Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica最新文献

Background: Neoplasms consisting of two or more germinal layers are classified as teratomas if benign or as teratocarcinomas if malignant. Teratomas are rare tumours occurring in a wide range of species including mammals, birds and reptiles and only a few cases have been reported in ducks with infrequent documentation of immunohistochemical characterisation. Teratocarcinomas occur rarely and, to the authors' knowledge, have not been described or immunohistochemically characterised in ducks, yet. Therefore, the clinical and pathological presentation of a teratoma in a mulard duck and a teratocarcinoma in a muscovy duck are described. In addition to a histologic examination, both tumours were characterised by applying a panel of immunohistochemical markers previously tested on duck tissue.

Case presentation: A mulard duck (Anas platyrhynchos x Cairina moschata) showed a mass in the cranial coelomic cavity histologically diagnosed as tridermic teratoma. A caudal coelomic mass in a Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) was histologically diagnosed as a teratocarcinoma with metastases to the liver, mesentery and intestinal wall. An extensive immunohistochemical examination for a detailed characterisation and comparison with duck control tissue was performed in both cases, highlighting various components of the neoplastic tissues including lymphocytes, nervous and endodermal components.

Conclusions: To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of a teratocarcinoma in a duck with intense immunohistochemical characterisation and comparison with a teratoma in another duck. Immunohistochemistry enables a more profound examination of the histogenetic composition of such neoplasms compared to histology alone. Both neoplasms should be considered as differentials for masses in body cavities of ducks. During these examinations, a large spectrum of antibodies specific for different tissues and cells were tested on duck control tissue which can be of help for immunohistochemical examinations on avian tissues in the future.

Background: During seasonal round-ups, free-grazing reindeer are gathered from natural pastures. Reindeer bulls removed from breeding are clamp castrated, traditionally without analgesia, and then returned to the grazing grounds. The new Finnish Animal Welfare Act requires the use of analgesia in painful procedures. Our earlier studies have shown that a single dose of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) meloxicam may maintain therapeutic plasma concentrations for 2-3 days in reindeer. No studies have been conducted on the effect of meloxicam on the locomotor activity of free-ranging castrated reindeer after castration. We installed GPS collars on 16 male reindeer (at least 5 years old, 130-160 kg), chosen to be castrated as a standard procedure during the round-up held on 5 Oct 2020. Of these, eight were randomly selected to receive approximately 0.5 mg/kg of meloxicam subcutaneously (NSAID group) and eight received no analgesia (TRAD group). The trackers were set to provide location twice per hour with 10 m accuracy. From the GPS data, we calculated the daily distances travelled by the reindeer during the 3 days after castration and analysed the differences between the treatments using a GEE model. Fixed factors were treatment (NSAID or TRAD), days (1-3) and hours, and the interactions between these variables. Our key presumption was that a meloxicam injection can reduce the pain related restless locomotion of newly clamp castrated reindeer.

Results: The overall mean ± SE daily distances travelled by NSAID (n = 8) and TRAD (n = 8) reindeer did not differ (6.60 ± 0.67 km vs. 8.60 ± 1.54 km). However, all reindeer (n = 16) moved more on day 1 than day 3. TRAD reindeer travelled farther than NSAID on day 1 (11.67 ± 2.25 km vs. 7.08 ± 0.61 km, P < 0.05), but no differences were observed on days 2 or 3 due to high variation (10.19 ± 3.87 km vs. 6.59 ± 0.85 km and 5.35 ± 0.39 km vs. 6.17 ± 0.70 m, P > 0.1). NSAID movement remained stable between the days (P > 0.1), while TRAD activity declined (P = 0.002), levelling with NSAID by day 3. Daytime distances exceeded nighttime distances on days 2 and 3, with TRAD showing more disrupted daily rhythms.

Conclusions: Meloxicam may reduce restlessness in newly castrated reindeer, changing postoperative locomotor activity patterns in a way that suggests pain alleviation during the first 2-3 days following clamp castration. Further studies are needed on the use of analgesia and GPS collars for pain monitoring in freely grazing reindeer.

Background: Antibiotic treatments of diarrhoea in suckling piglets and in pigs after weaning are common worldwide and contribute to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Escherichia coli from pigs. In Sweden, during the last decades, resistance to trimethoprim-sulphonamide and ampicillin has increased markedly in E. coli from routine clinical samples from piglets with diarrhoea, hereafter referred to as "clinical submissions". This has occurred despite a comparatively low use of antibiotics in Swedish pig production. However, clinical submissions might be biased towards farms with treatment failures and therefore overestimate occurrence of AMR. To explore the representativeness of data from such samples we compared occurrence of AMR in E. coli from clinical submissions and from concurrent samples collected from piglets with diarrhoea by convenience, referred to as "study samples". We also investigated associations between farm-related potential risk factors and AMR using farm data collected through a questionnaire. Data were evaluated using univariable and multivariable statistical models, as well as a multivariate model.

Results: In all, 158 study samples from 97 herds and questionnaires from 83 herds were analysed. Resistance to streptomycin (37%), trimethoprim-sulphonamide (32%), ampicillin (30%), and tetracycline (18%) were the most frequent traits. Occurrence of AMR in 158 E. coli isolates from study samples was not significantly different from occurrence in 57 isolates from concurrent clinical submissions (P > 0.05). In 70% of herds, more than 10% of the sows were treated with antibiotics in the first week after farrowing, and trimethoprim-sulphonamide was the most common first choice antibiotic. Trimethoprim-sulphonamide resistance was associated with the proportion of sows receiving post-farrowing treatment. Resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline, and streptomycin resistances were indirectly associated with sow treatments, likely via co-resistance to trimethoprim-sulphonamide. There was no significant association between high dose zinc oxide supplementation and AMR (P > 0.05).

Conclusions: Clinical submissions do not overestimate occurrence of AMR in E. coli from Swedish piglets with diarrhoea and are therefore relevant for AMR monitoring. Even at low treatment rates, post-farrowing treatment of sows increases the risk for AMR in piglets. This applies especially for trimethoprim-sulphonamide resistance, but also for resistance to other antibiotics, and indicates that antibiotic use must be reduced substantially to achieve a reduction of AMR.

Calves are born agammaglobulinemic and depend on transfer of passive immunity from colostrum. Failure of transfer of passive immunity (FTPI) and adequate transfer of passive immunity (ATPI) are defined as serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels < 10 and ≥ 10 mg/mL, respectively. The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of passively transferred immunity in Danish dairy calves measured with Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Brix refractometer. Blood samples from 834 calves (430 bull calves and 404 heifer calves) aged two to nine days were included in the study. Serum IgG concentration was determined by ELISA and percentage Brix (%Brix) with a digital refractometer. Median serum IgG concentration was 17.05 mg/mL and mean %Brix was 8.5%. A total of 592 (71.0%) and 242 samples (29.0%) had a serum IgG concentration ≥ 10 mg/mL and < 10 mg/mL, respectively. For %Brix 541 (64.9%) and 293 (35.1%) was ≥ 8.1 and < 8.1%, respectively. Serum IgG concentrations and %Brix measurements were highly correlated (r = 0.88). The level of passive immunity in Danish dairy calves seems low and does not meet new recommendations. However, applying cut-offs based on radial immunodiffusion to serum IgG concentrations derived from ELISA are not straightforward and determination of new cut-off values for FTPI based on ELISA are recommended.

Background: Bopivirus B is an emerging picornavirus that affects goats in China. This study aimed to establish a TaqMan real-time PCR assay for detecting Bopivirus B and conduct a preliminary survey of infection in six goat farms in Sichuan province, China. Specific primers and a probe targeting the 3D gene of Bopivirus B were designed, and the TaqMan-based real-time PCR assay was successfully established following the optimization of reaction conditions and components. A total of 257 goat fecal samples were collected from six farms in Sichuan and tested using the newly developed method.

Results: The assay demonstrated a linear relationship between 2.73 × 10³ and 2.73 × 10⁹ copies/µL, with a high correlation coefficient (R² = 0.999) and amplification efficiency of 109%. Additionally, the assay exhibited excellent specificity and reproducibility, with a detection limit of 27.3 copies/µL. The field positive rate of Bopivirus B was 100%, and a higher positive rate was observed in diarrheal fecal samples (33.72%) compared to non-diarrheal fecal samples (12.28%, P < 0.005), suggesting a potential association between Bopivirus B and goat diarrhea, with a widespread prevalence in goats in the Sichuan province. Furthermore, ten complete 3D genes sequences of Bopivirus B were obtained, and phylogenetic analysis showed that all Bopivirus B strains in this study were most closely related to two known Chinese Bopivirus strains based on nucleotide sequences of the 3D gene.

Conclusions: This study developed a highly specific, repeatable, and sensitive TaqMan-based real-time PCR assay targeting the 3D gene for Bopivirus B detection, offering a valuable tool for the detection and epidemiological investigation of Bopivirus B. The prevalence of Bopivirus B was widespread in goats in China, with a close association observed between Bopivirus B and goat diarrhea.

Background: Spinal neoplasms are sparsely documented in juvenile dogs. Case reports and small case series have described nephroblastomas, primitive neuroectodermal tumours, gliomas, certain sarcomas, and osteochondromas, but round cell sarcomas have not previously been documented.

Case presentation: This case report describes a 10-week-old female Rottweiler puppy with acute onset of progressive ataxia and pelvic limb lameness. Neurological examination localised a T3-L3 myelopathy and MRI revealed an ovoid, well-marginated mass extending from mid L3 to caudal L4 vertebrae. Post-mortem examination, histopathology, and immunohistochemistry confirmed a round cell sarcoma of extradural origin.

Conclusion: Our case report stresses the importance of performing MRI even in very young individuals with acute progressive signs of spinal cord lesions. Clinicians should include spinal tumours as a differential diagnosis for juvenile canines with spinal neurological signs. Round cell sarcoma should be added to the list of spinal tumours in young dogs.

Background: The health and welfare of pigs used in biomedical research is essential to research quality and compliance with the 3Rs (replacement, reduction, and refinement). Hematological variables are objective markers to quantitatively determine health issues and evaluate physiological differences before and after experimental procedures. There are no recent validated hematologic reference intervals (RIs) published for Danish crossbred Landrace Yorkshire Duroc (LYD) pigs to aid researchers and veterinarians in their decision-making. The objective of this study was to establish hematologic RIs for LYD pigs used for biomedical research. Blood samples were collected from healthy female LYD pigs (35-65 kg) and analyzed using the in-house ProCyte Dx Hematology Analyzer. Means with 90% confidence intervals for lower and upper limits were calculated according to guidelines by the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathology.

Results: Inspection of 141 pigs led to 133 blood samples available for analyses after exclusions due to clinical signs of disease, inadequate tube filling or presence of macroscopic clots. Thirty-two samples reported platelet abnormalities and upon further investigation these samples were excluded when calculating RIs for platelets and platelet indices. Other measurements were not affected. The RI for red blood cells, hemoglobin, hematocrit and white blood cells were 5.10-7.00 × 10⁶/µL, 9.36-12.29 g/dL, 30.46-40.47%, and 11.73-25.00 × 10³/µL, respectively.

Conclusions: Our study provides RIs for hematological variables in LYD pigs, revealing significant differences from published RIs of other breeds. These findings highlight the influence of factors like age, breed and health status on measurements, emphasizing the importance of using breed-specific RIs. This research supports the 3Rs, guiding better animal care and enhancing overall research quality.

Background: Lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LTV) is a congenital anomaly in dogs and have been proposed to be associated with cauda equina syndrome (CES) in German Shepherd dogs. This prospective study, including 32 dogs from two breeds, aims to investigate if LTV is associated with lower back pain in dogs. The study compared owners' assessment of their dogs' well-being and clinical evaluation with advanced diagnostic imaging to identify changes that might explain clinical findings.

Results: Dogs with LTV type 2 (57.0%) and with LTV type 3 (70.0%) exhibited mild lower back pain, which was significantly more frequent (P = 0.012) compared to dogs with LTV type 0 and LTV type 1. Advanced diagnostic imaging identified a plausible cause for this pain. Dogs diagnosed with LTV types 2 and 3 with lower back pain tended to be lighter (median 14.50 kg) and younger (median 4.10 years) than breeds typically reported for degenerative lumbosacral stenosis (DLSS). Based on the owners' assessment of their dogs, they considered them pain-free.

Conclusions: The study identified a correlation between LTV types 2 and 3 and lower back pain in these dog breeds. Advanced diagnostic imaging findings confirmed that dogs with these LTV types were more likely to exhibit pathological changes associated with DLSS.

Background: Biosecurity measures are essential for mitigating the risk of pathogen introduction and spread in farms. While standardised tools for monitoring biosecurity implementation exist, they are often not tailored to the specific needs of low and middle income countries (LMICs), where pathogen occurrence and farming practices can be highly variable compared to intensive high income country settings. The aim of our study was to develop a flexible risk assessment tool for evaluating biosecurity practices on small and medium-scale poultry farms in LMICs. The methodology described here allows local experts to adapt the tool to current conditions.

Results: The development process began by combining two existing questionnaires. These were evaluated by nine experts with expertise in diverse farming systems in LMICs. The experts conducted a knowledge aggregation process to assign weights to the different areas and individual questions within the questionnaires. The median scores from the final expert elicitation informed the weighting of questions in the newly developed questionnaire. These weights are adaptable and can be adjusted to reflect population-specific conditions, which may vary in pathogen load and farming practices.

Conclusions: We have developed a flexible biosecurity assessment tool tailored to small-and medium-scaled poultry farms in LMICs. This tool can be used as presented or adapted to local conditions through the input of local experts, allowing for effective and context-specific biosecurity monitoring.