Fatal Intestinal Coccidiosis in a Three-Week-Old Buffalo Calf (Bubalus bubalus)
Abstract The water buffalo (Bubalus bubalus) is important to the economy of several countries, especially in Asia and South America. Little is known regarding the impact of coccidiosis in buffaloes. Cattle and buffaloes are considered to have common species of Eimeria, but critical cross-transmissions have not been made because it is difficult to raise these hosts coccidian free. Clinical coccidiosis was confirmed post mortem in a 22-day-old buffalo calf that died after a 3- to 4-day illness. Oocysts morphologically identical to Eimeria bareillyi were found in the feces and in sections of small intestine. Oocysts were often pyriform, sometimes with asymmetrical sides. The shorter end was flattened and approximately 5–6 μm wide. Unsporulated oocysts in feces were 23.2–29.5 × 16.5–22 μm, with an average of 27.2 × 19.3 μm. Schizonts, gamonts, and oocysts were identified in sections of small intestine where they were located in enterocytes of the jejunum and ileum. No coccidian stages were seen in sections of colon. This is one of the first confirmed cases of clinical coccidiosis in water buffalo.
Prevalence of Coccidiosis in Back Yard Chicken in and Around DebereTabere Town, South Gondar Zone, Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia
A cross sectional study was carried out to estimate the prevalence of chicken coccidial infections and assessment of the associated risk factor in backyard chickens in and around Debre Tabore town, South Gondar Zone, Northwest Ethiopia from October 2015 and May 2016.Floatation techniques were used for qualitative study of coccidialoocyst. Descriptive statistics was used to express prevalence while chi-square test used to assess if there was statistically significant association between targeted host factors and coccidial infection. The degrees of these associations were quantified using crude and adjusted odds ratio. Statistical significance was assumed if the confidence interval (CI) did not include one among its values or whenever p-value was less than 5%. The overall animal prevalence for coccidial infections was 21.4% (48/224) and the prevalence was significantly associated with breed (p=0.019), age (p=0.028) and sex (p=0.004) of the study animals. In a multivariable logistic regression analysis, female (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR)=0.3; 95%CI:0.17-0.68) and exotic breeds (AOR=0.46; 95%CI:0.23-0.93) were found less likely infected with coccidialoocystes as compared to male and local chickens. However, increased risk for coccidial infection was recorded in adult chicken (AOR=2.04; 95%CI:1.02-4.08) as compared to the grower chickens. In conclusion, this study showed coccidial infection could be important in the backyard chickens in the study area even though the overall prevalence was relatively low. Moreover, the prevalence was higher in adults than the growers, which alerts the need to undertake suitable and practically applicable control and prevention measures in the parent stocks.
Inhibition of Root Growth and Polyamine Metabolism in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus) Seedlings Under Cadmium and Copper Stress
Although sunflower is usually regarded as a highly tolerant crop, impairment of root growth at initial stages of plant development may result in poor crop establishment and higher susceptibility to pathogen attack. In order to evaluate if Cd2+ and Cu2+ may impact on sunflower germination and initial root development, a pot experiment under controlled conditions was carried out. Possible involvement of polyamine metabolism in sunflower response to these stressors was also investigated. Although Cd2+ and Cu2+ treatments affect neither seed germination nor radicle emergence, sunflower seedlings grown in the presence of these heavy metals showed significant inhibition of root growth, being this inhibition greater for Cd2+. Both metals caused significant increases in proline contents at the highest concentrations tested (0.5 and 1 mM), and these increments were more pronounced for Cd2+ treatments, especially between days 3 and 10. Metals also increased putrescine (Put) contents at all concentrations assayed from the seventh day onward, causing no variations on this polyamine time-course pattern. Spermine and spermidine contents, however, were increased only by 1 mM Cd2+. Arginine decarboxylase seems to have been the enzyme responsible for Put increases under both metal treatments. This work demonstrates that initial root growth of sunflower seedlings may be significantly impaired in Cd2+ or Cu2+ contaminated soils. It also shows that polyamines are key biological compounds, which are probably involved in signaling pathways triggered under stress environmental conditions.