ABSTRACT
Digital dermatitis is a painful foot disease compromising welfare in dairy cattle. The disease has a complex multibacterial aetiology, but little is known about its pathogenesis. In this study, gene expression in skin biopsies from five bovine digital dermatitis lesions and five healthy bovine feet was compared using RNA-Seq technology. Differential gene expression was determined after mapping transcripts to the Btau 4.0 genome. Pathway analysis identified gene networks involving differentially expressed transcripts. Bovine digital dermatitis lesions had increased expression of mRNA for α2-macroglobulin-like 1, a protein potentially involved in bacterial immune evasion and bacterial survival. There was increased expression of keratin 6A and interleukin 1ß mRNA in bovine digital dermatitis lesions, but reduced expression of most other keratin and keratin-associated genes. There was little evidence of local immune reactions to the bacterial infection present in lesions.
Subject(s)
Cattle Diseases/genetics , Dermatitis/veterinary , Foot Diseases/veterinary , Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques/veterinary , RNA/genetics , Animals , Cattle , Dermatitis/genetics , Foot Diseases/genetics , Gene Expression Regulation/physiology , Genetic Predisposition to DiseaseSubject(s)
Cattle Diseases/genetics , Digital Dermatitis/genetics , Disease Susceptibility/veterinary , Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide , Animals , Cattle , Cattle Diseases/immunology , Cattle Diseases/microbiology , DNA, Bacterial/analysis , Digital Dermatitis/immunology , Digital Dermatitis/microbiology , Female , Treponema/classification , Treponema/genetics , Treponema/isolation & purification , Treponemal Infections/veterinarySubject(s)
Cattle Diseases/diagnosis , Dermatitis/veterinary , Treponemal Infections/veterinary , Animals , Cattle , Cattle Diseases/microbiology , DNA, Bacterial/analysis , Dermatitis/diagnosis , Dermatitis/microbiology , Female , Immunohistochemistry/veterinary , Mammary Glands, Animal/microbiology , Mammary Glands, Animal/pathology , Treponema/isolation & purification , Treponemal Infections/diagnosisABSTRACT
Barbiturates, such as phenobarbital (PHB), are often used during pregnancy and early neonatal life to prevent epileptic seizures, hyperbilirubinemia and the stressful effects of labor. However, the long-term consequences of barbiturate exposure during the prenatal and neonatal periods have not been fully investigated. Several studies have indicated that phenobarbital does affect the resulting morphology and neurochemistry of various components of the central nervous system. In the present study we have investigated the effects of 3 days of prenatal phenobarbital administration (days 18-20 of gestation) on the growth and development of dendrites within the CA1 region of the hippocampus in the rat. Pups were sacrificed on days 5, 10, 23, and 35 of postnatal age and the brains were processed for Golgi impregnation of neurons. The terminal and non-terminal segments of apical and basal dendrites of neurons within the CA1 region of the hippocampus were analyzed with the aid of a scanning stage on a Zeiss universal photomicroscope and a PDP 11/23 microcomputer. In general, results indicated that 3 days of prenatal PHB severely suppresses the development of the dendritic tree which normally takes place during the first 35 days of postnatal life. There are significantly less branch points and the overall dendritic length of both apical and basal dendrites is reduced. These results indicate that prenatal PHB, even for short periods of time, affects the normal morphological development of the hippocampus. Thus, the utilization of PHB in the treatment of various human prenatal disorders should be questioned.
