Our results show that exposure to T. gondii may lead to schizophrenia.

Background:The objective was to determine the prevalence of ectoparasite infestations in referred companion dogs to veterinary hospital of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, from 2009 to 2010.Methods:A total of 126 dogs were sampled for ectoparasites and examined by parasitological methods. The studied animals were grouped based on the age (<1 year, 1–3 years and >3 years), sex, breed and regionResults:Thirty six out of 126 referred dogs (28.57%) were positive for external ectoparasites. The most common ectoparasites were Heterodoxus spinigera, which were recorded on 11 dogs (8.73%). Rhipicephalus sanguineus, Sarcoptes scabiei, Otodectes cynotis, Xenopsylla cheopis, Cetenocephalides canis, Cetenocephalides felis, Hippobosca sp. and myiasis (L3 of Lucilia sp.) were identified on 9 (7.14%), 7 (5.56%), 6 (4.76%), 3 (2.38%), 3 (2.38%), 2 (1.59%), 2 (1.59%) and one (0.79%) of the studied dogs respectively. Mixed infestation with two species of ectoparasites was recorded on 8 (6.35%). Prevalence was higher in male dogs (35.82%; 24 out of 67) than females (20.34%; 12 out of 59), age above 3 years (31.81%; 7 out of 22) and in the season of winter (30.95%; 13 out of 42), but the difference was not significant regarding to host gender, age and season (P> 0.05).Conclusion:Apparently this is the first study conducted in companion dogs of Ahvaz District, South-west of Iran. Our results indicated that lice and ticks were the most common ectoparasites in dogs of this area. The zoonotic nature of some ectoparasites can be regard as a public health alert.

With the increasing emergence of drug resistant Leishmania sp. in recent years, combination therapy has been considered as a useful way to treat and control of Leishmaniasis. The present study was designed to evaluate the antileishmanial effects of the fisetin alone and combination of fisetin plus Meglumine antimoniate (Fi-MA) against Leishmania infantum. The IC50 values for fisetin were obtained 0.283 and 0.102 μM against promastigotes and amastigote forms, respectively. Meglumine antimoniate (MA, Glucantime) as control drug also revealed IC50 values of 0.247 and 0.105 μM for promastigotes and amastigotes of L. infantum, respectively. In order to determine the mode of action of fisetin and Meglumine antimoniate (MA, Glucantime), the activities of arginase (ARG), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured. Moreover, intracellular glutathione (GSH) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in L. infantum-infected macrophages and L. infantum promastigotes which were treated with IC50 concentrations of fisetin, MA and Fi-MA were investigated. Our results showed that MA decreased CAT and SOD activity and increased NO levels in L. infantum-infected macrophages. In promastigotes, MA inhibited parasite SOD activity and reduced parasite NO production. The decreased levels of most of the antioxidant enzymes, accompanying by the raised level of NO in treated macrophages with MA, were observed to regain their normal profiles due to Fi-MA treatment. Furthermore, fisetin could prevent the growth of promastigotes by inhibition of ARG activity and reduction of GSH levels and NO production. In conclusion, these findings showed that fisetin improves MA side effects.

In our work, low rate of Cryptosporidium baileyi infection was detected, but in critical situations and our poor management circumstances, cryptosporidiosis occurs in serious feature especially in immune suppressed individuals.

Background:The efficacy of clinical examinations, and hematologic, hemostatic, and serum biochemical assessments to determine appropriate early medical or surgical therapy in Arabian horses with colic have not been well-described. Objectives:We aimed to evaluate clinical and hematologic findings, coagulation-fibrinolytic parameters, and organ dysfunction markers in association with survival in horses with colic.Methods: Seventeen Arabian horses with colic and ten healthy horses were enrolled.After clinical examinations, including heart rates (HRs), capillary refill times (CRTs), abdominal sounds, rectal palpations, and nasogastric (NG) reflux assessments in both healthy and diseased horses, blood samples were collected and hematologic parameters, coagulation indices such as the prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), plasma d-dimer (PDD), platelet count, fibrinogen, and hepatorenal biomarkers were measured. Based on the outcomes, horses with colic were divided into survival (10) and nonsurvival (7) groups, and all mentioned parameters were compared with the control group horses.Results: Unlike HRs, CRTs, and abdominal sounds, rectal palpations (57.1%) and NG reflux (28.6%) findings were least sensitive in being able to determine survival. At least three of the five coagulation indices were significantly abnormal (prolonged PT, increased PDD, and decreased plasma fibrinogen) in 71.4% of the horses in the nonsurvival group compared with the control and survival groups. Significantly increased urea, creatinine, and bilirubin levels, and AST activities were also observed in the survival group compared with the control and nonsurvival groups. Conclusions:The combination of prolonged PT, increased PDD, and hypofibrinogenemia could be a reliable predictor of survival in horses with colic. The significant renal and hepatic dysfunctions in nonsurviving horses with colic appeared to be consistent with disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and a grave prognosis. K E Y W O R D S Arabian horse, coagulation profile, d-dimer, hypofibrinogenemia, PT How to cite this article: Nikvand AA, Jalali SM, Ghadrdan Mashhadi A, Razi Jalali M, Hassanpour Amirabadi S. Clinical, hematologic, hemostatic, and serum biochemical findings related to survival in Arabian horses with colic. Vet Clin

This study was designed to determine the effect of garlic powder on humoral immune response of broilers against NDV (Newcastle Disease Virus) vaccine. Two hundred and forty, two-day-old, Ross chicks were randomly assigned into 4 groups of 60 birds each. Chicks in groups 1 and 2 were given control mash diet during the experiment (6 week), but those in groups 3 and 4 were fed on control diet supplemented with 1 and 3% garlic powder, respectively. All groups except number 1 were vaccinated by eye-drop with B1 strain (Pestikal, Croatia) at 9 and 18 days of age. Ten blood samples were taken from each group on days 0, 14, 24 and 34 after first vaccination. The serum antibody level against NDV was measured by both HI and ELISA tests. The EDTA-mixed blood samples were examined for total and differential leukocyte count. The results showed that antibody titers in vaccinated chicks were significantly more than in non-vaccinated chicks (p < 0.05), but not influenced by the diet (p > 0.05). A significant increase of total leukocyte and percentage of lymphocytes was observed in vaccinated chicks 14 days after vaccination, but there were no difference (p > 0.05) among vaccinated groups. It is concluded that inclusion of garlic powder to the diet of broilers don't have any beneficial effect on humoral immune response to live NDV vaccine.

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