Pulmonary hypoplasia and anasarca syndrome in Cika cattle

BACKGROUND: Hydrops foetalis is defined as excessive fluid accumulation within the foetal extravascular compartments and body cavities. It has been described in human and veterinary medicine, but despite several descriptive studies its aetiology is still not fully clarified. Pulmonary hypoplasia and anasarca (PHA) syndrome is a rare congenital abnormality in cattle that is characterised by hydrops foetalis including extreme subcutaneous oedema (anasarca) and undeveloped or poorly formed lungs (pulmonary hypoplasia). Until now, sporadic cases of PHA were reported in cattle breeds like Australian Dexter, Belted Galloway, Maine-Anjou, and Shorthorn. This report describes the first known cases of PHA syndrome in Slovenian Cika cattle. CASE PRESENTATION: A 13-year-old cow aborted a male calf in the seventh month of pregnancy, while a male calf was delivered by caesarean section on the due date from a 14-year-old cow. The pedigree analysis showed that the calves were sired by the same bull, the dams were paternal half-sisters and the second calf was the product of a dam-son mating. Gross lesions were similar in both cases and characterized by severe anasarca, hydrothorax, hydropericardium, ascites, hypoplastic lungs, absence of lymph nodes, and an enlarged heart. The first calf was also athymic. Histopathology of the second affected calf confirmed severe oedema of the subcutis and interstitium of the organs, and pulmonary hypoplasia. The lymph vessels in the subcutis and other organs were severely dilated. Histopathology of the second calf revealed also lack of bronchus associated lymphoid tissue and adrenal gland hypoplasia. CONCLUSIONS: The findings were consistent with known forms of the bovine PHA syndrome. This is the first report of the PHA syndrome occurring in the local endangered breed of Cika cattle. Observed inbreeding practice supports that this lethal defect most likely follows an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance. In the light of the disease phenotype it is assumed that a mutation causing an impaired development of lymph vessels is responsible for the hydrops foetalis associated malformations in bovine PHA.

Clinicopathological Phenotype of Autosomal Recessive Cholesterol Deficiency in Holstein Cattle.

BACKGROUND Cholesterol deficiency (CD), a newly identified autosomal recessive genetic defect in Holstein cattle, is associated with clinical signs of diarrhea, failure to thrive, and hypocholesterolemia. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES The objective is to describe the clinicopathological phenotype of affected Holstein cattle homozygous for the causative apolipoprotein B gene (APOB) mutation. ANIMALS Six Holstein cattle, 5 calves with a clinical history of chronic diarrhea, and 1 heifer with erosions in the buccal cavity and neurologic symptoms were admitted to the Clinic for Ruminants. METHODS This case review included a full clinical examination, a complete blood count, blood chemistry, and measurements of cholesterol and triglycerides. The animals were euthanized and necropsied. A PCR-based direct gene test was applied to determine the APOB genotype. RESULTS All 6 animals were inbred, could be traced back to the sire Maughlin Storm, and were confirmed homozygous for the APOB mutation. The clinical phenotype included poor development, underweight, and intermittent diarrhea in the calves, and neurologic signs in the heifer included hypermetria and pacing. Hypocholesterolemia and low triglycerides concentrations were present in all animals. The pathological phenotype of all animals was steatorrhea with enterocytes of the small intestine containing intracytoplasmic lipid vacuoles. The peripheral nervous system of the heifer displayed degenerative changes. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Suspicion of CD in Holstein cattle is based on the presence of chronic diarrhea with no evidence of primary infections. Confirmation of the associated APOB gene mutation is needed. Additionally, the heifer demonstrated primarily signs of neurologic disease providing an unexpected phenotype of CD.

Lethal chondrodysplasia in a family of Holstein cattle is associated with a de novo splice site variant of COL2A1

Background Lethal chondrodysplasia (bulldog syndrome) is a well-known congenital syndrome in cattle and occurs sporadically in many breeds. In 2015, it was noticed that about 12 % of the offspring of the phenotypically normal Danish Holstein sire VH Cadiz Captivo showed chondrodysplasia resembling previously reported bulldog calves. Pedigree analysis of affected calves did not display obvious inbreeding to a common ancestor, suggesting the causative allele was not a rare recessive. The normal phenotype of the sire suggested a dominant inheritance with incomplete penetrance or a mosaic mutation. Results Three malformed calves were examined by necropsy, histopathology, radiology, and computed tomography scanning. These calves were morphologically similar and displayed severe disproportionate dwarfism and reduced body weight. The syndrome was characterized by shortening and compression of the body due to reduced length of the spine and the long bones of the limbs. The vicerocranium had severe dysplasia and palatoschisis. The bones had small irregular diaphyses and enlarged epiphyses consisting only of chondroid tissue. The sire and a total of four affected half-sib offspring and their dams were genotyped with the BovineHD SNP array to map the defect in the genome. Significant genetic linkage was obtained for several regions of the bovine genome including chromosome 5 where whole genome sequencing of an affected calf revealed a COL2A1 point mutation (g.32473300 G > A). This private sequence variant was predicted to affect splicing as it altered the conserved splice donor sequence GT at the 5’-end of COL2A1 intron 36, which was changed to AT. All five available cases carried the mutant allele in heterozygous state and all five dams were homozygous wild type. The sire VH Cadiz Captivo was shown to be a gonadal and somatic mosaic as assessed by the presence of the mutant allele at levels of about 5 % in peripheral blood and 15 % in semen. Conclusions The phenotypic and genetic findings are comparable to a previously reported COL2A1 missense mutation underlying lethal chondrodysplasia in the offspring of a mosaic French Holstein sire (Igale Masc). The identified independent spontaneous splice site variant in COL2A1 most likely caused chondrodysplasia and must have occurred during the early foetal development of the sire. This study provides a first example of a dominant COL2A1 splice site variant as candidate causal mutation of a severe lethal chondrodysplasia phenotype. Germline mosaicism is a relatively frequent mechanism in the origin of genetic disorders and explains the prevalence of a certain fraction of affected offspring. Paternal dominant de novo mutations are a risk in cattle breeding, especially because the ratio of defective offspring may be very high and be associated with significant animal welfare problems.

A new predilection site of Mycoplasma bovis: Postsurgical seromas in beef cattle

Mycoplasma bovis is a highly contagious bacterium, which predominantly causes chronic pneumonia, otitis and arthritis in calves and mastitis in adult cattle. In humans, Mycoplasma species have been associated with post-surgical infections. The present study aimed to identify the bacteria associated with three outbreaks of infected seromas after caesarian section in Belgian Blue beef cattle. A total of 10 cases occurred in three herds which were in close proximity of each other and shared the same veterinary practice. M. bovis could be cultured from seroma fluid in five of the six referred animals, mostly in pure culture and was isolated from multiple chronic sites of infection (arthritis and mastitis) as well. DNA fingerprinting of the isolates targeting two insertion sequence elements suggested spread of M. bovis from chronic sites of infection (udder and joints) to the postsurgical seromas. Identical genetic profiles were demonstrated in two animals from two separate farms, suggesting spread between farms. Mortality rate in the referred animals positive for M. bovis in a seroma was 80% (4/5), despite intensive treatment. A massive increase in antimicrobial use was observed in every affected farm. These observations demonstrate involvement of mycoplasmas in outbreaks of postsurgical seromas in cattle.

The improved practical system of educating the horse : ... Also a treatise on shoeing ... : A statement of their method of training cattle and dogs ... : The rules of Union Course /

Based on Dennis Magner's New system of training horses, Utica, 1863 (Cf. Libr. of Congr. Cat. of printed books)

The trail drivers of Texas : interesting sketches of early cowboys and their experiences on the range and on the trail during the days that tried men's souls: true narratives related by real cow-punchers and men who fathered the cattle industry in Texas /

Mode of access: Internet.

Livestock health encyclopedia; the control of diseases and parasites in cattle, sheep and goats, swine, horses and mules. /

Bibliography: p. 605-613.