Colonic mucosal and cytobrush sample cytokine mRNA expression in canine inflammatory bowel disease and their correlation with disease activity, endoscopic and histopathologic score.

Canine inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of chronic gastrointestinal disorders, the pathogenesis of which remains elusive, but it possibly involves the interaction of the intestinal immune system with luminal microbiota and food-derived antigens. Mucosal cytokines profiles in canine IBD have been investigated mainly in small intestinal disease, while data on cytokine profiles in large intestinal IBD are limited. The objective of this study was to measure colonic mucosal and cytobrush sample messenger (m)RNA expression of interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-2, IL-12p40, IL-23p19, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and chemokine C-C motif ligand (CCL28) in dogs with IBD and healthy controls using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and assess their correlation with clinical disease activity, endoscopic and histopathologic score. Dogs with IBD had a significantly increased mRNA expression of IL-1ß, IL-23p19 and CCL28 in the colonic mucosa, compared to healthy controls. None of the selected cytokines had significantly different mRNA expression in the colonic cytobrush samples between the two groups or between the colonic mucosa and cytobrush samples of dogs with IBD. Finally, there was a statistically significant correlation of clinical disease activity with endoscopic activity score and fibrosis and atrophy of the colonic mucosa in dogs with large intestinal IBD. IL-1ß, IL-23p19 and CCL28 could play a role in the pathogenesis of canine large intestinal IBD. Colonic cytokine expression does not correlate with clinical disease activity and/or endoscopic score. However, clinical signs reflect the severity of endoscopic lesions.

Leishmania infection in lagomorphs and minks in Greece.

Greece is an endemic country for human and canine leishmaniosis. Studies about the role of lagomorphs and minks in the epidemiology of the diseases are, so far, limited. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of Leishmania infection in these animals, in different areas of the country. Samples from 393 domestic and wild rabbits, 90 hares and 200 minks were collected and examined by cytology (spleen imprints) and serology (ELISA), while spleen samples of 116, 56 and 95 of the rabbits, hares and minks, respectively, were examined by a PCR assay targeting the ITS1 region. For every animal examined a form was created, recording information like date, area, animal species, sex, etc. All imprint smears examined were negative, while serology revealed infection in 7.6% (C.I. 5.0-10.3%) rabbits, 6.7% (C.I. 1.5-11.8%) hares and 20% (C.I. 14.5-25.5%) minks. Infection was confirmed by molecular methods in 2.6% (C.I. 0.0-5.5%), 3.6% (C.I. 0.0-8.4%) and 2.1% (C.I. 0.0-5.0%) of the animals, respectively. The statistical analysis showed that minks are most likely to be seropositive and that in rabbits, the breeding method (i.e. homestead reared animals) was associated with infection. Because of the proximity of lagomorphs and minks to humans and dogs it is necessary to further elucidate their role in the epidemiology of leishmaniosis.

Evaluation of the in-field efficacy of oregano essential oil administration on the control of neonatal diarrhea syndrome in calves.

The objective of this study was to evaluate under field conditions, whether daily administration of oregano essential oil is effective in preventing and/or diminishing the severity of neonatal diarrhea syndrome in calves aged less than 15days. Ninety-one newborn calves from three dairy farms were assigned into two groups; "Eco" group (n=46) calves were drenched with Greek oregano (Origanum vulgare ssp. Hirtum) essential oil (ECODIAR® liquid 5%) at the dose of 12.5mg/kg body weight once per day until the age of 10days. "Conts" group (n=45) calves were left untreated and served as controls. All animals were monitored daily for the incidence of diarrhea until the age of 15days and their fecal score was recorded. Fecal samples were collected on days 3, 6 and 10 for microbiological and parasitological evaluation. Average fecal score throughout the experiment, incidence of diarrhea, duration and severity of diarrhea episodes were significantly lower in Eco group compared to the controls. Daily administration of oregano essential oil in calves for the first 10days of their life effectively diminishes the severity of naturally acquired diarrhea under field conditions and, under certain hygiene practices, possess a preventive effect against neonatal diarrhea syndrome.

Epidemiological characteristics and clinicopathological features of bluetongue in sheep and cattle, during the 2014 BTV serotype 4 incursion in Greece.

During 2014, an outbreak of Bluetongue virus (BTV) infections attributed to serotype 4 occurred in Greece and spread to south-eastern Europe. In the present article, the clinical and epidemiological data of 15 sheep flocks and 5 dairy cattle herds affected in Greece are described. In sheep, the most frequent clinical signs observed were fever, hyporexia, and edema of the face. A number of clinically affected sheep had chronic laminitis resulting in chronic lameness. Confirmation of suspect clinical cases was performed using BTV-specific real-time RT-PCR, and serotype 4-specific RT-PCR. The average morbidity of bluetongue in the sheep flocks was estimated to be 15.3 % (95 % C.I. 6.8-23.8 %) and the average mortality and case fatality were 4.5 % (95 % C.I. 1.5-7.6 %) and 32.0 % (95 % C.I. 18.1-42.9 %), respectively. The BTV seroprevalence and the ratio of clinical manifestations-to-infections determined in seven of these flocks, were on average 36.5 % (95 % C.I. 15.7-57.3 %) and 24.6 % (95 % C.I. 12.8-36.3 %). BTV ratio of clinical manifestations-to-infections was higher in the imported western European sheep breeds examined compared to the local ones. In dairy cattle, the average herd prevalence of viremia was 48.8 % (95 % C.I. 15.3-82.4 %) and none had signs associated with bluetongue. The results of this study indicate that the 2014 Greek BTV-4 has significant impact on the health status and the viability of sheep in affected flocks but does not cause clinical signs in cattle, despite the high prevalence of viremia.