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.
McGreevy PD, Webster AJ, Nicol CJ.The spontaneous behaviour and the apparent digestibility of dry matter and fibre and transit times of digesta were compared in four normal horses and four crib-biters. A technique was developed for measuring total gut transit times (TGTT) by using single-stool analysis of the passage of radio-opaque polyethylene markers. Longer TGTT were recorded in the crib-biters than in the normal horses but the orocaecal transit times did not differ. The crib-biters rested less than the normal horses.
Lehner AF, Harkins JD, Karpiesiuk W, Woods WE, Robinson NE, Dirikolu L, Fisher M, Tobin T.Clenbuterol is a beta2 agonist/antagonist bronchodilator, and its identification in post-race samples may lead to sanctions. The objective of this study was to develop a specific and highly sensitive serum quantitation method for clenbuterol that would allow effective regulatory control of this agent in horses. Therefore, clenbuterol-d9 was synthesized for use as an internal standard, an automated solid-phase extraction method was developed, and both were used in conjunction with a multiple reaction monitoring liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) method to allow unequivoca...
Beldoménico HR, Baroni E, Campagnoli DU, Sigrist ME, Rubio M, Boggio JC.In this paper we report the results of surveys conducted in Argentina between 1997 and 1998 to know the Cd concentrations in kidney from horses of different age, sex, and origin. Cd in renal cortex and medulla was positively correlated, and higher concentrations in the cortex were found. No significant differences between values from left and right kidneys of the same animal were found. An increase in Cd levels with age of animals were observed, and no sex incidence was verified in renal Cd composition. No detectable residues were found in the fetuses tested. Levels observed in Argentine equin...
Kumar P, Timoney JF.Light and electron microscope studies were conducted on the nasopharynx and the nasopharyngeal tonsil of 15 young horses. The nasopharynx and nasopharyngeal tonsil was lined with pseudostratified columnar ciliated epithelium and goblet cells. The lymphoepithelium of the nasopharyngeal tonsil was folded forming crypts, the mucosa of which was modified into follicle associated epithelium characterized by stratified cuboidal epithelium, loss of cilia, absence of goblet cells and infiltration of lymphocytes. The lamina propria mucosae of the nasopharyngeal tonsil contained well-developed lymphoid ...
Horowitz ML, Cohen ND, Takai S, Becu T, Chaffin MK, Chu KK, Magdesian KG, Martens RJ.The distributions of the incubation periods for infectious and neoplastic diseases originating from point-source exposures, and for genetic diseases, follow a lognormal distribution (Sartwell's model). Conversely, incubation periods in propagated outbreaks and diseases with strong environmental components do not follow a lognormal distribution. In this study Sartwell's model was applied to the age at onset and age at death of foals with Rhodococcus equi pneumonia. The age at onset of clinical signs and age at death were compiled for 107 foals that had been diagnosed with R. equi pneumonia at b...
Hines R, Maury W.In vivo, tissue macrophages have been implicated as an important cell for the replication of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV). Laboratory investigations of EIAV/macrophage interactions, however, have been hampered by the laborious blood monocyte isolation procedures. In addition, adherent equine macrophage cultures generally have poor long-term viability and are resistant to transfection. This report describes an adherent canine macrophage-like cell line, DH82, that supports the replication of EIAV. This cell line was easily transfectable and supported EIAV Tat transactivation of the LTR....
Aurich C, Aurich JE, Parvizi N.In equine species, luteinising hormone (LH) and prolactin (PRL) release are reduced throughout pregnancy but increase at foaling. The present experiments were designed to study a possible opioidergic regulation of LH and PRL release in pregnant Shetland mares (n=6). At various stages of pregnancy (days 26.4+/-0.6, 75.4+/-5.4, 171.8+/-2.4, 226.2+/-4.8, 282.7+/-3.4 and 319.8+/-2.1), mares were injected with the opioid antagonist naloxone (0.5 mg/kg body weight) and saline. The two treatments were always separated by 2 days, and mares served as their own controls. Two hours after being given nalo...
Donadeu FX, Ginther OJ.The role of the number of follicles and circulating immunoreactive inhibin in the decrease in plasma FSH concentrations that occurs during development of a follicular wave was studied in mares. All follicles > or = 6 mm in diameter were ablated by ultrasound-guided transvaginal aspiration of follicular fluid on day 10 after ovulation. During the subsequent wave, all follicles, the three largest follicles (three follicle group), the largest follicle (single follicle group) or no follicles were retained and the remaining follicles were ablated before they reached > 10 mm in diameter (n = 1...
Lieto LD, Cothran EG.A cDNA library was built using RNA extracted from the skin tissue of an adult horse. The library was primed with oligo (dT) and sequences were directionally inserted in order to produce an expression library. The library has 5.8X 10(5) plaque forming units with 99.6% recombinant phage. The average insert size is 1.3 Kbp. Three hundred and thirteen expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were generated from sequencing of the 5 prime end of randomly selected skin cDNA clones. The ESTs were sequenced on an ABI 377 using Big-Dye chemistry. A similarity search was performed on each EST using the NCBI non-re...
Suire S, Stewart F, Beauchamp J, Kennedy MW.The equine conceptus is surrounded by a fibrous capsule that persists until about day 20 of pregnancy, whereupon the capsule is lost, the conceptus attaches to the endometrium and placentation proceeds. Before attachment, the endometrium secretes in abundance a protein of the lipocalin family, uterocalin. The cessation of secretion coincides with the end of the period during which the conceptus is enclosed in its capsule, suggesting that uterocalin is essential for the support of the embryo before direct contact between maternal and foetal tissues is established. Using recombinant protein and ...
Marasas WF.This article describes the events leading to the discovery of the fumonisins in South Africa in 1988 and highlights the first 10 years (1988-1998) of fumonisin research. The predominant fungus isolated from moldy corn implicated in a field outbreak of equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM) in South Africa in 1970 was Fusarium verticillioides (F. moniliforme). This fungus was also prevalent in moldy home-grown corn consumed by people in high-incidence areas of esophageal cancer (EC) in the Transkei region of South Africa. Culture material on corn of F. verticillioides strain MRC 826, which was iso...
Kirschvink N, Fiévez L, Dogné S, Bureau F, Art T, Lekeux P.Solute analysis in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid involves the use of dilutional markers to correct for variable recovery of pulmonary epithelial lining fluid (PELF). Urea is the best characterised endogenous marker, whereas inulin appears to meet the requirements of an exogenous marker. In horses, the use of inulin has never been investigated and the impact of lower airway diseases such as heaves, on PELF recovery is unknown. In this study, five healthy and five heaves-affected horses underwent airway endoscopy and bronchoalveolar lavage. PELF recovery from bronchoalveolar lavage was calculated...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Collins SS, Drudge JH.Research carried out during the last 4 years (1996-1999) of an 11-year study of the prevalence of internal parasites naturally transmitted to horse foals born on the same pasture on a farm in central Kentucky is presented here. Horses in this herd were not treated with any antiparasitic compound for over 20 years except for a replacement stallion in 1994. A total of 22 species, including 12 species of small strongyles, were recovered in the 4-year period. Transmission patterns of all species (n=35) of endoparasites recovered are compared for the 11-year study. Some of the changes were an incre...
Jensen TK, Boye M, Bille-Hansen V.Fluorescent in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and Grocott's methenamine-silver nitrate staining were compared as diagnostic methods for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in formalin-fixed lung tissue from foals and pigs. An oligonucleotide probe targeting 18S ribosomal RNA of P. carinii was designed for in situ hybridization, and a commercially available monoclonal antibody was used for immunohistochemistry. Samples from six foals and 10 pigs with P. carinii pneumonia, as verified by Grocott's methenamine-silver nitrate staining, were examined concurrently with samples from seven anima...
Bullimore SR, Corfield AP, Hicks SJ, Goodall C, Carrington SD.In horses, ulceration of the non-glandular region of the stomach is common and has been attributed to the lack of a protective mucus covering. This study aimed to determine whether the non-glandular region is covered by a mucus layer. A mixture of antibodies raised against human gastric mucin (MUC 5 AC) showed a tissue distribution in the glandular region of the equine stomach similar to that seen in humans. Dot blots of mucus from the glandular and non-glandular regions showed cross-reactivity with these antibodies. Various histological fixation and processing techniques were compared for the...
Mckelvie J, Foster AP, Hamblin AS, Cunningham FM.Intradermal injection of a Culicoides antigen extract (CAgX) induces T lymphocyte and eosinophil accumulation in the skin of horses with sweet itch. Blood mononuclear (BMN) cells from normal ponies proliferate when stimulated by mitogen (phytohaemagglutinin, PHA) or antigen (tetanus toxoid, TT) and, as shown here, release soluble factor(s) that induce eosinophil adherence. CAgX also caused concentration dependent proliferation of BMN cells from sweet itch and normal ponies [stimulation index: 29 (13) and 17 (7) for BMN cells from sweet itch and normal ponies, respectively during the active pha...
Gable TL, Woods GL.The objectives were to compare cumulus type with nucleus form in equine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs), to define the percentage of germinal vesicle (GV)-stage oocytes within a population of mares, and to further define GV nucleus shapes of equine oocytes. Cumulus types were as follows: 1) compact (56/208, 26.9%), 2) slightly expanded (37/208, 17.8%), 3) moderately expanded (27/208, 13.0%), 4) greatly expanded (15/208, 7.2%), or 5) denuded (73/208, 35.1%). One hundred thirty of 208 COCs (62.5%) were GV-stage, 21/208 (10.1%) were condensed chromatin-stage, 8/208 (3.8%) were polar body-stage, 4...
Gable TL, Woods GL.The objective was to test the hypothesis that increasing equine oocyte culture time from 48 to 96 or 144 h increases nucleus maturation of equine oocytes. The hypothesis was not supported because condensed chromatin-stage oocytes decreased (P<0.01) from 33/126 (26.2%) at 48 h or 34/95 (35.8%) at 96 h to 11/117 (9.4%) at 144 h, and polar body-stage oocytes decreased (P<0.01) from 65/126 (51.6%) at 48 h to 25/95 (26.3%) at 96 h and (P<0.01) to 1/117 (0.9%) at 144 h. Negative (non-staining) oocytes increased (P<0.01) from 16/126 (12.7%) at 48 h or 15/95 (15.8%) at 96 h to 39/117 (33.3%) at 144 h....
Martens A, De Moor A, Ducatelle R.The purpose of this study was to examine if bovine papilloma virus (BPV) DNA can be detected in superficial swabs or scrapings from equine sarcoids. Samples were obtained from 92 sarcoids and 20 non-sarcoidal control lesions. The polymerase chain reaction technique was used with a first primer set to check whether DNA extraction was successful, and with a second primer set specific for BPV-DNA. DNA isolation was successful in 88% of the swabs and 93% of the scrapings. All control lesions were negative for BPV-DNA.
Kumar P, Timoney JF, Sheoran AS.The aim of this study was to characterise the morphological and histochemical features of equine nasopharyngeal tonsillar tissue. Nasal and oropharyngeal tonsillar tissue has been described as the gatekeeper to mucosal immunity because of its strategic location at the entrance to the respiratory and alimentary tracts. A combination of light, scanning and transmission electron microscopy has revealed the presence of follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) overlying lymphoid tissue of the equine nasopharyngeal tonsil caudal to the pharyngeal opening of the guttural pouch. Membranous microvillus (M)...
Hoffmann KL, Wood AK, Griffiths KA, Evans DL, Gill RW, Kirby AC.The effects of feeding on blood flow to the equine foot are poorly understood. In a temperature-controlled room, duplex Doppler ultrasonographic observations were made pre- and postprandially of the lateral proper palmar digital artery of 5 horses, randomly assigned to twice and 4 times daily feeding in an unbalanced 2 period crossover design. Arterial diameter and blood velocity were measured over 4 h and additional observations made of heart rate, blood pressure, total plasma protein, packed cell volume, plasma glucose and insulin. There was no effect of the feeding regimen on any variable. ...
Schumacher J, Schumacher J, de Graves F, Steiger R, Schramme M, Smith R, Coker M.The response of horses, with solar pain in the dorsal or palmar aspect of the foot, to 6 or 10 ml local analgesic solution administered into the distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint was examined. Lameness was induced in 7 horses by creating solar pain in the dorsal aspect of one forefoot and, at another time, the palmar aspect of the other forefoot with set-screws inserted into a custom-made shoe. Horses were videotaped trotting before and after application of set-screws and, in separate trials, after 6 or 10 ml local analgesic solution was administered into the DIP joint. Lameness scores were a...
Sugar O.Reports of pathologic investigations as to the cause of intermittent claudication in horses were made in France in October, 1831, by veterinarian Jean-François Bouley. Obstructive clots in the femoral arteries were found to be responsible for the muscular changes causing limping. Bouley's work in the horse was used by Charcot in 1858 to understand the mechanism of claudication in the case of a soldier with gunshot wound in whom a traumatic aneurysm, clotting, and ischemia of the legs developed. This was not, however, the first medically reported case of human claudication from vascular occlus...
Valberg SJ, Schultz AE, Finno CJ, Bellone RR, Hughes SS.The prevalence of clinical signs and factors triggering muscle atrophy and rhabdomyolysis associated with an MYH1 mutation in Quarter Horses and related breeds (QH) remain poorly understood. Objective: Determine the prevalence and potential triggers of atrophy and stiffness in horses homozygous reference (N/N), heterozygous (My/N), and homozygous (My/My) for the MYH1 mutation. Methods: Two-hundred seventy-five N/N, 100 My/N, and 10 My/My QH. Methods: A retrospective case-control study using a closed-ended questionnaire completed by clients of the Veterinary Genetics Laboratory at the Universit...
Nocera I, Aliboni B, Sgorbini M, Gracia-Calvo LA, Conte G, Ben David L, Citi S.Ultrasound (US) is a well-established technique for investigating joint diseases in horses, complementary to radiography. Few studies have been performed on the ultrasonographic aspect of the elbow joint in horses and no reports are available on donkeys. The aim of this study is to describe the ultrasonographic appearance of the elbow joint in healthy donkeys. Descriptive cohort study included 34 elbow joints, which were evaluated in 17 donkeys. Inclusion criteria included no lameness or musculoskeletal diseases in the donkeys. The structures evaluated were the lateral and medial collateral li...
Ikeda JS, Hirsh DC.An outbreak of equine salmonellosis occurred at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, University of California, Davis, between June 1981 and March 1982. Forty-four horses were infected with Salmonella saint-paul, a serotype rarely isolated from animals at the university before the outbreak. Unlike the isolates of S saint-paul obtained at the beginning of the outbreak, almost all strains isolated near the end were resistant to ampicillin, cephalothin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, kanamycin, sulfadiazine, trimethoprim, and trimethoprim-sulfadiazine. A conjugal-resistance plasmid (R-plasmid) ...
Greene HJ, O'Connor JP.A 16-year old thoroughbred mare was presented with dysphagia and food being ejected from the mouth and nostrils. Clinical signs were exhibited for three weeks before it was euthanased on humanitarian grounds. Post mortem examination revealed a soft haemangioma measuring 7 cm X 5 cm suspended from the roof of the medial compartment of the left guttural pouch.
Myshkin AE, Khromova VS.Histidin has been shown to effectively inhibit coagulation of horse oxyhemoglobin (HbO(2)) modified by mercury(II) ion bound to reactive thiol groups of protein. Kinetic parameters were measured and the histidin-to-mercury binding constant was kinetically estimated. Histidin, as other pharmaceutically acceptable compounds with some mercury-binding capacity, has been suggested to alleviate mercury intoxication conditions.