hacked by p@3t_b@y for turks

Anne M. Kiilerich , Henrik Christensen  and Stig M. Thamsborg

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica 2009, 51:55doi:10.1186/1751-0147-51-55
Published: 21 December 2009

Abstract (provisional)

Background
The presence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum, an Ixodes ricinus transmitted bacterium, was investigated in two flocks of Danish grazing lambs. Direct PCR detection was performed on DNA extracted from blood and serum with subsequent confirmation by DNA sequencing.

Methods
31 samples obtained from clinically normal lambs in 2000 from Fussingo, Jutland and 12 samples from ten lambs and two ewes from a clinical outbreak at Feddet, Zealand in 2006 were included in the study. Some of the animals from Feddet had shown clinical signs of polyarthritis and general unthriftiness prior to sampling. DNA extraction was optimized from blood and serum and detection achieved by a 16S rRNA targeted PCR with verification of the product by DNA sequencing.

Results
Five DNA extracts were found positive by PCR, including two samples from 2000 and three from 2006. For both series of samples the product was verified as A. phagocytophilum by DNA sequencing.

Conclusions
A. phagocytophilum was detected by molecular methods for the first time in Danish grazing lambs during the two seasons investigated (2000 and 2006).

http://www.actavetscand.com/content/51/1/55

Abigail Butcher, H&H news editor

9 September, 2009

A number of thoroughbred horses have been quarantined in Ireland following confirmation that it has equine Piroplasmosis.

Movement restrictions have been placed on the stables in County Meath, Ireland, after vets confirmed the horses are suffering from the tick-borne disease.

Equine Piroplasmosis has been notifiable in Ireland since July 2009, and has not been officially reported before now.

The disease is not readily contagious, but id transferred from horse to horse by blood parasites that are carried by a certain type of tick. It causes jaundice and anaemia in affected animals.

Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (DAF) confirmed the outbreak yesterday evening. Epidemiological investigations are underway to establish the origin of the disease and the extent of the spread, if any, to other locations.

A spokesman from DAF said: “A meeting with industry representatives has been arranged to discuss the implications for animal movement and the measures appropriate to address the threat posed by the disease.”

Equine Piroplasmosis is not a notifiable disease in the UK, and is not present in this country.

Horse & Hound vet Karen Coumbe said that although horses that have had the disease occasionally come here to compete, they pose little threat because the ticks that spread equine Piroplasmosis do not live in Britain.

Karen said: “The problem is that once you have a horse that has tested positive to equine Piroplasmosis, it cannot be exported to certain countries — for example America.”

The disease is prevalent in Mediterranean countries, but not the UK, US, Canada or Australia. It is not transferable to humans.

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/397/288993.html

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Horse industry representatives will meet Department of Agriculture officials to devise a plan to prevent the spread of equine Piroplasmosis, following an outbreak at a Co Meath stables, writes Seán MacConnell.

Equine Piroplasmosis is a tick-borne protozoan disease of horses, mules, donkeys and zebra caused by blood parasites and gives rise to anaemia and jaundice in affected animals.

While it has not been officially reported in Ireland before, the disease is not readily contagious and no public health concerns arise, according to the department.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0909/1224254135283.html

September 2, 9:05 Infectious Disease Examiner Robert Herriman

Also known as rabbit fever and deer fly fever, this disease of the Northern hemisphere most often occurs during the summer months and mid-winter and correspond with vectors and hunting season respectively.

The majority of the cases in the United States are found in the south and south-central states.

The disease tularemia is caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis. This bacterium is found in nature in rabbits, rodents, beavers, squirrels and several domestic and farm animals.

People commonly get infected from the bites of infected ticks (wood, dog) and deer flies.

Hunters are at risk of infection following skinning, dressing and eating infected animals.

Drinking contaminated water has been implicated in tularemia infection. People also contract it through inhaling dust and hay that have rodent feces and carcasses.

There have been cases where people got infected from a domestic cat. It is believed that cats get the organism from contaminated prey and their mouth and claws become infected.

Certain animal associated occupations are also associated with the disease; farmers, veterinarians, sheep herders and shearers.

The disease in people depends on how it’s acquired. After infection, incubation can be a couple of days to weeks, with non-specific symptoms like fever, chills, headache, sore throat and diarrhea.

The way the organism enters the body frequently dictates the disease and degree of systemic involvement. The infection tularemia can be divided into six syndromes:

• Ulceroglandular
This the most common form of tularemia which is characterized by ulcers at the site of the tick bite.
• Glandular
No skin lesions in this infection. Enlarged lymph nodes are present and may require surgical drainage.
• Oculoglandular
This is an infection of the conjunctiva usually by splashes or aerosols.
• Oropharyngeal
The lesion is found in the throat because of ingestion of contaminated water or food.
• Typhoidal
This infection is also due to ingestion of contaminated food and water. This is the only form of tularemia where diarrhea is a prominent characteristic.
• Pneumonic
With a high mortality in this syndrome, this type is most frequently seen in animal associated occupations.

Diagnosis of tularemia is based on detection of antibodies. Culture is possible with appropriate safety precautions and specialized media. Laboratory acquired infections do happen.

Tularemia is treatable with antibiotics (streptomycin and gentamicin).

There is no person to person transmission of this bacterium. F. tularensis is of concern as a possible agent of bioterrorism and biowarfare.

You can prevent tularemia by avoiding insect bites by using repellents and wearing long sleeves. You should also cook wild animals thoroughly before eating.

There is a vaccine for tularemia which is used extensively in Russia, but in the U.S. it is limited to certain high risk occupations.

After infection and recovery of tularemia, typically a long lasting immunity is achieved and reinfection is rare.
 
http://www.examiner.com/x-7707-Infectious-Disease-Examiner~y2009m9d2-What-is-tularemia-and-how-is-it-contracted

EID Journal Home > Volume 15, Number 8–August 2009

Letter

Nicholas J. Evans, Kevin Bown, Dorina Timofte, Vic R. Simpson, and Richard J. Birtles
Author affiliations: University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK (N.J. Evans, K. Bown, D. Tomifte, R.J. Birtles); and Wildlife Veterinary Investigation Centre, Truro, UK (V.R. Simpson)

Suggested citation for this article

To the Editor: Tick-borne relapsing fevers caused by members of the genus Borrelia have been encountered throughout Africa, Asia, the Americas and, rarely, in southern Europe (1). The Borrelia species associated with relapsing fevers form a monophyletic group within the genus, although not all members of this group have yet been implicated as agents of human disease. For example, a novel spirochete that is closely related to the relapsing fever agent Borrelia turicatae has recently been detected in Carios kelleyi, an argasid bat tick (2,3). We report the discovery of a spirochete causing fatal borreliosis in a bat in the United Kingdom.

To read full article: CLICK HERE

By LiveScience Staff, posted: 27 June 2009 10:33 am ET

The first once-a-month pill for controlling both fleas and ticks in dogs and cats is showing promise in tests.

Peter Meinke and colleagues at Merck Research Laboratories note the need for better ways of controlling fleas and ticks, driven in part by increases in pet ownership. Estimates suggest that there were 71 million pet dogs and 81 million pet cats in the United States alone in 2007 — up from 61 million and 70 million in 2001.

Dogs and cats are the most popular pets, unless you count fish, which are thought to be in fewer homes but in greater quantities.

Although many powders, sprays and other topical agents are on the market, many pet owners prefer the convenience of pills. Products given orally can reach more parts of an animal’s body, do not wash off in rain or bath water, and don’t transfer from pets to people.

At least one existing pill fights fleas in pets, but does not appear effective for ticks.

In tests on fleas and ticks in dogs and cats, a single dose of the new pill was 100 percent effective in protecting against both fleas and ticks for a month, the scientists report in Journal of the Medicinal Chemistry.

There were no signs of toxic effects on the animals, according to a statement from the American Chemical Society.

Scientists obtained the flea and tick fighter from a substance first found in a fungus that “has the potential to usher in a new era in the treatment of ecoparasitic [ticks and fleas, for instance] infestations in companion animals,” the scientists write.

http://www.livescience.com/animals/090627-dog-cat-fleas-ticks.html

Pol J Vet Sci. 2009;12(1):81-7, Adaszek Ł, Winiarczyk S, Skrzypczak M.

Department of Epizootiology and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences, Głeboka 30, 20-612 Lublin, Poland. ukaszek0@wp.pl

The aim of the study was to trace the clinical course of babesiosis in 76 dogs infected with Babesia canis protozoa and to assess the usefulness of PCR method in the routine diagnosis of the disease. The investigations were conducted in three successive seasons of the biological activity of ticks on dogs displaying possible clinical signs of babesiosis, the latter assigned individual numbers from 001 to 076. All the animals underwent routine clinical examinations and blood was collected for haematological, biochemical, parasitological and molecular tests for babesiosis. The most frequent clinical signs observed in the course of the disease were changes in urine colour and xanthosis or paleness of mucous membranes, whereas in the haematological and biochemical examinations, the most frequent laboratory findings were thrombocytopenia, leucopoenia, anaemia and an increase in levels of urea and bilirubin. In all blood smears stained with the May-Grunwald and Giemsa methods, from the 76 dogs, the presence of Babesia canis protozoa was observed in erythrocytes, and their DNA was detected in 69 blood samples by means of PCR technique. The course of the disease and the results of molecular examinations suggested the haemolytic form of babesiosis. The previous genetic analysis of isolates of Babesia canis canis from the eastern areas of Poland helped to distinguish two specific groups, A and B, within the species (Adaszek and Winiarczyk 2008a). The present study revealed a certain interrelation between the intensification of thrombocytopenia and the fact that protozoa belong to either group A or B. The mean number of thrombocytes in dogs infected with protozoa from group A was 61.11 thousand/mm3, whereas the mean number of thrombocytes in the blood of dogs infected with protozoa from group B was 27.47 thousand/mm3. A strong correlation was also observed between the low level of thrombocytes and the increase in the internal body temperature (p = 0.02), accelerated pulse rate (p = 0.01) and discoloration of urine (p = 0.04). As a result of the treatment of dogs with imidocarb, recovery was observed in 73 out of the 76 dogs brought to the clinic.

PMID: 19459444 [PubMed - in process]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/portal/utils/pageresolver.fcgi?log$=activity&recordid=1244079226714181

Date: 18 April 2009
By Dan Buglass - Rural Affairs Editor

SHEEP farmers know to their cost that their charges can be subject to a wider range of diseases than virtually any other species of livestock, especially during late spring and early summer.

Most can now be prevented by using vaccines or other treatments, including Louping-ill, a virus condition spread by ticks on hill and upland farms which has the potential to cause significant losses. More than 40 years ago the Edinburgh-based Moredun Research Institute developed a highly effective vaccine, which was subsequently manufactured by a several commercial companies.

However, it has now emerged that supplies of the vaccine are extremely short and many farmers will find it difficult to source the product until autumn: this may prove to be too late to prevent substantial losses in susceptible flocks, particularly with tick infestations increasing.

Nigel Miller, vice-president of NFU Scotland, who is also a qualified vet, said: “The increasing number of ticks found on our hills and uplands are presenting a growing disease threat to many species including sheep, red grouse and humans.

“For those hill farms affected by high numbers of infected ticks, the use of the vaccine is an important part of the health programme for their flocks. We hope that the manufacturers will look at making fresh supplies of the vaccine available at the earliest opportunity.”

The manufacturers, Intervet-Shearing-Plough, issued a statement late yesterday: “We regret that the louping-ill vaccine will be unavailable to sheep producers this spring due to unforeseen circumstances. We have briefed the animal health trade on the situation and equipped them with the alternative disease management information they need to help their farming customers. In the absence of what is a unique vaccine the only means of controlling the disease in non-immune stock is through plunge dipping of sheep which will give around six weeks of control.”

Professor Willie Donnachie of Moredun, said: “This could be very serious for some farmers in vulnerable areas. The disease can also affect humans giving them a heavy fever and problems with the nervous system.”

The impact on red grouse populations also has the potential to decimate the best moors at a very considerable financial cost. Flocks were dispersed from many estates a decade ago, but tick infestations soon reduced the numbers of grouse shot. In recent years some estates have re-introduced flocks of wedders – adult male sheep – to act as “tick mops.”

http://business.scotsman.com/fooddrinkagriculture/Vaccine-shortage-threatens-hill-farms.5182710.jp

Hitting it off with members of the opposite sex takes chemistry.

ScienceDaily (Aug. 24, 2007)

University of Alaska Fairbanks researcher Hector Douglas has found that, for crested auklets, chemistry has both amorous and practical applications. The birds rub a citrus-like scent, secreted in wick-like feathers on their backs, on each other during courtship, a behavior called alloanointing. It is well known among some mammals, such as peccaries, but until now was not documented among birds. His research also indicates that the behavior could help protect the birds from parasites, such as ticks.

“During courtship the male solicits the female by adopting a horizontal posture and giving a soft choking call,” explained Douglas, an assistant professor of biology at UAF’s Kuskokwim Campus. “She rubs her bill and upper body over his wick feathers. Then she offers her wick feathers to the male, and they reciprocate several times, smearing the chemicals over their heads, necks and upper bodies.”

Crested auklets are small black and gray seabirds that nest in huge colonies on remote island cliffs in Alaska and Siberia. They have bright orange bills, white facial plumes and a showy feather crest protruding from their foreheads. Douglas observed the unique mating ritual while conducting experiments with lifelike models of crested auklets on St. Lawrence Island, a remote outpost in the northern Bering Sea just 38 miles from Siberia. Douglas concealed chemical dispensers in blocks of construction foam that he painted to resemble rocks. Then he placed the decoys and models on the blocks.

“The crested auklets searched for the scent with their heads down in a conspicuous sniffing behavior,” Douglas said. “They honed in on the scent, rotating their heads to place their nostrils directly over the dispenser. Then they rubbed their bills over the dispensers just as they would on the wick feathers of their partner. Next, the birds rubbed themselves on the lifelike models right in the area where the wick feathers are located.”

Douglas used a similar experiment with captive crested auklets at the Cincinnati Zoo to learn if the behavioral response is tuned to breeding.

“In two successive years the strongest response to the scent occurred during early courtship,” he said. “These combined studies support the idea that the birds communicate with the scent during courtship.”

But the ritual also seems to have a more pragmatic purpose.

“What you smell is what you get in terms of protection against ticks,” Douglas said. “The scent contains aldehydes, which repel ticks.”

Some auklets emit more of the scent than others, he said. Douglas thinks that the birds gain an advantage by anointing with mates that have more of the tick-repelling scent.

Douglas measured aldehyde concentrations in feathers and then measured the movement of ticks exposed to the various concentrations.

“The ticks exposed to average amounts of citrus scent moved much slower than the controls. They were sluggish, they staggered, and some appeared to be paralyzed,” Douglas said. “When the dose was cut in half, the ticks were not as strongly affected. This suggests that the average auklet has adequate defenses, but choose a partner that is below average and that bird will not be as well protected.”

Birds cannot self-preen their heads and necks, which leaves them vulnerable to ticks in those areas, he said. “When crested auklets anoint their mates, they spread these chemical defenses over these hard-to-reach places, helping protect them against ticks.”

Many animals use scents in social interactions and Douglas said his study extends scientific knowledge regarding these behaviors.

“Alloanointing in vertebrate animals has been understood primarily as a type of social interaction that conveys messages pertaining to individual recognition and the like,” said Douglas. “In this case we see that the social cue transmitted in scent can also be adaptive for defending against parasites.”

Douglas’ findings are published in the German journal Naturwissenschaften, a monthly publication of advances in natural sciences, medicine and technology.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070821092943.htm

Survey suggests owners are aware of the disease, but unsure about ways to prevent.
Posted: March 16, 2009, 5 a.m. EDT

While most dog owners appear to have a general awareness of the prevalence of canine Lyme disease, many don’t understand preventive measures, such as vaccination, according to a new survey launched by Merial of Duluth, Ga., in recognition of April’s Prevent Lyme in Dogs Month.

For example, 95 percent of dog owners are aware certain tick species carry and transmit Lyme disease, yet only 45 percent of owners have their dogs vaccinated against the disease.

Furthermore, 55 percent of dog owners don’t or are unsure if they vaccinate their dogs against the disease, while 34 percent believe there is no effective vaccine for the disease, according to the study.

Although 92 percent agree traveling dogs may help spread the disease by transporting infected ticks, more than 25 percent of the responding dog owners believe Lyme disease is a problem in the Northeast but not much of a concern in other parts of the United States.

“Lyme-positive dogs continue to be reported across the country,” said Andrew Eschner, DVM, senior technical services veterinarian for Merial. “Between traveling pets and migratory birds and animals, Lyme-positive dogs have been reported in all 50 states, making continued education and communication about this potentially debilitating disease incredibly important.”

Clinical signs of canine Lyme disease include limping, lymph node swelling, fever, loss of appetite, painful joints, and general lethargy. Treatment with antibiotics usually clears up signs in dogs that have become ill, but veterinarians believe the infection remains for life, according to Merial.

The online survey of 1,005 pet owners was conducted by WMS Marketing Services between Jan. 5 and 9.

http://www.dogchannel.com/dog-news/2009/03/16/dog-owners-understand-lyme-not-prevention.aspx