, Jeoung HY, Ko HR, Kweon CH, Youn HJ, Ko YJ.In this study, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using glycoprotein and a monoclonal antibody (MAb) was developed for the detection of antibodies to vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) serotype New Jersey (NJ). The glycoprotein to be used as a diagnostic antigen was extracted from partially purified VSV-NJ, and a neutralizing MAb specific to VSV-NJ was incorporated to compete with antibodies in a blocking ELISA using glycoprotein (GP ELISA). The cutoff of the GP ELISA was set at 40% inhibition, which corresponded to a virus neutralization test (VNT) titer of 32. With this threshold, th...
Goto H, Shimizu K, Abe T, Kanamitsu M.A serological survey was conducted on horse sera collected for 7 years just before the first outbreak of equine influenza (EI) infection in Japan in 1971. No antibodies against the A/Equi-1/Prague/56 (equi-1) and A/Equi-2/Miami/63 (equi-2) strains of EI virus were detected in any of the sera of 452 native horses when employing hemagglutination inhibition (HI) and complement fixation (CF) tests against viral (V) antigen. On the contrary, of the 80 imported horses, 48 (60.0%) had HI titers of 1:8 or higher against equi-1 and 23 (28.8%) against equi-2. In the CF-V test 42.6% of the horses showed ...
Faber E, Tshilwane SI, Van Kleef M, Pretorius A.Expanding on our previous work, this study used transcriptome analysis of RNA sequences to investigate the various factors that contributed to either inducing apoptosis that resulted in cell death or promoting the survival of African horse sickness virus serotype 4 (AHSV4)-infected horse peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) after 24 h. Apoptosis is a host defense mechanism that prevents virus replication, accumulation and spread of progeny viruses. AHSV4-infected PBMC were killed via the intrinsic and the perforin/granzyme pathways of apoptosis during the attenuated AHSV4 (attAHSV4) in v...
Michlik KM, Biazik AK, Henklewski RZ, Szmigielska MA, Nicpoń JM, Pasławska U.Quadricuspid aortic valve (QAV) and ventricular septal defect (VSD) are congenital heart defects and have been described in both human and veterinary medical literature. Methods: A 5-year-old half-bred bay stallion was referred for surgical castration. Cardiac murmurs were heard on the presurgical clinical examination and the cardiac examination revealed subcutaneous oedema, tachycardia with a precodrial thrill and a grade 5/6 pansystolic murmur, which was heard on auscultation of the right and left side of the chest. Examination of the B-mode echocardiograms revealed the presence of a QAV (on...
Houben RMAC, Meersschaert C, Hendrickx G, Pitel PH, Amory H.Serological screening tests for Lyme borreliosis have poor specificity, with potential for misdiagnosis and unnecessary antimicrobial treatment. Objective: To evaluate the impact of Lyme borreliosis seroprevalence and serologic test characteristics on the probability of obtaining a false-positive result and impact on antimicrobial use. Methods: Cross-sectional serological survey and modelling. Methods: Sera from 303 horses in southern Belgium were analysed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Apparent seroprevalence was derived from serological data and a Bayesian estimate of true ser...
Matczuk AK, Chodaczek G, Ugorski M.Equine arteritis virus (EAV) is a prototype member of the Arterivirus family, comprising important pathogens of domestic animals. Minor glycoproteins of Arteriviruses are responsible for virus entry and cellular tropism. The experimental methods for studying minor Arterivirus proteins are limited because of the lack of antibodies and nested open reading frames (ORFs). In this study, we generated recombinant EAV with separated ORFs 3 and 4, and Gp3 carrying HA-tag (Gp3-HA). The recombinant viruses were stable on passaging and replicated in titers similar to the wild-type EAV. Gp3-HA was incorpo...
Justines G, Oro G, Alvarez O.The P-676 and MF-8 epizootic strains of Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) virus were found to contain a minute plaque (MP), different from the predominant small plaque (SP) present in these virus strains. The MP and SP were stable after passages in Vero cells, mice, or horses. Equines were inoculated with the SP or MP of the P-676 and MF-8 strains. Inoculation of either P-676 SP or MP into horses induced high fever and viremia but no signs of encephalitis or death. Four horses infected with MF-8 SP became very ill, with high fever and viremia; three of the inoculated animals died. Four hors...
Lu G, Huang J, Li S.Theiler's disease-associated virus (TDAV) could be the aetiological agent of Theiler's disease. Horses experimentally inoculated with equine plasma containing TDAV develop acute and chronic infections with viraemia. Since its first identification in 2013, TDAV has not been detected in equines in the epidemiological studies that have been conducted. Until now, only one genome sequence of TDAV (HorseA1_serum) had been obtained. In this study, we sequenced the genome of four TDAV strains (A/China, F/China, H/USA and I/USA) in commercial equine sera used for cell culture propagation in China using...
Zweygarth E, Ahmed JS, Rehbein G, Voigt WP.The capacity of equine peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) to proliferate in the presence of Babesia equi-transformed lymphoblastoid stimulator cells was tested in an autologous as well as in an allogenic one way mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR). It was found that both autologous and allogeneic responder lymphocytes incorporated high amounts of 3H-thymidine. The incorporation of 3H-thymidine was lower in MLR using as stimulator cells lymphocytes from which the cell line had previously been established, than when using parasitized culture cells as stimulator. Proliferation of PBL was achieved onl...
Lean NE, Ahern BJ.Mycotic rhinitis is a rare disease in horses, with few cases reported worldwide and none reported in Australia. Fungal infection of the upper respiratory tract can occur in all species, but its prevalence in horses is considerably lower than in canines or humans. The disease is linked to a variety of pathogens and the clinical signs are associated with subsequent upper respiratory tract damage. Methods: A 6-year-old Quarter Horse gelding in Queensland, Australia, was presented with chronic nasal discharge and dyspnoea following previous unsuccessful medical treatment of 9 months' duration. C...
Cook AG, Buechner-Maxwell V, Morrow JK, Ward DL, Parker NA, Dascanio JJ, Ley WB, Cooper W.Horses that are exposed to Sarcocystis neurona, a causative agent of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, produce antibodies that are detectable in serum by western blot (WB). A positive test is indicative of exposure to the organism. Positive tests in young horses can be complicated by the presence of maternal antibodies. Passive transfer of maternal antibodies to S. neurona from seropositive mares to their foals was evaluated. Foals were sampled at birth (presuckle), at 24h of age (postsuckle), and at monthly intervals. All foals sampled before suckling were seronegative. Thirty-three foals f...
Orsini JA.Foals are good candidates for abdominal surgery because their smaller size permits a more complete abdominal exploration and frequently definitive procedures in many cases. The use of rectal examination is replaced with alternative diagnostic modalities such as barium contrast radiography and ultrasonography. With the advancements in these technologies they can distinguish common gastrointestinal lesions and, in most cases, provide sufficient information to guide surgical intervention. The unique aspects of diagnosis and surgical management of gastrointestinal disorders of the foal are discuss...
Fukunaga Y, Wada R, Imagawa H, Kanemaru T.Venereal infection with equine arteritis virus (EAV) was established in each of seven mares by inoculation via the cervix with 20 ml of viral suspension (> or = 8 x 10(6) plaque-forming units; PFU), following treatment with prostaglandin and oestradiol. A dose of < or = 8 x 10(5) PFU produced infection in only five of eight mares. Serum neutralizing antibody developed in mares manifesting clinical signs of equine viral arteritis (EVA), and a weak antibody was detectable in one apparently healthy mare inoculated with 8 x 10(5) PFU. Virus isolation was demonstrated not only in the buffy coat but...
Elzinga S, Reedy S, Barker VD, Chambers TM, Adams AA.Obesity is an increasing problem in the equine population with recent reports indicating that the percentage of overweight horses may range anywhere from 20.6-51%. Obesity in horses has been linked to more serious health concerns such as equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). EMS is a serious problem in the equine industry given its defining characteristics of insulin dysregualtion and obesity, as well as the involvement of laminitis. Little research however has been conducted to determine the effects of EMS on routine healthcare of these horses, in particular how they respond to vaccination. It has...
Salas-Romero J, Gómez-Cabrera KA, Aguilera-Valle LA, Bertot JA, Salas JE, Arenal A, Nielsen MK.Increasing levels of anthelmintic resistance observed in equine cyathostomin parasites have led to recommendations of selective anthelmintic treatment strategies to lower the selection pressure favoring resistant populations. This principle is based on determining strongyle fecal egg counts from all herd members, and treating those exceeding a predetermined treatment cutoff. However, epidemiological information is lacking from horses kept under tropical conditions, where parasite burdens may be of a different composition and magnitude compared to those of horses kept under temperate climate co...
Corrêa WM, Nilsson MR.Five livers of equine fetuses, aborted due to the action of equine abortion virus, five livers from men, two of whom died of epidemic hepatitis and three obtained by needle biopsies, 5 livers of dogs with infectious canine hepatitis and 7 livers of ducklings that had hepatitis, were studied histopathologically. The foals' livers were studied by several staining methods and the others by H. E. only. The results indicate that the lesions are quite similar in the four species with the appearance of nuclear inclusion bodies only in foals and dogs. The strong staining properties of the nuclear incl...
Smith RM, Kotzé A, Grobler JP, Dalton DL.Toll-like receptors (TLR) are a family of proteins that signal activation of the innate immune response through the recognition of a variety of pathogen molecular compounds. Here, we characterized the complete TLR9 gene in Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra) from three populations in South Africa and compared sequences to a variety of horse and donkey breeds. Overall, we identified six single nucleotide polymorpHisms (SNPs). A single SNP (G586S) was non-synonymous, whereas the remaining SNPs were synonymous. The G586S alteration was detected in Cape mountain zebra populations with varying ...
Sahu SP, Pierson RE, Dardiri AH.Actively growing culture of contagious equine metritis (CEM) bacteria or infective exudate (or both) were inoculated intrauterine in pony mares. A direct relationship was observed between (i) appearance and duration of cervicitis and vaginitis and (ii) vaginal exudate. Clinical signs appeared 1 to 3 days after mares were inoculated and lasted 7 to 23 days. In the acute phase of infection, all uterine and cervical samples yielded CEM bacteria. In the asymptomatic stage of infection, CEM bacteria were not isolated from uterine and cervical samples; however, in 33%, 28%, and 20% of the pony mares...
Acevedo HD, Hassebroek AM, Leventhal HR, Duhamel GE, Carvallo FR.A 17-y-old Rocky Mountain gelding was presented to the Virginia-Maryland Veterinary Teaching Hospital because of a 4-wk history of anorexia, weight loss, lethargy, and fever of unknown origin. Abdominal ultrasound revealed lymphadenomegaly of the abdominal and colonic lymph nodes, thickening of the wall of the large colon, and a mass associated with the large colon. The horse was euthanized given a poor prognosis. On autopsy, an ~20-cm diameter mass was found within the mesocolon between the right ventral and right dorsal colon. The mass had invaded through the colonic walls and formed a fistu...
Stasiak K, Rola J, Zmudzinski JF.A highly sensitive and specific real-time PCR assay was used for detection and quantitation of equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) in the different internal organs of aborted fetuses. Tissue samples from 23 aborted fetuses submitted to the Department of Virology of the National Veterinary Research Institute in Pulawy between 2012 and 2013 were used for testing. Total DNA was extracted using a phenol-chloroform-isoamyl alcohol standard protocol. A real-time PCR with forward and reverse primers encompassing a highly conserved region encoding viral glycoprotein B was adapted for diagnosis of EHV-1 ...
Chambers TM, Reedy SE.In horses, presumptive diagnosis of equine influenza is commonly made on the basis of clinical signs. This alone is insufficient for confirmation of equine influenza, because other equine infectious respiratory diseases can in some degree have similar clinical presentations. Surveillance and control of equine influenza also necessitate detection of subclinical cases. Effective diagnosis of equine influenza virus infection is critically dependent on obtaining adequate specimens of virus-containing respiratory secretions for testing. These specimens are also valuable as sources for isolation of ...
Goetz TE, Coffman JR.Ulcerative colitis, protein losing enteropathy and intestinal histoplasmosis-salmonellosis were diagnosed in a six-year-old Quarterhorse stallion. For six months before examination, the horse experienced a slow continual loss of weight. During the 17 day period of hospitalisation the horse developed progressive generalised oedema. On the 12th day of hospitalisation a severe profuse watery diarrhoea began; the horse was killed five days later.
Dorsch M, Lovet DN, Bailey GD.Two strains of gram-negative, anaerobic, non-sporulating rod that were isolated from the normal oral cavity and oral-associated disease from horses and which phenotypically resembled Fusobacterium necrophorum were characterized by sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, phylogenetic analysis, DNA-DNA hybridization and phenotypic characterization. The results placed the novel strains as distinct members of the genus Fusobacterium. The novel species Fusobacterium equinum sp. nov. is proposed, with strain VPB 4027T (= NCTC 13176T = JCM 11174T) as the type strain.
Ren WX, Zhang XX, Long CY, Zhao Q, Cheng T, Ma JG, Xu P, Hou G, Ni HB.Horse meat and milk are an important source of nutrition for many Chinese. Previous studies have shown a fairly high prevalence of infection in horses. However, there is no data concerning the molecular characterization of in horses in China. The present study tested 231 cervical lymph node samples of horses from northern China (97 from Jilin, 54 from Liaoning, and 80 from Xinjiang) for the presence of the B1 gene by seminested PCR. The B1-positive samples were genotyped at nine nuclear loci, that is, SAG1, alternative SAG2, SAG3, BTUB, c22-8, GRA6, c29-2, PK1, and an apicoplast locus, usin...
Farstvedt EG, Hendrickson DA, Dickenson CE, Spier SJ.Two horses were examined for large head wounds suspected to be the result of trauma and characterized by extensive necrosis of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, with abundant purulent exudate. Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis was isolated from the facial wounds in both horses. Histopathologic examination revealed severe suppurative cellulitis and panniculitis with fistulous tracts and granulation tissue in 1 horse. Both horses were treated with local wound care, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and administration of antimicrobials. The concept of moist wound care was used in the second ...
van Loon JP, van Oostrom H, Doornenbal A, Hellebrekers LJ.There is a need for objective evaluation and quantification of the efficacy of analgesic drugs and analgesic techniques in horses. Objective: To determine whether lumbosacral spinal cord somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) can be a useful and reliable tool to assess nociception in equines. Methods: SSEPs and electromyograms (EMG) from the epaxial muscles were recorded simultaneously, following electrical stimulation applied to the distal hindlimb in lightly anaesthetised Shetland ponies (n=7). In order to validate the model, the effect of increasing stimulus intensity was documented and the...
House JK, Smith BP, Wildman TR, Carrigan MJ, Kamiya DY.To determine the prevalence of Salmonella infections in horses at necropsy. Methods: Cross-sectional prevalence survey. Methods: 102 horses. Methods: Mesenteric lymph nodes were collected from horses that were necropsied. Horses had died or were euthanatized because of severe disease or at the request of the owner. Twenty-eight of the horses were racehorses euthantized following acute catastrophic injuries on the racetrack. Mesenteric lymph nodes were submitted for Salmonella culture via direct plating of tissue specimens on MacConkey agar and by use of 4 enrichment culture techniques that use...
Asseged BD, Habtemariam T, Tameru B, Nganwa D.Deriving horse oocytes in the USA is hampered by the lack of abattoirs processing horse carcasses which could provide abundant quantities of ovaries from slaughtered mares. Therefore, several cloning industries in the USA are attempting to import cloned horse embryos from Canada. Like any agricultural commodity, cloned embryos pose a risk of introduction of exotic animal diseases into the importing country. Under such circumstances, risk assessment could provide an objective, transparent, and internationally accepted means for evaluating the risk. This quantitative risk assessment (QRA) was in...
