Veterinary Research Forum
Volume:6 Issue: 4, Autumn 2015

This in vitro study was conducted to evaluate lymphocyte blastogenic and cytokine production by bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA), pokeweed mitogen (PWM) and concanavalin A (Con A) mitogens, by using tetrazolium salt and ELISA tests, respectively. The results presented that Interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-17 and IFN-γ production in response to PWM mitogens was the highest and Con A the lowest amount and the median values of three mitogens were in the following order: PWM > PHA > Con A > cell control. In the case of IL-6, the production of this cytokine was the same amount for PWM and Con A and a lower amount for PHA stimulation. The results of this study not only showed a normal range for the production of these cytokines from PBMCs that were affected by mitogens, but it demonstrated that the bovine immune system at 2.5 to 3 months was post-natally matured enough to mount an effective immune response to mitogens as well as specific antigens.

The aim of the present study was stereological evaluation of testes of azoospermic animal model using busulfan in rat. Three groups of male adult rats were used in this study. The first group was injected by single dose of busulfan (10 mg kg-1) and their testes were removed on day 35 post injection. The second group received double doses of busulfan with 21 days interval and their testes were removed on day 35 after the second injection. The testes of the third group were removed without busulfan therapy. In 10 circular transverse sections of tubules stained with hematoxylin-eosin, stereological parameters were measured. The testes were rated for its spermatogenic potential on a modified spermatogenic scale of 0 to 6. Cellular (germinal epithelium) diameter and area of the seminiferous tubules, total diameter and cross sectional area of the tubules of the seminiferous tubules in rats that received double doses of busulfan were less than the rats in single dose of busulfan and control groups (p < 0.05). Spermatogenesis index of seminiferous tubules in rats receiving two doses of busulfan was less than the rats received one dose of busulfan (p < 0.001) and the index of both treatment groups were less than the control group (p < 0.001). In conclusion, two doses of busulfan injection with 21 days interval produced an appropriate experimental model of induced azoospermia with comparable stereological indices of seminiferous tubules in rat.

Clostridium perfringens is an important cause of bacterial food poisoning worldwide. The disease is caused by C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) encoded by cpe gene. The aim of this research was to identify the different types of C. perfringens and the presence of cpe gene in isolated bacteria from broilers’ meat marketed in retail meat shops of Mashhad city in Northeastern of Iran. After isolation of C. perfringens using conventional culture method and confirmation by specific 16S rDNA gene, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction assay with specific primers, were performed for toxin typing of isolates. Clostridium perfringens was isolated from 31 broilers’ meat samples (15.50%) out of 200 samples and for toxin typing the results showed 9 isolates as type A (29.03%) and 22 isolates as type C (70.96%). In this study, cpe-positive C. perfringens were detected in eight isolates of type C (25.00%). Our results indicated that C. perfringens type C is the most common type in broiler chicken carcasses.

Four in vitro experiments (Exp.) were conducted to evaluate lavender essential oil (LEO) effects at 0 (control), 250 (low dose), 500 (medium dose), 750 and 1000 µL per L(high doses) of incubation medium on rumen gas production kinetics (Exp.1), ruminal digestibility and fermentation (Exp.2), methane production (Exp.3) and rumen acidosis (Exp.4). The asymptote of gas production (A) increased quadratically (p < 0.001), but the lag phase (L) increased(p = 0.003), and gas production rate (µ) decreased linearly (p = 0.031) with increasing dose of LEO. A linear and quadratic effect (p < 0.01)was observed for the gas produced after 24 hr of incubation (GP24). In vitro true dry matter degradability (IVTDMD) and in vitro true organic matter degradability (IVTOMD) both decreased linearly (p < 0.01), but microbial biomass (MB) and partitioning factor (PF) changed quadratically with increasing doses of LEO (p < 0.05). A cubic effect was observed for total volatile fatty acid (TVFA) and ammonia (NH3) concentrations (p < 0.05). Acetate molar percentage decreased (p = 0.004), whereas those of butyrate and valerate increased linearly (p <0.05)with LEO dosage. The molar percentage of propionate increased by 10.60 and 12.00% at low and medium doses of LEO, respectively. Methane production decreased by 11.00 and 44.00 to 60.00% at medium and high doses of LEO (p < 0.05), respectively. Lavender essential oil decreased also ruminal pH at all included doses (p < 0.05), intensifying rumen acidosis. These results revealed a dose-dependent selective effect (stimulatory at low and medium, and inhibitory at high doses) of LEO on rumen fermentation.

Staphylococcus aureus is generally regarded as a leading cause of mastitis in dairy cattle. The aim of this study was to investigate the pattern of agr groups and any possible relationship between agr groups and antibiotic resistance among S. aureus strains isolated from bovine mastitis in Northeast of Iran. For this purpose, a total of 300 bovine mastitic milk samples were taken from dairy industry farms of Khorasan Razavi Province, Iran. S. aureus were isolated and identified according to the standard methods. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was conducted by disk diffusion method. In this study a total of 31 isolates of S. aureus were evaluated for agrD gene polymorphism by specific primers. Most of the isolates belonged to agr group I (54.8%), followed by agr group III (25.8%) and agr group II (19.4%). There was not any isolates belonging to group IV. Resistance to methicillin in agr group I isolates was more than other groups. Agr groups II and III were quite susceptible to methicillin. Due to high prevalent of S. aureus isolates and high antibiotic resistance rate in bovine mastitic isolates, it is important to verify the characteristics of S. aureus strains in Iran.

The importance of cats in the Leptospira epidemiology is due to the possibility of transferring leptospirosis to wild and domesticated animals. The purpose of this survey was to determine the prevalence of Leptospira infection in shorthair cats in different location of Mashhad, Iran. Totally, 147 blood samples were taken from 42 (28.57%), 52 (35.37%) and 53 (36.05%) households, stray and cats which lived in industrial dairy cattle herds of Mashhad, Iran, respectively. Sera were tested with seven live Leptospira antigens using microscopic agglutination test (MAT). Sera with 50.00% agglutination at the dilution of ≥ 1/100 were considered as positive samples. Agglutination at dilutions of < 1/100 considered as suspected to Leptospira infection. Overall, 19 (12.92%) out of 147 cats showed reaction in MAT. The seroprevalence at a titer ≥ 1:100 and < 1:100 were 10 (6.80%) and 9 (6.12%), respectively. Serum samples showed positive reaction against Leptospira intterogans hardjo (no = 10; 52.63%), pomona (no = 5; 26.31%) and icterohaemorrhagiae (no = 4; 21.05%). Eight cats (42.10%) belong to dairy cattle herds had the most infection only by L. I. hardjo with 1:200 titer. There were no significant differences among the weight‚ age and sex of infected cats. However, there were significant differences between the infected cats in dairy cattle herds and the cats in the urban area (p < 0.05). It is concluded that cats can be infected by Leptospira spp. especially in commercial dairy cattle herds. Cats can be considered as a sanitation hazards in the area for this zoonotic disease.

The present study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of gallic acid on gastric mucosal lesions caused by ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in rat. Forty male rats were randomly divided into sham, control (I/R injury) and three gallic acid-pretreated groups. To induce I/R lesions, the celiac artery was clamped for 30 min and then the clamp was removed to allow reperfusion for 6 hr. Pretreated rats received gallic acid (15, 30 or 60 mg kg-1, intraperitoneally) 30 min prior to the induction of I/R injury. Macroscopic and microscopic evaluations of the areas of ulceration were compared. Samples of gastric mucosa were collected to evaluate the protein expression of pro-apoptotic factor, caspase-3, and pro-inflammatory enzyme, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) using western blot. Pretreatment with gallic acid decreased the total area of gastric lesions. Gallic acid at 30 mg kg-1 decreased the levels of protein expression of caspase-3 and iNOS induced by I/R injury. Our findings showed the protective effect of gallic acid on gastric mucosa against ischemia-reperfusion injury. This effect of gallic acid was mainly mediated by reducing protein expression of iNOS and caspase-3.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate anti-nociceptive effects of morphine, tramadol, meloxicam and their combinations in rats. Seventy male Wistar rats were divided into seven equal groups and randomly assigned to receive intraperitoneal saline (S) (control group, 1.0 mL kg-1), morphine (MO) (4.0 mg kg-1), tramadol (TR) (12.5 mg kg-1), meloxicam (ML) (1.0 mg kg-1), tramadol- morphine (TR-MO), meloxicam-morphine (ML-MO) and meloxicam-tramadol (ML-TR) at the same doses. Anti-nociception was evaluated using tail flick latency (TFL) test at 45, 60, 75, 90 and 120 min after drug injection. The TFL was significantly higher in TR and MO groups compared to S group for 90 and 120 min, respectively. No significant change in TFL from baseline values was observed at all time points in ML group. Among rats that received combination of analgesics, those that received TR-MO had significantly greater TFL. There was no significant difference in TFL between ML-TR and ML-MO groups. In conclusion, TR, MO and their combination all provided acceptable anti-nociceptive effects in rats. Meloxicam at the given dosage (1.0 mg kg-1) did not demonstrate any anti-nociceptive effect when evaluated by TFL test.

Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is a selective inhibitor of Inosine-5′-monophosphate dehydrogenase. Gastrointestinal (GI) disturbances in immature ones are reported for MMF-induced compilations, which in the case of occurrence dose reduction is required. Thus, in the present study, the fructooligosaccharide raftilose® (RFT) was co-administrated with MMF to estimate the protective effect of RFT against MMF-induced GI complications. Thirty six immature male Wistar rats were divided into six groups including: Control (normal saline), RFT-treated (100 mg kg-1), MMF-treated (20 mg kg-1), MMF + LRFT (50 mg kg-1), MMF + MRFT (100 mg kg-1) and MMF + HRFT (200 mg kg-1) groups. The hematocrit (Hct), lymphocyte/total WBC, feces water content and pH were analyzed. Moreover, the hepatic functional tests, kidney-related biomarkers, lipid and protein profiles, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) contents were assessed. Co-administration of RFT stabilized the MMF-reduced body weight. The MMF significantly diminished Hct and lymph/total WBC (p < 0.05). Only MRFT enhanced the lymphocyte/total WBC. Increased water content, no changes in feces pH, increased serum ALT and AST, no alteration in urea and mild enhancement in creatinine were demonstrated in MMF-received animals. However, RFT at low dose ameliorated the feces parameters and reduced ALT. No significant changes were demonstrated for serum lipid and protein profiles in MMF- and RFT + MMF-treated groups. The RFT enhanced the serum TAC, reduced MDA and NO contents. In conclusion, our data suggested that RFT could be considered as an effective agent to subsidize the MMF-induced clinical, hematological and biochemical disorders.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of gender on the distribution of pancreatic islets in native chicken. Ten adult male and ten adult female Isfahan native chickens were used in this experiment. Results showed a distinct sexual dimorphism in the native chicken pancreas which depends upon the various fractions of the pancreatic lobes, which were occupied by alpha, beta and mixed islets. In both sexes, the islets were more frequently found in the splenic and the third lobes, whereas they were more scarcely observed in the ventral and the dorsal lobes. In both sexes, there were no alpha islets in the dorsal and ventral pancreatic lobes. The mean percentage of beta islets in the third and splenic lobes were significantly greater in males than females (p < 0.05). However, the mean percentage of mixed islets in the third and splenic lobes were significantly greater in females than males (p < 0.05). The mean percentage of the alpha islets in the splenic and third lobes and the mean percentage of beta and mixed islets in the dorsal and ventral lobes was similar in both sexes in chickens. There was no sex difference in the mean percentage of whole gland islets (p > 0.05).

The present study investigates the effects of different routes of inulin administration as prebiotic on gut microbiota and survival rate of Indian white shrimp post-larvae. Four hundred and fifty Indian white shrimp post-larvae (PL1) were stocked in nine tanks. The tanks were assigned into three treatments: feeding with inulin-treated (110 mg L-1) Artemia nauplii (I-T), feeding with inulin-enriched (110 mg L-1) Artemia nauplii (I-E) and control which repeated triplicates. Feeding trial was performed until PL11 stage and then gut microbiota was studied using culture based method. Also, survival rate was calculated at the end of feeding trial. Our results showed that feeding on inulin enriched or treated Artemia nauplii had no significant effect on total viable culturable autochthonous bacteria and Vibrio spp. levels of the gut microbiota (p > 0.05). However, a remarkable increase of lactic acid bacteria levels (LAB) was observed in I-E treatment (p < 0.05). Administration of inulin enriched Artemia nauplii significantly elevated survival rates of Indian white shrimp post-larvae (p < 0.05). These results encourage administration of prebiotic-enriched Artemia nauplii in post larval stage of Indian white shrimp but determination the mode of action of prebiotic on various aspects of shrimp larviculture merit further research.

Paratuberculosis (John’s disease) is infectious and chronically progressive granulomatous disease which affects domestic and wild ruminants. The causative agent is Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (MAP), a slow growing mycobactin dependent acid-fast bacillus. We investigated the detection and frequency of MAP in apparently healthy dromedary and Bactrian camels by insertion sequence 900 (IS900) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and acid fast staining of fecal samples in Iran. Acid fast staining results showed that 6/50 (12.0%) samples of dromedary camels and 4/26 (15.3%) samples of Bactrian camels were suspected to MAP. Although the percentage of positivity for PCR assay of fecal dromedary camel was 8.0%, no bands corresponding to MAP detect in all samples of Bactrian camels. In conclusion, Although the incidence of MAP infection was low, further studies should be conducted to get more information on MAP infection in camel population, especially in areas where camels are close to other ruminants such as dairy cow, sheep and goat.

Skeletal abnormalities are most often used to describe defects in the arms or legs that are associated with genes or chromosomes, or that occur due to an event that happens during pregnancy. Spider lamb syndrome (SLS) is a congenital disorder in sheep breeding that is recognized by some deformities in skeletal system especially in the limbs.A dead day-old cross-breed white lamb with deformed limbs was referred to the anatomy hall of the Veterinary Faculty of Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman. In the external examination, the lamb was very skinny and in the facial region, superior brachygnathia with a slight Roman nose were observed. Metacarpal and metatarsal regions were more elongated than that expected. Also Metacarpal and metatarsal bones were as long as the antebrachial and crural regions, respectively. This paper, the first report of this syndrome in Iran, described the anatomic and radiographic features of the skeletal deformities in a day-old dead Kermanian breed lamb.

Clostridial myositis, considered to be rare in pet animals, is an acutely fatal toxaemic condition. Some species of clostridia are responsible for necrotic myositis. A 2-year-old male German shepherd dog was admitted with non-weight bearing lameness and massive swelling of the left hind limb. Clostridium perfringens type A with alpha toxin was diagnosed as a pathogenic agent. Based on the history, the bacteria were introduced inside the tissue via contaminated needle following intramuscular injection. Urgent medical therapy followed by surgical intervention was performed. The dog was discharged completely healthy after hospitalization for four weeks. The objective of this report was to describe necrotic myositis in a dog with an emphasis on clinical signs and treatment as well as bacteriological and molecular identification of the micro-organism. Because of the fatal entity of the disease, prompt diagnosis as well as proper and urgent treatment is very important for successful therapy.