Polyradiculoneuropathy in dourine-affected horses.
Abstract: Dourine is an equine protozoan disease caused by Trypanosoma equiperdum. Dourine-afflicted animals die after developing neurological clinical signs, such as unilateral paresis. The disease has been a problem for many years; however, the pathogenesis regarding the neurological clinical signs of dourine has been unclear. In the present study, we conducted a histopathological examination in order to investigate the mechanisms by which dourine-afflicted horses develop the accompanying neurological clinical signs. Four dourine-afflicted horses in Mongolia were evaluated. An apparently healthy horse exhibited multifocal neuritis without axonal or myelin degeneration. The other horses, which had obvious neurological clinical signs, also exhibited multifocal neuritis. In particular, the nerves that innervated areas associated with neurological clinical signs exhibited neuritis with demyelination in the latter horses. Inflamed, non-demyelinating nerves were infiltrated with B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes; while inflamed, demyelinating nerves were infiltrated with mononuclear phagocytes. Our observations revealed lesion progression in the nerves, such that polyradiculoneuropathy could explain the accompanying neurological clinical signs of dourine. To our knowledge, this is the first report to describe a pathogenic mechanism for the development of the neurological clinical signs found in dourine-afflicted horses.
Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Publication Date: 2019-03-18 PubMed ID: 31101461DOI: 10.1016/j.nmd.2019.03.005Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
- Case Reports
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.
This research article investigates the underlying cause of neurological symptoms in horses afflicted with dourine, a protozoan disease. The study revealed that these neurological symptoms could be explained by polyradiculoneuropathy, a condition affecting peripheral nerves, thus providing a significant insight into the pathogenesis of this equine disease.
Introduction
- Dourine is caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma equiperdum and affects horses, leading to their death after the development of neurological clinical signs such as unilateral paresis.
- The precise mechanisms leading to the described neurological symptoms in dourine-affected horses remained unknown for a long time, prompting this study.
Methodology
- The study was conducted on four horses afflicted by dourine in Mongolia.
- A histopathological examination was carried out to better understand the onset of neurological symptoms associated with dourine.
Findings
- Upon examination, a healthy horse was found to exhibit multifocal neuritis (a type of nerve inflammation) without axonal or myelin degeneration.
- The other horses with obvious neurological signs also displayed multifocal neuritis, particularly in nerves innervating areas associated with these signs.
- In these latter horses, the nerves experiencing neuritis also demonstrated evidence of demyelination (loss of the protective sheath around the nerve).
- The study found the presence of immune cells (B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes) infiltrating non-demyelinating inflamed nerves, while mononuclear phagocytes infiltrated demyelinating inflamed nerves.
Conclusion
- The results suggest that lesion progression in nerves, leading to polyradiculoneuropathy, could be the cause of the neurological signs seen in horses afflicted with dourine.
- This research provides the first evidence of a pathogenic mechanism potentially responsible for the development of neurological symptoms in dourine-afflicted horses.
Cite This Article
APA
Mungun-Ochir B, Horiuchi N, Altanchimeg A, Koyama K, Suganuma K, Nyamdolgor U, Watanabe KI, Baatarjargal P, Mizushima D, Battur B, Yokoyama N, Battsetseg B, Inoue N, Kobayashi Y.
(2019).
Polyradiculoneuropathy in dourine-affected horses.
Neuromuscul Disord, 29(6), 437-443.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nmd.2019.03.005 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- Research Center for Global Agromedicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-11, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan. Electronic address: horiuchi@obihiro.ac.jp.
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-11, Inadacho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Research Center for Global Agromedicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-11, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan; National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, OIE Reference Laboratory for Surra, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-13, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- Research Center for Global Agromedicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-11, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, OIE Reference Laboratory for Surra, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-13, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, OIE Reference Laboratory for Surra, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-13, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Mongolian University of Life Sciences, Zaisan 17024, Ulaanbaatar 844818, Mongolia.
- National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, OIE Reference Laboratory for Surra, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-13, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
- Research Center for Global Agromedicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Nishi 2-11, Inada-cho, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Dourine / complications
- Dourine / pathology
- Female
- Horse Diseases / pathology
- Horses
- Male
- Polyradiculoneuropathy / etiology
- Polyradiculoneuropathy / pathology
- Polyradiculoneuropathy / veterinary
Citations
This article has been cited 6 times.- Tanaka Y, Suganuma K, Watanabe K, Kobayashi Y. Pathology of female mice experimentally infected with an in vitro cultured strain of Trypanosoma equiperdum. J Vet Med Sci 2021 Aug 6;83(8):1212-1218.
- Tanaka Y, Adilbish A, Koyama K, Bayasgalan MO, Horiuchi N, Uranbileg N, Watanabe K, Purevdorj B, Gurdorj S, Banzragch B, Badgar B, Suganuma K, Yokoyama N, Inoue N, Kobayashi Y. Immunohistochemical phenotyping of macrophages and T lymphocytes infiltrating in peripheral nerve lesions of dourine-affected horses. J Vet Med Sci 2020 Oct 20;82(10):1502-1505.
- Mizushima D, Amgalanbaatar T, Davaasuren B, Kayano M, Naransatsral S, Myagmarsuren P, Otgonsuren D, Enkhtaivan B, Davkharbayar B, Mungun-Ochir B, Baatarjargal P, Nyamdolgor U, Soyolmaa G, Altanchimeg A, Zoljargal M, Nguyen TT, Battsetseg B, Battur B, Inoue N, Yokoyama N, Suganuma K. Nationwide serological surveillance of non-tsetse-transmitted horse trypanosomoses in Mongolia. Parasite Epidemiol Control 2020 Aug;10:e00158.
- Yasine A, Ashenafi H, Geldhof P, Van Brantegem L, Vercauteren G, Bekana M, Tola A, Van Soom A, Duchateau L, Goddeeris B, Govaere J. Histopathological lesions in reproductive organs, distal spinal cord and peripheral nerves of horses naturally infected with Trypanosoma equiperdum. BMC Vet Res 2019 May 28;15(1):175.
- Rimayanti R, Khairullah AR, Mustofa I, Utomo B, Lestari TD, Utama S, Akintunde AO, Mulyati S, Hernawati T, Dawood AQ, Riady G, Khan IU, Rasad SD, Moses IB. Hidden menace: Understanding the devastating consequences of dourine disease in horses. Open Vet J 2025 Sep;15(9):3931-3942.
- Hébert L, Froger D, Madeline A, Lecouturier F, Lemans C, Zientara S. European Inter-Laboratory Proficiency Test for Dourine Antibody Detection Using the Complement Fixation Test. Vet Sci 2023 Sep 26;10(10).
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
