Reliability of a diagnosis of BSE made on the basis of clinical signs.
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Animals↗
Biomedical subjects
N Pusterla
Publications and source records attributed to N Pusterla.
Molecular evidence of coinfection of ticks with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent in Switzerland.
Adult Ixodes ricinus ticks were collected in Switzerland and tested for the presence of coinfection with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato and the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) agent by real-time PCR. Of 100 ticks, 49% were positive for B. burgdorferi and 2% were positive for the HGE agent. The two HGE agent-positive ticks were also found to be positive for B. burgdorferi.
Animals↗
Quantitative evaluation of ehrlichial burden in horses after experimental transmission of human granulocytic Ehrlichia agent by intravenous inoculation with infected leukocytes and by infected ticks.
This paper describes the kinetics of the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent in the blood of horses experimentally infected by intravenous inoculation with infected leukocytes and by infected ticks as evaluated by using a real-time quantitative PCR assay. The data obtained indicated differences in the period of incubation, duration of rickettsemia, and initial and maximal ehrlichial loads between the two routes of infection.
Animals↗
Serological evidence of infection with Ehrlichia spp. in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Switzerland.
Serum samples from 1,550 red foxes in Switzerland were tested for antibodies to the agents of canine granulocytic and monocytic ehrlichiosis by an indirect immunofluorescent technique. Forty-four (2.8%) of the samples were positive for Ehrlichia phagocytophila, which is an antigen marker for granulocytic ehrlichiosis. In contrast, none of the samples had antibodies specific to Ehrlichia canis, the agent of monocytic ehrlichiosis.
Animals↗
Quantitative real-time PCR for detection of members of the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup in host animals and Ixodes ricinus ticks.
A TaqMan PCR was established for identification and quantitation of members of the Ehrlichia phagocytophila group in experimentally infected cows and in Ixodes ricinus ticks. The TaqMan PCR identified a 106-bp section of the 16S rRNA gene by use of a specific fluorogenic probe and two primers. This technique was specific for members of the E. phagocytophila group, which include E. phagocytophila, Ehrlichia equi, and the agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis. The TaqMan system identified 10 copies of a cloned section of the 16S rRNA gene of E. phagocytophila. The sensitivity and specificity of the TaqMan PCR were similar to those of conventional nested PCR. The numbers of ehrlichiae in leukocytes of the two cows experimentally infected with E. phagocytophila were measured daily by TaqMan PCR and had a course similar to that of the percentages of infected leukocytes determined daily by light microscopy. The prevalence of infected free-living ticks, which were collected from areas where bovine ehrlichiosis is endemic and from regions with sporadic occurrences of granulocytic ehrlichiosis in dogs and horses, was identical as determined by nested PCR and TaqMan PCR.
Animals↗
Evidence of the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent in Ixodes ricinus ticks in Switzerland.
A total of 1,667 Ixodes ricinus ticks were collected from five regions in Switzerland where there have been sporadic occurrences of granulocytic ehrlichiosis in dogs and horses. The ticks were examined for rickettsiae of the Ehrlichia phagocytophila group via nested PCR. Twenty-one ticks (1.3%) were positive; 3 (0.5%) were nymphs, 6 (1.3%) were adult males, and 12 (1.9%) were adult females. The number of positive ticks varied with the stage of development and with the geographical origin. Nucleotide sequencing of the isolated PCR products identified these products as part of the 16S rRNA gene of Ehrlichia. In addition, these products had 100% homology with the agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis. The occurrence of this agent in I. ricinus in Switzerland presents a potential danger of transmission of granulocytic ehrlichiosis to dogs, horses, and humans.
Animals↗
[Investigations on the treatment of cerebrospinal nematode infections in goats].
In 17 goats the therapeutical outcome of cerebrospinal nematodiasis, a parasitic infection in the central nervous system with the nematode Elaphostrongylus cervi, is described. The diagnosis was made on the basis of physical findings and cerebrospinal fluid eosinophilia. The therapy was based on the administration of a non-steroidal antiinflammatory drug (flunixin meglumine) and two anthelmintics (fenbendazol, ivermectin) for five days. The response to therapy was documented immediately and 30 days after therapy and by owners report up to 30 months. Eleven goats (64.7%) showed an improvement of the neurological signs directly after therapy. Three had a complete recovery. Signs of a light and middle ataxie were still present in 6 and 2 goats, respectively. Six recumbent goats (35.3%) had to be euthanasied because of a non-therapeutical response. This study has shown a clinical impression of successful use of flunixin meglumine, fenbendazole and ivermectin in goats with light to middle neurological signs. The goats could accommodate the remaining ataxia without showing a reduced production. Goats with high neurological deficits could not be successful treated based on the high degree of the neurological damage.
Animals↗
Experimental infection of four horses with Ehrlichia phagocytophila.
Four clinically healthy horses which were negative for antibodies to Ehrlichia phagocytophila, the agent of bovine ehrlichiosis, were infected experimentally with E phagocytophila-containing bovine leucocytes, administered intravenously. The horses were examined daily for four weeks, and blood samples were collected daily for cytological, haematological and biochemical examination and for a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR). An indirect immunofluorescence test was used to determine when the horses seroconverted and the duration of positive titres. There were no abnormal clinical, haematological or biochemical findings in any of the four horses and all the PCRs yielded negative results. However, all the horses seroconverted with reciprocal titres of up to 1280, and the positive titres persisted for up to five months.
Animals↗
Experimental oral transmission of Ehrlichia phagocytophila to calves.
Three groups of four calves were used to determine whether Ehrlichia phagocytophila could be transmitted orally to calves via infected milk. Groups 1 and 2 consisted of four-week-old calves and group 3 of newborn calves. The calves in group 1 were fed for several days with milk from cows infected experimentally with E phagocytophila. The calves in groups 2 and 3 were fed 200 ml of whole blood containing E phagocytophila organisms; for group 2 the blood was added to milk before being fed, and for group 3 the blood was added to colostrum before being fed within three hours after birth. Blood samples for haematological, serological and cytological examination, and for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were collected from all the calves, starting on the first or only day of administration and then every four days for four weeks. The calves of groups 1 and 2 showed no clinical, haematological or serological changes, and there was no direct or indirect evidence of the agent. In contrast, all the calves in group 3 had mild pyrexia and seroconverted on day 8, and in one of them E phagocytophila organisms were visible in leucocytes, and the PCR on the buffy coat was positive on day 8.
Animals↗
Ultrasonographic findings in three cows with peritonitis in the left flank region.
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Abdomen↗
Serological evidence of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis in Switzerland.
To investigate whether human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) is prevalent in Switzerland, 1515 human serum samples from individuals with different risks for tick exposure were tested for antibodies to Ehrlichia phagocytophila, a surrogate marker of the agent of HGE. The distribution of titres showed marked differences between sera of individuals with no or low risk for tick exposure and those with a high risk. The results of serological testing provided evidence of HGE in Switzerland as well as evidence of two types of coinfections: those with the agent of HGE and Borrelia burgdorferi, and those with the agent of HGE and the central European tickborne encephalitis virus.
Antibodies, Bacterial↗
Fever, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia in a patient with acute Lyme borreliosis were due to human granulocytic ehrlichiosis.
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Acute Disease↗
Serological, hematologic, and PCR studies of cattle in an area of Switzerland in which tick-borne fever (caused by Ehrlichia phagocytophila) is endemic.
The purpose of this study was to examine the seasonal variations in seroprevalence to Ehrlichia phagocytophila in cattle pastured during the summer months in an area where tick-borne fever is endemic. The study was performed during a 1-year period from April 1996 to March 1997 and involved 34 cows, 22 pregnant heifers, and 14 calves. Blood samples, collected from all 70 cattle once a month, were used to determine serum immunoglobulin G titers by indirect immunofluorescence. In addition, blood smears were examined for Ehrlichia organisms, and PCR amplification was performed for the molecular detection of E. phagocytophila. Prior to the pasture period, the seroprevalence was 16%. Two weeks after the start of pasturing, it was 43%, after which it progressively increased and reached a maximum of 63% in September. The seroprevalence progressively decreased after the end of pasturing to a low of 23%. The variation in antibody titers was similar to that of seroprevalence. E. phagocytophila organisms were detected in blood smears of 7 animals and by nested PCR in 12. Only four cows, which were on the pastures of endemicity for the first time, had clinical signs of ehrlichiosis. This study demonstrated marked seasonal variations in seroprevalence and in serum titers of antibody to E. phagocytophila in cattle. The incidence of clinical signs of ehrlichiosis was increased in cattle grazing on the pastures of endemicity for the first time.
Animals↗
Seroprevalence of Ehrlichia canis and of canine granulocytic Ehrlichia infection in dogs in Switzerland.
Serum samples from 996 dogs in Switzerland were examined for antibodies to Ehrlichia canis and to the agent causing canine granulocytic ehrlichiosis (CGE). Ehrlichiosis, borreliosis, and systemic illness not associated with ticks were suspected in 75, 122, and 157 of these dogs, respectively. The remainder of the serum samples were obtained from clinically healthy dogs which resided north (n = 235) or south (n = 407) of the Alps. The serum samples were tested by an indirect immunofluorescence technique for antibodies to the two agents incriminated, E. canis and Ehrlichia phagocytophila, a surrogate marker of the agent of CGE. Twenty-two of 996 (2.2%) serum samples had antibodies to E. canis and were distributed as follows: 20 of 75 (26.7%) samples from dogs suspected of having ehrlichiosis, 1 of 122 (0.8%) from dogs suspected of having borreliosis, and 1 of 407 (0.2%) from healthy dogs which resided south of the Alps. Of the 75 (7.5%) serum samples that had antibodies to E. phagocytophila, significantly more samples were from ill dogs than from healthy dogs. Among the sera from healthy dogs, antibodies to E. phagocytophila were significantly more prevalent in the north. Because seropositive dogs had a history of travel outside Switzerland and because Rhipicephalus sanguineus is found exclusively south of the Alps, it was presumed that, in contrast to the agent of CGE, E. canis is not indigenous to Switzerland.
Animals↗
Identification of a granulocytic Ehrlichia strain isolated from a horse in Switzerland and comparison with other rickettsiae of the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup.
This case report describes a 12-year-old Arabian mare with granulocytic ehrlichiosis. Clinical signs included fever, apathy, anorexia, icterus, limb edema, and reluctance to move. Examination of buffy coat smears revealed Ehrlichia organisms in neutrophils and eosinophils. A band of 1,428 bp was amplified from DNA of leukocytes via nested PCR and was identified as part of the Ehrlichia 16S rRNA gene. It differed from the gene sequences of Ehrlichia phagocytophila and E. equi at two and three positions, respectively. Interestingly, the nucleotide sequence of the 16S rRNA was 100% identical to that of the agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis.
Animals↗
Detection of Ehrlichia phagocytophila DNA in Ixodes ricinus ticks from areas in Switzerland where tick-borne fever is endemic.
A total of 1,523 adult Ixodes ricinus ticks were collected from regions where bovine ehrlichiosis is endemic and were examined for Ehrlichia phagocytophila via PCR. Of the ticks from cattle with ehrlichiosis, the ticks from healthy cattle, and the free-living ticks, 26.5% (18 of 68), 4.4% (35 of 802), and 0.8% (5 of 653), respectively, were positive.
Animals↗
[The occurrence of lumbar paralysis in goats and the appearance of Elaphostrongylus cervi in red deer in the canton Ticino].
The aim of the study was to examine the incidence of lumbar paralysis in goats and the possible role of Elaphostrongylus cervi as an agent. For this reason questionnaires concerning the clinical pictures and the incidence of lumbar paralysis were sent to 200 owners of goats and to 9 veterinarians. The study showed that the symptoms of lumbar paralysis had been observed for many years mainly during the winter. Most of the animals suffering from lumbar paralysis originated from the Valley of Leventina and Blenio. The symptoms of lumbar paralysis could be observed from 29 owners of goats. Fecal examination of 36 red deer in the autumn of 1995 was carried out for studying if deer plays a role in spreading the larvae of E. cervi. Twenty-five red deer passed the E. cervi larvae. This could be indicating that deer plays an possible role in the infection of goats with E. cervi.
Animals↗
[Clinical findings in 50 cows with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)].
The goal of this study was to describe the clinical findings in 50 cows with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The most important abnormalities were disturbances in behaviour, sensitivity and locomotion. Of 48 cows with behavioural abnormalities, 33 were panic-stricken, 33 were fearful and 32 were restless and nervous. Other behavioural disturbances included bruxism (n = 23), salivation (n = 15), licking of the muzzle (n = 15) and flehmen (n = 8). Hypersensitivity to touching of the head and neck with a pen and reacted by throwing the head sideways, head shaking, curling the muzzle or flehmen and salivating. Hypersensitivity to sound was observed in 41 cows. Hypersensitivity to light was seen in 22 cows. disturbances in locomotion occurred in 44 cows. In 41, there was ataxia, which was generalized in 28 and restricted to the hindend in 13.
Animals↗