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Topic:Zoonotic Diseases
Zoonotic diseases are infectious diseases that can be transmitted between animals and humans, with horses acting as potential hosts or vectors. These diseases can result from various pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungi, which can be transmitted through direct contact, vectors like mosquitoes, or environmental exposure. Horses can carry zoonotic pathogens such as Salmonella, West Nile Virus, and Leptospira, posing health risks to humans, particularly those working closely with equines. Understanding the transmission dynamics, prevention strategies, and control measures helps safeguard both equine and human health. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and management of zoonotic diseases associated with horses.
Trypanosoma vivax displays a clonal population structure. African animal trypanosomiasis, or Nagana, is a debilitating and economically costly disease with a major impact on animal health in sub-Saharan Africa. Trypanosoma vivax, one of the principal trypanosome species responsible for the disease, infects a wide host range including cattle, goats, horses and donkeys and is transmitted both cyclically by tsetse flies and mechanically by other biting flies, resulting in a distribution covering large swathes of South America and much of sub-Saharan Africa. While there is evidence for mating in some of the related trypanosome species, Trypanosoma brucei...
A molecular survey of Piroplasmida and Hepatozoon isolated from domestic and wild animals in Burgos (northern Spain). This study reports a molecular survey of Hepatozoon species and of the order Piroplasmida in the Province of Burgos, northern Spain. The diagnostic techniques employed included PCR and the sequencing of the 18S rRNA gene. Eighty-nine blood samples from domestic animals plus 138 blood/coagulated blood samples from wild mammals were examined. Theilerid protozoa were found at relatively high frequencies in bovines (14.6%) and horses (36%). Theileria buffeli, T. sergenti and T. annulata were diagnosed in cows. T. equi was common in horses and T. annae was found in a donkey for the first time. A ne...
Irrigation linked to a greater incidence of human and veterinary West Nile virus cases in the United States from 2004 to 2006. Identifying risk factors for West Nile virus transmission is vital for future public health control measures. This study investigated the effect of irrigation, expressed as percent irrigated land, and population density on the incidence of human and veterinary West Nile virus (WNV) cases using a sample of 2827 counties from the United States over a 3-year period. Zero-inflated Poisson regression models were selected because of the large number of counties reporting zero cases. The mean percentage of irrigated land for the entire sample was approximately 0.029, while counties reporting both hum...
Trichinella britovi and Trichinella spiralis mixed infection in a horse from Poland. Trichinella infections in horses continue to represent a health problem and, despite the rarity of infection, it is necessary to continue to control properly horse meat. In 2008, a 10-year-old horse imported from Poland to Italy for consumption found to have been positive at the digestion test. Both Trichinella britovi and Trichinella spiralis larvae in a proportion of 4:1 were detected in the horse muscles. This is the first report of a mixed Trichinella species infection in a horse. The epidemiological investigation revealed that the infected horse originated from a small farm about 120km fr...
Comparative molecular analysis substantiates zoonotic potential of equine methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Despite the increasing importance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in veterinary medicine, knowledge about the epidemiology of the pathogen in horses is still poor. The phylogenetic relationship of strains of human and equine origins has been addressed before, usually by analyzing results of common standard classification methods for MRSA. This work intends to go beyond the baseline of typing procedures in order to comparatively characterize equine and human MRSA strains with similar phylogenetic backgrounds. In addition to multilocus sequence typing, pulsed-field gel elec...
Natural infection by Cryptosporidium sp., Giardia sp. and Eimeria leuckarti in three groups of equines with different handlings in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. To detect Cryptosporidium sp., Giardia sp. and Eimeria leuckarti in horses, fecal samples were collected from three different handling horse groups from the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Group A was composed of "Mangalarga Marchador" pure breed horses, Group B was formed by horses of a Military Corporation and Group C by stray horses captured by the Center of Zoonosis Control Paulo Dacorso Filho. A total of 396 fecal samples were collected, 212 samples from Group A, 154 samples from Group B and 30 from Group C. The material was submitted to the centrifugation - flotation technique and stain...
Antimicrobial resistance in companion animals. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an emerging problem in companion animals, because of difficult-to-treat infections, possible pressure to use antimicrobials that are important in human medicine, and potential zoonotic transmission. The extent and importance of AMR in companion animals are poorly understood, in part because of limited surveillance; however, it is clear that resistance is problematic in many pathogens and commensals, including staphylococci, enterococci, Escherichia coli and Salmonella.
Rickettsial spotted fever in capoeirão village, Itabira, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The present study investigated the infection by spotted fever rickettsia in an endemic area for Brazilian spotted fever (BSF; caused by Rickettsia rickettsii) in Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Human, canine and equine sera samples, and Amblyomma cajennense adult ticks collected in a rural area of Itabira City, Minas Gerais State were tested for rickettsial infection. Through Immunofluorescence Assay (IFA) we demonstrated the presence of antibodies anti-R. rickettsii in 8.2%, 81.3% and 100% of the human, canine and equine sera, respectively. None of the 356 tick specimens analyzed were positive fo...
Trichinella spp. infection in horses of Romania: serological and parasitological survey. Herbivorous animals are usually, by virtue of their diet, outside the major transmission cycles of Trichinella spp. However, since 1975, the year of the first report of human trichinellosis caused by the consumption of infected horse meat, the domestic horse has appeared as a novel vector of Trichinella spp. infection to humans, with 15 outbreaks documented in France and Italy. Romania, one of the main countries exporting horses into the European Union (EU), experienced a dramatic increase of Trichinella spp. infection in both domestic pigs and humans in the 1990s. Some Trichinella spiralis-in...
Development of an unambiguous and discriminatory multilocus sequence typing scheme for the Streptococcus zooepidemicus group. The zoonotic pathogen Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) is commonly found harmlessly colonizing the equine nasopharynx. Occasionally, strains can invade host tissues or cross species barriers, and S. zooepidemicus is associated with numerous different diseases in a variety of hosts, including inflammatory airway disease and abortion in horses, pneumonia in dogs and meningitis in humans. A biovar of S. zooepidemicus, Streptococcus equi subsp. equi, is the causative agent of strangles, one of the most important infections of horses worldwide. We report here the developme...
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and animals: zoonosis or humanosis? Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is increasing worldwide. Occasionally, animals are colonized or infected incidentally with human strains. Recently, however, new strains of MRSA emerging from within the animal kingdom, particularly in pigs, are causing human infection. MRSA has been reported in species as diverse as companion animals, horses and pigs, through to chinchillas, bats and parrots. In contrast, whereas strains of community-associated MRSA, the majority of which carry genes encoding Panton-Valentine leucocidin, are spreading rapidly in human populations, only sporad...
Development of human antibody fragments using antibody phage display for the detection and diagnosis of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV). Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) belongs to the Alphavirus group. Several species of this family are also pathogenic to humans and are recognized as potential agents of biological warfare and terrorism. The objective of this work was the generation of recombinant antibodies for the detection of VEEV after a potential bioterrorism assault or an natural outbreak of VEEV. Results: In this work, human anti-VEEV single chain Fragments variable (scFv) were isolated for the first time from a human naïve antibody gene library using optimized selection processes. In total eleven different s...
Public health use of surveillance for West Nile virus in horses: Saskatchewan, 2003-2005. West Nile virus (WNV) infection in horses was first reported in Canada in 2001 and in the province of Saskatchewan in 2002. This paper outlines the surveillance results of WNV in Saskatchewan horses from 2003 to 2005 and describes the usefulness of its inclusion in an integrated surveillance program in Saskatchewan. The number of human and horse cases was highest in 2003, the epidemic year and then substantially lower in 2004 and 2005. Horses provided additive information about WNV activity in rural areas with low human population, however, this required willingness and active participation by...
Toxoplasmosis in livestock in Italy: an epidemiological update. Infection with Toxoplasma gondii is one of the most common parasitic infections of human being and other warm-blooded animals. It has been found worldwide from Alaska to Australia. Public health organizations repeatedly encourage the collection of accurate data about T. gondii in animals and humans due to its medical importance as a major source of parasitic zoonosis. For these reasons, epidemiological updates on toxoplasmosis in livestock are strongly advised also to plan control strategies. In the present paper, seroprevalence data on T. gondii that have been recorded in livestock from diffe...
North American encephalitic arboviruses. Arboviruses continue to be a major cause of encephalitis in North America, and West Nile virus neuroinvasive disease is now the dominant cause of encephalitis. Transmission to humans of North American arboviruses occurs by infected mosquitoes or ticks. Most infections are asymptomatic or produce a flulike illness. Rapid serum or cerebrospinal fluid IgM antibody capture ELISA assays are available to diagnosis the acute infection for all North American arboviruses. Unfortunately, no antiviral drugs are approved for the treatment of arbovirus infection and current therapy is supportive.
Hepatitis E virus infection among domestic animals in eastern China. Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a zoonotic pathogen of which several species of animal were reported as reservoirs. Antibodies to HEV and HEV RNA have been detected in some Chinese population and swine groups but few other domestic animals. In this study, to investigate the HEV prevalence, we tested sera from 788 pigs, 100 cows, 50 goats, 49 horses, 101 pet dogs, 105 chickens, 47 duck and 45 pigeons in eastern China for anti-HEV immunoglobulin G (IgG). We also tested 50% of the swine sera, all of sera from the other domestic animals and 13 Shanghai human sera which were positive for anti-HEV immuno...
High occurrence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST398 in equine nasal samples. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections do occur in equine patients. Little is known, however, about their origin and the general equine MRSA colonization status. In West European horses in particular, neither the colonization rate nor the present strains or their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns are known. In the present study, a sample of 110 (Belgian, French, Dutch and Luxemburg) horses presented at a Belgian equine clinic was screened for nasal MRSA carriage. An indirect culturing protocol using a 0.001% colistin and nalidixic acid containing broth was compared t...
Serological evidence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in horses and cattle from Poland and diagnostic problems of Lyme borreliosis. In the course of epizootological research on Lyme borreliosis in animals, the serological evidence of this zoonosis in horses and cattle from different voivodships of Poland was screened. We also discussed some diagnostic problems of Lyme borreliosis resulting from, in addition to other factors, genetic and geographical heterogeneity isolates B. burgdorferi s.l. used as antigens. Using ELISA from 395 sera of horses the total mean seroprevalence for anti-Borrelia IgG antibodies 25.6% was observed. In the respective years, significant differences in the mean seroprevalence were not recorded. In ...
Henipaviruses: a new family of emerging Paramyxoviruses. Paramyxoviruses have been implicated in both animal and human infections. Some viruses, such as Morbilliviruses are responsible for large-scale epidemics. However, there are limited observations of these viruses crossing the host species barrier in nature. In 1994, in Australia a fatal infection in horses and humans was identified to be caused by a new Paramyxovirus, Hendra virus (HeV), and in 1998 in Malaysia, a closely related virus, Nipah virus (NiV) was responsible for fatal infections in pigs and humans. These two viruses were sufficiently different from previously described Paramyxovirus...
Genetic diversity and zoonotic potential of Cryptosporidium parvum causing foal diarrhea. Cryptosporidium isolates from diarrheic foals in New Zealand (n = 9) were identified as C. parvum, subtyped at two polymorphic loci, and compared with human (n = 45) and bovine (n = 8) isolates. Foal C. parvum isolates were genetically diverse, markedly similar to human and bovine isolates, and carried GP60 IIaA18G3R1 alleles, indicating a zoonotic potential.
Transmission dynamics and changing epidemiology of West Nile virus. West Nile virus (WNV) is a flavivirus that is maintained in a bird-mosquito transmission cycle. Humans, horses and other non-avian vertebrates are usually incidental hosts, but evidence is accumulating that this might not always be the case. Historically, WNV has been associated with asymptomatic infections and sporadic disease outbreaks in humans and horses in Africa, Europe, Asia and Australia. However, since 1994, the virus has caused frequent outbreaks of severe neuroinvasive disease in humans and horses in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. In 1999, WNV underwent a dramatic expansion of ...
American cutaneous leishmaniasis in horses from endemic areas in the north-central mesoregion of Paraná state, Brazil. American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) is an endemic disease in the north-west of Paraná state, Brazil, where it occurs in humans and dogs. Few studies have been undertaken on the occurrence of the disease in other domestic animals and horses. In this study we investigated the infection of horses by Leishmania in ACL-endemic rural areas. Direct agglutination test (DAT) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were employed. Fifty-five horses from rural areas in the municipalities of Doutor Camargo, Ourizona, São Jorge do Ivaí, Ivatuba and Santa Fé (Agua do O) were analysed. DAT-detected antibod...
Detection of Bartonella henselae in the blood of 2 adult horses. Bartonella spp. are emerging zoonotic agents that have been found in a wide variety of domestic animals and wildlife and cause a number of clinical syndromes. Bartonella sp. infection has been identified in a growing number of animal species, including cats, rodents, porpoises, and canids, but has not been reported in horses. Objective: To document the presence of Bartonella sp. in the blood of horses. Methods: One horse with chronic arthropathy and 1 horse with presumptive vasculitis. Methods: Blood samples were tested for the presence of Bartonella sp. by a combination of multiplex real-time...
Hematophagous Diptera collected from a horse and paired carbon dioxide-baited suction trap in southern California: relevance to West Nile virus epizootiology. Hematophagous Diptera landing on a horse were removed by vacuum, and their numbers were related to a paired carbon dioxide-baited suction trap at three locations in southern California where West Nile virus activity was high during the preceding year. Insects collected from the horse included mosquitoes (nine species), biting midges (Culicoides sonorensis Wirth & Jones), and black flies (Simulium bivittatum Malloch). Mosquitoes were predominantly collected from the head, crest, withers, neck, chest, and shoulders of the horse, whereas biting midges and black flies were predominantly collected ...
Equine rhinosporidiosis in United Kingdom. We report 4 cases of equine rhinosporidiosis in the United Kingdom. These cases provide evidence of spread of infectious agents from rhinosporidiosis-endemic areas to nonendemic areas by increased international movement of livestock. Surveillance should continue for this infective agent of potential relevance for numerous species, including humans.
Rickettsia infection in five areas of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. This study investigated rickettsial infection in animals, humans, ticks, and fleas collected in five areas of the state of São Paulo. Eight flea species (Adoratopsylla antiquorum antiquorum, Ctenocephalides felis felis, Polygenis atopus, Polygenis rimatus, Polygenis roberti roberti, Polygenis tripus, Rhopalopsyllus lugubris, and Rhopalopsyllus lutzi lutzi), and five tick species (Amblyomma aureolatum, Amblyomma cajennense, Amblyomma dubitatum, Ixodes loricatus, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus) were collected from dogs, cats, and opossums. Rickettsia felis was the only rickettsia found infecting ...
Monoclonal antibodies to equine IgM improve the sensitivity of West Nile virus-specific IgM detection in horses. West Nile virus (WNV) is a zoonotic pathogen of global importance. In horses with neurological signs, detection of WNV-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM) in serum is widely used to identify clinical cases of WNV encephalitis. Here, we describe the development of two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to equine IgM which were used in a WNV IgM-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Their performance was compared to an established assay based on polyclonal anti-IgM. Check test serum samples from the National Veterinary Service Laboratory (NVSL) were used to evaluate the performance of the th...
The relationship between equine and human West Nile virus disease occurrence. Cases of human and equine West Nile virus (WNV) disease reported in Texas in 2002 were analyzed to assess their temporal relationship. For each human case with a known residential location, the closest equine case (within a 5 km radius) was selected. A total of 80 human-equine case pairs were identified, 51 (64%) of which were located in urban areas. Dates-of-onset of human and equine cases were positively correlated (r(SP)=0.494, P<0.001). Although overall there was no significant (P=0.207) difference between the dates-of-onset of human and equine cases, in urban areas of Texas equine case...
Glanders: off to the races with Burkholderia mallei. Burkholderia mallei, the etiologic agent of the disease known as glanders, is primarily a disease affecting horses and is transmitted to humans by direct contact with infected animals. The use of B. mallei as a biological weapon has been reported and currently, there is no vaccine available for either humans or animals. Despite the history and highly infective nature of B. mallei, as well as its potential use as a bio-weapon, B. mallei research to understand the pathogenesis and the host responses to infection remains limited. Therefore, this minireview will focus on current efforts to elucida...
