Coumafuryl (Fumarin) toxicity in chicks.

Coumafuryl (Fumarin) toxicity was diagnosed in chickens less than 1 week of age. Mortality rate was 100%. Necropsy showed crops and gizzards to be full of feed. There was diffuse hemorrhage and unclotted blood in the abdomen and thorax. Histological examination showed congestion and hemorrhage. Chemical analysis of crop and gizzard contents contained approximately 340 ppm coumafuryl. The source of the coumafuryl was found to be the wood-straw mats in the chick boxes.

Pasteurellosis in bobwhite quail.

A flock of 5000 six-week-old bobwhite quails (Colinus virginianus) experienced high mortality (52%) over a 2-day period. Mortality was 99% within a 6-day period. Clinical signs were depression followed shortly by death. Gross lesions observed in dead quails were congested lungs and, in a few cases, mottled livers. Histopathologic examination revealed severe, diffuse, heterophilic interstitial pneumonia and multifocal areas of hepatic and splenic necrosis with numerous intracellular and extracellular short bacterial rods. Serotype 3, 4, 15, 16, Pasteurella multocida, isolated from the index case, caused 50% mortality in experimentally inoculated bobwhite quails within 9 to 24 hours. This report indicates that pasteurellosis can cause peracute disease in bobwhite quails with very high mortality.

Heterogeneity of insulin-like growth factor binding proteins in swine.

Proteins in porcine amniotic fluid and sera (both fetal and adult) were separated electrophoretically in sodium dodecyl sulfate-containing polyacrylamide gels and transferred to nitrocellulose sheets. Western blots were analysed for proteins that would bind (a) radioiodinated insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and (b) antibodies to a rat insulin-like growth factor binding protein. Multiple insulin-like growth factor binding proteins were identified in sera. The binding proteins ranged in size from Mr 192,000 to 26,000. One immunologically cross-reactive protein (Mr 36,000) was detected. No binding proteins were detected routinely in amniotic fluids. Sera from adult swine were fractionated by preparative isoelectric focusing. Two binding proteins (Mr 192,000, 46,000) were located in acidic fractions which also contained IGF-I and IGF-II. Two binding proteins (Mr 36,000, 26,000) were located in neutral to basic fractions which contained primarily IGF-II. Immunoglobulin-sized material from adult sera fractionated over Sephadex G-200 contained two binding proteins (Mr 46,000, 42,000) whereas albumin-sized material contained one (Mr 36,000). Porcine insulin-like growth factor binding proteins are as heterogeneous as those from humans.

Restriction endonuclease analysis of infectious laryngotracheitis viruses: comparison of modified-live vaccine viruses and North Carolina field isolates.

Six modified-live (ML) infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT) vaccine viruses, three reference strains, and 18 field isolates were compared by restriction endonuclease analysis of their DNA. Viral DNA digestion patterns were established for vaccine viruses using restriction endonucleases PstI, BamHI, KpnI, and HindIII. Using these enzymes, five of six ML vaccine viruses had identical restriction endonuclease cleavage patterns. Vaccine viruses had distinct patterns compared with ILT virus reference strains Illinois-N71851, Cover, and NVSL. Restriction endonuclease cleavage patterns of 18 field isolates of ILT virus, obtained from ILT outbreaks in North Carolina, were indistinguishable from vaccine viruses. These results suggest a possible role of vaccine or vaccine-like viruses in recent ILT outbreaks.

Staphylococcus-induced gangrenous dermatitis in broilers.

An infectious bursal disease (IBD)-vaccinated flock of 23,900 broilers, 17 days of age, experienced sudden onset of depression, dermatitis, and mortality. Postmortem examination showed extensive subcutaneous serosanguineous fluid accumulation over the pectoral muscles, discrete hepatic whitish foci, fluid-filled intestines, and small, flaccid bursae of Fabricius. Gram-stained impression smears from the affected areas revealed numerous gram-positive cocci. Aerobic culture of liver and subcutaneous tissue consistently produced heavy growth of penicillin-sensitive Staphyloccus aureus. Histopathologically, subcutaneous tissue showed diffuse hemorrhage and large numbers of gram-positive cocci with severe congestion and hemorrhage of the underlying skeletal muscle. Liver sections showed multiple, randomly scattered areas of acute coagulation necrosis with numerous gram-positive cocci. Bursal lesions were characterized by extensive follicular necrosis and collapse. A diagnosis of staphylococcal gangrenous dermatitis secondary to IBD was made. Mortality returned to preinfection levels within 72 hours after penicillin was added to the drinking water.

Some effects on layers of sodium sulfate and magnesium sulfate in their drinking water.

Potential for increasing contamination of water supplies with such materials as dissolved inorganic solids suggests more precise water quanlity standards for poultry. Commercial strain S.C.W.L. hens were supplied water containing sodium sulfate (Na2SO4) or magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) (250, 1,000, 4,000, or 16,000 p.p.m.) on a total sulfate basis in Exp. 1 and on a total salt basis in Exp. 2. All data are expressed as percentages deviated from pre-treatment performance. Four thousand p.p.m. of total sulfate as Na2SO4 or MgSO4 significantly depressed feed consumption and hen-day production. Magnesium sulfate (4,000 p.p.m.) had a more depressing effect than Na2SO4 (4,000 p.p.m.) on hen-day production (-80.4 vs. -24.4%). At that level, Na2SO4 significantly increased water consumption and fecal moisture content, while MgSO4 significantly decreased water consumption. All hens on 1l,000 p.p.m. of either salt died during the experiment. No effect on egg quality was observed before the hens died. On a total salt basis (Exp. 2) 16,000 p.p.m. of either Na2SO4 or MgSO4 significantly depressed hen-day production, body weight, and feed comsumption, but increased water consumption. Hens receiving 16,000 p.p.m. Na2SO4 increased water consumption more than those receiving 16,000 p.p.m. MgSO4(146.7 and 24.6%). No significant differences between treatments were observed for mortality (Exp. 2). Mortality data suggest that lethal levels of Na2SO4 and MgSO4 are between 16,000 and 20,032 or 23,680 p.p.m. total salt, respectively.