Frederiksenia canicola gen. nov., sp. nov. isolated from dogs and human dog-bite wounds.

Polyphasic analysis was done on 24 strains of Bisgaard taxon 16 from five European countries and mainly isolated from dogs and human dog-bite wounds. The isolates represented a phenotypically and genetically homogenous group within the family Pasteurellaceae. Their phenotypic profile was similar to members of the genus Pasteurella. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry clearly identified taxon 16 and separated it from all other genera of Pasteurellaceae showing a characteristic peak combination. Taxon 16 can be further separated and identified by a RecN protein signature sequence detectable by a specific PCR. In all phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA, rpoB, infB and recN genes, taxon 16 formed a monophyletic branch with intraspecies sequence similarity of at least 99.1, 90.8, 96.8 and 97.2 %, respectively. Taxon 16 showed closest genetic relationship with Bibersteinia trehalosi as to the 16S rRNA gene (95.9 %), the rpoB (89.8 %) and the recN (74.4 %), and with Actinobacillus lignieresii for infB (84.9 %). Predicted genome similarity values based on the recN gene sequences between taxon 16 isolates and the type strains of known genera of Pasteurellaceae were below the genus level. Major whole cell fatty acids for the strain HPA 21(T) are C14:0, C16:0, C18:0 and C16:1 ω7c/C15:0 iso 2OH. Major respiratory quinones are menaquinone-8, ubiquinone-8 and demethylmenaquinone-8. We propose to classify these organisms as a novel genus and species within the family of Pasteurellaceae named Frederiksenia canicola gen. nov., sp. nov. The type strain is HPA 21(T) (= CCUG 62410(T) = DSM 25797(T)).

Perioperative and Anesthetic Management of Complete Tracheal Rupture in One Dog and One Cat.

ABSTRACT The authors describe two animals (one dog and one cat) that were presented with severe respiratory distress after trauma. Computerized tomographic imaging under general anesthesia revealed, in both cases, complete tracheal transection. Hypoxic episodes during anesthesia were relieved by keeping the endotracheal tube (ETT) positioned in the cranial part of the transected trachea and by allowing spontaneous breathing. Surgical preparation was performed quickly, and patients were kept in a sternal position to improve ventilation and oxygenation, and were only turned into dorsal recumbency shortly before surgical incision. A sterile ETT was guided into the distal part of the transected trachea by the surgeon, at which point mechanical ventilation was started. Both animals were successfully discharged from hospital a few days after surgery. Rapid and well-coordinated teamwork seemed to contribute to the good outcome. Precise planning and communication between anesthetists, surgeons, and technicians, as well as a quick course of action prior to correct ETT positioning helped to overcome critical phases.

Cerebral High-grade Oligodendroglioma with Sarcomatous Transdifferentiation ("Oligosarcoma") in a Boxer Dog.

A 9-year-old Boxer dog was referred to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the University of Bern for a history of chronic neck pain and gait problems, which rapidly progressed to a non-ambulatory status. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination of the head revealed a large intra-axial space-occupying lesion that was divided in two portions interconnected by a thin isthmus at the level of the cerebellar tentorium. Histopathology revealed a biphasic malignant neoplasm composed of neuroepithelial and mesenchymal elements. The former displayed characteristics of conventional anaplastic oligodendroglioma involving brisk mitotic activity and glomeruloid microvascular proliferation on a background of a fibrillary round cells with "honeycomb-like" perinuclear vacuolation. Conversely, the sarcomatous moiety exhibited haphazard fascicles of spindle cells amidst an intricate mesh of pericellular basal lamina and broad bands of collagen. Both tumor cell populations immunoreacted for Olig-2 and – to a lesser extent – GFAP. In addition, the sarcomatous areas focally expressed vimentin, muscular actin, and smooth muscle actin. "Oligosarcoma" - an exquisitely uncommon pattern of oligodendroglial malignancy in humans - has not previously been reported to affect dogs, although oligodendroglioma is a common CNS tumor in this species. Whether canine oligosarcoma shares with its human counterpart not only morphological aspects, but also molecular signatures, clinical behavior and responsiveness to therapy merits further investigation. In humans, oligodendroglial differentiation tends to confer significant clinical advantage with respect to prognosis and adjuvant treatment options. The awareness of such hallmarks and the investigation of their impact on prognosis are crucial for improved therapeutical strategies in dogs.

Congenital cervical kyphosis in two young sighthounds

Introduction: Cervical vertebral (C) malformation is rarely reported in large breed dogs. Congenital cervical kyphosis (CCK) may result from defects of vertebral segmentation, failure of formation or both. This report describes two cases of C3-C4 CCK in young sighthounds, treated surgically. Case description: An 18-month-old female Deerhound and a six-week-old female Borzoi dog were presented because of the complaints of reluctance to exercise and signs of of neck pain. Both dogs were neurologically normal. Diagnostic imaging revealed C3-C4 deformity, moderate kyphosis, and spinal canal stenosis associated with chronic spinal cord pressure atrophy. Both dogs underwent surgical treatment. Results: A staged two-step surgery starting with dorsal decompression was elected in the Deerhound. After the first surgical procedure, the dog developed focal myelomalacia and phrenic nerve paralysis and was euthanatized. A ventral distraction-fusion technique with two locking plates was performed in the Borzoi. This patient recovered uneventfully and long-term follow-up computed tomography revealed complete spondylodesis. Clinical significance: Until now, CCK has only been described in sighthounds. Congenital cervical kyphosis might be considered a differential diagnosis in these breeds that are presented with signs of cervical pain. Ventral realignment-fusion and bone grafting may be considered for surgical treatment, although the earliest age at which this procedure can and should be performed remains unclear.

Blastomycosis granuloma involving the cranial vena cava associated with chylothorax and cranial vena caval syndrome in a dog

A four-year-old, sexually intact, male dachshund was diagnosed with pulmonary blastomycosis. Itraconazole was administered for 60 days, and the dog was considered to be disease-free at three- and 12-month reevaluations. Two years following discontinuation of itraconazole, the dog developed a granuloma of the cranial vena cava resulting in chylothorax and cranial vena caval obstruction. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case of a blastomycotic granuloma involving the vena cava reported in the dog. Blastomycosis should be considered as a differential diagnosis for both chylothorax and cranial vena caval syndrome in the dog.

SNPs for parentage testing and traceability in globally diverse breeds of sheep

DNA-based parentage determination accelerates genetic improvement in sheep by increasing pedigree accuracy. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers can be used for determining parentage and to provide unique molecular identifiers for tracing sheep products to their source. However, the utility of a particular "parentage SNP" varies by breed depending on its minor allele frequency (MAF) and its sequence context. Our aims were to identify parentage SNPs with exceptional qualities for use in globally diverse breeds and to develop a subset for use in North American sheep. Starting with genotypes from 2,915 sheep and 74 breed groups provided by the International Sheep Genomics Consortium (ISGC), we analyzed 47,693 autosomal SNPs by multiple criteria and selected 163 with desirable properties for parentage testing. On average, each of the 163 SNPs was highly informative (MAF≥0.3) in 48±5 breed groups. Nearby polymorphisms that could otherwise confound genetic testing were identified by whole genome and Sanger sequencing of 166 sheep from 54 breed groups. A genetic test with 109 of the 163 parentage SNPs was developed for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The scoring rates and accuracies for these 109 SNPs were greater than 99% in a panel of North American sheep. In a blinded set of 96 families (sire, dam, and non-identical twin lambs), each parent of every lamb was identified without using the other parent's genotype. In 74 ISGC breed groups, the median estimates for probability of a coincidental match between two animals (PI), and the fraction of potential adults excluded from parentage (PE) were 1.1×10(-39) and 0.999987, respectively, for the 109 SNPs combined. The availability of a well-characterized set of 163 parentage SNPs facilitates the development of high-throughput genetic technologies for implementing accurate and economical parentage testing and traceability in many of the world's sheep breeds.

Bos indicus introgression into (peri-)alpine cattle breeds - evidence from the analysis of bovine whey protein variants.

The major bovine whey proteins, α-lactalbumin (α-LA) and β-lactoglobulin (β-LG), exhibit breed-specific genetic variation. The aim of this study was to identify possible new protein variants and determine the distribution of variants across a variety of 18 taurine and indicine cattle breeds applying a DNA-based sequencing approach. To this end, the open reading frames of the respective genes (LALBA and LGB) were sequenced in 476 animals. Within the LALBA gene, a previously unknown synonymous and a previously undesignated non-synonymous nucleotide exchange were identified. Furthermore, two known α-LA variants (A and B) and four known β-LG variants (A, B, C and W) were determined. The occurrence of typical indicine variants in some taurine cattle breeds, such as Suisse Eringer, German Hinterwälder and Hungarian Grey Steppe, further supports the hypothesis of ancient Bos indicus introgression into (peri-)alpine cattle breeds.

Fine-scale population structure analysis of seven local Swiss sheep breeds using genome-wide SNP data

As part of the global sheep Hapmap project, 24 individuals from each of seven indigenous Swiss sheep breeds (Bundner Oberländer sheep (BOS), Engadine Red sheep (ERS), Swiss Black-Brown Mountain sheep (SBS), Swiss Mirror sheep (SMS), Swiss White Alpine (SWA) sheep, Valais Blacknose sheep (VBS) and Valais Red sheep (VRS)), were genotyped using Illumina’s Ovine SNP50 BeadChip. In total, 167 animals were subjected to a detailed analysis for genetic diversity using 45 193 informative single nucleotide polymorphisms. The results of the phylogenetic analyses supported the known proximity between populations such as VBS and VRS or SMS and SWA. Average genomic relatedness within a breed was found to be 12 percent (BOS), 5 percent (ERS), 9 percent (SBS), 10 percent (SMS), 9 percent (SWA), 12 percent (VBS) and 20 percent (VRS). Furthermore, genomic relationships between breeds were found for single individuals from SWA and SMS, VRS and VBS as well as VRS and BOS. In addition, seven out of 40 indicated parent–offspring pairs could not be confirmed. These results were further supported by results from the genome-wide population cluster analysis. This study provides a better understanding of fine-scale population structures within and between Swiss sheep breeds. This relevant information will help to increase the conservation activities of the local Swiss sheep breeds.

Hepatic alveolar hydatid disease (Echinococcus multilocularis) in a boxer dog from southern Ontario.

A 2-year-old boxer dog from southern Ontario was evaluated because of acute onset lethargy. Exploratory laparotomy revealed a hemorrhagic, destructive, liver mass. Histology, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction confirmed Echinococcus multilocularis as the cause of the hepatic mass. This constitutes the first description of endemic E. multilocularis in Ontario.

Alveolar hydatid disease (Echinococcus multilocularis) in the liver of a Canadian dog in British Columbia, a newly endemic region.

An adult dog that lived in central British Columbia was examined because of a history of lethargy and vomiting. Histology, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) examination of a hepatic mass confirmed the presence of an alveolar hydatid cyst, the first description of Echinococcus multilocularis in British Columbia. We provide recommendations for case management and remind practitioners in endemic areas of western Canada that dogs can serve as definitive and, rarely, intermediate hosts for E. multilocularis.

A Deletion in the VLDLR Gene in Eurasier Dogs with Cerebellar Hypoplasia Resembling a Dandy-Walker-Like Malformation (DWLM).

Dandy-Walker-like malformation (DWLM) is the result of aberrant brain development and mainly characterized by cerebellar hypoplasia. DWLM affected dogs display a non-progressive cerebellar ataxia. Several DWLM cases were recently observed in the Eurasier dog breed, which strongly suggested a monogenic autosomal recessive inheritance in this breed. We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) with 9 cases and 11 controls and found the best association of DWLM with markers on chromosome 1. Subsequent homozygosity mapping confirmed that all 9 cases were homozygous for a shared haplotype in this region, which delineated a critical interval of 3.35 Mb. We sequenced the genome of an affected Eurasier and compared it with the Boxer reference genome and 47 control genomes of dogs from other breeds. This analysis revealed 4 private non-synonymous variants in the critical interval of the affected Eurasier. We genotyped these variants in additional dogs and found perfect association for only one of these variants, a single base deletion in the VLDLR gene encoding the very low density lipoprotein receptor. This variant, VLDLR:c.1713delC is predicted to cause a frameshift and premature stop codon (p.W572Gfs*10). Variants in the VLDLR gene have been shown to cause congenital cerebellar ataxia and mental retardation in human patients and Vldlr knockout mice also display an ataxia phenotype. Our combined genetic data together with the functional knowledge on the VLDLR gene from other species thus strongly suggest that VLDLR:c.1713delC is indeed causing DWLM in Eurasier dogs.

Pulmonary Echinococcus multilocularis metastasis in a dog.

A young adult Labrador retriever dog was presented for surgical debulking of hepatic alveolar echinococcosis. Computed tomography detected hepatomegaly with multiple large cavitary masses with extension of tissue from a lesion wall into the caudal vena cava and numerous nodules in all lung lobes. Following euthanasia, histology confirmed parasitic vesicles with granulomatous reaction in all lesions, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) established the causative agent to be Echinococcus multilocularis. This report is the first to present imaging features of pulmonary E. multilocularis granulomata in a dog.