Equine piroplasmosisis a tick-borne haemoprotozoan disease of equine population (horses, mules, donkeys and zebras) caused either by T. equi or B. caballi. Clinically it is characterized by pyrexia, hemolytic anemia and jaundice. Intravascular hemolysis and development of oxidative stress are key pathological alterations. Disease is endemic in almost all part of world (tropical, subtropical, temperate regions) except some courtiers which are EP free like US, UK, Northern Europe, Iceland and New Zealand. These countries follow strict quarantine measures and T. equi infection leads to development of seropositive horse lifetime while B. caballi infection can lead to carrier state for next few years. Significant economic loss occurs in the form of treatment cost, loss of foetus, reduced performance, mortality and restriction in animal’s movement. Diagnosis can be made on the basis of typical clinical signs, optical microscopy, serology and molecular diagnosis. Currently cELISA is an OIE recommended test for international movement of horses in EP free countries. Conventional drug therapy includes use of Imidocarb dipropionate for both T. equi and B. Caballi. Other alternate therapies involve use of oxytetracycline, buparvaquone, amicarbalide and various drug combinations. Since no vaccine is available till now, effective tick control strategies, early diagnosis and treatment of disease, application of advance therapy remains the only way to control EP now days.
Mitochondrial Derived Peptides (MDPs) are a novel class of bioactive molecules encoded within short open reading frames (sORFs) of mitochondrial DNA, overturning the traditional view of the mitochondrial genome as solely dedicated to energy metabolism. To review current knowledge of key MDPs, including humanin, MOTS-c, and SHLPs, with emphasis on their molecular mechanisms, interactions with aging pathways, roles in age-related diseases, and therapeutic potential. This review synthesizes recent literature on the biology, signaling pathways, and clinical relevance of MDPs, while addressing emerging technologies for their discovery and controversies in their biosynthesis. MDPs function as regulators of cellular stress resistance, metabolism, inflammation, and survival. They interact with canonical aging pathways such as AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), and sirtuins, and modulate hallmarks of aging including mitochondrial dysfunction, proteostasis, and cellular senescence. Endocrine-like actions of MDPs contribute to protection against age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic syndrome. Synthetic analogs, gene therapy approaches, and biomarker applications are advancing their therapeutic exploration. MDPs provide a mitochondria-centered paradigm for understanding aging and age-related diseases. Despite ongoing controversies regarding their biosynthesis and translational relevance, MDPs represent promising targets in geroscience and therapeutic development.
The bacteria of the genus Salmonella and the avian influenza virus (AIV) are two major microbial pathogens of poultry. They impose significant risks to public health. In this case study, low mortality was observed in brooders, growers, and 10-week-old Rhode Island Red poultry in two different farms in Jharkhand, India. Both farms were well-spaced and housed mixed poultry flocks under standard hygienic practices. Farm A had a total of 1197 birds, including Rhode Island Red, Kadaknath, and White Leghorn breeds. Farm B housed a total of 5000 birds, comprising commercial broilers, Sonali chicken breed, and Khaki Campbell ducks. Farms A and B used a deep litter system with separate compartments for each breed/species under one roof. The post-mortem, initial bacteriological investigations, and invA gene-targeted PCR indicated an infection with Salmonella spp. Later, subtype-specific RT-PCR has confirmed the co-infection with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus (HPAI H5N1). Surprisingly, the overall mortality was 5.60
Streptococcus dysgalactiae subsp. equisimilis (SDSE) is an emerging bacterial pathogen of pigs, presenting with septicemia and acute death. Here, we explored the sequential development of pathogenesis of porcine isolate of SDSE in mouse model. Forty Swiss albino mice of either sex, aged 3–4 weeks (Group I) were intravenously inoculated with 0.1 ml of bacterial inoculum containing 2.1 × 107 CFU, while 24 (Group II) received sterile PBS at the same volume via the same route and observed daily for clinical signs and mortality up to 15 days. The mice (6 infected and 4 control mice at each time point) were sacrificed at 1, 3, 5,7,10 and 15 days post-inoculation for the estimation of hematobiochemical parameters, bacterial load, pro-inflammatory cytokines, pathological changes with demonstration of bacterial antigens, and apoptosis. The infected group of mice showed anaemia, leucopenia, higher levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine, higher lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels, and lower levels of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, reduced glutathione, and catalase), and higher amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines as compared to control mice. Microscopically, infected group of mice showed septicemic lesions with predominant lesions of myocarditis. The immunolocalization of SDSE antigens was observed in the lungs and spleen of the inoculated mice. The immunodetection of caspase-3 in the splenocytes confirmed the presence of apoptosis due to bacterial toxin. The clinical signs, hematobiochemical parameters, bacterial load, oxidative stress parameters, pathological lesions, and apoptosis were higher during 3rd -5th DPI and reduced thereafter. Understanding the pathogenesis during progressive stages of infection by SDSE will pave the way for its effective control.
Bovine mastitis, a widespread disease in dairy cattle characterized by udder inflammation triggered primarily by pathogenic micro-organisms, poses a considerable challenge to the dairy industry. Staphylococcus epidermidis (S. epidermidis) stands out as a significant etiological factor in the incidence of bovine subclinical mastitis (SCM), further exacerbated by the diminishing efficacy of antibiotics due to the increase in antibiotic-resistant strains. This study sets out to comprehensively investigate the landscape of S. epidermidis in dairy cattle afflicted with SCM. We examined the prevalence of S. epidermidis, assessed its antibiotic resistance patterns, and probed for the presence of antibiotic-resistant genes (mecA, tetK, and ermC) within S. epidermidis strains isolated from 305 milk samples across four distinct dairy cattle breeds: Holstein Friesian, Red Sindhi, Sahiwal, and Cholistani. Among the sampled cows, 56.39% (172 out of 305) were found to have SCM. Within this group, S. epidermidis was identified in 27.90% (48 out of 172) of the cases. Our breed-specific analysis revealed significant disparities, with Red Sindhi cows displaying the highest prevalence at 75%, followed by Holstein Friesian at 45.45%, and significantly lower levels in Sahiwal (5.19%) and Cholistani (3.44%) breeds. To assess the efficacy of antibiotics, we conducted sensitivity testing using nine commonly prescribed antibiotics. Alarmingly, 18 out of the 48 isolates (37.5%) exhibited multidrug resistance (MDR). Our antibiogram results underscored a high resistance of S. epidermidis isolates, particularly against cefoxitin (56.25%) and penicillin (43.75%), while demonstrating remarkable susceptibility to amikacin (2.08%), clindamycin (0%), ciprofloxacin (0%), and chloramphenicol (0%). Furthermore, we employed PCR to ascertain the presence of resistant genes in all S. epidermidis isolates. mecA was detected in 38 isolates (79.16%), while tetK was identified in 33 isolates (68.75%). Notably, the study did not detect the presence of the ermC gene. Our investigation highlights the efficacy of chloramphenicol, clindamycin, and ciprofloxacin against S. epidermidis. However, the prevalence of multidrug-resistant strains calls for careful antibiotic use in veterinary practices. Further research is needed to examine geographic and farm-specific factors affecting S. epidermidis prevalence, and genetic techniques like multilocus sequence typing should be employed to study clonal spread and horizontal gene transfer. Routine antimicrobial sensitivity assessments and continuous monitoring of medication use are essential to develop sustainable strategies against antibiotic resistance in the dairy industry.
