Clinical and histopathological investigation of symmetrical alopecia with associated chronic pruritus in tufted capuchin monkeys (Sapajus apella apella).

BACKGROUND: Symmetrical alopecia is a common symptom of endocrine and autoimmune diseases, which are rarely manifested with pruritus. Increased levels of stress in primates have been presented with increased levels of pruritus and alopecia appearance. METHODS: A pruritic and alopecic disease was investigated in a group of tufted capuchin monkeys (N = 12), but due to ethical reasons, four random animals were further investigated by numerous diagnostic methods. The impact of food and enclosure enrichment was assessed and observed over a 2-year period. RESULTS: Histopathology of four random tufted capuchin monkeys revealed lymphocytic perifolliculitis, with an appearance of a "swarm of bees" which was suggestive of alopecia areata. Etiological classification of pruritus excluded dermatological, systemic, and neurological causes, making it behavioral. Enclosure and food enrichment had a beneficial impact on pruritus (12/12) and alopecia (10/12). CONCLUSION: The findings were suggestive of alopecia areata, while the pruritus was considered behavioral in origin. Alopecia and pruritus improved upon enclosure and food enrichment.

Comprehensive Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcome of Taenia crassiceps Cysticercosis in a Ring-Tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) from a Croatian Zoo: No Longer Unusual?

Taenia crassiceps is a zoonotic tapeworm of the genus Taenia that is distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Wild and domestic carnivores are final hosts, while rodents and rabbits are primarily intermediate hosts, although many other mammals may harbour the larval stage, Cysticercus longicollis. This case report aims to describe C. longicollis infection in a lemur and molecularly characterise the isolated parasite. The excised lesion was subjected to morphological and histopathological examination, which revealed cysticerci of the tapeworm. Formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded block (FFPEB), as well as the cysticerci fixed with formalin stored for one year, were subjected to molecular analysis, which aimed at detecting the partial mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene of Taenia sp. Based on the morphological characteristics, the parasite was identified as a metacestode of T. crassiceps. The presence of the cox1 gene was detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in all samples. A randomly selected PCR product was sequenced and compared with other sequences from the GenBank database, confirming that the detected parasite was T. crassiceps. This article reports the first case of T. crassiceps cysticercosis in a lemur (Lemur catta) in Croatia and emphasises the potential risk of transmission from wild carnivores.

Eccrine carcinoma in the foot of an Asian elephant (Elephas maximus).

A case of eccrine carcinoma of the interdigital foot glands in a 39-yr-old female Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) from Zagreb Zoo is described. The tumor between the toenails of the right forefoot was surgically removed 3 yr before postmortem examination (2003), and the histopathologic diagnosis was compound eccrine carcinoma characterized with glandular tubular and papillary proliferations, mild cellular pleomorphism, proliferation of the myoepithelial cells with mucoid secretions, and necrosis. Immunohistochemistry revealed strong immunoreactivity to S-100 protein, estrogen, and high-molecular weight cytokeratin. This elephant also had chronic renal fibrosis with uremia.

Investigating the Presence of SARS CoV-2 in Free-Living and Captive Animals.

Due to SARS CoV-2 recombination rates, number of infected people and recent reports of environmental contamination, the possibility of SARS CoV-2 transmission to animals can be expected. We tested samples of dominant free-living and captive wildlife species in Croatia for the presence of anti-SARS CoV-2 antibodies and viral RNA. In total, from June 2020 until February 2021, we tested blood, muscle extract and fecal samples of 422 free-living wild boars (Sus scrofa), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and jackals (Canis aureus); blood and cloacal swabs of 111 yellow-legged gulls (Larus michahellis) and fecal samples of 32 zoo animals. A commercially available ELISA (ID.Vet, France) and as a confirmatory test, a surrogate virus neutralization test (sVNT; GenScript, Netherlands) were used. Fecal samples were tested for the presence of viral RNA by a real-time RT-PCR protocol. Fifteen out of 533 (2.8%) positive ELISA results were detected; in wild boars (3.9%), red foxes (2.9%) and jackals (4.6%). However, the positive findings were not confirmed by sVNT. No viral RNA was found. In conclusion, no spillover occurred within the investigated period (second COVID-19 wave). However, further investigation is needed, especially regarding wildlife sample features for serological tests.

Disseminated tuberculosis in hyrax (Procavia capensis) caused by Mycobacterium africanum.

Tuberculosis due to Mycobacterium africanum was diagnosed in an adult female hyrax (Procavia capensis). Pathologic examination revealed disseminated tuberculous lesions. The same pathologic changes were also found in a male hyrax that died a year later. Both animals were imported from the United Arab Emirates and were held in captivity at the Zagreb Zoo in Croatia. The source of infection remains unknown. The acid-fast bacteria isolated from the lungs of the female hyrax were identifyed by polymerase chain reaction as Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and Geno Type MTBC test confirmed the strain to be M. africanum I.

Yersiniosis in zoo marmosets (Callitrix jacchuss) caused by Yersinia enterocolitica 4/O:3.

The aim of this research was to describe two fatal cases of Yersinia enterocolitica bioserotype 4/O:3 infection in non-human primates and to characterise the isolates by PCR and PFGE. In July 2004, two marmosets (Callitrix jacchuss) born in captivity in Zagreb Zoo, died following a few days of intermittent diarrhoea in intervals of 2 weeks. The pathomorphological diagnosis of the female (born in 1997) and the male (born in 1995) marmoset, was disseminated miliary necrosis of the liver. Y. enterocolitica 4/O:3 was isolated from both livers showing that monkeys are susceptible to this bioserotype. The ail gene, which is an essential chromosomal virulence factor in pathogenic Y. enterocolitica isolates, was present in the marmoset isolates. Two different PFGE patterns were obtained from the isolates of the male liver with NotI enzyme. One genotype of the male marmoset isolate was indistinguishable from the genotype of the female marmoset isolate when NotI, ApaI and XhoI enzymes were used indicating a common infection source for the marmosets. The genotypes of the marmoset isolates differed only slightly from one human (of seven Croatian isolates) and from one pig isolate (representing a common genotype found among human and porcine isolates in Germany) suggesting that raw pork fed to the marmoset could have been the infection source.

Prevalence and molecular typing of Giardia spp. in captive mammals at the zoo of Zagreb, Croatia.

A total of 131 faecal samples from 57 mammalian species housed at the zoo of Zagreb, Croatia, were tested for the presence of Giardia spp. cysts using epifluorescence microscopy. The overall prevalence (29%) was high, yet all animals were asymptomatic at the time of sampling. Positive samples were characterized by PCR and sequence analysis of both conserved and variable loci, for the identification of Giardia species and G. duodenalis assemblages and genotypes. Assemblages A and C were identified in Artiodactyla, assemblage B in Primates, Rodentia and Hyracoidea, and assemblages A, B, C and D, as well as Giardia microti, in Carnivora. Genotyping at the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region, at the triose phosphate isomerase, glutamate dehydrogenase and beta-giardin genes revealed extensive polymorphisms, particularly among assemblage B isolates. A phylogenetic analysis of concatenated sequences showed that isolates from captive mammals housed at the zoo are genetically different from isolates of human and domestic animal origin. This is the first survey in a zoological garden to include a molecular characterization of the parasite, and provides novel sequence data of G. duodenalis from many previously uncharacterized hosts.