POLYARTHROPATHY AND ANTERIOR UVEITIS AS PARANEOPLASTIC SYNDROMES IN A GUINEA PIG WITH DISSEMINATED LYMPHOMA

A 4-year-old, intact male guinea pig was presented for evaluation of ocular pain and forelimb lameness. Initial examination confirmed that the ocular pain was associated with bilateral anterior uveitis and that the lameness was attributed to a bilateral carpal and metacarpal polyarthropathy. Carpal joint taps revealed nonseptic marked mixed inflammation later confirmed as a nonerosive immune-mediated polyarthropathy. Treatment with topical steroid ophthalmic ointment resulted in rapid resolution of the uveitis; the arthropathy was initially managed with pain medication and anti-inflammatories, then later with doxycycline and cyclosporine. Over the course of 7 days, the joint swelling and pain improved slightly, but the patient developed severe exophthalmos of the right eye. An ocular ultrasound examination revealed a space occupying mass in the retrobulbar space and results of a fine needle aspirate of the mass was diagnosed as lymphoma. Treatment with prednisone was set to be initiated after a 3-day wash-out period of meloxicam, but the patient was euthanized before the initiation of chemotherapy. Necropsy results confirmed the lymphoma had infiltrated the right eye, kidneys, adrenal glands, thyroid glands, lungs, liver, spleen, testicular interstitium, urinary bladder, pancreas, mesentery, lymph nodes, and meninges. This is an unusual presentation of apparent paraneoplastic uveitis and immune-mediated polyarthropathy in a guinea pig.     

Genotypic variation in wheat grain fructan content revealed by a simplified HPLC method

Fructans are prebiotics, with potentially beneficial effects on human health. This study aimed to examine genetic variation in wheat grain fructan content using a simplified analytical method. The method involves extracting fructans from wheat grain followed by enzymatic hydrolysis to break down fructans into monosaccharides that can then be quantitatively measured by anion-exchange liquid chromatography coupled with pulsed amperometric detection. The modified procedure is reliable and allows the handling of large numbers of flour samples at a low cost, and could therefore be useful for assessing large numbers of wheat breeding lines. Using this method, grain samples taken from 19 bread wheat cultivars and breeding lines grown in both glasshouse and the field were analysed for grain fructan content. In addition, grain samples of 29 international wheat landraces and 14 new wheat breeding lines from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) were surveyed for their fructan contents. There was significant genotypic variation among these materials, with grain fructan content ranging from 0.7 to 2.9% of grain dry weight. There was no evidence of strong genotype-by-environment interaction; the fructan contents of field-grown grain samples were positively correlated (r = 0.83) with those of glasshouse-grown samples of the same cultivars. It should therefore be possible to investigate the genetic control of variation for this trait using the simplified HPLC method and to select effectively for increased grain fructan content in wheat breeding.     

Animal-side serologic assay for rapid detection of Mycobacterium bovis infection in multiple species of free-ranging wildlife

Numerous species of mammals are susceptible to Mycobacterium bovis, the causative agent of bovine tuberculosis (TB). Several wildlife hosts have emerged as reservoirs of M. bovis infection for domestic livestock in different countries. In the present study, blood samples were collected from Eurasian badgers (n=1532), white-tailed deer (n=463), brushtail possums (n=129), and wild boar (n=177) for evaluation of antibody responses to M. bovis infection by a lateral-flow rapid test (RT) and multiantigen print immunoassay (MAPIA). Magnitude of the antibody responses and antigen recognition patterns varied among the animals as determined by MAPIA; however, MPB83 was the most commonly recognized antigen for each host studied. Other seroreactive antigens included ESAT-6, CFP10, and MPB70. The agreement of the RT with culture results varied from 74% for possums to 81% for badgers to 90% for wild boar to 97% for white-tailed deer. Small numbers of wild boar and deer exposed to M. avium infection or paratuberculosis, respectively, did not cross-react in the RT, supporting the high specificity of the assay. In deer, whole blood samples reacted similarly to corresponding serum specimens (97% concordance), demonstrating the potential for field application. As previously demonstrated for badgers and deer, antibody responses to M. bovis infection in wild boar were positively associated with advanced disease. Together, these findings suggest that a rapid TB assay such as the RT may provide a useful screening tool for certain wildlife species that may be implicated in the maintenance and transmission of M. bovis infection to domestic livestock.     

Formation of a Volunteer Harmful Algal Bloom Network in British Columbia,Canada, Following an Outbreak of Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning

Evidence for shellfish toxin illness in British Columbia (BC) on the west coast of Canada can be traced back to 1793. For over two hundred years, domestically acquired bivalve shellfish toxin illnesses in BC were solely ascribed to paralytic shellfish poisonings caused by algal blooms of Alexandrium. This changed in 2011, when BC experienced its first outbreak of diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP). As a result of this outbreak, Canada’s first DSP symposium was held in November, 2012, in North Vancouver, BC. Three of the objectives of the symposium were to provide a forum to educate key stakeholders on this emerging issue, to identify research and surveillance priorities and to create a DSP network. The purpose of this paper is to review what is known about shellfish poisoning in BC and to describe a novel volunteer network that arose following the symposium. The newly formed network was designed for industry shellfish growers to identify harmful algae bloom events, so that they may take actions to mitigate the effects of harmful blooms on shellfish morbidity. The network will also inform public health and regulatory stakeholders of potentially emerging issues in shellfish growing areas.     

Sarcocystis neurona-specific immunoglobulin G in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid of horses administered S neurona vaccine

A vaccine against Sarcocystis neurona, which induces equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM), has received conditional licensure in the United States. A major concern is whether the immunoglobulin G (IgG) response elicited by the vaccine will compromise the use of Western blotting (WB) as a diagnostic tool in vaccinated horses with neurologic disease. Our goals were to determine if vaccination (1) causes seroconversion: (2) causes at least a transient increase in S neurona-specific IgG in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF); and (3) induces an IgG response that can be differentiated from that induced by natural exposure. Horses included in the study (n = 29) were older than 6 months with no evidence of neurologic disease. The presence or absence of anti-S neurona antibodies in the serum of each horse was determined by WB analysis. Seropositive horses had CSF collected and submitted for cytology, CSF index, and WB analysis. The vaccine was administered to all the horses and boostered 3-4 weeks later. On day 14 after the 2nd administration, serum and CSF were collected and analyzed. Eighty-nine percent (8 of 9) of the initial seronegative horses seroconverted after vaccination, of which 57% (4 of 7) had anti-S neurona IgG in their CSE Eighty percent (16 of 20) of the seropositive horses had an increase in serum S neurona IgG after vaccination. Of the 6 of 20 horses that were initially seropositive/CSF negative, 2 were borderline positive for anti-S neurona IgG in the CSF, 2 tested positive, and 2 were excluded because the CSF sample had been contaminated by blood. There were no WB banding patterns that distinguished samples from horses that seroconverted due to vaccination versus natural exposure. Caution must be used in interpreting WB analysis from neurologic horses that have been recently vaccinated for EPM.     

Comparison of the DIFCO and Patoc 1 slide antigens in the screening of leptospirosis

A comparison of the Patoc 1 slide agglutination (SAT) and DIFCO slide agglutination test for the screening of leptospirosis in man, cattle and coypu (Myocastor coypus Molina) is reported. The economic costs, convenience and availability of the antigens for the tests are analysed. It is recommended that slide agglutination methods alone are not sufficient for the routine diagnosis of leptospirosis.     

MHC class II-restricted, CD4(+) T-cell proliferative responses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from Mycobacterium bovis-infected white-tailed deer

White-tailed deer are significant wildlife reservoirs of Mycobacterium bovis for cattle, predators, and, potentially, humans. Infection of cattle with M. bovis stimulates an antigen-specific T-cell response, with both CD4(+) and CD8(+) cells implicated in protective immunity. Few studies, however, have examined lymphocyte subset responses to experimental M. bovis infection of white-tailed deer. In this study, a flow cytometric proliferation assay was used to determine the relative contribution of individual peripheral blood mononuclear cell subsets of M. bovis-infected white-tailed deer in the recall response to M. bovis antigen. Naive deer were challenged with M. bovis by cohabitation with infected deer. These M. bovis-challenged deer developed significant in vivo (delayed-type hypersensitivity) and in vitro (proliferative) responses to M. bovis purified protein derivative (PPD). At necropsy, typical tuberculous lesions containing M. bovis were detected within lungs and lung-associated lymph nodes of infected deer. The predominant subset of lymphocytes that proliferated in response to in vitro stimulation with PPD was the CD4(+) subset. Minimal proliferative responses were detected from CD8(+), gamma delta TCR(+), and B-cells. Addition of monoclonal antibodies specific for MHC II antigens, but not MHC I or CD1 antigens, abrogated the proliferative response. Together, these findings indicate that while CD4(+) cells from infected deer proliferate in the recall response to M. bovis antigens, this response is not sufficient to clear M. bovis and immunologic intervention may require stimulation of alternate subsets of lymphocytes.