ABSTRACT
Background and Aim: Renal pathological conditions can cause significant economic losses for livestock owners. This study investigated and described the gross pathology and histopathology of lesions found in the kidneys of sheep and cattle, with particular attention to the presence of Leptospira spp. Materials and Methods: Three hundred and sixty kidneys from apparently healthy sheep and cattle (208 and 152, respectively) were collected from slaughterhouses in Jordan for gross and histopathological examinations, multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis, and gene sequencing of Leptospira spp. Results: Histopathological analysis of the samples revealed the following conditions: interstitial nephritis (4.44%), glomerulonephritis (4.16%), acute tubular necrosis (17.22%), and renal congestion (4.72%). In addition, in 26.9% of the samples, hyaline material was observed in the interstitium of the cortex and medulla. The PCR results revealed that 83 (23.1%) of the 360 samples were positive for Leptospira spp. 16S rRNA, 42/152 (28%) of cattle, and 41/208 (20%) of sheep. Four samples (two sheep and two cattle) were sequenced and deposited in GenBank with accession numbers from OL701310 to OL701313. Basic Local Alignment Search Tool search and nucleotide similarities between OL701311 and OL701313 resulted in the highest similarities with different Leptospira borgpetersenii strains, whereas OL701310 showed the highest nucleotide similarity (99.2%) with the Leptospira interrogans strain. Similarly, phylogenetic analysis revealed that OL701311 to OL701313 clustered together with different serovars of L. borgpetersenii, whereas OL701310 clustered with the L. interrogans clade. Conclusion: This is the first study to reveal a close association between pathogenic Leptospira spp. and kidney disorders in Jordanian cattle and sheep. These findings may help expand the current understanding of the causes and mechanisms of renal disease in cattle and sheep and contribute to developing more effective prevention and treatment programs.
ABSTRACT
Background and Aim: Maedi-visna is a chronic viral disease of sheep with worldwide distribution causing substantial economic losses to the small ruminant industry. Pneumonia and mastitis are the main manifestations of the disease. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of maedi-visna virus (MVV) in sheep using histopathology and nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques and also to estimate the seroprevalence of small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs) in sheep and goats using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Materials and Methods: Lung tissue samples from 380 sheep were collected and fixed in 10% formalin for histopathology and molecular diagnosis of MVV. Separately, 806 serum samples were randomly collected from 633 sheep and 173 goats to detect the seroprevalence of SRLVs using ELISA. Results: The results showed that 4.7% of lung samples (n=190) were positive by both histopathology and nested PCR, 5.8% (n = 380) were positive by histopathology only (have lymphoid follicular hyperplasia), and 7.4% (n = 190) were positive by nested PCR only. Statistical analysis revealed a moderate agreement between the two tests (Kappa=0.451, n = 190). Serology results revealed that sheep and/or goats herd prevalence was 59.8% (n = 87), while individual seroprevalence in sheep (40.1%, n = 633) was significantly higher than that in the other six countries and also significantly higher than that in goats (18.5%, n = 173) (at p < 0.05). Conclusion: The moderate statistical agreement between nested PCR and histopathological diagnosis of MVV in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded sheep lung tissue samples (Kappa=0.451, n = 190) suggests combining both tests for more sensitive MVV detection in sheep lung samples. SRLVs seropositivity in sheep was significantly higher than in goats, thus, it is of high concern and urges the inquiry into the economic impact of the disease and the financial benefit of adopting eradication measures.
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to describe the morphometrics of nuchal ligament and investigate the effects of different neck and body positions on the nuchal ligament in greyhounds. Nine adult greyhounds cadavers without any locomotion abnormalities were dissected through the neck musculature on the left side to expose the nuchal ligament. Three pins were placed to mark regions of interest on the nuchal ligament: at one cm cranial to the site of origin (the most dorsal point of the spinous process of the first thoracic vertebra), at the midpoint of the nuchal ligament and one cm caudal to the nuchal ligament site of insertion (close to the caudal aspect of the spinous process of the axis). Each cadaver was positioned on a masonite board and placed on a table on the floor in their lateral recumbency and seven different standardized body positions; P1-P7 were mimicked using goniometers and metal wires. Photographs were taken by positioning and fixing the camera above the nuchal ligament region. The length and widths (W1, W2 and W3) of nuchal ligament were measured using Image Pro software (Image-Pro Express version 5.0) on standardized photographs of each of seven different body and neck positions. The length of nuchal ligament in relation to the neutral position (P1) was less (- 7%, p > 0·05) in P6 (neck elevated) and increased in all other positions (+1%, p > 0·05 for P2, +19%, p < 0·05 for P3, +37%, p < 0·05 for P4, +1%, p > 0·05 for P5, +40%, p < 0·05 for P7). Nuchal ligament width at the middle (W2) decreased significantly with P4 (- 26%, p < 0·05), and P7 (- 32%, p < 0·05). Also, nuchal ligament width at the site of origin (W3) decreased significantly with P4 (- 24%, p < 0·05) and P7 (-35%, p < 0·05). These findings reflect the need for clinical and biomechanical studies to describe in-depth the gross anatomy of the nuchal ligament in greyhounds. They suggest that different neck and body positions change the shape, and hence, the function of the nuchal ligament during movement.
