ABSTRACT
The descriptive distribution and phylogeny of feline coronaviruses (FCoVs) were studied in cats suspected of having feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) in Malaysia. Ascitic fluids and/or biopsy samples were subjected to a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) targeted for a conserved region of 3'untranslated region (3'UTR) of the FCoV genome. Eighty nine percent of the sampled animals were positive for the presence of FCoV. Among the FCoV positive cats, 80% of cats were males and 64% were below 2 years of age. The FCoV positive cases included 56% domestic short hair (DSH), 40% Persian, and 4% Siamese cats. The nucleotide sequences of 10 selected amplified products from FIP cases were determined. The sequence comparison revealed that the field isolates had 96% homology with a few point mutations. The extent of homology decreased to 93% when compared with reference strains. The overall branching pattern of phylogenetic tree showed two distinct clusters, where all Malaysian isolates fall into one main genetic cluster. These findings provided the first genetic information of FCoV in Malaysia.
Subject(s)
Coronavirus, Feline/classification , Feline Infectious Peritonitis/epidemiology , Feline Infectious Peritonitis/virology , 3' Untranslated Regions/genetics , Animals , Cats , Coronavirus, Feline/genetics , Coronavirus, Feline/isolation & purification , Female , Malaysia/epidemiology , Male , Molecular Sequence Data , Prevalence , Sequence Alignment , Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid , Sex FactorsABSTRACT
The clinical, radiological and pathologic features of a biphasic synovial sarcoma in the left elbow joint of a two-year-old male Rottweiler are presented. The tumor showed positive immunoreactivity for vimentin, Epithelial Membrane Antigen (EMA), p53 and PCNA, while it was negative for the cytokeratin used, S-100, Rb and p21. Immunohistochemistry for EMA allowed the identification of epithelioid components of synovial sarcoma, and may, therefore, contribute in establishing a diagnosis of biphasic synovial sarcoma. Intratumoral variation in PCNA immunoreactivity was minimal, indicating that the various tumor components proliferate at more or less similar rates. Overall, the characterized immunohistochemical profile for canine synovial sarcoma, not defined previously, may provide clues to the histogenesis of the phenotypically mesenchymal and epithelial elements of the tumor, and may be of value in the differential diagnosis of challenging cases, decreasing the risk of under- and mis-diagnosis. Although more cases need to be studied to determine whether there is a consistent pattern of immunostaining in canine synovial sarcoma, its potential significance is discussed in relation to the histogenesis, molecular pathology and differential diagnosis of canine synovial sarcoma.
