Retrospective analysis of iatrogenic diseases in cattle requiring admission to a veterinary hospital.

Iatrogenic diseases in veterinary medicine are often related to malpractice or lack of skill. For this retrospective study, 4262 clinical records of cattle admitted to the veterinary teaching hospital of the University of Milan between 2005 and 2017 were analysed, and 121 cases (2.8 per cent), referred for an iatrogenic-related disease, were selected. The findings showed that iatrogenic diseases were more often caused by farmers (92.6per cent) than by bovine practitioners (7.4 per cent). Iatrogenic diseases were caused mainly by the improper administration of drugs (43.0 per cent), forced extraction during calving (19.8 per cent), forced milk or colostrum feeding, which was often performed by awkward administration using a nipple bottle (14.9 per cent) or by oral oesophageal tubing (15.7 per cent). Moreover, farmers often performed medical, nursing and zootechnical procedures without adequate training. The role of the practitioner is fundamental in farmer education. Clinicians, especially in some professional branches such as neonatology, should not delegate medical procedures to untrained farmers. Effective tutoring and good communication with farmers play a key role in dairy herd health and consequently in public health. This then can lead to a decrease in improper drug administration, the prevention of antibiotic resistance and the reduction of treatment costs.

Effects of platelet-rich plasma in a model of bovine endometrial inflammation in vitro.

BACKGROUND: Endometritis reduces fertility and is responsible for major economic losses in beef and dairy industries. The aim of this study was to evaluate an alternative therapy using platelet-rich plasma (PRP). PRP was tested in vivo, after bovine intrauterine administration, and in vitro on endometrial cells. METHODS: Bovine endometrial cells were cultured until passage (P) 10 with 5 % or 10 % PRP. Effect of PRP on endometrial cell proliferation and on the expression of genes [prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (COX2), tumor protein p53 (TP53), oestrogen receptors (ER-α and ER-ß), progesterone receptor (PR) and c-Myc] involved in the regulation of oestrus cycle and fetal-maternal interaction were evaluated. Moreover, to evaluate the ability of PRP to counteract inflammation, 10 and 100 ng/ml of bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were used to inflame endometrial cells in vitro for 1, 6, 12, 24 and 48 h. The expression of genes such as interleukin 1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin-8 (IL-8), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (COX2/PTGS2), and the release of PGE-2, IL-1ß and IL-8 were evaluated. RESULTS: In vivo treatment with PRP increased the detection of PR. In vitro, 5 % PRP at passage 5 increased proliferation rate and induced a significant increase in the expression of all studied genes. Furthermore, the results revealed that 10 ng/ml of LPS is the most effective dose to obtain an inflammatory response, and that PRP treatment significantly down regulated the expression of pro-inflammatory genes. CONCLUSION: This study lays the foundations for the potential treatment of endometritis with PRP in vivo.

Immunohistochemical expression of SOX9 protein in immature, mature, and neoplastic canine Sertoli cells.

Sex-determining region Y box9 gene (SOX9) protein plays a pivotal role in male sexual development. It regulates the transcription of the anti-Müllerian hormone gene promoting development of testis cords, multiplication, and maturation of Sertoli cells (SCs) and maintenance of spermatogenesis in adult testis. The immunohistochemical expression of SOX9 in normal testes has been reported in humans, mice, and rats. The present study aimed to investigate the expression of SOX9 in canine SCs during testicular maturation and neoplastic transformation. Canine testicular samples derived from three fetuses, four newborns, four prepubertal puppies, five adult dogs, 31 Sertoli cell tumors (SCTs) (one metastasizing), and five Leydig cell tumors (LCTs) were selected from departmental archive and tested immunohistochemically with a polyclonal antibody against SOX9 (1:150). All SCs from fetal, neonatal, and adult testes had a strong and exclusively nuclear labeling for SOX9. In SCs from prepubertal testes, SOX9 staining was highly variable with one negative sample (one of four), two samples with exclusively nuclear staining (two of four), and one with both nuclear and cytoplasmic labeling (one of four). Leydig cells (LCs) and LCTs were always negative. All 31 SCTs were positive for SOX9. The expression of SOX9 was nuclear, nuclear and cytoplasmic, and exclusively cytoplasmic in 18 of 31, 11 of 31, and two of 31 SCTs, respectively. This first report on the immunohistochemical expression of SOX9 in canine testes reports that in normal SCs from fetal, neonatal, and adult testes SOX9 labeled the nucleus, as in humans and laboratory animals. The cytoplasmic labeling observed in one prepubertal pairs of testes and in 11 SCTs could reflect SC immaturity or dedifferentiation, paralleling results observed in rat testes. The expression of SOX9 in SCs and SCTs and its absence in LCs and LCTs suggests that SOX9 is a reliable diagnostic marker for both normal and neoplastic SCs.

Severe thymic hyperplasia in a newborn calf associated with impaired T-cell differentiation.

A 1-day-old female Holstein-Friesian calf was presented for severe dyspnea. Physical examination revealed respiratory distress, moderate edema of the ventral neck, and swollen jugular veins. The calf died and was submitted for necropsy. A severely enlarged thymus (40 cm × 20 cm × 10 cm) weighing 1.37 kg was detected on gross examination. Histomorphology was normal but no tingible body macrophages were observed in the medullary areas. Immunohistochemistry was characterized by the lack of thymic cluster of differentiation 3 and major histocompatibility complex class II expression compared to age-matched controls. The findings were consistent with severe thymic hyperplasia, a rare congenital condition that is also described in children. Immunohistochemical findings were suggestive of impaired T-cell development and selection associated with lack of apoptosis of thymic cells (lack of tingible body macrophages). Thymic hyperplasia in juvenile animals should be considered among the differential diagnoses of mediastinal masses as a rare cause of respiratory distress in newborn calves.