Veterinary research in horses encompasses the study of diseases, health management, and medical treatments specific to equine species. This field investigates various aspects of horse health, including infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, and musculoskeletal conditions. Researchers focus on understanding the pathophysiology of equine ailments, developing diagnostic tools, and evaluating therapeutic interventions. The study of horse health also involves examining preventive measures such as vaccination protocols and nutritional management to promote overall well-being. This page collects peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse areas of veterinary science related to horses, providing insights into disease mechanisms, treatment strategies, and advancements in equine healthcare.
Solbach V, Grabatin M, Zablotski Y, Fux R, Zerbe H, Witte TS.Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM) caused by the bacterium Taylorella equigenitalis (T. equigenitalis), is a venereal infection of equids which is of international concern to the equine breeding industry. A recent study showed a high prevalence of T. equigenitalis in Icelandic stallions when compared to stallions of other breeds also using for natural breeding. Consequently, the objectives of the present study were to investigate the prevalence of T. equigenitalis in Icelandic mares and geldings and to determine factors associated with a T. equigenitalis-positive qPCR result. In total, 361 Icela...
Crecan CM, Ciulu-Angelescu V, Morar IA, Lupșan AF, Tripon MA, Tripon MA, Bungărdean D, Daradics Z, Peștean CP.Global technological advancements have shifted equine lameness diagnostics from purely subjective assessment toward more objective, quantitative methods. Traditional gait evaluations are increasingly being supplemented by innovative technologies to enhance diagnostic accuracy. Unassigned: This study aimed to determine if traditional gait assessment could be effectively complemented by quantitative measurements using an affordable, self-constructed device, the Lameness Detector 0.1, which incorporates inertial motion sensors. Unassigned: A total of 42 adult sport horses diagnosed with hindleg l...
Ryu SH, Lee KE, Forbes E, An SJ, Kim JG, Lee H, Kim BS.Equine behavioral traits are important criteria to assess the suitability of retired Thoroughbred racehorses for equestrian sports. Objective: This study aims to develop a practical procedure to assess retired Thoroughbreds for their suitability for equestrian sports or leisure purposes and to assess if horses identified as having reactive temperaments in response to a standardized startle test, will have improved test results following a period of transition training. Methods: Behavioral reactivity data and cardiac autonomic responses to a startle test (comprising of a plastic bag applied to ...
Sala-Ayala L, Cuervo-Arango J, Martinez-Bovi R.The case report discusses the implications of using different volumes of flushing media during embryo flushing (EF) procedures in a single donor mare that experienced multiple unintended pregnancies following negative EF outcomes. The study involved two sets of EF experiments over two years on a non-lactating Spanish purebred mare. The initial experiments (group 1, n=6) used 1L of flushing medium (Ringer´s Lactate), and subsequent tests (group 2, n=5) increased the volume to 2L, to assess whether a larger volume could enhance embryo recovery rates. After every EF procedure, no PGF2α was admi...
Valberg SJ, Porter A.Muscle biopsy is often required to provide a definitive diagnosis for neuromuscular disorders and can be performed using open surgical or percutaneous needle biopsy techniques. Fresh samples that are subsequently frozen in the laboratory are preferred by laboratories engaged in research, whereas formalin-fixed muscle is processed by diagnostic laboratories with specialized tinctorial and immunohistochemical techniques. Interpretation by an experienced histopathologist, combined with the signalment, history, and clinical input, is essential for establishing a diagnosis. This article outlines be...
Teixeira-Soares CM, Viana AG, Carvalho RPR, Barros E, Ramirez-Lopez C, Moura AA, Machado-Neves M.Endometritis is the leading cause of subfertility in mares and a significant challenge to equine reproduction. Unraveling uterine fluid proteome may promote advancements in the knowledge of endometritis etiopathogeneses and its diagnosis and therapeutic practices. Therefore, we aimed to characterize and compare the protein profile of the uterine fluid from healthy mares and animals diagnosed with endometritis. Mangalarga Marchador breed mares from Muriaé - Brazil were divided into control, infectious endometritis, and post-breeding endometritis groups (n = 8/ group). Uterine fluid was collect...
Smith R, Pinchbeck G, McGowan C, Ireland J, Perkins E.In Great Britain, owners are keeping their horses into increasingly older age, reflecting societal changes in human-animal relationships. The uptake of routine veterinary services is reported to reduce as horses age. Horse owners seek information regarding their animal's health from alternative sources before and/or following veterinary involvement. Information regarding the experiences and behaviours of veterinarians toward older horse health care provision is limited. Objective: This study sought to explore how veterinary care for the ageing horse is conceptualised and approached by veterina...
Bindi F, Bozzola C, Vezzosi T, Zucca E, Caivano D, Freccero F, Sala G, Sgorbini M.Smartphone-based technology is increasingly used in veterinary medicine as a complementary tool for cardiac auscultation and ECG recording. This prospective observational study evaluates a digital stethoscope (DS) that consists of simultaneous phonocardiographic and one-lead ECG recording (dECG) in adult horses, comparing it with auscultation using a conventional stethoscope (CS) and reference base-apex ECG (rECG). A total of 104 horses underwent cardiac auscultation using CSs and DSs to detect arrhythmias and murmurs. Audio and dECG were acquired using the DS. The rECG tracings were also reco...
Jargielo MM, Kritchevsky JE, Bertin FR.Pergolide, labeled for the treatment of pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, is 90% protein bound and might cause a decrease in blood thyroid hormone concentrations by displacing them from binding proteins. This study investigated the effect of pergolide on the equine thyroid function. Methods: This was an analytic, observational, cohort study. Six horses (17 to 24 years old and 530 to 599 kg) received 1 mg of pergolide mesylate orally once a day from days 1 to 6. Total T4 (tT4) was measured daily from day 0 to 11 (before, during, and after pergolide treatment). Thyrotropin-releasing hormone...
is a tick-borne hemoparasite that causes equine piroplasmosis. It has a significant economic impact, decreasing performance and affecting animal welfare. This study aimed to identify DNA in the blood of horses from households in the southwestern and western regions of Romania. We included 310 animals, from which blood was collected via EDTA. To test the samples for the parasite genome, we used real-time PCR and conventional PCR. The prevalence of was 5.81% (18/310) in apparently healthy horses, suggesting that this parasite is enzootic in the regions studied, although veterinarians did not...
Mascarenhas C, Castro D, Lascola KM, Hofmeister E, Clark-Price SC.To assess the effect of two different doses of intramuscular atipamezole on head height (HH) in horses after sedation with detomidine. Methods: Randomized, blinded, triple crossover study. Methods: Eight healthy adult horses. Methods: Baseline HH was measured before detomidine (40 μg kg) was injected intravenously. HH was measured at 10 and 20 minutes after injection. Then, saline, atipamezole 60 μg kg (AT60) or 120 μg kg (AT120) was injected intramuscularly. HH measurements were repeated at 10 minutes intervals for 100 minutes. HH data were analyzed with a linear mixed model. Significance ...
Ma Y, Liu Y, Li H, Yang K, Yao G.Angular limb deformities (ALDs) are a common skeletal development disorder in newborn foals. This condition affects the growth and development of foals and severely impacts their future athletic performance and economic value, causing significant financial losses to the horse industry. Placentitis, metritis, and severe metabolic diseases during mare pregnancy are significant causes of ALDs in newborn foals. It has been established that intestinal flora disorders can easily lead to inflammatory and metabolic diseases in the host. However, the incidence of ALDs in foals in Zhaosu County, Xinjian...
Abbasi A, Nouri H, Samadi F.Cryopreservation is a crucial method for the preservation of genetic materials. Nevertheless, this technique can have adverse effects due to cryo-oxidative damage. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the cryo-protective effects of niosomal nanocarriers loaded with artemisinin (NN-Art) on the functional attributes of equine spermatozoa. The parameters examined included sperm motility and kinematics through computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA), plasma membrane integrity via the hypoosmotic swelling test, viability using the eosin-nigrosin staining technique, morphology with...
Chhabra D, Nagra J, Manuja A, Singha HS, Vaid RK, Goutam U, Kumar B. poses a significant threat to equine health globally. The bacteria causes strangles, a respiratory disease characterized by enlarged, abscessed lymph nodes, leading to airway obstruction. The bacterium, a Gram-positive, chain-forming, Lancefield group C β-hemolytic , is closely related to and distinction between these species is challenging. The present study focused on characterization of isolates from horses in northern India, aiming at elucidation of their sugar fermentation patterns. Nasal and nasopharyngeal swabs collected from different geographical regions of northern India, yieldin...
Kwok KY, Kwok WH, Wan TSM, Brooks L, Popot MA, Jaubert M, Bailly-Chouriberry L, Heffron BT, Choo CK, Tso J, Tso R, McKenzie B, Selvadurai N, Batty D....The use of alkalinising agents prior to racing for manipulating performance in the horse has been identified since the 1990s. To mitigate the risk, an international threshold for available carbon dioxide in equine plasma based on analyses using the Beckman Synchron EL-ISE analyser was adopted in 1994 by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) and revised from 37 to 36 mM in 2004. In 2009, the technical support for the above instrument was discontinued by its manufacturer. Based on the same measurement principle (i.e., ion selective electrode), the Beckman DxC600 analys...
Jabar Aziz K, Mikaeel FB, Azeez SH, Bilal SJ.Equine neosporosis is an intracellular protozoan disease with a global distribution, affecting a diverse range of warm-blooded animals. Neospora caninum Dubey, Carpenter, Speer, Topper et Uggla, 1988 is associated with foetal loss, neurological disease and abortion in equids. No information was available regarding equine N. caninum infection among equids in Iraq. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence rate of N. caninum in equines by using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA). A total of 329 blood samples randomly selected from equines, comprising 268 ...
Loos C, Castelein A, Vanzant E, Adam E, McLeod KR.Insulin dysregulation (ID) is associated with an increased risk of laminitis which often necessitates the need for clinical intervention. To test the contention that the prophylactic supplementation of nutraceuticals could mitigate ID in susceptible horses, 16 mature horses with a history of ID were supplemented with either the placebo (n = 8) or nutraceutical (n = 8) once daily. Horses were housed in dry lots with ad libitum access to grass hay and fed a concentrate twice daily to provide 0.5 g starch/kg BW/meal. A combined glucose-insulin tolerance test was performed on all horses before and...
Loos C, Castelein A, Vanzant E, Adam E, McLeod KR.Insulin dysregulation (ID) is associated with an increased risk of laminitis which often necessitates the need for clinical intervention. To test the contention that the prophylactic supplementation of nutraceuticals could mitigate ID in susceptible horses, 16 mature horses with a history of ID were supplemented with either the placebo (n = 8) or nutraceutical (n = 8) once daily. Horses were housed in dry lots with ad libitum access to grass hay and fed a concentrate twice daily to provide 0.5 g starch/kg BW/meal. A combined glucose-insulin tolerance test was performed on all horses before and...
Petrucelli M, Sgorbini M, Castagnetti C, Lanci A, Mariella J, Marmorini P, Freccero F.Background- Subclinical electrophysiological derangements occur at birth in foals. Smartphone-based ECG (spECG) is practical tools to assess heart rhythm and was recently validated in foals. Objectives-To assess the heart rate (HR) and rhythm at birth in clinically healthy foals born after spontaneous and induced parturition using a spECG. Animals- Newborn healthy foals born after at term spontaneous (SF) or induced foaling (IF). Methods- Cohort study. In SF and IF groups, a spECG was performed immediately at birth (T0) and after 5 min (T5). SpECG tracings were selected for quality. HR was ma...
de Lima AE, Mendes RP, Piñeros DDV, Alibrando BB, de Zoppa ALV, da Silva LCLC, de Freitas SH, Corrêa RR.Sinusitis is common in horses. Sinoscopy is used for visualization of sinus cavities and can be used for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. In this surgical procedure, a larger chamber is created and communication with other sinus compartments facilitated. To compare the applicability of different surgical approaches and rigid endoscopy systems for sinus inspection and fenestration of the maxillary septal bulla, and to examine the impact of different lens angles on the effectiveness of the procedure. Six chemically preserved cadaveric equine heads were used. Frontal and caudal maxillary port...
Hain-Saunders N, Knight DR, Bruce M, Riley TV.Recent increases in community-associated Clostridioides difficile infections have highlighted the importance of monitoring toxigenic C. difficile from animal and environmental sources. We provide the complete circularized genomes of two toxigenic C. difficile strains isolated from feral horse faeces. Genome N64 (sequence type 964) consists of a single chromosome of 4,078,791 bp, while genome H251 (sequence type 963) comprises one chromosome (4,304,722 bp) and three plasmids (150,942 bp, 11,534 bp, and 9,074 bp).
Haase L, Monett D, Sedlmayr M.Animal owners may increasingly rely on large language models for gathering animal health information alongside internet sources in the future. This study therefore aims to provide initial results on the accuracy of ChatGPT-4o in triage and tentative diagnostics, using horses as a case study. Ten test vignettes were used to prompt situation assessments from the tool, which were then compared to original assessments made by a veterinary specialist for horses. The most probable diagnosis suggested by ChatGPT-4o was found to be quite accurate in most cases, with the urgency to contact a veterinari...
Broothaers K, Pascottini OB, Hedia M, Angel-Velez D, De Coster T, Peere S, Polfliet E, Van den Branden E, Govaere J, Van Soom A, Smits K.Previous studies in the horse highlight the potential benefit of prolonged in vitro maturation (IVM) (34 h) compared to short IVM (24 h) with or without prior oocyte holding, but little is known about the optimal IVM duration within this interval. To determine the effect of oocyte holding and duration of IVM ranged between 28 and 34 h on nuclear maturation, cleavage, blastocyst formation, and pregnancy rates, a retrospective study was performed in an equine clinical OPU-ICSI setting. The study included data of 2114 aspirated oocytes from 201 OPU-ICSI sessions. Duration of IVM was divided in...
Ha Y, Yi K, Park C, Kim G, Choi D, Lee J, Kim N.This study aimed to measure the whole blood viscosity (WBV) in racehorses using a new viscometer and establish reference values, as well as to investigate the correlation between the WBV and the haematological parameters and serum chemistry. WBV measurements were conducted on 51 Thoroughbred horses using a novel U-shaped scanning capillary-tube viscometer. The reference values for the WBV were determined at various shear rates ranging from 1 s to 1 000 s. Correlation analyses were performed to examine the correlation between the WBV and the haematological and serum chemistry parameters. The fi...
Bianchera A, Borghetti P, Ravanetti F, Bertocchi L, De Angelis E, Bettini R.Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a key component of synovial fluid as it plays a crucial role in joint physiology. Its biological activity is influenced by molecular weight, local concentration, and persistence in joints. High-molecular-weight HA has a consolidated history of clinical use, whereas little is known about the metabolic effect of low-molecular-weight hyaluronate on cartilage differentiation. This study explores the potential of HA-based nanoparticles (NPs) on chondrocytes differentiation in vitro. Starting from 25 kDa and 250 kDa sodium hyaluronate solutions, two types of NPs were prepared...
Mazzei M, Sorvillo B, Sgorbini M, Bindi F, Perelli A, Laus F.(1) Background: Respiratory problems may be associated with pathogens among which viruses may play an important role in causing or promoting clinical signs. However, traditional diagnostic methods for equine infectious diseases, such as PCR, are limited to known pathogens and often miss rare or novel viruses. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing is a transformative method that allows the sequencing of all genomes present in a sample. Recent studies have used next-generation sequences to identify viral sequences in horses with unexplained respiratory symptoms, revealing potential links betwee...
Cardeti G, Manna G, Cersini A, Nardini R, Rosati S, Reina R, Cittadini M, Sittinieri S, Altigeri A, Marcario GA, Scicluna MT.The mechanisms of the innate immunity control of equine infectious anemia virus in horses are not yet widely described. Equine monocytes isolated from the peripheral blood of three Equine infectious anemia (EIA) seronegative horses were differentiated in vitro into macrophages that gave rise to mixed cell populations morphologically referable to M1 and M2 phenotypes. The addition of two equine recombinant cytokines and two EIA virus reference strains, Miami and Wyoming, induced a more specific cell differentiation, and as for other species, IFNγ and IL4 stimulation polarized horse macrophages...
Skelton G, Acutt E, Stefanovski D, van Eps A.Traditional radiographic measurements of distal phalanx (Pd) displacement based on the outer hoof wall are not useful for diagnosis of acute laminitis. Objective: We hypothesised that the distance between the inner hoof wall and Pd ('lamellar lucent zone'; LLZ) measured on lateromedial digital radiographs would be increased in horses with acute and subacute laminitis compared with healthy horses. Methods: Retrospective cohort study and in vivo experimental study. Methods: Forelimb radiographs from 32 healthy and 18 laminitic mixed-breed horses were analysed retrospectively. Laminitis was defin...
Carnevale EM, Ginther OJ.The uterine function and reproductive efficiency of 31 nonlactating pony mares were compared for two age groups: young (5 to 7 years, n=9) and old (>/=15 years, n=22). For pregnant mares, differences between age groups were not significant for the diameter of the largest follicle, cross-sectional area of the corpus luteum, growth profile of the embryonic vesicle or embryo mobility characteristics. Uterine contractility scores were lower (P<0.05), day of fixation of the embryonic vesicle was later (P<0.05), and uterine tone tended (P<0.10) to be lower in the old than the young mares...
Dolejska M, Villa L, Minoia M, Guardabassi L, Carattoli A.To determine the structure of two multidrug-resistant IncHI1 plasmids carrying blaCTX-M-1 in Escherichia coli isolates disseminated in an equine clinic in the Czech Republic. Methods: A complete nucleotide sequencing of 239 kb IncHI1 (pEQ1) and 287 kb IncHI1/X1 (pEQ2) plasmids was performed using the 454-Genome Sequencer FLX system. The sequences were compared using bioinformatic tools with other sequenced IncHI1 plasmids. Results: A comparative analysis of pEQ1 and pEQ2 identified high nucleotide identity with the IncHI1 type 2 plasmids. A novel 24 kb module containing an operon involved in ...
Lind EO, Kuzmina T, Uggla A, Waller PJ, Höglund J.The objective of the study was to investigate different aspects on the efficacy of three anthelmintics on cyathostomin nematodes of Swedish horses. A faecal egg count reduction (FECR) test was performed on 26 farms. Horses were treated orally with recommended doses of ivermectin, pyrantel pamoate or fenbendazole. Faecal samples were collected on the day of deworming and 7, 14 and 21 days later. No resistance was shown against ivermectin; the FECR was constantly >99%. The effect of pyrantel was assessed as equivocal in 6 farms 14 days after treatment; the mean FECR was 99%. As many as 72% of...
Padalino B, Raidal SL, Hall E, Knight P, Celi P, Jeffcott L, Muscatello G.An online survey was conducted to determine associations between transport management and transport-related injuries and diseases in horses in Australia. The survey was composed of three sections: respondents' demographic information, transport management strategies or procedures (before, during and after transportation) and transport diseases experienced in the previous two year period. Univariate and multivariate modelling was performed exploring associations between variables (respondents' details and transport management strategies) and the following transport-related diseases as outcomes:...
Pacholewska A, Mach N, Mata X, Vaiman A, Schibler L, Barrey E, Gerber V.MiRNAs regulate multiple genes at the post-transcriptional level and therefore play an important role in many biological processes. It has been suggested that miRNA exported outside the cells contribute to inter-cellular communication. Consequently, circulating miRNAs are of particular interest and are promising biomarkers for many diseases. The number of miRNAs annotated in the horse genome is much lower compared to model organisms like human and mouse. We therefore aimed to identify novel equine miRNAs for tissue types and breed in serum. We analysed 71 small RNA-seq libraries derived from n...
Giovannini S, Brehm W, Mainil-Varlet P, Nesic D.Tissue engineering (TE) has emerged as a promising new therapy for the treatment of damaged tissues and organs. Adult stem cells are considered as an attractive candidate cell type for cell-based TE. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) have been isolated from a variety of tissues and tested for differentiation into different cell lineages. While clinical trials still await the use of human MSC, horse tendon injuries are already being treated with autologous bone marrow-derived MSC. Given that the bone marrow is not an optimal source for MSC due to the painful and risk-containing sampling procedure, i...
Aleman M, Williams DC, Brosnan RJ, Nieto JE, Pickles KJ, Berger J, Lecouteur RA, Holliday TA, Madigan JE.Idiopathic headshaking (HSK) in horses is a distressing disorder in which the etiology and pathophysiology are unknown. Objective: Differences in sensory function of the trigeminal nerve exist between healthy and affected horses. Methods: Six healthy mature geldings and 6 mature geldings with idiopathic HSK. Methods: Prospective study. Sensory nerve action and somatosensory evoked potentials studies were performed. The stimulus site comprised the gingival mucosa dorsal to the maxillary canine. A pair of recording electrodes was placed along the sensory pathway of the trigeminal complex at the ...
Hessel LN, Bosch G, van Weeren PR, Ionita JC.Autologous platelet concentrates (APCs) are being used increasingly in horses to enhance regeneration in tissues that have poor natural healing capabilities. Numerous APC systems, which are based on different preparation techniques and were originally developed for human patients, are now routinely used in equine cases. However, preliminary process validation and adequate in vitro biochemical characterisation of most of these systems do not exist for horses. Objective: To compare haematological findings and growth factor concentrations of equine APCs obtained with 4 commercially available syst...
Alipour F, Parham A, Kazemi Mehrjerdi H, Dehghani H.Because of the therapeutic application of stem cells (SCs), isolation and characterization of different types of SCs, especially mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), have gained considerable attention in recent studies. Adipose tissue is an abundant and accessible source of MSCs which can be used for tissue engineering and in particular for treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. This study was aimed to isolate and culture equine adipose-derived MSCs (AT-MSCs) from little amounts of fat tissue samples and determine some of their biological characteristics. Methods: In this descriptive study, only 3-...
Bailey CJ, Reid SW, Hodgson DR, Bourke JM, Rose RJ.A retrospective case-control study was conducted to identify and quantify risk factors for serious musculoskeletal injury sustained at 4 Australian metropolitan racetracks. During the period of study (August 1988-July 1995) there were 196 cases from flat racing, 52 cases from hurdle racing and 53 cases from steeplechases. The incidences of fatal musculoskeletal injuries per start for flat, hurdle and steeple races were 0.06, 0.63 and 1.43% respectively. Logistic regression identified harder track surfaces, horses being older than age 3 years, one racecourse (Flemington) and jumping races as si...
Rink BE, Amilon KR, Esteves CL, French HM, Watson E, Aurich C, Donadeu FX.Equine mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) are most commonly harvested from bone marrow (BM) or adipose tissue, requiring the use of surgical procedures. By contrast, the uterus can be accessed nonsurgically, and may provide a more readily available cell source. While human endometrium is known to harbor mesenchymal precursor cells, MSCs have not been identified in equine endometrium. This study reports the isolation, culture, and characterization of MSCs from equine endometrium. The presence of MSC and pericyte markers in endometrial sections was determined using immunohistochemistry. Strom...
Bauer N, Nakagawa J, Dunker C, Failing K, Moritz A.The automated laser-based hematology analyzer Sysmex XT-2000iV™ provides a 5-part differential count and specific cytograms that are of great interest for large veterinary laboratories. The aim of the study was to validate the Sysmex XT-2000iV compared to the laser-based hematology analyzer ADVIA® 2120 and manual differential in dogs, cats, and horses as well as the impact of anticoagulant (heparin, ethylenediamine tetra-acetic acid [EDTA], and citrate) and storage at 22°C and 4°C. Consecutive fresh K(3)-EDTA blood samples from 216 cats, 314 dogs, and 174 horses were included. The impact ...
Sun Y, Wang C, Wang Y, Zhang T, Ren L, Hu X, Zhang R, Meng Q, Guo Y, Fei J, Li N, Zhao Y.Based on the recently released horse genome, we have characterized the genomic organization of the horse Ig gene loci. The horse IgH locus in genomic scaffold Un0011 contains 40 D(H) segments, 8 J(H) segments and 50 V(H) segments. The Igkappa locus contains only a single C(kappa) gene, 5 J(kappa) segments and a 60 V(kappa) segments, whereas the Iglambda locus contains 7 C(lambda) genes each preceded by a J(lambda) gene segment. A total of 110 V(lambda) segments with the same transcriptional polarity as J(lambda)-C(lambda) were identified upstream of the J(lambda)-C(lambda) cluster. However, 34...
Hollis AR, Furr MO, Magdesian KG, Axon JE, Ludlow V, Boston RC, Corley KT.Critical illness is associated with hyperglycemia in humans, and a greater degree and duration of hyperglycemia is associated with nonsurvival. Hypoglycemia is also seen in critically ill humans, and is associated with nonsurvival. This might also be true in the critically ill foal. Objective: To investigate the association of blood glucose concentrations with survival, sepsis, and the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). Methods: Blood glucose concentrations at admission (515 foals) and 24 hours (159 foals), 36 hours (95), 48 hours (82), and 60 hours (45) after admission were analy...
Durand B, Chevalier V, Pouillot R, Labie J, Marendat I, Murgue B, Zeller H, Zientara S.During late summer and autumn 2000, a West Nile fever outbreak in southern France resulted in 76 equine clinical cases; 21 horses died. We report the results of a large serosurvey of all equines within a 10-km radius of laboratory-confirmed cases. Blood samples were obtained from 5,107 equines, distributed in groups of 1 to 91 animals. West Nile virus immunoglobulin (Ig) G antibodies were found in 8.5% of animals (n=432). Forty-two percent of the IgG-positive animals were also IgM positive. Horses living in small groups were more affected than those in large groups. The results suggest that We...
Brown CM, Timoney PJ.An outbreak of disease, characterized by depression, anorexia, fever, limb oedema and lymphocytopenia, occurred on a farm for thoroughbreds in India in 1990. Twenty-six of the 88 horses on the farm were affected, predominantly adults. Signs were present in affected horses for 7-10 days, and the outbreak lasted 21 days. Seven of the 26 affected horses were tested for exposure to Getah virus using paired serum samples, acute and convalescent. Four of the 7 horses seroconverted to Getah virus, and the other three showed a 4-fold or greater rise in titre. The clinical and laboratory findings were ...
Perkins NR, Reid SW, Morris RS.To describe and enumerate conditions that interrupted training and racing in a population of Thoroughbred racehorses in New Zealand. Methods: A longitudinal study design was used to collect data on horses training under the care of 20 licensed racehorse trainers from venues in the mid to lower regions of the North Island between October 1997 and July 2000. Incidence rates were reported for first and second occurrences for different categories of musculoskeletal injury (MSI), and first occurrences of upper and lower respiratory tract disease, using training days as time-at-risk. The proportion ...
Boden LA, Anderson GA, Charles JA, Morgan KL, Morton JM, Parkin TD, Clarke AF, Slocombe RF.Research into risk factors specific for fatality in flat racing should be focused at a regional level as the risk factors may differ among countries and even regions within countries. Objective: To identify risk factors for fatality of Thoroughbred racehorses in flat starts on all racecourses in Victoria, Australia between 1989 and 2004. Methods: Fatalities comprised all horses that died during or immediately after a flat race or official flat trial, and all horses that were subjected to euthanasia within 24 h of an event in which an injury was sustained. The retrospective study involved 283 c...
Massacci FR, Clark A, Ruet A, Lansade L, Costa M, Mach N.Understanding gut microbiota similarities and differences across breeds in horses has the potential to advance approaches aimed at personalized microbial modifications, particularly those involved in improving sport athletic performance. Here, we explore whether faecal microbiota composition based on faecal 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing varies across six different sport breeds at two time points 8 months apart within a cohort of 189 healthy horses cared for under similar conditions. Lusitano horses presented the smallest and Hanoverians the greatest bacterial diversity. We found subtle bu...
Pérez DS, Tapia MO, Soraci AL.Fosfomycin (FOS) is a natural bactericidal broad-spectrum antibiotic which acts on proliferating bacteria by inhibiting cell wall and early murein/peptidoglycan synthesis. Bactericidal activity is evident against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria and can also act synergistically with other antibiotics. Bacterial resistance to FOS may be natural or acquired. Other properties of this drug include inhibition of bacterial adhesion to epithelial cells, exopolysaccharide biofilm penetration, immunomodulatory effect, phagocytosis promotion and protection against the nephrotoxicity caused by ot...
Quintana AM, Landolt GA, Annis KM, Hussey GS.Our understanding of innate immunity within the equine respiratory tract is limited despite growing evidence for its key role in both the immediate defense and the shaping of downstream adaptive immune responses to respiratory disease. As the first interface to undergo pathogen invasion, the respiratory epithelium is a key player in these early events and our goal was to examine the innate immune characteristics of equine respiratory epithelia and compare them to an in vitro equine respiratory epithelial cell model cultured at the air-fluid interface (AFI). Respiratory epithelial tissues, isol...
Paras KL, George MM, Vidyashankar AN, Kaplan RM.Gastrointestinal nematode parasites are important pathogens of all domesticated livestock species. Fecal egg counts (FEC) are routinely used for evaluating anthelmintic efficacy and for making targeted anthelmintic treatment decisions. Numerous FEC techniques exist and vary in precision and accuracy. These performance characteristics are especially important when performing fecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT). The objective of this study was to compare the accuracy and precision of three commonly used FEC methods and determine if differences existed among livestock species. In this study, ...
Tijms MA, Snijder EJ.Non-structural protein 1 (nsp1), the N-terminal subunit of the replicase polyprotein of the arterivirus Equine arteritis virus (EAV), is essential for viral subgenomic mRNA synthesis, but fully dispensable for genome replication. However, at the molecular level, the role of nsp1 in EAV subgenomic mRNA synthesis is poorly understood. A yeast two-hybrid screen did not reveal interactions between EAV nsp1 and other viral non-structural proteins or the nucleocapsid protein, although both nsp1 and the nucleocapsid protein were found to form homomers. Subsequently, a yeast two-hybrid screen of a HeL...
Kim KI, Yang YH, Lee SS, Park C, Ma R, Bouzat JL, Lewin HA.Historical records suggest that horses inhabiting the island of Cheju in Korea are descendants of Mongolian horses introduced in 1276. Other studies, however, suggest that horses may have been present on the island prior to the Mongolian introduction. To determine the origin of the Cheju horses we used a phylogenetic analysis of sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D-loop region, including tRNA Pro and parts of tRNA thr and tRNA Phe sequences (1102-bp excluding the tandem repeat region). Maximum parsimony and neighbor-joining trees were constructed using sequences determined for seven Ch...
Wagner B.Antibodies of the horse were studied intensively by many notable immunologists throughout the past century until the early 1970's. After a large gap of interest in horse immunology, additional basic studies on horse immunoglobulin genes performed during the past 10 years have resulted in new insights into the equine humoral immune system. These include the characterization of the immunoglobulin lambda and kappa light chain genes, the immunoglobulin heavy chain constant (IGHC) gene regions, and initial studies regarding the heavy chain variable genes. Horses express predominately lambda light c...
Chang YF, Ku YW, Chang CF, Chang CD, McDonough SP, Divers T, Pough M, Torres A.The objective of this study is to determine whether doxycycline, ceftiofur or tetracycline could be effectively used to treat equine Lyme disease. Ponies experimentally infected with Borrelia burgdorferi by tick exposure were treated with doxycycline, ceftiofur or tetracycline for 4 weeks (28 days). Doxycyline and ceftiofur treatment were inconsistent in eliminating persistent infection in this experimental model. However, tetracycline treatment seems to eliminate persistent infection. Although serum antibody levels to B. burgdorferi in all ponies declined gradually after antibiotic treatment,...
Johnson RJ, Rivard C, Lanaspa MA, Otabachian-Smith S, Ishimoto T, Cicerchi C, Cheeke PR, Macintosh B, Hess T.Fructose is a simple sugar present in honey and fruit, but can also exist as a polymer (fructans) in pasture grasses. Mammals are unable to metabolize fructans, but certain gram positive bacteria contain fructanases and can convert fructans to fructose in the gut. Recent studies suggest that fructose generated from bacteria, or directly obtained from the diet, can induce both increased intestinal permeability and features of metabolic syndrome, especially the development of insulin resistance. The development of insulin resistance is driven in part by the metabolism of fructose by fructokinase...
Newton JR, Townsend HG, Wood JL, Sinclair R, Hannant D, Mumford JA.Field outbreaks of influenza that occurred in vaccinated Thoroughbred racehorses in Newmarket in 1995 and 1996 were investigated by nucleoprotein ELISA and serology. Investigations showed that serum levels of vaccine-induced single radial haemolysis (SRH) antibody correlated closely with protective immunity against equine influenza and were consistent with observations made in previous experimental studies using nebulised aerosol challenge. In the second part of this study, antibody levels stimulated by vaccination were investigated to examine probable protection in high risk groups, such as y...
Goodrich LR, Phillips JN, McIlwraith CW, Foti SB, Grieger JC, Gray SJ, Samulski RJ.Osteoarthritis (OA) affects over 40 million people annually. We evaluated interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) gene transfer in an equine model based on IL-1ra protein therapy which inhibits inflammation through blocking IL-1. Using the self-complementary adeno-associated virus (scAAV)IL-1ra equine gene as a starting construct, we optimized the transgene cassette by analyzing promoters (cytomegalovirus (CMV) versus chicken β-actin hybrid (CBh)), coding sequences (optimized versus unoptimized), vector capsid (serotype 2 versus chimeric capsid), and biological activity in vitro. AAV serot...
Anthenill LA, Stover SM, Gardner IA, Hill AE.To assess individual and combined associations of high-speed exercise and horseshoe characteristics with risk of forelimb proximal sesamoid bone fractures and proximal sesamoid bone midbody fractures in Thoroughbred racehorses. Methods: 269 deceased Thoroughbred racehorses. Methods: A case-control study design was used to compare 121 horses with a fracture of at least 1 of 4 forelimb proximal sesamoid bones (75 horses had a midbody fracture) and 148 horses without a forelimb proximal sesamoid bone fracture. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate potent...
