The objective of this study was to investigate the infection rate of gastro-intestinal tract parasites on acquired laboratory nonhuman primates, Vervet monkey, Cynomolgus monkey, and Rhesus monkey acquired from Japan and China. These monkeys have been acclimating at an individual housing condition after our legal quarantine period. We examined 133 fecal samples to investigate parasitic infection using direct smear and formalin-ether-sedimentation technique. As a result, total parasitic infection rate was 33.8% (n=45/133) for all monkeys. Two species of macaques, cynomolgus and rhesus, were infected with Trichuris trichiura (4), Giardia lamblia (4) and Balantidium coli (41). Vervet monkeys, which had been controlled by individual housing system for a long time, were clear for parasitic infection. The protozoan, Balantidium coli was one of the most frequently detected in these monkey colonies. Double infection was noted in only 4 monkeys and involved with Trichuris trichiura and Balantidium coli. Serious clinical symptoms were not observed in the most of the infected monkeys, but the monkeys infected by Giardia lamblia showed intermittent or chronic watery diarrhea. Consequently, the prophylactic anthelmintic treatment and periodic monitoring are essential to preserve the SPF colonies in the laboratory facility.

Protein expression patterns in Salmonella enterica subspecies enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) strains with diverse phenotypes, such as phage type, antibiotic resistance pattern and plasmid profiles were examined. For detailed analysis of proteins expressed by different S. Typhimurium strains, protein fractions were divided into detergent-rich phase (DP) and aqueous phase (AP) using triton X-114 detergent. The two phases were subjected to two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), followed by protein identification using peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF). In the results, PMF showed that DP fractions consisted mainly of outer membrane proteins, whereas the AP fractions included cytosolic proteins. Comparison of 2-DE profiles of DP did not show any distinct protein spots which could be correlated with phage type, antibiotic resistance pattern or plasmid profile. However, comparisons of 2-DE profiles of the AP revealed differences in the protein spots, which could be correlated with the plasmid profile and phage types. Among these protein spots, flagellin was specific for strains containing a 90 kb plasmid. Compared to DT193 phage type, three protein spots in the range of pI 5.0-5.5 and MW 8-15 kDa of AP 2-DE profiles were absent in the DT104 phage types. Additionally, a protein spot with PI in the range of 4.5-5.0 and molecular weight (MW) between 51-69 kDa was specific for phage type DT104, while a protein spot with pI in the range of 4.0-4.8 and MW between 18-20 kDa was specific for DT193 phage type. These protein spots may be useful for discriminating phage types of S. Typhimurium.

Demand on specialized feline dentistry has increased over the years, partly due to growing feline population in Korea. Despite the notable increase in the population, not much researches has been conducted on oral disease for stray cats. Thus this research was conducted on 81 adult stray cats from Gwangju in Korea (42 males and 39 females) with average weight of 3.4 kg and also focused on occurrence of periodontal disease (plaque and calculus), feline odontoclastic resorptive lesion (FORL), stomatitis and tooth anomaly. Formation of dental plaque and calculus were abundant on maxilla than mandible, especially distributed much on 4th premolar teeth and 1st molar teeth. After thorough examination of oral cavity, 33 stray cats (40.7%) were found to have oral disease. Eighteen stray cats (22.2%) had tooth fracture which was evident on cuspid and missing teeth were present on 2nd premolar tooth of maxilla and 2nd incisor of mandible amongst 20 stray cats (24.7%). FORL was present on cuspids and 2nd premolar tooth of maxilla among 10 stray cats (12.3%). Stomatitis was involved with FORL, missing tooth, and tooth fracture. Therefore, it was determined that stomatitis, FORL, and periodontal disease were closely associated.

A 3-day-old Appaloosa colt was examined because of acute onset of ataxia, left-sided head tilt, fever and heart murmur. The foal continued to nurse but became increasingly depressed and mild colic. On plain radiological examination, the foal was normal. Uroperitoneum was diagnosed following abdominocentesis. Postmortem examination revealed bladder rupture. The lesion was in the dorsomedial part of the bladder wall. We suggested that the cause of bladder rupture was parturient trauma. Even though the rupture was associated with trauma, the margin of rupture of bladder was clearly smooth and regular.

A 7-year-old, castrated male Yorkshire terrier dog with chronic vomiting, and melena lasted for 3 weeks was referred to the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital of Chungnam National University. The complete blood counts and serum biochemistry revealed no remarkable findings. Gastrointestinal series revealed irregular margin in small intestinal lumen. After upper gastrointestinal series, erythema of the small intestinal lesions was found by exploratory laparotomy and full-thickness biopsy was performed. Histopathologic examination revealed infiltration of predominantly eosinophils and other inflammatory cells in small intestine. Based on these findings, the dog was diagnosed as eosinophilic enteritis. After 4 weeks medical treatment and hypoallergenic diet, the patient showed no vomiting, melena and other complications.

Moribund albino catfish, Clarias sp., displayed from an indoor private commercial aquarium were submitted in the laboratory for diagnostic examination. Dense culture of bacteria was recovered from the kidney and was characterized using Vitek System 2 and showed 98% probability to Aeromonas (A.) hydrophila. PCR result showed positive using A. hydrophila extracellular hemolysin gene ahh1 (130 bp) and aerolysin gene aerA (309 bp). The 16S rRNA gene was identical and exhibited 97% sequence similarity with the other known isolates of A. hydrophila available in the GenBank. In this paper, we reported the isolation and molecular detection of A. hydrophila from an albino catfish.

This report describes the genetics of the prion protein gene (PRNP) at codons 136, 154, and 171 for sheep diagnosed with naturally acquired classical scrapie in Canada between 1998 and 2008. Genotyping analysis was performed on 249 sheep with confirmed classical scrapie infection representing 98 flocks from 6 provinces. A further case-control analysis of 3 of these flocks compared the genotypes between infected sheep (n = 72) and those of their healthy flockmates (n = 1990). The incidence of classical scrapie in the Canadian sheep population was highly associated with the ARQ haplotype (91.8%) and the ARQ/ARQ genotype (91.6%). In addition, the ARQ haplotype was found at significantly higher frequency in scrapie-infected sheep when compared with their healthy flockmates. Comparison with other published data suggests that the scrapie risk of PRNP genotypes differs between Canada and countries where the VRQ allele is associated with the highest susceptibility to infection.

Objective--To determine the contribution of 7,8-methylenedioxylycoctonine (MDL)–type alkaloids to the toxic effects of tall larkspur (Delphinium spp) consumption in cattle. Animals--Sixteen 2-year-old Angus steers. Procedures--Plant material from 3 populations of tall larkspur that contained different concentration ratios of MDL-type-to-N-(methylsuccinimido) anthranoyllycoctonine (MSAL)–type alkaloids was collected, dried, and finely ground. For each plant population, a dose of ground plant material that would elicit similar clinical signs of toxicosis in cattle after oral administration was determined on the basis of the plants' MSAL-type alkaloid concentration. Cattle were treated via oral gavage with single doses of ground plant material from each of the 3 populations of tall larkspur; each animal underwent 1 to 3 single-dose treatments (> = 21-day interval between treatments). Heart rate was recorded immediately before (baseline) and 24 hours after each larkspur treatment. Results--Tall larkspur populations with a lower MDL-type-to-MSAL-type alkaloid concentration ratio required a greater amount of MSAL-type alkaloids to cause the expected clinical signs of toxicosis (including increased heart rate) in cattle. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance--Results indicated that the typically less toxic MDL-type alkaloids contributed in a significant manner to the toxic effects of tall larkspur in steers. Consequently, both the concentration of MSAL-type alkaloids and the total concentration of MSAL- and MDL-type alkaloids should be determined when assessing the relative toxicity of tall larkspur populations. These results provide valuable information to determine the risk of toxicosis in cattle grazing on tall larkspur–infested rangelands.

The purposes of this study were to describe the clinical signs observed in PRRS positive herds during a porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) outbreak in Ontario and to determine associations between these clinical signs and herd demographics and PRRS control strategies. All PRRS polymerase chain reaction-(PCR)-positive submissions to a diagnostic laboratory between September 1, 2004 and August 31, 2007 were identified (n = 1864). After meeting eligibility requirements and agreeing to voluntary study participation, producers from 455 of these submissions were surveyed for information on clinical signs observed in their herds, herd demographics, and PRRS control strategies used in their herds at the time that the PCR-positive samples were taken. Larger herd size was associated with an increased risk of reporting abortion, weakborn piglets, off-feed sows, and sow mortality in sow herds, and with an increased risk of reporting mortality in finishing herds. When disease control strategies were examined, use of a commercial PRRS vaccine in sows and gilts was associated with a decreased risk of reporting weakborn pigs and high pre-weaning mortality, while the use of serum inoculation in breeding animals was associated with an increased risk of reporting off-feed sows and sow mortality. Providing biofeedback of stillborn/mummified piglets, placenta or feces to gilts was associated with an increased risk of reporting respiratory disease and mortality in finishing pigs while all-in/all-out flow in farrowing rooms was associated with an increased risk of reporting sow mortality and weakborn piglets.

This study assessed the protective efficacy of oral vaccination with 2 experimental attenuated Salmonella Typhimurium-vectored vaccines for necrotic enteritis in protecting chickens against intestinal colonization by common serovars of Salmonella belonging to the 4 major serogroups affecting chickens. Birds were vaccinated orally with 1 × 108 colony-forming units (CFU) of 1 of the vaccine strains χ9241 and χ9352, which express a plasmid-encoded partial recombinant hypothetical protein gene (tHP) of Clostridium perfringens, at days 1 and 7 of age, and then were challenged at 14 d of age with 106 CFU of Salmonella serovars Anatum, Enteritidis, Heidelberg, Kentucky, or Typhimurium (representative serovars of serogroups B, C, D, and E). Birds were necropsied at 4 wk of age, and samples were collected to determine reduction in tissue and intestinal colonization. The chickens vaccinated with χ9241-tHP showed reduced colonization by Salmonella Enteritidis (serogroup D) and by Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Typhimurium (serogroup B) compared with the control birds. No reduction in colonization was observed in the chickens vaccinated with χ9352-tHP. There was an association between the efficacy of these vaccine strains in protecting against necrotic enteritis, assessed on an earlier occasion, and their efficacy in protecting against Salmonella colonization. Thus, the choice of an attenuated Salmonella Typhimurium vaccine vector for delivery of heterologous antigens to chickens should be based partly on the vaccine’s value in protecting against colonization by serovars within serogroups B and D. Such vectors would have the additional benefit of reducing colonization of important Salmonella serovars.