Clinical signs and histopathology of brain, spinal cord and muscle of the pelvic limb of rats experimentally infected with Trypanosoma evansi

2012 ◽  
Vol 208 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksandro S. Da Silva ◽  
Camila B. Oliveira ◽  
Claudia M. Bertoncheli ◽  
Rosmarine P. Santos ◽  
Diego V. Beckmann ◽  
...  
1993 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 212-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donal O'Toole ◽  
Martin Jeffrey ◽  
Derek Challoner ◽  
Roz Maybey ◽  
Valerie Welch

Bilateral pelvic limb paresis developed in 7 of 15 10-month-old Blueface Leicester ram lambs on a mixed enterprise farm in the North of England. Clinical signs were principally mild to severe paresis of the pelvic limbs. Two mildly affected lambs recovered. Multifocal spinal cord white matter edema and necrosis, glial nodules, and mild to moderate nonsuppurative encephalomyelitis were the principal findings in 3 severely paretic lambs examined histologically. Protozoan bodies (12.7–23.0 μm) that stained immunocytochemically for Sarcocystis epitopes were in spinal cord glial cells of 2 of 3 lambs. Protozoa did not react immunocytochemically with anti-Toxoplasma gondii or Neospora canium antisera. Serology indicated there was recent exposure to Sarcocystis spp. in some surviving lambs. These cases resembled those in previous reports of paresis due to an unidentified Sarcocystis-like protozoan in sheep (ovine protozoan myeloencephalitis) in the British Isles, the USA, France, Australia, and New Zealand.


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thierry Grima De Cristo ◽  
Laura Formighieri De Noronha ◽  
Giovana Biezus ◽  
Cinthya Dos Santos Cerqueira ◽  
Natália Coelho Couto de Azevedo Fernandes ◽  
...  

Background: Carcinomas are aggressive and invasive malignancies that originate from any type of epithelial cell and are responsible for many deaths in dogs. Carcinoma metastases occur primarily via the lymphatic route; however, they can occur by blood flow, thus reaching bone structures. In dogs, metastasis of mammary and squamous cell carcinomas to the skeletal system is poorly described. The aim of this study was to report two cases of dogs that developed metastases of carcinomas to the vertebral column.Cases: Case 1. A 10 years-old, male, mixed-breed dog with paralysis of the left pelvic limb, subcutaneous mass in the lumbar region, apathy, anorexia and progressive weight loss and with a previous history of amputation of the right pelvic limb resulting from squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in the integument of the cranial face of the femorotibiopatellar joint. Due to the patient's clinical condition and the negative prognosis associated with the neoplasia, euthanasia was performed. At necropsy, infiltrating the lumbar vertebrae from L5 to L7, a whitish and firm mass of approximately 15 x 8 cm was observed. Histologically, it comprised a malignant epithelial neoplastic development consisting of nests and cords interspersed with fibrovascular stroma, containing multiple keratine pearls. There was moderate to severe anisocytosis, severe anisokariosis, and about 4 mitosis figures for every 10 high power fields (400x). The histological features were consistent with an invasive SCC. Anti-cytokeratin and anti-p63 immunohistochemical (IHC) evaluations were performed, both with immunoreactivity in neoplastic cells. Case 2. An 8 years-old, female, Chihuahua with bilateral paralysis of the pelvic limbs, anorexia, and progressive weight loss, with a history of excision of solid mammary carcinoma. The clinical condition evolved to the absence of deep pain in all limbs and fecal and urinary retention, opting for euthanasia. At necropsy, a nodule between T3 and T4 was observed, yellowish-white and firm, measuring about 5 x 3.8 cm, invading the spinal canal, and compressing the spinal cord. Histologically, it comprised malignant epithelial neoplasia infiltrating intervertebral ligaments, musculature, and vertebrae of the thoracic spine, organized in a dense mantle of polygonal to rounded cells, delimited in lobes by abundant fibrovascular tissue. Moderate anisokaryosis and accentuated anisocytosis were observed and about 6 mitosis figures for every 10 high power fields (400x). The histological characteristics of the tumor were compatible with metastasis due to grade II solid mammary carcinoma. Immunohistochemical evaluations of anti-cytokeratin, anti-c-erbB2, and anti-estrogen and progesterone receptors were performed, with immunoreactivity for cytokeratin and c-erbB2 in neoplastic cells.Discussion: There are no current data indicating which tumors that metastasize most frequently to the vertebral column. In the reported cases, it was found that the clinical signs presented by the animals are directly associated with the compression of specific areas of the spinal cord, as well as bone pain, resulting from tumor expansion and degeneration of the bone matrix, similar to what has been reported previously. The immunohistochemical diagnosis of anti-p63 in case 1 and anti-oncoprotein C-erbB2 in case 2, were essential to determine the neoplastic origin in the absence of the primary tumor. Despite being a place of low incidence of metastases, bones have a physiologically favorable environment for the implantation of neoplastic cells, especially when there is bone marrow involvement. Because of this and despite the rare occurrence, metastasis of carcinomas to the vertebral column should always be considered as differential diagnoses in patients presenting with clinical signs compatible with spinal cord compression and a history of previous neoplasia.


2008 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 109-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennipher E. Harris ◽  
Sarit Dhupa

Medical records of six cats diagnosed with lumbosacral intervertebral disk disease were reviewed. Clinical signs included reluctance to jump, low tail carriage, elimination outside the litter box, reluctance to ambulate, pelvic-limb paresis, urinary incontinence, and constipation. All cats had lumbosacral hyperpathia on palpation. Computed tomography in four cats revealed evidence of extradural spinal cord compression at the seventh lumbar (L7) to first sacral (S1) vertebral interspace. Compression was confirmed via myelography in three of these four cats, with confirmation in the fourth cat at the time of decompressive laminectomy. Each of the six cats underwent dorsal decompressive laminectomy at the L7 to S1 interspace. Postoperative clinical follow-up lasted 3 to 35 months, with most cats having excellent outcomes.


2002 ◽  
Vol 46 (8) ◽  
pp. 2420-2426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl V. Clemons ◽  
Raymond A. Sobel ◽  
Paul L. Williams ◽  
Demosthenes Pappagianis ◽  
David A. Stevens

ABSTRACT The efficacy of intravenously administered liposomal amphotericin B (AmBisome [AmBi]) for the treatment of experimental coccidioidal meningitis was compared with those of oral fluconazole (FLC) and intravenously administered conventional amphotericin B (AMB). Male New Zealand White rabbits were infected by intracisternal inoculation of arthroconidia of Coccidioides immitis. Starting 5 days postinfection, animals received one of the following: 5% dextrose water diluent; AMB given at 1 mg/kg of body weight; AmBi given at 7.5, 15, or 22.5 mg/kg intravenously three times per week for 3 weeks; or oral FLC given at 80 mg/kg for 19 days. One week after the cessation of therapy, all survivors were euthanatized, the numbers of CFU remaining in the spinal cord and brain were determined, and histological analyses were performed. All AmBi-, FLC-, or AMB-treated animals survived and had prolonged lengths of survival compared with those for the controls (P < 0.0001). Treated groups had significantly lower numbers of white blood cells and significantly lower protein concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid compared with those for the controls (P < 0.01 to 0.0005) and had fewer clinical signs of infection (e.g., weight loss, elevated temperature, and neurological abnormalities including motor abnormalities). The mean histological scores for AmBi-treated rabbits were lower than those for FLC-treated and control rabbits (P < 0.016 and 0.0005, respectively); the scores for AMB-treated animals were lower than those for the controls (P < 0.0005) but were similar to those for FLC-treated rabbits. All regimens reduced the numbers of CFU in the brain and spinal cord compared with those for the controls (P ≤0.0005). AmBi-treated animals had 3- to 11-fold lower numbers of CFU than FLC-treated rabbits and 6- to 35-fold lower numbers of CFU than AmB-treated rabbits. Three of eight animals given 15 mg of AmBi per kg had no detectable infection in either tissue, whereas other doses of AmBi or FLC cleared either the brain or the spinal cord of infection in fewer rabbits. In addition, clearance of the infection from both tissues was achieved in none of the rabbits, and neither tissue was cleared of infection in AMB-treated animals. Overall, these data indicate that intravenously administered AmBi is superior to oral FLC or intravenous AMB and that FLC is better than AMB against experimental coccidioidal meningitis. These data indicate that AmBi may offer an improvement in the treatment of coccidioidal meningitis. Additional studies are warranted.


Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 1702
Author(s):  
Eiji Naito ◽  
Kohei Nakata ◽  
Yukiko Nakano ◽  
Yuta Nozue ◽  
Shintaro Kimura ◽  
...  

Canine degenerative myelopathy (DM) is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease. However, a definitive diagnosis of DM can only be achieved by postmortem histopathological examination of the spinal cord. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the volumetry of DRG using the ability of water-excitation magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to visualize the DRG in dogs has premortem diagnostic value for DM. Eight dogs with DM, twenty-four dogs with intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH), and eight control dogs were scanned using a 3.0-tesla MRI system, and water-excitation images were obtained to visualize and measure the volume of DRG, normalized by body surface area. The normalized mean DRG volume between each spinal cord segment and mean volume of all DRG between T8 and L2 in the DM group was significantly lower than that in the control and the IVDH groups (P = 0.011, P = 0.002, respectively). There were no correlations within the normalized mean DRG volume between DM stage 1 and stage 4 (rs = 0.312, P = 0.128, respectively). In conclusion, DRG volumetry by the water-excitation MRI provides a non-invasive and quantitative assessment of neurodegeneration in DRG and may have diagnostic potential for DM.


2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 561-569
Author(s):  
Paulo V. Peixoto ◽  
Krishna D. Oliveira ◽  
Ticiana N. França ◽  
David Driemeier ◽  
Marcos D. Duarte ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT: Following a case of iatrogenic selenium poisoning in a young pig, an experimental study was carry out. Sodium selenite was orally and parenterally administered to 13 pigs that were subdivided into three groups (G1, G2 and G3). The animals in groups G1 and G3 received sodium selenite intramuscularly (IM), G1 received a comercial formula, and G3 received sodium selenite mixed with distilled water at different dosages, and those in group G2 were fed commercial sodium selenite. Acute and subacute poisoning was observed in both groups, although the onset of clinical signs was slower in group G2. Only one pig (in group G1) that had received the highest dose showed a peracute course. Apathy, anorexia, dyspnea, vomiting, muscular tremors, proprioceptive deficit, ataxia and paresis of the hind limbs progressing to the front limbs evolving to tetraplegia were observed. Postmortem findings differed whether the animals received the injected (G1 and G3) or oral (G2) sodium selenite. The liver was moderately atrophic in some animals of G2. Some of the animals in groups G1 and G3 presented with lung edema. One pig in G3 had yellowish-brown areas in the ventral horns of the cervical intumescences of the spinal cord. The most important histological changes were present in the ventral horns of the cervical and lumbar intumescences of the spinal cord. In one animal, changes were present in the brainstem and mesencephalon. The initial lesion was a perivascular and astrocyte edema that progressing to lysis and death of astrocytes and neurons. In the chronic stage of the lesions, there were extensive areas of liquefaction necrosis with perivascular lymphocytic and histiocytic infiltration and occasional eosinophils. It seems that disruption of the blood-brain barrier due to astrocyte edema is the most likely mechanism of CNS lesion.


2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maiara Carolina Perussolo ◽  
Bassam Felipe Mogharbel ◽  
Lucia de Noronha ◽  
Katherine Athayde Teixeira de Carvalho

Abstract Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system, characterized as an inflammatory demyelinating disease. It presents a diversity of neurologic signs and symptoms as well the incapacities. Since the need for advances in MS treatment, many studies are for new therapeutic technologies, mainly through using preclinical models as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). This study aimed to observe and analyze the development in Lewis rats-induced model of EAE. Methods It was used 23 females of Rattus norvegicus, from 6 to 8 weeks, weighing around 170 g. Of 23 rats, 19 underwent EAE induction distributed in six groups to establish the evolution of clinical signs. B. pertussis toxin (PTX) doses were 200, 250, 300, 350–400 ng, and four animals as the control group. The animals had weight and scores analyzed daily, starting seven and ending 24 days after induction. Then, all animals were euthanized, and the brain and spinal cord were collected for histopathological analyses. Results The results showed that the dose of 250 ng of PTX induced de higher score and weight reduction. All groups who received the PTX demonstrated histopathological findings. Those characterized as leukocyte infiltration, activation of microglia and astrocytes, and demyelinated plaques in the brain. In the spinal cord, the loosening of the myelinated fibers was observed by increasing the axonal space in all tested doses of PTX. Conclusions EAE was not dose-dependent. Histopathological findings do not proportionally related to clinical signs, as in human patients with MS.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bárbara Fernandes Pinto ◽  
Lorena Natasha Brito Ribeiro ◽  
Gisela Bevilacqua Rolfsen Ferreira da Silva ◽  
Camila Simões Freitas ◽  
Lucas Kraemer ◽  
...  

Rationale: The FDA approved Dimethyl Fumarate (DMF) as an oral drug for Multiple Sclerosis treatment based on its immunomodulatory activities. However, it also caused severe adverse effects mainly related to the gastrointestinal system. Objective: Investigated the potential effects of solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) containing DMF, administered by inhalation on the clinical signs, central nervous system (CNS) inflammatory response, and lung function changes in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Materials and Methods: EAE was induced using MOG35-55 peptide in female C57BL/6J mice and were treated via inhalation with DMF-encapsulated SLN (CTRL/SLN/DMF and EAE/SLN/DMF), empty SLN (CTRL/SLN and EAE/SLN), or saline solution (CTRL/saline and EAE/saline), every 72 hours during 21 days. Results: After 21 days post-induction, EAE mice treated with DMF-loaded SLN, when compared to EAE/saline and EAE/SLN, showed decreased clinical score and weight loss, reduction in brain and spinal cord injury and inflammation, also related to the increased influx of Foxp3+ cells into the spinal cord and lung tissues. Moreover, our data revealed that EAE mice showed signs of respiratory disease, marked by increased vascular permeability, leukocyte influx, production of TNF-α and IL-17, perivascular and peribronchial inflammation, with pulmonary mechanical dysfunction associated with loss of respiratory volumes and elasticity, which DMF-encapsulated reverted in SLN nebulization. Conclusion: Our study suggests that inhalation of DMF-encapsulated SLN is an effective therapeutic protocol that reduces not only the CNS inflammatory process and disability progression, characteristic of EAE disease, but also protects mice from lung inflammation and pulmonary dysfunction.


2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (No. 9) ◽  
pp. 417-421
Author(s):  
JO Ahn ◽  
SC Park ◽  
WJ Song ◽  
MO Ryu ◽  
Q Li ◽  
...  

Four dogs had signs of pelvic limb lameness, pain, and collapse resulting from an occlusion of the distal aorta or the iliac arteries by thrombi. The diagnosis of an aortic thromboembolism was based on the absence or weakness of a femoral pulse, and the two-dimensional and Doppler ultrasonography of the abdominal aorta, iliac, and femoral arteries. Three dogs had a concurrent disease predisposing to thrombosis, including hyperadrenocorticism, protein losing nephropathy, neoplasia, and cardiac disease. Three dogs were treated with a tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) in an attempt to lyse the thrombosis; two regained pelvic limb function. The other two dogs died shortly after the diagnosis of a thrombosis. A complete description of the history, clinical signs, laboratory analysis and imaging studies is included. Moreover, a review of the aortic thromboembolism, a diagnosis protocol and the options for its treatment are discussed.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nereida Parra-Gimenez ◽  
Armando Reyna-Bello

There are three trypanosoma species of veterinary importance in South America: (1) Trypanosoma evansi, the causative agent of derrengadera mechanically transmitted by bloodsucking insects such as tabanids, (2) Trypanosoma vivax, also mechanically transmitted by some dipteras hematophages as tabanids and/or Stomoxys, and (3) T. equiperdum, a tissue parasite adapted to sexual transmission and the causative agent of dourine, a distinctive disease that affects only Equidae. In order to evaluate the parasitological, hematological, and serological response of sheep infected with T. vivax, T. evansi, and T. equiperdum, four female sheep were experimentally infected with Venezuelan trypanosome field isolates: two T. evansi of differing virulences, one T. equiperdum; one T. vivax. Parasitemia and clinical parameters such as hematocrit, red blood cell count, hemoglobin, and body temperature were measured. T. evansi caused a chronic disease with undulant parasitemia alternating with some cryptic periods of at least 54 days, with no clinical signs. T. equiperdum, never described as infectious to ruminants, also caused a chronic disease with low undulant parasitemia. T. vivax caused an acute infection with severe anemia showing a drop of more than 70% of the hematocrit value, high fever, and rapid deterioration of physical condition, for 36 days of infection. Indirect ELISAs using crude extracts of the three species of trypanosomes as antigens were performed for detection of anti-trypanosome antibodies in sheep sera. Cross-reaction was observed between the three parasite species. These results show that sheep are susceptible to the three-trypanosome species and suggest they can act as a reservoir when sheep are raised and managed with other important livestock such as cattle, horses, buffalos, or goats. These findings are especially interesting for T. equiperdum, a species that has not been reported as infective to sheep.


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