Immune-mediated polyneuropathy in cats: Clinical description, electrodiagnostic assessment, and treatment.

BACKGROUND: Suspected immune-mediated polyneuropathy has been increasingly reported in cats, especially in the last decade, but the condition remains poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: Refine the clinical description and review the classification of this condition based on electrodiagnostic investigation and evaluate the benefit of corticosteroid treatment and L-carnitine supplementation. ANIMALS: Fifty-five cats presented with signs of muscular weakness and electrodiagnostic findings consistent with polyneuropathy of unknown origin. METHODS: Retrospective, multicenter study. Data from the medical records were reviewed. The owners were contacted by phone for follow-up at the time of the study. RESULTS: The male-to-female ratio was 2.2. The median age of onset was 10 months, with 91% of affected cats being <3 years of age. Fourteen breeds were represented in the study. The electrodiagnostic findings supported purely motor axonal polyneuropathy. Histological findings from nerve biopsies were consistent with immune-mediated neuropathy in 87% of the tested cats. The overall prognosis for recovery was good to excellent, as all but 1 cat achieved clinical recovery, with 12% having mild sequelae and 28% having multiple episodes during their lifetime. The outcome was similar in cats with no treatment when compared with cats receiving corticosteroids or L-carnitine supplementation. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Immune-mediated motor axonal polyneuropathy should be considered in young cats with muscle weakness. This condition may be similar to acute motor axonal neuropathy in Guillain-Barré syndrome patients. Based on our results, diagnostic criteria have been proposed.

Brain perfusion magnetic resonance imaging using pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling in 314 dogs and cats.

BACKGROUND: Arterial spin labeling (ASL) is a noninvasive brain perfusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique that has not been assessed in clinical veterinary medicine. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To test the feasibility of ASL using a 1.5 Tesla scanner and provide recommendations for optimal quantification of cerebral blood flow (CBF) in dogs and cats. ANIMALS: Three hundred fourteen prospectively selected client-owned dogs and cats. METHODS: Each animal underwent brain MRI including morphological sequences and ≥1 ASL sequences using different sites of blood labeling and postlabeling delays (PLD). Calculated ASL success rates were compared. The CBF was quantified in animals that had morphologically normal brain MRI results and parameters of ASL optimization were investigated. RESULTS: Arterial spin labeling was easily implemented with an overall success rate of 95% in animals with normal brain MRI. Technical recommendations included (a) positioning of the imaging slab at the foramen magnum and (b) selected PLD of 1025 ms in cats and dogs <7 kg, 1525 ms in dogs 7 to 38 kg, and 2025 ms in dogs >38 kg. In 37 dogs, median optimal CBF in the cortex and thalamic nuclei were 114 and 95 mL/100 g/min, respectively. In 28 cats, median CBF in the cortex and thalamic nuclei were 113 and 114 mL/100 g/min, respectively. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Our survey of brain perfusion ASL-MRI demonstrated the feasibility of ASL at 1.5 Tesla, suggested technical recommendations and provided CBF values that should be helpful in the characterization of various brain diseases in dogs and cats.

Rhizosphere-enriched microbes as a pool to design synthetic communities for reproducible beneficial outputs.

Composts represent a sustainable way to suppress diseases and improve plant growth. Identification of compost-derived microbial communities enriched in the rhizosphere of plants and characterization of their traits, could facilitate the design of microbial synthetic communities (SynComs) that upon soil inoculation could yield consistent beneficial effects towards plants. Here, we characterized a collection of compost-derived bacteria, previously isolated from tomato rhizosphere, for in vitro antifungal activity against soil-borne fungal pathogens and for their potential to change growth parameters in Arabidopsis. We further assessed root-competitive traits in the dominant rhizospheric genus Bacillus. Certain isolated rhizobacteria displayed antifungal activity against the tested pathogens and affected the growth of Arabidopsis, and the Bacilli members possessed several enzymatic activities. Subsequently, we designed two SynComs with different composition and tested their effect on Arabidopsis and tomato growth and health. SynCom1, consisting of different bacterial genera, displayed negative effect on Arabidopsis in vitro, but promoted tomato growth in pots. SynCom2, consisting of Bacilli, didn't affect Arabidopsis growth, enhanced tomato growth and suppressed Fusarium wilt symptoms. Overall, we found selection of compost-derived microbes with beneficial properties in the rhizosphere of tomato plants, and observed that application of SynComs on poor substrates can yield reproducible plant phenotypes.

Clinical and serologic remission of acquired myasthenia gravis in a domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo).

CASE DESCRIPTION: A 4.5-year-old neutered male domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo) was examined because of clinical signs compatible with neuromuscular disease. CLINICAL FINDINGS: Results of electrophysiologic assessment, including measurement of compound muscle action potentials following repetitive nerve stimulation, and measurement of the anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody titer were consistent with a diagnosis of acquired myasthenia gravis. TREATMENT AND OUTCOME: Medical treatment with pyridostigmine and prednisolone was instituted. The first signs of clinical improvement were observed 2 months later, followed by a slow but steady improvement over the next months. Anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody titer was measured 10 months after initiation of treatment and was markedly decreased, compared with the initial titer. Pyridostigmine and prednisolone dosages were tapered over the following 4 months without any evidence of recurrence of clinical signs. Thirty months after initial examination, the ferret was clinically normal and not receiving any treatment. A follow-up anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody titer was similar to previously published values for healthy ferrets. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Findings indicated that clinical and serologic remission can be achieved in ferrets with myasthenia gravis. However, owner willingness to provide extensive supportive care was vital to the outcome for this patient, as was the owner's decision to not euthanize the ferret despite an initial lack of response to treatment.