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Topic:Muscle
The topic of muscle in horses encompasses the study of equine muscle structure, function, and physiology. Muscles in horses are responsible for movement, posture, and various metabolic processes. They are composed of muscle fibers that contract and relax to produce motion and generate force. Research in this area often focuses on muscle development, adaptation to exercise, and the impact of nutrition and training on muscle performance. Conditions such as muscle fatigue, injury, and disorders like equine exertional rhabdomyolysis are also explored. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate the anatomy, physiology, and clinical aspects of muscle in equine species.
Behavioral and physiological responses of horses to ground-based adaptive horsemanship lessons for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Little literature exists on horses in adaptive horsemanship (AH) despite concerns about their well-being. The study objective was to evaluate behavioral and physiological responses of horses to ground-based AH lessons for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Lessons were expected to alter horses' hormone concentrations, behavior, and muscle activity. Geldings were assigned to AH (n=6; 20.3 ± 1.9 yrs., mean ± SE) or control (CON; stall in arena, n=6; 13.8 ± 1.7 yrs.) conditions for 8-week sessions based on current occupation (AH = equine-assisted services; CON = recreational ...
Warm-Up Strategies and Effects on Performance in Racing Horses and Sport Horses Competing in Olympic Disciplines. Warm-up is a standard component of exercise preparation, intended to lower the risk of injury and improve performance. Comprehensive evidence-based guidelines per discipline are missing. This scoping review aimed to describe the physiological effects and strategies of active warm-up in horses according to different equestrian disciplines. The search strategies identified 479 papers for review. After application of selection criteria, 23 articles published from 1996 to January 2024 were included of which 12 discussed the effects of warm-up on physiological parameters and 11 discussed warm-up st...
A cross-sectional study on performance evaluation in Italian standardbred horses’ real-time PCR-positive for Theileria equi. Inflammatory myopathy and perivasculitis have been recently described in horses with chronic equine piroplasmosis (EP). These alterations may be linked to poor performances. The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence for EP in clinically healthy Italian Standardbred (IS) racehorses and to compare laboratory parameters and performance metrics between positive and negative horses. Real-time PCR was applied for the detection of T. equi and B. caballi positivity. Haematology parameters, blood chemistry results, subjective muscle mass scores, and performance metrics were compared betwee...
A transmandibular lateral transsphenoidal navigated surgical approach to access a pituitary macroadenoma in a warmblood mare. A 16-year-old warmblood mare was referred with a progressive history of behavioral changes and left-sided blindness. Following neuroanatomical localization to the forebrain, magnetic resonance imaging of the head revealed a well-delineated, 4.5 cm in diameter, round pituitary mass causing marked compression of the midbrain and optic chiasm. Euthanasia was recommended but declined by the owners. Veterinary specialists and a human neurosurgeon collaboratively prepared for surgical case management. A novel navigated transmandibular lateral transsphenoidal approach was developed to access the re...
Advances in the Clinical Diagnostics to Equine Back Pain: A Review of Imaging and Functional Modalities. Back pain is common in ridden horses. Back diseases in horses include Impinging Dorsal Spinous Processes, Ventral Spondylosis, Osteoarthritis of Articular Process, Intervertebral Discs Disease, Vertebral Fractures, Conformational Abnormalities, Desmopathy of the Supraspinous Ligament, Desmopathy of the Intraspinous Ligament, and Longissimus Muscle Strain. Back pain may also develop as a result of lameness (particularly hindlimb lameness). A poorly fitting saddle and an unbalanced rider are also considered important factors influencing the development of back pain in horses. The conventional di...
Low levels of microRNA-21 in neutrophil-derived exosomes may contribute to airway smooth muscle hyperproliferation in horses with severe asthma. Neutrophilic inflammation is associated with the degree of airway obstruction in severe equine asthma (SEA), but the contribution of these leukocytes to bronchial remodeling remains ill defined. Neutrophils could cause structural alterations of the airways by the release of exosomes, a type of cell-derived nanoparticles that can modify the biology of local and distant cells. Neutrophil-derived exosomes have been shown to increase airway smooth muscle (ASM) cell proliferation in humans and horses. Therefore, this study aimed to identify neutrophil exosomal microRNAs (miRs) implicated in the reg...
Baselining physiological parameters in three muscles across three equine breeds. What can we learn from the horse? Mapping-out baseline physiological muscle parameters with their metabolic blueprint across multiple archetype equine breeds, will contribute to better understanding their functionality, even across species. Aims: 1) to map out and compare the baseline fiber type composition, fiber type and mean fiber cross-sectional area (fCSA, mfCSA) and metabolic blueprint of three muscles in 3 different breeds 2) to study possible associations between differences in histomorphological parameters and baseline metabolism. Methods: Muscle biopsies [m. pectoralis (PM), m. vastus lateralis (VL) and m. semitendin...
Equine grass sickness is associated with major abnormalities in the ultrastructure of skeletal neuromuscular junctions. Equine grass sickness (EGS) is a frequently fatal multisystem neuropathy of equids. The aetiology is unknown; proposed causes include toxicoinfection with Clostridium botulinum and a mycotoxicosis. The effect of EGS on the organisation and structural integrity of the skeletal neuromuscular junction (NMJ), the target of botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs), is unknown. Objective: To compare the organisation and structural integrity of skeletal NMJs from EGS horses, control horses and one horse with a presumptive diagnosis of botulism. Methods: Blinded, retrospective case control. Methods: NMJs in samp...
Metabolomic responses to high-intensity interval exercise in equine skeletal muscle: effects of rest interval duration. High-intensity interval training has attracted considerable attention as a time-efficient strategy for inducing physiological adaptations, but the underlying mechanisms have yet to be elucidated. By using metabolomics techniques, we investigated changes in the metabolic network responses in Thoroughbred horses to high-intensity interval exercise performed with two distinct (15 min or 2 min) rest intervals. The peak plasma lactate level was higher during high-intensity exercise with a 2 min rest duration than that with a 15 min rest duration (24.5±6.8 mmol/L vs. 13.3±2.7 mmol/L). The arterial...
Osteoarthritis of the coxofemoral joint in 24 horses: Evaluation of radiography, ultrasonography, intra-articular anaesthesia, treatment and outcome. Few case reports describe equine coxofemoral joint osteoarthritis (CFJOA). Objective: To evaluate diagnostic findings and outcome of horses with CFJOA and to provide a score facilitating radiographic assessment. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: History, clinical signs, ultrasonographic, radiographic and intra-articular anaesthesia findings, treatments, outcome, and necropsy results of horses with CFJOA presented between 2002 and 2023 were collated. Radiographic findings were categorised to develop a radiographic score which was applied by two masked examiners. Intra- and inter-obse...
Effects of Horse Meat Hydrolysate on Oxidative Stress, Proinflammatory Cytokines, and the Ubiquitin-Proteasomal System of C2C12 Cells. Sarcopenia, the age-related muscle atrophy, is a serious concern as it is associated with frailty, reduced physical functions, and increased mortality risk. Protein supplementation is essential for preserving muscle mass, and horse meat can be an excellent source of proteins. Since sarcopenia occurs under conditions of oxidative stress, this study aimed to investigate the potential anti-muscle atrophy effect of horse meat hydrolysate using C2C12 cells. A horse meat hydrolysate less than 3 kDa (A4<3kDa) significantly increased the viability of C2C12 myoblasts against HO-induced cytotoxicity....
Plants Causing Toxic Myopathies. Boxelder and sycamore maple contain hypoglycin A (HGA), the toxic metabolite of which, MCPA-CoA, inhibits fatty acid β-oxidation, causing seasonal pasture myopathy (SPM) or atypical myopathy (AM), respectively. White snakeroot and rayless goldenrod contain multiple benzofuran ketones (BFKs). The identity/toxicity of BFKs appear variable, possibly involving interactions between toxins/toxic metabolites, but ultimately inhibit cellular energy metabolism. Unthrifty horses grazing sparse pastures during the fall appear predisposed to these plant-associated, frequently fatal, toxic myopathies. Tox...
Subconjunctival autologous muscle-derived mesenchymal stem cell therapy: A novel, minimally invasive approach for treating equine immune-mediated keratitis. To establish the safety of subconjunctival injections of autologous muscle-derived mesenchymal stem cells (mdMSCs) in healthy horses and to evaluate their effect in four horses (six eyes) with severe chronic equine immune-mediated keratitis (IMMK) that was unresponsive to medical treatments. Methods: MdMSCs were cultured from minimally invasive muscle biopsies. In the safety group, four healthy horses received two subconjunctival injections of 2.5 and 5 million cells, respectively, at 1-month interval, to the same eye. Ocular side effects were monitored for 1 month following each injection. ...
Sarcocystis in horses from Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: Molecular identification of Sarcocystis bertrami and Sarcocystis neurona in muscle tissues. Horses are intermediate hosts of Sarcocystis spp. capable of forming cysts in their musculature. This study aimed to detect sarcocysts and investigate the presence of nucleic acids from Sarcocystis spp. in samples of striated muscles from horses in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, necropsied at the Veterinary Pathology Laboratory of the Federal University of Santa Maria. A total of 108 samples were collected from 24 horses and examined through direct examination. Microscopic tissue cysts were observed in three samples: tongue (2) and esophagus (1) from two animals. Extractions were perf...
Severe asthma in horsed is associated with increased airway innervation. Altered innervation structure and function contribute to airway hyperresponsiveness in human asthma, yet the role of innervation in airflow limitation in asthma in horses remains unknown. Objective: To characterize peribronchial innervation in horses with asthma. We hypothesized that airway innervation increases in horses with asthma compared with controls. Methods: Formalin-fixed lung samples from 8 horses with severe asthma and 8 healthy horses from the Equine Respiratory Tissue Biobank. Ante-mortem lung function was recorded. Methods: Blinded case-control study. Immunohistochemistry was per...
Prolonged hyperinsulinemia increases the production of inflammatory cytokines in equine digital lamellae but not in striated muscle. Hyperinsulinemia is the key feature of equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) which leads to debilitating sequelae. Hyperinsulinemia-associated laminitis (HAL) is one of the major sequelae of EMS, although the pathophysiological mechanisms are not well elucidated. Using an equine model, we hypothesized that expression of inflammatory markers would be increased in digital lamellae and striated muscle following prolonged hyperinsulinemia. Healthy Standardbred horses (5.4 ± 1.9 years) were alternately assigned to a prolonged euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp (pEHC) or control group (n = 4 per group...
Common and atypical presentations of Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection in equids with emphasis on neurologic and muscle disease. Comprehensive descriptions of equids with granulocytic anaplasmosis (EGA) with neurologic or muscle disease and other atypical presentations are scarce in the literature. Objective: Describe the clinical signs, laboratory findings, treatment, and outcome of equids with EGA with emphasis on neurologic and muscle disease. Methods: Thirty-eight horses, 1 donkey. Methods: Retrospective study. Equids with EGA were included. The electronic data base was searched from January 2000 to December 2022 using the words anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, granulocytic, and rickettsia. Signalment and clinical data w...
Trunk postural reactions to the force perturbation intensity and frequency during sitting astride in children with cerebral palsy. The purpose of this study was to examine kinematic and neuromuscular responses of the head and body to pelvis perturbations with different intensities and frequencies during sitting astride in children with CP. Sixteen children with spastic CP (mean age 7.4 ± 2.4 years old) were recruited in this study. A custom designed cable-driven robotic horse was used to apply controlled force perturbations to the pelvis during sitting astride. Each participant was tested in four force intensity conditions (i.e., 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25% of body weight (BW), frequency = 1 Hz), and six force frequ...
Condition optimization for electroporation transfection in horse skeletal muscle satellite cells. Satellite cells are an important cellular model for studying muscle growth and development and mammalian locomotion-related molecular mechanisms. In this study, we investigated the effects of voltage, pulse duration, and DNA dosage on horse skeletal muscle satellite cells' electroporation transfection efficiency using the eukaryotic expression plasmid Td Tomato-C1 (5.5 kb) encoding the red fluorescent protein gene mainly based on fluorescence-positive cell rate and cell survival rate. By comparison of different voltages, pulse durations, and DNA doses, horse skeletal muscle satellite cells h...
Effects of an extended photoperiod on body composition of young Thoroughbreds in training. The effects of an extended photoperiod (EP) on body composition of Thoroughbreds colts and fillies from December at one year old to April at two years old were investigated. Seventy-three Thoroughbreds reared and trained in Hidaka Training and Research Center, Japan Racing Association, Hokkaido were used. Forty-one horses were under the EP conditions from December 20 to April 15, and the 32 horses were under natural light alone as the control group. Body weight (BW), rump fat thickness (RFT), fat free mass (FFM) and percentage of fat (%F) were used as parameters of body composition. The presen...
Physiological and skeletal muscle responses to high-intensity interval exercise in Thoroughbred horses. The purpose of this study was to determine whether acute high-intensity interval exercise or sprint interval exercise induces greater physiological and skeletal muscle responses compared to moderate-intensity continuous exercise in horses. Unassigned: In a randomized crossover design, eight trained Thoroughbred horses performed three treadmill exercise protocols consisting of moderate-intensity continuous exercise (6 min at 70% VOmax; MICT), high-intensity interval exercise (6 × 30 s at 100% VOmax; HIIT), and sprint interval exercise (6 × 15 s at 120% VOmax; SIT). Arterial bloo...
Four Weeks of Incline Water Treadmill Exercise Can Contribute to Increase Epaxial Muscle Profile in Horses. Water treadmill (WT) exercise is a popular modality for the training and rehabilitation of horses. However, evidence-based literature regarding the use of WT exercise, particularly using inclines, is lacking. Unassigned: The aim of this study was to assess the effect of recurring inclined WT sessions on equine epaxial muscle development. Unassigned: Six horses completed 24 sessions of 15 minutes of WT activity over four weeks. Horses walked with water at the midcannon level at a treadmill incline of 4%. Back traces were measured at three and seven centimetres ventral to the dorsal midline at...
Comparative Genomics Identifies the Evolutionarily Conserved Gene TPM3 as a Target of eca-miR-1 Involved in the Skeletal Muscle Development of Donkeys. Species within the genus are valued for their draft ability. Skeletal muscle forms the foundation of the draft ability of species; however, skeletal muscle development-related conserved genes and their target miRNAs are rarely reported for . In this study, a comparative genomics analysis was performed among five species (horse, donkey, zebra, cattle, and goat), and the results showed that a total of 15,262 (47.43%) genes formed the core gene set of the five species. Only nine chromosomes (Chr01, Chr02, Chr03, Chr06, Chr10, Chr18, Chr22, Chr27, Chr29, and Chr30) exhibited a good collinearity ...
Insulin signaling in insulin-dysregulated Icelandic horses. The underlying molecular mechanisms leading to insulin dysregulation are poorly understood in horses. Therefore, this study aimed to determine if insulin dysregulation is associated with an altered basal expression and extent of phosphorylation of key proteins of the insulin signaling cascade in liver (LT), muscle (MT), and subcutaneous adipose tissue (AT) under basal and stimulated conditions. Twelve Icelandic horses were subjected (1) to an oral glucose (Gluc PO) challenge and (2) to an intravenous (Ins IV) insulin challenge in a crossover study. Biopsies of LT, MT, and AT were taken in vivo...
Myosin heavy-chain myopathy in 2 American quarter horses. A 1.5-year-old American quarter horse gelding (case 1) and an 11-month-old American quarter horse filly (case 2) were presented for acute onset pelvic lameness and lethargy. Case 1 had nasal discharge, while case 2 developed rapid muscle atrophy. Both horses had elevated serum creatine kinase activity. The horses showed similar polyphasic histiocytic and lymphoplasmacytic myositis with necrosis, mineralization, and regeneration. Additionally, case 1 had Streptococcus equi subsp. equi-induced suppurative retropharyngeal lymphadenitis with renal purpura hemorrhagica and myoglobinuric nephropathy...
Effects of hyperthermia and acidosis on mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species. Exercise is associated with the development of oxidative stress, but the specific source and mechanism of production of pro-oxidant chemicals during exercise has not been confirmed. We used equine skeletal muscle mitochondria to test the hypothesis that hyperthermia and acidosis affect mitochondrial oxygen consumption and production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Skeletal muscle biopsies were obtained at rest, after an acute episode of fatiguing exercise, and after a 9-wk conditioning program to increase aerobic fitness. Mitochondrial oxygen consumption and ROS production were measured simu...
Blood-Based Markers for Skeletal and Cardiac Muscle Function in Eventing Horses before and after Cross-Country Rides and How They Are Influenced by Plasma Volume Shift. Horses competing in cross-country tests are subjected to high physical demands. Within the scope of this prospective longitudinal study, blood values of 20 elite eventing horses were examined before and after two- to four-star cross-country rides. The aim was to find out whether blood-based markers for skeletal muscle and cardiac muscle function change after cross-country exercise. Parameters that provide information about fluid balance, muscle enzymes, metabolites and cardiac muscle-specific markers were investigated. We developed an approach to eliminate the concentration changes caused by r...
Intravenous Injection of Sodium Hyaluronate Diminishes Basal Inflammatory Gene Expression in Equine Skeletal Muscle. Following strenuous exercise, skeletal muscle experiences an acute inflammatory state that initiates the repair process. Systemic hyaluronic acid (HA) is injected to horses routinely as a joint anti-inflammatory. To gain insight into the effects of HA on skeletal muscle, adult Thoroughbred geldings (n = 6) were injected with a commercial HA product weekly for 3 weeks prior to performing a submaximal exercise test. Gluteal muscle (GM) biopsies were obtained before and 1 h after exercise for gene expression analysis and HA localization. The results from RNA sequencing demonstrate differences in ...
Non-invasive estimation of in vivo optical properties and hemodynamic parameters of domestic animals: a preliminary study on horses, dogs, and sheep. Biosensors applied in veterinary medicine serve as a noninvasive method to determine the health status of animals and, indirectly, their level of welfare. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been suggested as a technology with this application. This study presents preliminary time domain NIRS measurements of optical properties (absorption coefficient, reduced scattering coefficient, and differential pathlength factor) and hemodynamic parameters (concentration of oxygenated hemoglobin, deoxygenated hemoglobin, total hemoglobin, and tissue oxygen saturation) of tissue domestic animals, specif...
Effect of high-starch or high-fibre diets on the energy metabolism and physical performance of horses during an 8-week training period. Large amounts of high-starch concentrates are traditionally fed to horses in training. However, this has been associated with digestive or muscle diseases and behavioural modifications. In parallel, it has been demonstrated that horses fed high-fibre, low-starch diets achieve the same performance over an exercise test as the ones fed high-starch diets. However, whether the same performance level can be maintained over a longer training cycle is still being determined. This study aimed to compare the evolution in physical performance and cardiorespiratory responses of two groups of French Trott...
