The vascular system in horses encompasses a network of blood vessels responsible for the circulation of blood throughout the body. This system includes arteries, veins, and capillaries, which facilitate the transport of oxygen, nutrients, and waste products to and from tissues. The vascular health of horses is vital for maintaining overall physiological function and performance. Common areas of study within equine vascular research include the examination of blood flow dynamics, vascular diseases, and the impact of exercise on vascular function. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the structure, function, and clinical relevance of the vascular system in equine health.
Wang T, Hu L, Wang Y, Liu W, Liu G, Zhu M, Zhang W, Wang C, Ren H, Li L.Equine herpesvirus-8 (EHV-8) is one of the most economically significant viruses that infect mammals of the genus Equus worldwide, which cause severe respiratory diseases and abortion in horses. However, there is no report of abortion caused by EHV-8 in donkeys. The present case report is about a 4-year-old donkey having an abortion and showing a serious respiratory issue on the 296th day of pregnancy. Bacteriological and molecular tests were used to screen possible bacterial/viral pathogens to detect the etiological agent. Salmonella abortus equi, EHV-1, EHV-4, and EAV were all negative in th...
Roberts JH, Halper J.Repair and healing of injured and diseased tendons has been traditionally fraught with apprehension and difficulties, and often led to rather unsatisfactory results. The burgeoning research field of growth factors has opened new venues for treatment of tendon disorders and injuries, and possibly for treatment of disorders of the aorta and major arteries as well. Several chapters in this volume elucidate the role of transforming growth factor β (TGFß) in pathogenesis of several heritable disorders affecting soft tissues, such as aorta, cardiac valves, and tendons and ligaments. Several member...
Rahmani SS, Malekifard F, Tavassoli M.Neospora caninum is an Apicomplexan parasite that can cause enormous economic losses due to abortions in cattle. The present study investigated the role of Neospora spp. infection in equine abortion in Iranian donkeys using molecular and phylogenetic analyses. Twenty-nine-aborted fetuses and 29 blood samples from their dams were collected from six different regions in the West and Northwest of Iran. They were tested for N. caninum by PCR at the Nc5 locus, followed by sequencing of five of the PCR products. The overall molecular prevalence was 34.5% in blood samples and the prevalence by DNA de...
Agerholm JS, Klas EM, Damborg P, Borel N, Pedersen HG, Christoffersen M. Loss of pregnancy in mares can have many different causes, including both infectious and non-infectious conditions. Extrapolation of findings from other studies is often uncertain as the significance of each cause varies across regions. Causes of pregnancy loss in mares have never been thoroughly studied in Denmark, so a prospective cross-sectional cohort study targeting the entire Danish population of pregnant mares was performed over a period of 13 months to obtain knowledge of the significance of individual causes. Fifty aborted or prematurely delivered stillborn fetuses were submitted for...
Akter R, El-Hage CM, Sansom FM, Carrick J, Devlin JM, Legione AR.Abortion in horses leads to economic and welfare losses to the equine industry. Most cases of equine abortions are sporadic, and the cause is often unknown. This study aimed to detect potential abortigenic pathogens in equine abortion cases in Australia using metagenomic deep sequencing methods. Results: After sequencing and analysis, a total of 68 and 86 phyla were detected in the material originating from 49 equine abortion samples and 8 samples from normal deliveries, respectively. Most phyla were present in both groups, with the exception of Chlamydiae that were only present in abortion sa...
Souza SS, Aguiar FLN, Alves BG, Alves KA, Brandão FAS, Brito DCC, Raposo RDS, Gastal MO, Rodrigues APR, Figueiredo JR, Teixeira DÍA, Gastal EL.Ovarian tissue transplantation methods using cooled and cryopreserved samples have been attractive options for fertility preservation in animal models and humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of previous exposure to cooling, cryopreservation, and VEGF on the overall efficiency of equine ovarian tissue after heterotopic xenotransplantation in mice. The end points evaluated were follicular morphology and development, follicular and stromal cell densities, angiogenesis (i.e. the density of new and mature blood vessels), collagen types I and III fiber densities, and total fibro...
Zakia L, Shaw S, Bonomelli N, O'Sullivan S, Zur Linden A, Dubois M, Baird J, Guest B.A 3-month-old foal with a history of acute hematuria was evaluated. Hydronephrosis and hydroureter were visualized upon renal ultrasonography of the left kidney. Cystoscopy identified a blood clot occluding the left ureter. Computed tomography (CT) revealed a large retroperitoneal abscess at the level of the aortic bifurcation and a left internal iliac aneurysm. Due to the severity of the lesions and the poor prognosis, the filly was euthanized and the clinical findings were confirmed by post-mortem examination. This report emphasizes the value of obtaining a precise diagnosis CT in order to ...
Adolfsson KH, Sjöberg I, Höglund OV, Wattle O, Hakkarainen M.A resorbable 3D printed polydioxanone (PDO) device is manufactured to facilitate ligation of vascular tissue during surgery. The device must provide sufficient mechanical performance throughout the healing period. Therefore, degradation and mechanical performance of the device are investigated as a function of in vivo and in vitro aging. During aging the PDO device released cyclic and linear water-soluble products. In vivo aging resulted in higher relative number of linear oligomers in comparison to in vitro aging. A major loss of mechanical performance is observed after only 10 days in vivo a...
Fedorka CE, Scoggin KE, Ruby RE, Erol E, Ball BA.Placentitis is the leading cause of infectious abortion in the horse and contributes to roughly 19% of all abortions in the United States. A type of placental infection, nocardioform placentitis (NP) is associated with gram-positive branching actinomycetes localized within the ventral body of the feto-maternal interface to create a lymphoplasmacytic mucoid lesion. While the etiology of this disease is poorly described, this placental infection continues to cause episodic abortions in addition to weak and/or growth retarded neonates. The goal of the present study was to perform a comprehensive ...
Fedorka CE, Ball BA, Walker OF, McCormick ME, Scoggin KE, Kennedy LA, Squires EL, Troedsson MHT.Equine abortions are attributed to both infectious and noninfectious causes. Clinical extrapolations are often made from the experimental model for ascending placentitis towards other causes of fetal compromise, including various markers of inflammation, including the cytokines IL-2, 5, IL-6, IL-10, IFNγ, and TNF. It is unknown if these cytokine changes are noted under field conditions, or if they increase preceding other pregnancy related complications. To assess this, Thoroughbred mares (n = 702) had weekly blood obtained beginning in December 2013 and continuing until parturition. Fet...
Fedorka CE, Scoggin KE, El-Sheikh Ali H, Loux SC, Dini P, Troedsson MHT, Ball BA.Ascending placentitis is the leading cause of abortion in the horse. Interleukin (IL)-6 is considered predictive of placental infection in other species, but little is understood regarding its role in the pathophysiology of ascending placentitis. Sub-acute ascending placentitis was induced via trans-cervical inoculation of S zooepidemicus, and various fluids/serum/tissues collected 8 days later. Concentrations of IL-6 were detected within fetal fluids and serum in inoculated (n = 6) and control (n = 6) mares. RNASeq was performed on the placenta (endometrium and chorioallantois) to asses...
Fedorka CE, Ball BA, Wynn MAA, McCormick ME, Scoggin KE, Esteller-Vico A, Curry TE, Kennedy LA, Squires EL, Troedsson MHT.Preterm labor and/or abortion causes considerable economic impact on the equine industry. Unfortunately, few experimental models exist for the induction of various pregnancy-related complications, and therefore extrapolations are made from the experimental model for ascending placentits, although inferences may be minimal. Certain steroid hormones (progestogens, estrogens) and fetal proteins (alpha-fetoprotein; AFP) might improve the diagnostics for abnormal pregnancy, but the utility of these markers in the field is unknown. To assess this, thoroughbred mares (n = 702) were bled weekly begi...
Fedorka CE, El-Sheikh Ali H, Walker OF, Scoggin KE, Dini P, Loux SC, Troedsson MHT, Ball BA.Ascending placentitis is a leading cause of abortion in the horse, but adaptive immune response to this disease is unknown. To evaluate this, sub-acute placentitis was experimentally-induced via trans-cervical inoculation of S. zooepidemicus, and endometrium and chorioallantois was collected 8 days later (n = 6 inoculated/n = 6 control). The expression of transcripts relating to Th1, Th2, Th17, and Treg maturation was assessed via RNASeq. IHC of transcription factors relating to each subtype in the same tissues (Th1: TBX21, Th2: GATA3, Th17: IRF4, Treg: FOXp3). An immunoassay was utili...
Kinoshita Y, Takechi M, Uchida-Fujii E, Miyazawa K, Nukada T, Niwa H.Bacterial placentitis in horses commonly results in abortion, premature birth or compromised neonatal foal health. Although mycobacterial infections are generally uncommon in horses, 10 equine abortion cases caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. hominissuis (MAH) infections occurred between 2018 and 2019 in Japan. They occurred on seven Thoroughbred horse farms in the Hidaka district of Hokkaido, but direct contact among the mares on different farms was not recorded. Most cases were characterized by extensive pathological lesions of the placenta, which are not typical in cases of common pathoge...
Alamaary M, Ali A.This report presents a case of uterine prolapse in a Thoroughbred mare. The uterine prolapse occurred after abortion of twins in the eighth month of gestation. The prolapsed uterus was bleeding and congested but not damaged. The placenta was still attached to the endometrium. Blood samples were collected for hematology and for estimation of calcium, progesterone and estrogen. The cervix and clitoris were swabbed for bacteriology. The mare showed a decrease in the number of lymphocytes. The concentrations of estrogen and progesterone seemed normal compared with mares that foaled. Pseudomonas ae...
Roach JM, Foote AK, Smith KC, Verheyen KL, de Mestre AM.Pregnancy loss after Day 70 of gestation manifests as abortion, stillbirth or perinatal death. While previous studies have reported the diagnoses of laboratory submissions, none have quantified the incidence and causes of abortions, stillbirths and perinatal mortality at a population level. Objective: To report the incidence and causes of pregnancy loss after Day 70 of gestation in a cohort of Thoroughbreds. Methods: Retrospective cohort study. Methods: Outcomes of Day 70 pregnancies were collected from eight Thoroughbred farms over the 2013-2017 breeding seasons. Stud, veterinary and laborato...
Akter R, Sansom FM, El-Hage CM, Gilkerson JR, Legione AR, Devlin JM. is primarily a pathogen of birds but can also cause disease in other species. Equine reproductive loss caused by has recently been identified in Australia where cases of human disease were also reported in individuals exposed to foetal membranes from an ill neonatal foal in New South Wales. The prevalence of in association with equine reproductive over time and in different regions of Australia is not known. This study was conducted to detect in equine abortion cases in Australia using archived samples spanning 25 years. We tested for in 600 equine abortion cases reported in Australia ...
Leszkowicz Mazuz M, Mimoun L, Schvartz G, Tirosh-Levy S, Savitzki I, Edery N, Blum SE, Baneth G, Pusterla N, Steinman A.In horses, and have been associated with fetal loss, and neurological disease, respectively. This study investigated the role of spp. infection in equine abortion in Israel. The presence of anti- spp. antibodies was evaluated in 31 aborting mares by indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and the presence of parasite DNA in their aborted fetuses was evaluated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), using two target loci (ITS1 and Nc5). The seroprevalence found in aborting mares was 70.9% and the prevalence by DNA detection in the aborted fetuses was 41.9%. Transplacental transmission from pos...
Vilaregut L, Lores M, Wilsher S.This review details the current state of knowledge about the equine yolk sac and its remnant (YSR) in the pregnant mare, which, incidentally, is the only animal species known to exhibit large and/or ossified YSR. It also describes the clinical significance of the YSR and details a case of a strangulating YSR that caused fetal death and abortion.
Neustroev MP, Petrova SG.An inactivated vaccine based on the BN-12 strain with the TNP-3 strain filtrate used as immunomodulator has been developed in order to prevent salmonella-induced equine abortion. Preclinical and clinical trials with the white mice and the horses, respectively, are carried out. The lack of toxicity is proven. The vaccine immunogenicity for mouse and mare models comprised 90 and 100%, respectively. The industrial vaccine tests showed that the industrial output of foals increased by 13.8% after immunization. Cost-effectiveness of the vaccine used with the TNP-3 strain filtrate comprised 14.1 r...
Souza SS, Alves BG, Alves KA, Brandão FAS, Brito DCC, Gastal MO, Rodrigues APR, Figueireod JR, Teixeira DIA, Gastal EL.Heterotopic and orthotopic ovarian tissue autotransplantation techniques, currently used in humans, will become promising alternative methods for fertility preservation in domestic and wild animals. Thus, this study describes for the first time the efficiency of a heterotopic ovarian tissue autotransplantation technique in a large livestock species (i.e., horses) after ovarian fragments were exposed or not to a cooling process (4°C/24 h) and/or VEGF before grafting. Ovarian fragments were collected in vivo via an ultrasound-guided biopsy pick-up method and surgically autografted in a subcutan...
Wang X, Ji Y, Su J, Xue Y, Xi H, Wang Z, Bi L, Zhao R, Zhang H, Yang L, Guo Z, Guan Y, Feng X, Sun C, Lei L, Ur Rahman S, Dong J, Han W, Gu J. subsp. serovar Abortusequi is a frequently reported pathogen causing abortion in mares. In this study, the preventive and therapeutic effects of phage P SAE-01E2 against Abortusequi in a mouse model of abortion were investigated. Phage P SAE-01E2 was stable at different temperatures (4 to 70°C) and pH values (pH 4 to 10) and could lyse the majority of the serogroup O:4 and O:9 strains tested (25/28). There was no lysogeny-related, toxin, or antibiotic resistance-related gene in the genome of P SAE-01E2. All of these characteristics indicate that P SAE-01E2 has the potential for use in pha...
Stasiak K, Dunowska M, Rola J.Equid herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) infections are endemic worldwide, including Poland. Many are subclinical, but some are associated with respiratory disease, abortion, neonatal foal death, or neurological disease. We describe an outbreak of abortions in Arabian mares at a well-managed State stud farm in Poland. Methods: Eight of 30 pregnant mares aborted and one gave birth to a weak foal that died within 72 h after birth. EHV-1 was isolated from all fetuses as well as from the diseased foal. All viruses belonged to the N variant based on the predicted open reading frame (ORF) 30 amino acid sequenc...
Kahler A, McGonnell IM, Smart H, Kowalski AA, Smith KC, Wathes DC, de Mestre AM.Early pregnancy loss (EPL) occurs in approximately 8% of equine pregnancies, although the aetiology is mostly unknown and embryonic/fetal morphological abnormalities associated with EPL are not defined. Objective: To compare the morphology of EPL to clinically normal embryos/fetuses and previously described embryonic/fetal developmental milestones. To identify morphological abnormalities associated with equine EPL. Methods: Observational case-control study. Methods: Embryos/fetuses were obtained from clinically normal Thoroughbred and pony pregnancies (n = 11) and following EPL from Thorough...
Ali AA, Refat NA, Algabri NA, Sobh MS.EHV-1 infection is responsible for huge economic losses in equines due to abortion and neonatal mortality. In this study, we describe 4 cases of abortion and neonatal deaths from pregnant mares and a she-donkey from different localities in Egypt during the period from May 2015 to October 2017. Attempts were made to isolate and identify EHV-1, in addition to compare the different pathological lesions in various tissues of the necropsied cases. EHV-1 was successfully isolated from two aborted fetuses and one dead neonatal foal from mares, beside one aborted fetus from a she-donkey. The positive ...
Schvartz G, Edery N, Moss L, Hadad R, Steinman A, Karniely S.We report the isolation of Equid herpesvirus 8 from a rescued donkey that suffered severe postcastration complications. Despite intensive treatment, the donkey deteriorated and was euthanized. Postmortem virologic analysis revealed the isolation of a herpesvirus that is closely related to herpesviruses reported from donkeys and horses in Australia, China, and Ireland, causing respiratory disease in donkeys and abortion in mares. To our knowledge, this is the first report of this equid herpesvirus in Israel. The potential significance of this herpesvirus to the equid population in Israel needs ...
Akter R, Stent AW, Sansom FM, Gilkerson JR, Burden C, Devlin JM, Legione AR, El-Hage CM.Chlamydia psittaci was detected by PCR in the lung and equine foetal membranes of two aborted equine foetuses and one weak foal from two different studs in Victoria, Australia. The abortions occurred in September 2019 in two mares sharing a paddock northeast of Melbourne. The weak foal was born in October 2019 in a similar geographical region and died soon after birth despite receiving veterinary care. The detection of C. psittaci DNA in the lung and equine foetal membranes of the aborted or weak foals and the absence of any other factors that are commonly associated with abortion or neonatal ...
Shilton CA, Kahler A, Davis BW, Crabtree JR, Crowhurst J, McGladdery AJ, Wathes DC, Raudsepp T, de Mestre AM.The first 8 weeks of pregnancy is a critical time, with the majority of pregnancy losses occurring during this period. Abnormal chromosome number (aneuploidy) is a common finding in human miscarriage, yet is rarely reported in domestic animals. Equine early pregnancy loss (EPL) has no diagnosis in over 80% of cases. The aim of this study was to characterise aneuploidies associated with equine EPL. Genomic DNA from clinical cases of spontaneous miscarriage (EPLs; 14-65 days of gestation) and healthy control placentae (various gestational ages) were assessed using a high density genotyping arr...
Aimaletdinov A, Mindubaeva G, Khalikova S, Kabwe E, Salmakova A, Alexandrova N, Rutland C, Rizvanov A, Zakirova E.Tendon injuries are one of the most common causes of orthopedic disorders in horses. Such injuries involve a long course of treatment and recovery. The most promising method of treating these injuries is the use of recombinant proteins and gene therapy. In this work, we evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of plasmid DNA (pDNA) containing two species-specific coding sequences, i.e. vascular endothelial growth factor 164 (VEGF164) and fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2), in the treatment of severe damage to the tendon of the superficial digital flexor. A pDNA construct was used to restore the damag...
Baumann S, Gurtner C, Marti H, Borel N.Species of genus are important pathogens of animals, with a worldwide distribution and broad host range. Some species, such as , also pose a zoonotic disease risk. Abortion is one of the many diseases that has been associated with chlamydial infections in animals, with most attention focused on the economic impacts to sheep production. The role of chlamydia in equine abortions is unknown. Using the family-specific 23S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) real-time PCR, we tested 169 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded fetal membrane samples from 162 equine abortion cases collected between 2000 and 2018 in Swi...
Damiani AM, de Vries M, Reimers G, Winkler S, Osterrieder N.A particularly severe equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) abortion outbreak occurred at a breeding farm in northern Germany. Sixteen of 25 pregnant mares that had received regular vaccination using an inactivated vaccine aborted and two gave birth to weak non-viable foals in a span of three months, with 89% of cases occurring within 40 days after the initial abortion case. Virological examinations revealed the presence of EHV-1 in all cases of abortion and serological follow-up in mares confirmed recent infection. Molecular studies identified a neuropathogenic variant (Pol/ORF30 A2254 to G2254) ...
Berger J.Much evidence now suggests that the postnatal killing of young in primates and carnivores, and induced abortions in some rodents, are evolved traits exerting strong selective pressures on adult male and female behaviour. Among ungulates it is perplexing that either no species have developed convergent tactics or that these behaviours are not reported, especially as ungulates have social systems similar to those of members of the above groups. Only in captive horses (Equus caballus) has infant killing been reported. It has been estimated that 40,000 wild horses live in remote areas of the Great...
Smith KC, Whitwell KE, Binns MM, Dolby CA, Hannant D, Mumford JA.From 1988 to 1991, 51 pregnant pony mares were challenged intranasally or by aerosol with an isolate of EHV-1 (AB4) originally recovered from a quadriplegic mare. This resulted in 32 abortions, occurring from 9 to 29 days after infection. In 14 of the early abortions (Days 9-14), EHV-1 was not demonstrated in the foetal tissues by virus isolation or immunostaining despite no other non-viral cause for the abortion being evident. Application of the polymerase chain reaction to foetal tissues from 9 of these cases also proved negative. One of the 14 mares was destroyed immediately after abortion,...
Mumford JA, Rossdale PD, Jessett DM, Gann SJ, Ousey J, Cook RF.An extensive outbreak of EHV-1 abortions occurred on a stud farm in England in 1985. Of the 67 pregnant mares present on the stud farm, 31 were challenged with EHV-1, resulting in the loss of 22 fetuses or foals. Laboratory investigations revealed that the spread of the virus closely followed movement of apparently healthy mares (during the incubation period of the infection). During the outbreak mares were challenged 1-4 months before the expected foaling date. There was no relationship between the gestational age at the time of challenge and the subsequent outcome of infection in terms of ab...
Smith KC.Abortion or neonatal disease may follow infection with several alpha, beta and gamma-herpesviruses. The alpha-herpesvirus, equid herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1), causes single or epizootic abortions or neonatal deaths in equids, and the closely related virus EHV-4 causes sporadic equine abortions. In cattle, the alpha-herpesviruses, bovine herpesvirus-1 (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus) and bovine herpesvirus-5 (bovine encephalitis virus), and a gamma-herpesvirus, bovine herpesvirus-4, have all been implicated as causes of abortion. In pigs, suid herpesvirus-1 (SHV-1: pseudorabies virus), an alp...
Wang T, Hu L, Wang Y, Liu W, Liu G, Zhu M, Zhang W, Wang C, Ren H, Li L.Equine herpesvirus-8 (EHV-8) is one of the most economically significant viruses that infect mammals of the genus Equus worldwide, which cause severe respiratory diseases and abortion in horses. However, there is no report of abortion caused by EHV-8 in donkeys. The present case report is about a 4-year-old donkey having an abortion and showing a serious respiratory issue on the 296th day of pregnancy. Bacteriological and molecular tests were used to screen possible bacterial/viral pathogens to detect the etiological agent. Salmonella abortus equi, EHV-1, EHV-4, and EAV were all negative in th...
Allen WR.Four separate components combine to produce the progesterone and biologically active 5 alpha-reduced pregnanes needed to maintain pregnancy in the mare. The primary corpus luteum (CL) is prolonged beyond its cyclical lifespan by the down-regulation of endometrial oxytocin receptors to prevent activation of the luteolytic pathway and its waning progesterone production is supplemented from day 40 of gestation by the formation of a series of accessory CL which develop in the maternal ovaries as a result of the gonadotrophic actions of pituitary FSH and the equine chorionic gonadotrophin (eCG). Fr...
Scoppetta F, Tartaglia M, Renzone G, Avellini L, Gaiti A, Scaloni A, Chiaradia E.Physical exercise induces various stress responses and metabolic adaptations that have not yet been completely elucidated. Novel biomarkers are needed in sport veterinary medicine to monitor training levels and to detect subclinical conditions that can develop into exercise-related diseases. In this study, protein modifications in horse plasma induced by prolonged, aerobic physical exercise were investigated by using a proteomic approach based on 2-DE and combined mass spectrometry procedures. Thirty-eight protein spots, associated with expression products of 13 genes, showed significant quant...
Pronost S, Léon A, Legrand L, Fortier C, Miszczak F, Freymuth F, Fortier G.Equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) is a common pathogen of the horse which may induce mild respiratory distress, abortion, neonatal death and neurological disease. A single nucleotide polymorphism in the EHV-1 DNA polymerase (ORF30 A(2254) to G(2254)) has been associated with clinical signs of Equine herpes myeloencephalopathy (EHM). The aim of this work was to analyze the ORF30 genomic region among a panel of EHV-1 DNA extract in order to estimate the prevalence of the EHV-1 neuropathogenic genotype in France. Samples coming from cases associated with EHM, horses with respiratory symptoms and abort...
Sutton G, Garvey M, Cullinane A, Jourdan M, Fortier C, Moreau P, Foursin M, Gryspeerdt A, Maisonnier V, Marcillaud-Pitel C, Legrand L, Paillot R....Equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) is an Alphaherpesvirus infecting not only horses but also other equid and non-equid mammals. It can cause respiratory distress, stillbirth and neonatal death, abortion, and neurological disease. The different forms of disease induced by EHV-1 infection can have dramatic consequences on the equine industry, and thus the virus represents a great challenge for the equine and scientific community. This report describes the progress of a major EHV-1 outbreak that took place in Normandy in 2009, during which the three forms of disease were observed. A collection of EHV-1...
Szeredi L, Hotzel H, Sachse K.Seventy-seven cases of equine abortion from 49 Hungarian farms that occurred between 1998 and 2000 were investigated for the presence of chlamydiae by immunohistochemistry, PCR and/or MZN staining. Evidence of the presence of these bacteria was obtained in 64 cases (83.1%) from 41 (83.7%) different farms. Partial ompA gene sequencing of PCR products revealed that the agent was Chlamydophila psittaci. Based on the findings of microbial diagnosis, pathology and case history, chlamydial infection was considered to be the most likely cause of abortion in at least 11 (14.3%) cases. In the remaining...
Coutinho da Silva MA, Canisso IF, MacPherson ML, Johnson AE, Divers TJ.Placentitis is a prevalent cause of abortion, premature delivery and neonatal death in mares. Early diagnosis is paramount for the survival of the fetus and delivery of a live foal. Objective: To determine: 1) Serum amyloid A (SAA) profile in healthy mares during late gestation; 2) if placentitis affects SAA concentrations and 3) the effects of therapy on SAA concentrations and pregnancy outcome in mares with placentitis. Methods: In Experiment I, 15 healthy pregnant mares were evaluated from 280 days of gestation to 60 h post partum. In Experiment II, pregnant mares were inoculated intra-cerv...
Gardiner DW, Lunn DP, Goehring LS, Chiang YW, Cook C, Osterrieder N, McCue P, Del Piero F, Hussey SB, Hussey GS.Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) continues to cause both sporadic and epidemic abortions despite extensive vaccination. Lack of progress in the development of protective vaccines may be hindered by the lack of equine abortion models that employ contemporary EHV-1 strains. The objective of our experiments was to compare a contemporary EHV-1 strain with a previously described challenge strain, and to quantify EHV-1 loads in various maternal and fetal tissues. Infection experiments were performed in two groups of 7 pregnant pony mares at 270-290 days of gestation with a contemporary EHV-1 strain (Uni...
Kovac M, Litvin YA, Aliev RO, Zakirova EY, Rutland CS, Kiyasov AP, Rizvanov AA.This clinical study describes the intralesional application of the plasmid DNA encoding two therapeutic species-specific growth factors: vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF164) and fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) in seven horses to restore naturally occurring injuries of the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) (tendinitis) and in three horses with suspensory ligament branch desmitis. Following application all horses were able to commence a more rapid exercise program in comparison to standardized exercise programs. Clinical observation and ultrasonic imaging was used to evaluate th...
Silva RA, Arosemena NA, Herrera HM, Sahib CA, Ferreira MS.This paper reports an outbreak of trypanosomosis due to Trypanosoma evansi in horses of the Pantanal Mato-grossense region of Brazil. Forty-eight horses died (51% mortality) and abortion in one mare was recorded. The clinical signs observed were fever, anemia, conjunctivitis, edema of the legs and lower parts of the body, progressive weakness, loss of condition, and loss of appetite. The diagnosis was confirmed by morphological and biometrical studies.
Timoney JF, Kalimuthusamy N, Velineni S, Donahue JM, Artiushin SC, Fettinger M.Although serologic data indicate horses in N. America are exposed to a variety of leptospiral serovars, abortion is almost always associated with Leptospira interrogans serovar Pomona type kennewicki. A variety of wildlife including raccoons, white tailed deer, striped skunks, opossums, and red and grey foxes have been shown to host serovar Pomona and have therefore been suspect as sources of infection for pregnant mares. The aim of the present study was to examine genetic diversity in serovar Pomona type kennewicki in wildlife and in aborting mares. Our approach utilized PCR that targeted tan...
Leon A, Richard E, Fortier C, Laugier C, Fortier G, Pronost S.Abortion, stillbirth and neonatal death are major causes of equine mortality and cause severe economic loss to the equine industry. The present study was based on a complete necropsy protocol associated with classical microbiological examinations and molecular biology on 407 cases of abortion, stillbirths and neonate death. Based on this retrospective survey, "less common" abortive infectious agents were characterised by molecular tools in nine independent cases of abortion or neonate mortality. Among others, Chlamydophila abortus (1 case), Coxiella burnetii (6 cases) and Neospora caninum (3 c...
Shilton CA, Kahler A, Davis BW, Crabtree JR, Crowhurst J, McGladdery AJ, Wathes DC, Raudsepp T, de Mestre AM.The first 8 weeks of pregnancy is a critical time, with the majority of pregnancy losses occurring during this period. Abnormal chromosome number (aneuploidy) is a common finding in human miscarriage, yet is rarely reported in domestic animals. Equine early pregnancy loss (EPL) has no diagnosis in over 80% of cases. The aim of this study was to characterise aneuploidies associated with equine EPL. Genomic DNA from clinical cases of spontaneous miscarriage (EPLs; 14-65 days of gestation) and healthy control placentae (various gestational ages) were assessed using a high density genotyping arr...
Bürki F, Rossmanith W, Nowotny N, Pallan C, Möstl K, Lussy H.Eighteen horses, vaccinated on a number of occasions over a period of 12 to 20 months with either a live equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) or an inactivated EHV-1 vaccine, were challenged by the intranasal instillation of the subtype 1 virus isolated from the 1983 outbreak of abortion and paralytic disease at the Lipizzan Stud, Piber, Austria. The prechallenge serum titres of all vaccinated horses were remarkably low, although most horses had received their last vaccine dose only 3 weeks before test-infection. Higher titres were obtained with the inactivated product than with the live virus vaccine...
Dubey JP, Porterfield ML.Tachyzoites of Neospora caninum were found in sections of lung of an equine fetus aborted 2 mo before term. Individual tachyzoites were approximately 3-5 x 2-3 microns, divided by endodyogeny, and stained positively with anti-N. caninum serum but not with anti-Toxoplasma gondii serum. Toxoplasma gondii antibody was not found in the mare's serum. This is the first report of N. caninum in a horse and indicates that N. caninum can be transmitted transplacentally in equids.
Wong A, Ghassemi E, Yellowley CE.The intermediate filament protein nestin is used as a marker for neural stem cells, and its expression is inversely correlated with cellular differentiation. More recently, nestin expression has also been described in other cell types including multipotential mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). In this study, we examined the expression of nestin in equine, canine and human bone marrow-derived MSCs undergoing osteogenic differentiation, to determine whether nestin levels were attenuated as the cells acquired a more mature phenotype. In addition, the expression of nestin may be under the influence...
Léon A, Fortier G, Fortier C, Freymuth F, Tapprest J, Leclercq R, Pronost S.The major role of EHV-1 in equine abortion is widely reported in the literature but the contribution of EHV-2, EHV-3, EHV-4 or EHV-5 remains less well documented. The objective of this study is to evaluate the contribution of these five different EHVs to equine abortion in a variety of biological tissues using a consensus polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The test was validated for specificity and sensitivity in horses before screening specimens from 407 foetuses, stillbirths and premature foals collected over a 2.5-year interval. Positive results obtained with this assay were compared to other...
Del Piero F.Equine viral arteritis (EVA) can cause prominent economic losses for the equine industry. The purpose of this review is to provide the pathologist some familiarity with the clinical history, lesions, pathogenesis, and diagnosis of EVA. EVA is caused by an arterivirus (equine arteritis virus, EAV), and the vascular system is the principal but not unique viral target. EVA has variable presentations, including interstitial pneumonia, panvasculitis with edema, thrombosis and hemorrhage, lymphoid necrosis, renal tubular necrosis, abortion, and inflammation of male accessory genital glands. EAV anti...
Dunowska M.Equid herpesvirus (EHV) type 1 is a common pathogen of horses with worldwide distribution. Although severe tracheobronchitis has been described in some field outbreaks of EHV-1 respiratory disease, many EHV-1 infections occur asymptomatically or are accompanied only by signs of mild respiratory disease. However, EHV-1 infection can also result in outcomes other than respiratory disease such as abortion, neonatal death or neurological disease. This review provides an overview of the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis for EHV-1-associated diseases, with an emphasis on neurological presentations ...
Canisso IF, Ball BA, Cray C, Williams NM, Scoggin KE, Davolli GM, Squires EL, Troedsson MH.Currently, placentitis, an important cause of late pregnancy loss in mares, is diagnosed by clinical signs and ultrasonography. Acute phase proteins (APP) are mainly produced and secreted by the liver in response to acute inflammatory stimuli. We hypothesized that APP are increased in mares with placentitis. Methods: Concentrations of serum amyloid A (SAA), haptoglobin (Hp), fibrinogen (Fb), and white blood cell counts (WBC) were determined in plasma of mares with experimentally induced placentitis and gestationally age-matched control mares. Placentitis was induced via intracervical inoculati...
Morgan RA, Keen JA, Walker BR, Hadoke PW.Endocrinopathic laminitis (EL) is a vascular condition of the equine hoof resulting in severe lameness with both welfare and economic implications. EL occurs in association with equine metabolic syndrome and equine Cushing's disease. Vascular dysfunction, most commonly due to endothelial dysfunction, is associated with cardiovascular risk in people with metabolic syndrome and Cushing's syndrome. We tested the hypothesis that horses with EL have vascular, specifically endothelial, dysfunction. Healthy horses (n = 6) and horses with EL (n = 6) destined for euthanasia were recruited. We studied v...
