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A 38-year-old woman was admitted to our department because of a progressive, painful ulceration on the left heel pad. Fifteen years ago she had been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC) involving the entire colon. She has maintained disease remission with 5-aminosalicylic acid treatment

Abstract. Enzootic calcinosis was diagnosed in sheep in Uruguay in pastures containing the plant Nierembergia rivularis. In a flock of 200 sheep, 20 were affected and 12 died. Clinical signs were anorexia, weight loss followed by cachexia, stiffness, and kyphosis. At necropsy and histologic examination, mineral deposits were observed on the medial layer of the arteries, heart, lungs, and kidneys. Similar lesions were also observed in 3 sheep forced to graze in an area containing the plant, while no lesions were observed in a control sheep that grazed in an area free of N. rivularis. It is concluded that N. rivularis is a calcinogenic plant for sheep.

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Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by toxicogenic fungi species. They can contaminate humans and animals' food and once ingested can cause health harms. There are more than 250 mycotoxins, being aflatoxins one of the most studied due to their potential carcinogenic effect. It is known that the aflatoxins consumed by animals are metabolized and excreted in part by milk as aflatoxin M 1 , representing a potential risk for human health. Aflatoxins source for animals is feed, therefore, the maximum permitted levels are regulated, as well as the presence of aflatoxin M 1 in milk and derivatives. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the natural presence of aflatoxins in the feeds destined to dairy cows in production in 18 commercial dairy farms of Uruguay. It also aimed to determine the correlation between the consumption of those feeds and the presence of aflatoxin M 1 in the milk of the animals. In order to achieve this objective, feed and milk samples were taken randomly from 18 dairy farms located in the south central area and the east region of Uruguay. Milk was taken from the cold tank. Aflatoxins were quantified by Elisa technique. The totally of the feed samples and 91.8% of the milk samples were contaminated with some aflatoxin levels. The levels of aflatoxins did not correlate with those of aflatoxin M 1. The levels of aflatoxin M 1 in milk did not exceed the maximum consumption levels allowed in Uruguay, thus did not represent a risk for human health.

In Eastern Uruguay there has been a significant increase of seneciosis in grazing livestock with most affected localities related to counties neighboring the Brazilian border. A survey in 28 farms associated with poisoning outbreaks in grazing cattle in Eastern Uruguay was carried out. Fifty populations of Senecio plants were collected for alkaloid analysis and species identification. Four species were identified: S. oxyphyllus DC, S. madagascariensis Poir, S. brasiliensis (Spreng.) Less., and S. selloi DC. Alkaloids were identified by a combination of GC-MS and HPLC-MS analysis and included: retrorsine in S. oxyphyllus; retrorsine, usaramine, and senecivernine/senecionine in S. selloi; retrorsine, senecivernine/senecionine, integerrimine, and usaramine in S. madagascariensis; and integerrimine, retrorsine and senecionine in S. brasiliensis. Total mean alkaloid concentration was reported to be highest in S. brasiliensis (17.6mg/g) followed by S. oxyphyllus (6.2mg/g), S. selloi (1.8mg/g) and S. madagascariensis (0.6mg/g). Alkaloid concentrations were also reported to be higher in 2015 vs. 2016 probably due to a common environmental factor. The species S. oxyphyllus and S. madagascariensis were not previously recognized as toxic plants in Eastern Uruguay. Particularly, S. oxyphyllus was present in 82% of the farms surveyed and occurred in high density with relative high concentrations of pyrrolizidine alkaloids suggesting S. oxyphyllus may be the main species involved in the reported outbreaks of seneciosis.