First report of Trypanosoma vivax outbreak in dairy cattle in São Paulo state, Brazil

This is the first description of a Trypanosoma vivax outbreak in the state of São Paulo (municipality of Lins). Fever, jaundice, decreased milk production, weight loss, profuse diarrhea, abortion, anemia, leukocytosis and hyperfibrinogenemia were observed in the affected animals. Thirty-one cows and calves died out of a total of 1080 in the herd. Three cows showed neurological symptoms like dysmetria, ataxia, muscle weakness, ptyalism, lymph node enlargement and submandibular edema. Flagellated hemoparasites were observed in blood smears. The species was diagnosed as T. vivax by means of PCR. This T.vivax strain showed resistance to diaminazene aceturate and the infection spread quickly at the herd. From the ELISA test, 599 serum samples (98.36%) were positive for anti-T.vivax IgG antibodies. This outbreak occurred during a very dry period, which indicates that other factors were involved in the outbreak, such as absence of tabanids and large populations of Haematobia irritans and Stomoxys calcitrans. The increases in these populations may have been due to the use of biosolid waste from sugar and ethanol plants in the sugarcane plantations surrounding the dairy farm.

Niemann-Pick disease type C symptomatology: an expert-based clinical description

Niemann-Pick disease type C (NP-C) is a rare, progressive, irreversible disease leading to disabling neurological manifestations and premature death. The estimated disease incidence is 1:120,000 live births, but this likely represents an underestimate, as the disease may be under-diagnosed due to its highly heterogeneous presentation. NP-C is characterised by visceral, neurological and psychiatric manifestations that are not specific to the disease and that can be found in other conditions. The aim of this review is to provide non-specialists with an expert-based, detailed description of NP-C signs and symptoms, including how they present in patients and how they can be assessed. Early disease detection should rely on seeking a combination of signs and symptoms, rather than isolated findings. Examples of combinations which are strongly suggestive of NP-C include: splenomegaly and vertical supranuclear gaze palsy (VSGP); splenomegaly and clumsiness; splenomegaly and schizophrenia-like psychosis; psychotic symptoms and cognitive decline; and ataxia with dystonia, dysarthria/dysphagia and cognitive decline. VSGP is a hallmark of NP-C and becomes highly specific of the disease when it occurs in combination with other manifestations (e.g. splenomegaly, ataxia). In young infants (<2 years), abnormal saccades may first manifest as slowing and shortening of upward saccades, long before gaze palsy onset. While visceral manifestations tend to predominate during the perinatal and infantile period (2 months–6 years of age), neurological and psychiatric involvement is more prominent during the juvenile/adult period (>6 years of age). Psychosis in NP-C is atypical and variably responsive to treatment. Progressive cognitive decline, which always occurs in patients with NP-C, manifests as memory and executive impairment in juvenile/adult patients. Disease prognosis mainly correlates with the age at onset of the neurological signs, with early-onset forms progressing faster. Therefore, a detailed and descriptive picture of NP-C signs and symptoms may help improve disease detection and early diagnosis, so that therapy with miglustat (Zavesca®), the only available treatment approved to date, can be started as soon as neurological symptoms appear, in order to slow disease progression.

Emergence of enteric viruses in production chickens is a concern for avian health

Several viruses have been identified in recent years in the intestinal contents of chickens and turkeys with enteric problems, which have been observed in commercial farms worldwide, including Brazil. Molecular detection of these viruses in Brazil can transform to a big threat for poultry production due to risk for intestinal integrity. This disease is characterized by severely delayed growth, low uniformity, lethargy, watery diarrhea, delayed feed consumption, and a decreased conversion rate. Chicken astrovirus (CAstV), rotavirus, reovirus, chicken parvovirus (ChPV), fowl adenovirus of subgroup I (FAdV-1), and avian nephritis virus (ANV) were investigated using the conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In addition, the infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), which may play a role in enteric disease, was included. The viruses most frequently detected, either alone or in concomitance with other viruses, were IBV, ANV, rotavirus, and CAstV followed by parvovirus, reovirus, and adenovirus. This study demonstrates the diversity of viruses in Brazilian chicken flocks presenting enteric problems characterized by diarrhea, growth retard, loss weight, and mortality, which reflects the multicausal etiology of this disease

Occurrence and characterization of rotavirus A in broilers, layers, and broiler breeders from brazilian poultry farms

Rotaviruses are a major cause of diarrhea in humans and animals, including several mammalian and avian species. Using different PCR protocols, we report the occurrence of rotavirus A in 21 (53.84%; 21/39) from 39 fecal pool samples of broilers, layers, and broiler breeders from Brazilian avian farms. We typed the G5, G8, G11, G19, and P[31] genotypes