Otitis media associated with Cryptosporidium baileyi in a Saker falcon (Falco cherrug).

A 7-week-old male Saker falcon died with a history of severe refractory dyspnoea and respiratory signs. Microscopical lesions included moderate to severe lymphoplasmacytic inflammation of the middle ears, conjunctivae, third eyelids, choanae, salivary glands of the tongue, turbinates, larynx, trachea, syrinx and bronchi. The lesions were associated with variable numbers of Cryptosporidium spp., further confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and in-situ hybridization. Cryptosporidium baileyi was identified by DNA sequence analysis. C. baileyi may therefore be a cause of otitis media in raptors as it is in man. It is most likely that the middle ears of the Saker falcon acquired the infection through the eustachian tubes that originate near the pharynx in the oral cavity. This is the first description of otitis media associated with C. baileyi in a bird or a mammal except man.

A clinical case of chicken infectious anemia disease and virus DNA detection in naturally infected broilers in Greece.

In this study, chicken infectious anemia virus (CIAV) DNA was detected from 12-day-old broilers. Clinical history showed that the clinical features were diarrhea, blue wing disease, depression, and death. Necropsy findings were pale liver, severe atrophy of bursa of Fabricius and thymus, and discoloration of the bone marrow as well as hemorrhages subcutaneously and a few in skeletal muscles. The majority of the necropsied broilers had developed gangrenous dermatitis. Histopathology showed hypoplasia of bone marrow and depletion of lymphocytes in spleen, bursa, and subcapsular thymic cortex. Karyorrhexis of lymphocytes was scattered in the thymic cortex and most pronounced in the bursal follicles. Eosinophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies were mainly located in lymphocytes of thymus, with a few in hemopoietic cells of bone marrow. CIAV DNA was detected by polymerase chain reaction from bursa, thymus, and bone marrow. A virus strain was detected and genetically characterized in 639 base pairs of VP1 gene. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the Greek isolate was clustered together with isolates from Alabama, China, Slovenia, and Bangladesh.

Outbreak of avian mycobacteriosis in a flock of two-year-old domestic pigeons (Columba livia f. domestica).

This report describes an outbreak of avian mycobacteriosis in a flock of 100 two-yr-old pigeons. Over a 6-mo period, the sick pigeons showed cachexia followed by death. In Columbiformes classic tubercles rarely develop, but in these affected pigeons granulomatous nodular lesions of various sizes, containing numerous acid-fast bacilli, were found in the internal organs. The lesions were observed in the liver, spleen, intestine, bone marrow, ovary, and oviduct. Despite their breeding age, atrophy was also found in the ovary and oviduct. Microorganisms belonging to Mycobacterium avium complex were identified in the affected tissues by polymerase chain reaction.

Chlamydia-induced bilateral ectropion of the inferior eyelids in pigeons.

In this study we described four cases of bilateral ectropion in pigeons that were investigated in Greece. Anemia, leukocytosis, and increased levels of enzymes lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatine phosphokinase, and total serum proteins were found. Chlamydial elementary bodies were observed by modified Ziehl-Neelsen stain in direct smears of conjunctiva, liver, and spleen as well as in yolk sac samples after egg inoculation with eyelid material. Histologically, significant hyperplasia of the conjunctival epithelium was observed. Using immunohistochemical methods, chlamydial antigen was revealed in eyelid, liver, and spleen paraffin sections. This study suggests that Chlamydia spp. was the causative agent that induced ectropion.