Metagenomic analysis unravels novel taxonomic differences in the uterine microbiome between healthy mares and mares with endometritis.

BACKGROUND: The application of high throughput technologies has enabled unravelling of unique differences between healthy mares and mares with endometritis at transcriptomic and proteomic levels. However, differences in the uterine microbiome are yet to be investigated. OBJECTIVES: The present study was aimed at evaluating the differences in uterine microbiome between healthy mares and mares with endometritis. METHODS: Low-volume lavage (LVL) samples were collected from the uterus of 30 mares classified into healthy (n = 15) and endometritis (n = 15) based on their reproductive history, intrauterine fluid accumulation, gross appearance of LVL samples, endometrial cytology and bacterial culture. The samples were subjected to 16S rRNA sequencing. RESULTS: Notable differences in the uterine microbiome were observed between healthy mares and mares with endometritis at various taxonomic levels. In healthy mares, the most abundant phylum, class, order and family were Firmicutes, Bacilli, Bacillales and Paenibacillaceae, respectively. In contrast, the most abundant corresponding taxonomic levels in mares with endometritis were Proteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Enterobacterales and Enterobacteriaceae, respectively. At the genus level, Brevibacillus and Paenibacillus were more abundant in healthy mares, whereas Escherichia, Salmonella and Klebsiella were more abundant in mares with endometritis. In healthy mares, Brevibacillus brevis was the most abundant species, followed by Brevibacillus choshinensis and Paenibacillus sp JDR-2. However, in mares with endometritis, Escherichia coli was the most abundant species, followed by Salmonella enterica and Klebsiella pneumoniae. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirmed the previously reported presence of a uterine microbiome in healthy mares and helped unravel some alterations that occur in mares with endometritis. The findings can potentially help formulate new approaches to prevent or treat equine endometritis.

Primary plasma cell leukemia: A report of two cases of a rare and aggressive variant of plasma cell myeloma with the review of literature.

Plasma cell leukemia (PCL) is a rare and aggressive variant of myeloma accounting for 2-3% of all plasma cell dyscrasias characterized by the presence of circulating plasma cells. The diagnosis is based on the % (≥20%) and absolute number (≥2x10 9 /L) of plasma cells in the peripheral blood. The incidence of primary PCL (pPCL) is very rare and reported to occur in <1 in a million. It is classified as either pPCL occurring at diagnosis or as secondary PCL in patients with relapsed/refractory myeloma. pPCL is a distinct clinicopathological entity with different cytogenetic and molecular findings. The clinical course is aggressive with short remissions and survival duration. We report two cases of pPCL, both having acute onset of illness, varied clinical presentation with one of them showing "hairy cell morphology," with rapidly progressing renal failure, and was not suspected to be plasma cell dyscrasia clinically. A detailed hematopathological evaluation clinched the diagnosis in this case. It is recommended that techniques such as immunophenotyping by flow cytometry and protein electrophoresis must be performed for confirmatory diagnosis. A detailed report of two cases and a review of PCL are presented here.