First report of fatal autochthonous angiostrongylosis in a dog in Greece.

Canine angiostrongylosis caused by Angiostrongylus vasorum is a life-threatening disease which is emerging in regions of Europe. Thus, there is the merit for a continuous epidemiological surveillance in dog populations. This is the first description of a clinical autochthonous case of canine angiostrongylosis in Greece. A 7-month-old, male, mixed-breed dog was presented with progressively worsening anorexia, respiratory distress, coughing, bleeding diathesis and succumbed four days post admission. Gross post mortem examination revealed numerous nodular fistulated lesions in the lungs, and pulmonary cytology and histopathology showed a verminous pyogranulomatous pneumonia. The definitive diagnosis was based on the morphological identification of first stage larvae (L1) retrieved in the feces by the Baermann method, the detection of the circulating antigen by an in-clinic test and the molecular identification of L1. This report underlines the epidemiological and clinical implications, as well as the infection risks when the index of clinical suspicion is low and the disease is unexpected in a country.

First case of Serratia liquefaciens isolated from urinary tract infection in sows and associated clinicopathological and pathological findings.

An incident of sudden deaths in the breeding stock was reported from a farrow-to-finish commercial pig farm in Greece. The 8·4% of sows during lactation and gestation period presented anorexia, fever, haematuria, return-to-oestrus and sudden deaths (mortality rate: 2·3%). Blood and urine samples were collected from four diseased sows. Furthermore, swabs from urine bladders were collected from two dead sows and four culled sows at the slaughterhouse. Blood testing demonstrated mild leucocytosis and absence of azotaemia. Urinalysis revealed haematuria, proteinuria, bilirubinuria and active urine sediment with bacilli, epithelial cells and leucocytes, crystals and granular casts. Histopathological evaluation of the bladder demonstrated chronic active polypoid cystitis. The bacterial culture revealed the presence of Serratia liquefaciens. The antibiotic susceptibility testing showed high resistance to the most common antibiotics, with the highest sensitivity of the isolate towards quinolones. After the administration of a single dose of 7·5 mg kg-1 body weight enrofloxacin intramuscularly, the mortality rate decreased to less than 0·5% along with a remarkable reduction in the severity of clinical signs. Based on our findings, S. liquefaciens induced severe clinical signs and deaths in sows, mainly due to urinary infection. Inadequate water sanitation might have been responsible for increased exposure to S. liquefaciens. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: In this study, the isolation of Serratia liquefaciens from the urinary tract of pigs associated with clinical signs and increased mortality was described for the first time. Serratia liquefaciens is an important cause of hospital-acquired human infections. The isolate in this study was resistant to the most common antibiotics. Therefore, the use of quinolones which are drugs of last resort for treatment of infections was the only therapeutic option. The presence of the resistant bacterium in the urinary tract raises concerns for its zoonotic potential.

Effect of herbal feed additives on performance parameters, intestinal microbiota, intestinal morphology and meat lipid oxidation of broiler chickens.

1. This feeding trial investigated the effects of herbal feed additives on performance of broiler chickens, jejunal and caecal microbiota, jejunal morphology, meat chemical composition and oxidative stability during refrigerated storage. 2. In a 42 days trial, 320 one-day-old broiler chickens were randomly allocated to 4 groups with 4 replicate pens each containing 20 chicks. The control group was fed maize-soybean-based diets. The diets of the other three groups were supplemented with herbal feed additives: HRB1 with StresomixTM (0.5 g/kg feed); HRB2 with AyuceeTM (1.0 g/kg feed); HRB3 with Salcochek ProTM (1.0 g/kg feed). The GC/MS analysis of the feed additives showed that the major components of HRB1 were ß-caryophyllene (14.4%) and menthol (9.8%); HRB2 were n-hexadecanoic acid (14.22%) and ß-caryophyllene (14.4%); and HRB3 were menthol (69.6%) and clavicol methyl ether (13.9%). 3. Intestinal samples were taken at 42 day to determine bacterial populations (total aerobe counts, Lactobacilli, and Escherichia coli) and perform gut morphology analysis. Meat samples were analysed for chemical composition and oxidative stability under storage. 4. The HRB1 group had improved (P < 0.05) body weight gain and tended to have improved (0.05 ≤ P < 0.10) feed conversion ratio, compared to the control group. Jejunum lactic acid bacteria counts were increased (P < 0.001) in groups HRB1 and HRB3, compared to the control group, whereas caecal lactic acid bacteria counts tended to increase (0.05 ≤ P < 0.10) in group HRB1, compared to the control group. Breast meat fat content tended to be lower (0.05 ≤ P < 0.10) in group HRB1. Meat oxidative stability was improved (P < 0.001), and jejunum villus height, crypt depth and goblet cells numbers were increased (P < 0.001) in all three herbal supplemented groups, compared to the control. 5. In conclusion, herbal feed additives may be able to improve both growth performance and antioxidant activity of broiler chickens, based on their phenolic compound content.