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R B Wescott

Publications and source records attributed to R B Wescott.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Bovine coccidiosis: protective effects of low-level infection and coccidiostat treatments in calves.

Twenty coccidia-free Holstein bull calves were allotted to groups to study effects of treatment with lasalocid and decoquinate on subsequent resistance to coccidiosis (Eimeria spp infections). Calves fed medicated rations of either drug at dosages of 50 mg/kg of feed (approx 1.2 mg/kg of body weight) had significantly fewer oocysts (P less than 0.01) than did nontreated controls regardless of other procedures used. Treated calves premunized with 2,000 oocysts/day for 5 days and later challenge inoculated with 200,000 oocysts did not develop diarrhea, unless the drugs were withdrawn from feed. Animals premunized (2,000 oocysts/day for 5 days) in absence of drug were no more resistant to the challenge inoculation than nonpremunized animals. These results indicated that lasalocid and decoquinate were efficacious coccidiostats and protected calves as long as they were administered. Cessation of drug treatment usually resulted in appearance of oocysts in feces and diarrhea. Premunization alone cannot be expected to prevent coccidiosis when animals are exposed to large numbers of oocysts.

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Kinetics of expulsion of the nematode, Nippostrongylus brasiliensis, in mast-cell deficient W/WV mice.

Mucosal mast-cell hyperplasia is frequently observed in intestinal nematode infections and it has been suggested that mast-cell responses to parasite antigens are involved in worm expulsion (self cure). To evaluate the importance of this mechanism, the course of infection and expulsion of Nippostrongylus brasiliensis was compared in mast-cell deficient W/WV and normal (+/+) mice. Initial infectivity rates were similar, but the subsequent kinetics of expulsion of adult worms differed principally in that the onset of expulsion in mast-cell deficient mice appeared to occur 24-36 h later than that in normal mice. Expulsion was complete by the 14th day post infection in both W/WV and normal mice. Worm fertility (as estimated by faecal egg output) also differed in W/WV and normal mice, with maximal egg output in W/WV mice occurring 24 h later than that in normal mice. Although a few mast cells were present in the intestinal mucosa and tongue of W/WV mice, their numbers did not change during the course of infection with N. brasiliensis. In contrast, worm expulsion in normal mice was associated with a moderate increase in numbers of intestinal mast cells, commencing at the onset of expulsion and peaking several days after expulsion was completed.

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Isolation and purification of Fasciola hepatica eggs.

The present egg isolation method is both a rapid and simple technique for recovering large numbers of Fasciola hepatica eggs (1 X 10(7) eggs/gradient) from bovine bile. Bile from infected cattle was first passed through a 45 micron screen sieve. The F. hepatica eggs were collected from the surface of the screen by backwashing with a jet of distilled water. The resultant egg suspension was layered on a 60% to 100% (v/v) linear Percoll gradient prepared in distilled water. Centrifugation at 450 g for 20 min resulted in the formation of 2 visible bands and a pellet. The top band (density of 1.075 g ml-1) contained viscous debris and crystallized bile pigments. The second visible band (density of 1.093-1.099 g ml-1) consisted of a relatively pure population of F. hepatica eggs (greater than 93%) while the pellet contained only F. hepatica egg shells.

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Efficacy of ivermectin against naturally acquired and experimentally induced nematode infections in sheep.

The activity of ivermectin against common nematode parasites of sheep was examined in 2 experiments. In the 1st experiment, 14 sheep with naturally acquired infections were assigned to 2 groups of 7 sheep each. Sheep in 1 group were treated with 200 micrograms of ivermectin/kg of body weight and the remainder served as nontreated controls. In the 2nd experiment, 15 sheep with experimentally supplemented infections (including a benzimidazole-resistant strain of Haemonchus contortus) were assigned to 3 groups of 5 each. The 1st group was treated with 200 micrograms of ivermectin/kg, the 2nd was treated with 88 mg of thiabendazole/kg, and the 3rd served as nontreated controls. Ten to 12 days after treatment, all sheep were euthanatized and necropsied, and the parasites they harbored were recovered and identified. Efficacy of ivermectin was excellent (greater than 96%) against Dictyocaulus filaria, H contortus, Ostertagia circumcinta, Marshallagia marshalli, Trichostrongylus axei, T colubriformis, and T vitrinus. Treatment was not as uniformly effective for Nematodirus spathiger (73% to 85%), N filicollis (80% to 96%), Cooperia curticei (92% to 100%), immature nematodes (92% to 100%), and early 4th-stage larvae (46% to 100%). Efficacy of thiabendazole was poor for H contortus (42%) and early 4th-stage larvae in the abomasum (52%), but approached 100% for most of the other parasites.

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Diagnosis of Fasciola hepatica infections in sheep by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was evaluated for diagnosis of Fasciola hepatica infections in sheep maintained under isolation and drylot conditions. Sheep were exposed to various numbers (100 to 500) of metacercariae, and blood was collected for assay at regular intervals thereafter. The ELISA values of controls were low and varied little. Although the ELISA detected antibodies to the flukes as early as postinoculation week (PIW) 2, ELISA values suggested as diagnostic (1.75 times control values) did not occur until PIW 6 to 8. Positive diagnosis of the infections by fecal examination for fluke eggs was not established until after PIW 10. Results also indicated that ELISA values were generally not correlated with magnitude of infection, concurrent nematode infections, or husbandry practices.

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A gastric nematode (Ollulanus tricuspis) in cats in the Pacific Northwest.

Ollulanus tricuspis, a minute gastric nematode not previously documented in the United States, was identified by histologic examination and by dissecting microscopic examination of stomach contents of 7 cats from 3 breeding colonies in the Pacific Northwest. The nematode may have contributed to chronic weight loss and undernutrition in part by causing gastric irritation, with resultant vomiting. The findings suggest that infection with Ollulanus parasites may be more widespread in the United States than realized.

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An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for diagnosis of Fasciola hepatica infection in cattle.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was investigated for the diagnosis of Fasciola hepatica infection in cattle. Studies included examination of 4 antigen preparations: freshly collected fluke antigen (FFA), dead fluke antigen (DFA), lyophilized fluke antigen (LFA), and partially purified antigen (PPA) for activity and use of an ELISA with FFA and LFA for diagnosis of experimentally and naturally occurring fascioliasis in cattle. The ELISA, using FFA, detected F hepatica antibody in calves as early as 4 weeks after exposure to this parasite. The DFA exhibited slightly less activity, and LFA did not have diagnostic value until 9 to 10 weeks after exposure. The PPA produced high background readings with noninfected control sera and was not considered sufficiently specific for further use. The long incubation and short incubation ELISA procedures can be used for diagnostic work. Both were equally sensitive, with optical density readings of known positive sera routinely 2.5 times those of sera from normal controls. The repeatability of these tests was also excellent, and only slight variation in optical density was observed in ELISA was performed on representative known positive and negative sera with similar reagents in replicate tests.

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Efficacy of avermectin B1a for treatment of experimentally induced nematode infections in cattle.

Two formulations of avermectin B1a, C-076 and MK-933, were examined for anthelmintic activity in two trials, each using 20 calves with experimentally produced nematode infections. In one trial, C-076 was given orally, and in the other trial, MK-933 was given by injection at dosages of 50, 100, and 200 micrograms/kg of body weight. Treated calves were held for 7 to 8 days and then, together with nontreated controls, were euthanatized and were examined for nematodes in their gastrointestinal tracts and lungs. Efficacy of C-076 approached 100% for Dictyocaulus viviparus, Ostertagia ostertagi, Trichostrongylus axei, T colubriformis, and Oesophagostomum radiatum at 50 micrograms/kg. A dosage level of 100 micrograms/kg was required to achieve 97% efficacy against Cooperia punctata. Efficacy of MK-933 at 50 micrograms/kg was variable, but at 100 micrograms/kg, it approached 100% for D viviparus, O ostertagi, Haemonchus placei, T axei, and T longispicularis. Activity against C oncophora was less, reaching 80% efficacy at 200 micrograms/kg.

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Efficacy of albendazole for treatment of naturally acquired nematode infections in Washington cattle.

Albendazole, methyl 5-propylthio-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl carbamate, was given as a bolus (7.68 to 8.18 mg/kg of body weight) to cattle naturally infected with gastrointestinal nematodes and lungworms in a controlled trial. Over 99% of adult Ostertagia ostertagi, Trichostrongylus longispicularis, Cooperia oncophora, Nematodirus helvetianus, and Dictyocaulus viviparus were removed by the treatment. Efficacy against immature O ostertagi, early fourth-stage O ostertagi, and Oesophagostomum radiatum was 95.2%, 86.6%, and 96.7%, respectively. In a field trial, the same compound administered in a paste formulation (at approximately 7.5 mg/kg) eliminated over 99% of strongylin and Moniezia eggs from feces of treated cattle.

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Effects of lasalocid and monensin against experimentally induced coccidiosis in confinement-reared lambs from weaning to market weight.

Lasalocid and monensin were incorporated into pelleted feed and evaluated as anticoccidials in confinement-reared lambs from weaning to market weight. A total of 69 lambs were allotted to 3 equal groups that received unmedicated feed (100 mg/kg of food) or monensin-medicated feed (17 to 33 mg/kg). Each lamb was inoculated orally with a suspension of 24,000 oocysts (Eimeria spp) 24 and 52 days after the start of the experiment. Lasalocid and monensin were highly effective (greater than 99%) in eliminating oocysts of 5 species of ovine coccidia used in the inoculum. Treated lambs gained an average of 6 kg more weight (P less than 0.05) per animal than the untreated control lambs and consumed significantly (P less than 0.05) less feed for each kilogram gained. No statistical differences existed between treated groups (P greater than 0.05).

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The pathogenesis of primary and secondary infection with Fasciola hepatica in mice.

Primary and secondary infections of F. hepatica in mice were compared to determine how prior exposure to the parasite affected host response. Mice with primary parenchymal Fasciola infections initially had hemorrhagic tunnels filled with inflammatory cells and connective tissue. These lesions were progressive and became most severe 30 days after exposure as the parasites entered the bile ducts. At this time there was much hyperplasia and thickening of all layers of the duct system near the parasites and occasionally severe periportal fibrosis. By 2 months after exposure regeneration of the damaged liver cells was complete although hyperplasia persisted in bile ducts containing flukes. In mice with secondary infections (mice exposed 40 to 50 days after first infection), the inflammatory response was faster and shorter. Most lesions were resolved by 30 days after the second exposure. There was little difference in histology of primary and secondary infections during the chronic phase of the disease.

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Effect of length of treatment with Bayer 2502 on isolation of Trypanosoma cruzi and resistance to challenge in the mouse.

The effect of length of treatment of Trypanosoma cruzi with Bayer 2502 (Bay 2502, Lampit, Nifurtimox) on resistance to challenge and parasite isolation was studied in two experiments. In each, 200 mice were divided into groups of 20, infected with T. cruzi, and then treated with Bay 2502 for 1 to 8 consecutive weeks. Sixteen weeks after exposure, 10 mice from each experimental group were challenged with 150,000 trypomastigotes. The remainder were maintaned for 8 more weeks and killed for isolation of parasites. Mice treated with Bay 2502 for up to 8 consecutive weeks were uniformly resistant to challenge, and parasites could not be isolated from groups treatef for over 6 weeks. Results suggest that prolonged treatment with Bay 2502 eliminates T. cruzi from infected hosts and that resistance to challenge is not dependent on the presence of the organisms in mice.

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