ABSTRACT
We have evaluated the diagnostic performance of immunochromatographic point-of-care tests (POCT) for the detection of rotavirus, coronavirus, Escherichia (E.) coli F5, Cryptosporidium (C.) parvum, Clostridium (Cl.) perfringens and Giardia (G.) intestinalis in fresh and thawed faecal samples from calves aged up to six months with diarrhoea. We performed POCTs to detect rotavirus, coronavirus, E. coli F5, C. parvum, Cl. perfringens and G. intestinalis on fresh samples in a field study and re-evaluated the performance for C. parvum, Cl. perfringens and G. intestinalis using thawed samples. We calculated the performance based on the results of the reference methods, which were RT-qPCR for the detection of rota- and coronavirus and bacteriological culturing and PCR to detect E. coli F5 and Cl. perfringens a and ss2 toxins. C. parvum was detected by phase-contrast microscopy and G. intestinalis by immunofluorescence microscopy. We collected 177 faecal samples from diarrhoeic calves. We found good performance for the POCT targeting rotavirus (sensitivity (SE)=92.9%;specificity (SP)=95.6%) and C. parvum (SE=63.3%;SP=96.2%). For E. coli F5, the number of true positive samples (n=1) was too low to evaluate the performance. The POCT to detect coronavirus gave a poor performance (SE=3.3%;SP=96.6%) and the POCT to detect Cl. perfringens a moderate performance (SE=52.8%;SP=78.2%). G. intestinalis POCT showed a higher sensitivity to immunofluorescence microscopy in thawed than in fresh faecal samples (SE=43.9% versus SE=29.2%). There are substantial differences in diagnostic performance between the commercially available immunochromatographic POCTs. Still, POCT can make a valuable contribution to the diagnosis and prevention of calf diarrhoea.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Neonatal calf diarrhoea is a multifactorial disease that sometimes leads to high economic losses. It can be fatal due to dehydration and acidosis and has been one of the main causes of calf mortality. Material and methods: This retrospective study considered calves of a maximum of 35 days of age and with a diagnosed infection with rotavirus and/or bovine coronavirus. We examined the clinical records of 156 calves that were referred to the University Clinic for Ruminants in Vienna. Results Calves that had been treated with antibiotics before admission to the Clinic had a higher risk of staying longer, suggesting either that these calves had a more serious illness or that antibiotic treatment was not indicated and so therapeutic success was not achieved. Twenty-three calves died or were euthanized at the Clinic. At the time of admission, they were younger than the surviving calves and they had a lower inner body temperature and a lower base excess at the first examination. The four most common pathogens in faecal samples were rotavirus, bovine coronavirus, Cryptosporidium parvum and Escherichia coli, which were detected in 67.1%, 53.9%, 48.1% and 94.1% of the faecal samples examined. The most common co-infection was rotavirus with Cryptosporidium parvum (17 faecal samples). We inspected the four most common pathogens in more detail. There were significant correlations between bovine coronavirus and season, with the risk of suffering from bovine coronavirus 1.6 times higher in winter than in other seasons. There was also a correlation between Cryptosporidium parvum and general behaviour: the risk of being infected with Cryptosporidium parvum was 2.6 times higher in calves that were moderately to severely depressed at the first examination. There was a correlation between co-infections and mortality, with calves with a co-infection at three times higher risk of dying than calves with a mono-infection.
ABSTRACT
The study assessed the efficacy of a commercialized mixed herbal medicine in alleviating diarrhea in water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) calves. The study involved 15 diarrheic water buffalo calves regardless of sex and with less than a year old from one farm divided into three treatments using randomized block design. Treatment 1 was served as control given with antibiotics and intestinal protectants.;Treatment 2 was mixed herbal medicine and probiotics and lastly, Treatment 3 was mixed herbal medicine only. The calves were treated three times a day for seven days for Treatments 2 and 3 while Treatment 1 (control) were treated once a day for 7 days. The animals were ob served and scoring of diarrhea were done and recorded daily for the next 7 days. Results of the study showed significant decrease in diarrhea scores on Day 6 and 7 post-treatment in Treatments 1 and 2 compared to the control. At Day 8 post-treatment, all calves showed soft to apparently normal stool. Genetic analysis of the possible causative agent of diarrhea revealed infection caused by rotavirus A, bovine coronavirus, BVDV, and ETEC. Results revealed that diarrhea caused by these pathogens can be alleviated by the herbal medicine and herbal medicine in addition of probiotics parallel to antibiotic treatment.
ABSTRACT
This study was carried out for rapid etiological diagnosis of neonatal calf diarrhea by using immunochromatographic test kits in the Esme district of Usak. The animal material of the study consisted of 100 1-28 days old neonatal calves of different breeds and genders in the Esme district of Usak. Stool samples were taken from calves with diarrhea as a result of clinical examination. When stool samples were examined by a rapid diagnostic test, none of the disease factors sought in the study were found in 10 (10%) of 100 calves, while one or more disease factors were detected in 90 (90%) of calves. Rotavirus was detected in 27 (27%) calves, Escherichia coli 14 (14%) calves, Coronavirus in 8 (8%) calves, Clostridium perfringens in 19 (19%) calves, Cryptosporidium spp. in 17 (17%) calves, Rotavirus + Coronavirus in 2 (2%) calves, Rotavirus + Clostridium perfringens in 1 (1%) calf, Rotavirus + Cryptosporidium spp. in 1 (1%) calf, and Escherichia coli - Clostridium perfringens in 1 (1%) calf. As a result, data on the presence and distribution of enterogenous pathogens that cause diarrhea in neonatal calves in the Esme district of Usak were presented, and it was concluded that it would shed light on future studies on diarrheal calves in the Esme.
ABSTRACT
The problem of viral pneumoenteritis of young farm animals is relevant for agriculture of the Republic of Belarus. Today, the most effective method of preventing viral pneumoenteritis of calves is vaccination of pregnant cows. In case of mixed infections, the most effective means of preventing such diseases are polyvalent vaccines. But biological preparations should have not only high preventive effectiveness, but also not affect the quality of the final product. The author of the article studied the effect of a polyvalent inactivated culture vaccine against infectious rhinotracheitis, viral diarrhea, parainfluenza-3, respiratory syncytial, rotavirus and coronavirus infection of cattle left-pointing-double-angle BolsheVak right-pointing-double-angle on the state of metabolism of pregnant cows. For this purpose, 3 groups of pregnant cows of the Belarusian black-and-white Holstein breed were formed in the conditions of the Agricultural Republican subsidiary of the Ulishitsy Agro enterprise of the Gorodok district on the principle of pairs of analogues with10 animals in each group for 1.5-2 months before calving. The cows of the first experimental group were immunized with the vaccine against viral pneumoenteritis "Bolshevak" with the adjuvant ISA-15 intramuscularly into the croup area in compliance with the rules of asepsis and antiseptics in the volume of 5.0 cm3. Cows of the second experimental group were immunized with the vaccine against viral pneumoenteritis "Bolshevak" with the adjuvant ISA-25 - in the volume of 3.0 cm3. The cows of the control group were injected with isotonic sodium chloride solution according to a similar scheme. The animals were immunized twice with an interval of 21 days. The sampling was carried out before the start of the studies, on the 14th, 21st days after the first vaccination and on the 45th day after the revaccination. The clinical condition of the animals was monitored for 70 days. As a result of the research, it was found that the studied vaccine against viral pneumoenteritis does not have a negative effect on the general condition of the animal, does not cause allergic reactions, abortions, does not inhibit the synthesis of the studied biochemical parameters of the serum.
ABSTRACT
A 1:1 matched case-control study of calves under 1 month of age was carried out by weekly visits to 7 dairy farms in Mashhad, Iran. Fecal samples were collected from 112 calves with diarrhea and 112 controls matched assessed by scoring. Rotavirus and Coronavirus were isolated by antigen capture ELISA test. We found Rotavirus antigen in 29.5% in diarrheic and 17% in normal calves. We detected Coronavirus antigen in 2.7% and 1.8%, respectively. In diarrheic calves Rotavirus was most prevalent at 3rd week age whereas Coronavirus was found in very few cases by 2nd week. Excretion of Rotavirus in feces of scouring calves was greater (P < 0.03) than controls with odds ratio of 1.9 (1.05 - 3.76). We found no relationship between shedding Coronavirus in feces and diarrhea (P value =0.66) with odds ratio equals to 1.4 (0.24 -9.05). We find that Rotavirus is associated with newborn calf diarrhea in industrial dairy farms in Iran.