Gossypol, a polyphenol compound produced by cotton plant, has proven reproductive toxicity, but the effects of gossypol on sheep ovaries are unknown. This study was aimed to determine the in vitro and in vivo effects of gossypol on the ovarian follicles of sheep. This trial was divided into two experiments. In the first one, we used twelve non-pregnant, nulliparous, Santa Inês crossbred ewes, which were randomly distributed into two equal groups and fed diets with and without cottonseed cake. Feed was offered at 1.5% of the animal’s body weight for 63 days. The concentrations of total and free gossypol in the cottonseed cake were 3.28 mg/g and 0.11 mg/g, respectively. Throughout the trial period, no animal showed clinical signs of toxicity and no effects on body weight were observed. However, there was a significantly lower number of viable ovarian follicles (20.6%) and higher number of atretic follicles (79.4%) in the gossypol-fed sheep compared to the control (85.1 and 34.9%, respectively). These findings were observed at all stages of follicular development. In the second experiment, eight ovaries from slaughterhouse were cultured with different concentrations of gossypol acetic acid (0, 5, 10 and 20 μg/mL) for 24 hours or seven days. The in vitro action of gossypol resulted in a significant decrease in viable ovarian follicles, especially the primary and transition follicles, and a significant increase in the number of atretic follicles after 24 hours of culture. These follicles were greatly affected when cultured with gossypol for seven days. It is concluded that gossypol present in cotton seeds directly acts on ovarian follicles in sheep to increase atresia.

In order to investigate the prevalence of viral diseases in vaquejada horses, samples were collected from Quarter Horse and Paint Horse breeds (males and females, aged between 2 and 15 years) from rural and urban areas of Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil were collected. The number of samples collected and tested varied with the techniques used: 132 serum samples were tested for vesicular stomatitis (VS) and equine viral arteritis (EVA), 118 for western and eastern equine encephalomyelitis (WEE/EEE), 114 for equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1), and 61 for equine influenza (EI). The techniques used varied according to the disease studied: tests for VS (Ribeirão and Alagoas strains), EVA, EHV-1, and WEE/EEE were performed using the seroneutralization technique in Vero cell cultures, while the test for for EI type-2 (H3N8) was performed using the hemagglutination inhibition technique. The following results were obtained: 39 (29.55%) and 6 (4.54%) VS-positive horses (n=132) harbored the Alagoas and Ribeirão strains, respectively; no animal tested positive for EVA (n=132); 11.01% (n=13) and 0.84% (n=1) animals tested positive for EEE and WEE (total n=118), respectively; and 22 out of 114 (19.29%) horses tested positive for EHV-1. The history of respiratory and reproductive diseases was statistically significantly (p = 0.02) related to the presence of antibodies against EHV-1. This is the first report of the seroprevalence of viral diseases in vaquejada horses in Rio Grande do Norte.

Cutaneous melanoma is a neoplasm originating from melanocytes. In equines, a variable incidence of 6 to 14% of the total tegumentary neoplasms. The occurrence of metastasis is uncommon. In this sense, the objective was to describe a case of metastatic cutaneous melanoma in the equine species. A 15-year-old mixed-breed mare, died and was sent to perform necroscopic examination. During the processing of samples of various tissues and organs submitted to histopathological analysis. The main macroscopic alterations observed corresponded to proliferations in cutaneous glandular tissue of the udder, mammary lymph nodes, heart, lung, parietal pleura, liver and spleen, with sometimes blackened cutting surface. The morphological pattern, throughout the udder tissue extension, was compatible with melanoma. Histopathological evaluation of the two affected organs revealed a similar microscopic appearance. When associating the anatomopathological findings, a picture of metastatic cutaneous melanoma was defined. Melanoma should be considered as one of the possible diseases that affect the integument wrapping of the udder of mares of advanced age. A thorough evaluation of the animal is useful, since the metastatic potential is a real possibility.

This case report describes a case of presumptive ichthyosis fetalis in a lamb. Greater awareness by practitioners is required for this disease to be included in the differential diagnosis of dermatopathies in this species.

The objective of this study was to quantitatively evaluate scientific publications on cattle foot and claw diseases using the Scopus database. A combination of keywords "hoof disease AND bovine OR cattle OR cow" was used. Publications were classified according to the type, language, subject area, source title, author, affiliation, and country/territory. The documents were grouped later into thematic topics. The diseases evaluated in each study were quantified separately and in related groups, and distributed by decades. The frequencies of the thematic topics and diseases were compared by the chi-square test for adherence. In total, 642 publications were analyzed (595 articles, 46 reviews, and 1 note). Most of these papers were written in English (518). The main subject areas were Veterinary; Agricultural and Biological Sciences; and Biochemistry, Genetics, and Molecular Biology. Journal of Dairy Science was the journal that published most articles in the area, with the best citations (SCImago Journal Rank = 1.21). The authors with the highest number of publications were Johann Kofler with 19, and David Nixon Logue and Jan Keith Shearer with 18 documents each. By affiliation, the institution with the highest number of publications was the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. By country or territory, the United States of America (22%), the United Kingdom (17%), Germany (11%), and Canada (10%) together accounted for 60% of the publications. The classification of the documents into thematic topics resulted in four groups: Specific hoof diseases (70%), General hoof diseases (14%), Lameness (11%), and Healthy hoof characterization (5%). Eighteen foot and claw diseases have been studied, with the following being the most frequent: digital dermatitis (17%), sole ulcer (15%), and white line disease (11%). When grouped, laminitis-related diseases represented 48% and infectious diseases represented 38% of the studies. Overall, just over half a century of research on cattle foot and claw diseases, bovine digital dermatitis is the most studied disease. Grouping related disorders revealed that laminitis-related diseases are being studied more than infectious diseases since the 1980s, from when studies on individual foot diseases in cattle increased to the detriment of studies that aimed to evaluate them as a unique problem. Our study, the first scientometric analysis in the subject area, compiles valuable information that can help researchers to develop future projects.

Resumo Este estudo objetivou comparar três métodos de processamento de imagens termográficas na avaliação da temperatura do carpo de bezerros saudáveis. Adicionalmente, buscou-se avaliar a simetria térmica entre os carpos contralaterais desses bezerros. Foram obtidas imagens termográficas de ambos os carpos de oito bezerros, hígidos, com idade entre 20 e 45 dias e peso médio de 38,65 ± 2,27 kg. As imagens foram analisadas por meio do software GRAYESS® IRT Analyzer 7, que possibilitou a obtenção da temperatura total (Ttot), temperatura da região de interesse (Troi) e temperatura máxima média (Tmax). Não houve diferença entre as temperaturas obtidas pelos métodos Ttot e Troi. O Tmax mostrou temperaturas mais elevadas (p < 0,01) em comparação aos demais métodos. Os três métodos de processamento de imagens apresentaram correlações elevadas e significativas para a temperatura dos carpos direito e esquerdo de bezerros saudáveis, entretanto, o Tmax apresentou maior coeficiente de correlação (r = 0,99), o que sugere maior sensibilidade para identificação de variações térmicas entre os carpos contralaterais. O intervalo de confiança de 99% para a diferença de temperaturas entre os carpos direito e esquerdo (∆d-e) foi de 0,03 a 0,26ºC, o que indica que a variação de temperatura dentro desse intervalo não remete a alteração patológica.

The aim of this study was to compare three methods of processing thermographic images for the evaluation of carpal temperature in healthy calves. Additionally, we sought to evaluate the thermal symmetry between the contralateral carpi of these calves. Thermographic images were obtained from both carpi of eight healthy calves aged between 20 and 45 days with a mean weight of 38.65 ± 2.27 kg. Using GRAYESS® IRT Analyzer 7 software, the total temperature (Ttot), region-of-interest temperature (Troi), and maximum mean temperature (Tmax) were determined. There was no difference between the temperatures obtained by the Ttot and Troi methods. Tmax showed higher temperatures (p < 0.01) than the other methods. The three image processing methods showed high and significant positive correlations for the temperature of the right and left carpi of healthy calves. Tmax presented a higher correlation coefficient (r = 0.99) than the two other methods, which suggests a greater sensitivity for identifying thermal variations among the contralateral carpi. The 99% confidence interval for the difference between the temperatures of the right and left carpi (∆r-l) was between 0.03 and 0.26°C; thus, a temperature variation within that range does not refer to pathologic processes.

The objective of this study was to quantitatively evaluate scientific publications on cattle foot and claw diseases using the Scopus database. A combination of keywords “hoof disease AND bovine OR cattle with the following being the most frequent: digital dermatitis (17%), sole ulcer (15%), and white line disease (11%). When grouped, laminitis-related diseases represented 48% and infectious diseases represented 38% of the studies. Overall, just over half a century of research on cattle foot and claw diseases, bovine digital dermatitis is the most studied disease. Grouping related disorders revealed that laminitis-related diseases are being studied more than infectious diseases since the 1980s, from when studies on individual foot diseases in cattle increased to the detriment of studies that aimed to evaluate them as a unique problem. Our study, the first scientometric analysis in the subject area, compiles valuable information that can help researchers to develop future projects. OR cow” was used. Publications were classified according to the type, language, subject area, source title, author, affiliation, and country/territory. The documents were grouped later into thematic topics. The diseases evaluated in each study were quantified separately and in related groups, and distributed by decades. The frequencies of the thematic topics and diseases were compared by the chi-square test for adherence. In total, 642 publications were analyzed (595 articles, 46 reviews, and 1 note). Most of these papers were written in English (518). The main subject areas were Veterinary; Agricultural and Biological Sciences; and Biochemistry, Genetics, and Molecular Biology. Journal of Dairy Science was the journal that published most articles in the area, with the best citations (SCImago Journal Rank = 1.21). The authors with the highest number of publications were Johann Kofler with 19, and David Nixon Logue and Jan Keith Shearer with 18 documents each. By affiliation, the institution with the highest number of publications was the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. By country or territory, the United States of America (22%), the United Kingdom (17%), Germany (11%), and Canada (10%) together accounted for 60% of the publications. The classification of the documents into thematic topics resulted in four groups: Specific hoof diseases (70%), General hoof diseases (14%), Lameness (11%), and Healthy hoof characterization (5%). Eighteen foot and claw diseases have been studied, with the following being the most frequent: digital dermatitis (17%), sole ulcer (15%), and white line disease (11%). When grouped, laminitis-related diseases represented 48% and infectious diseases represented 38% of the studies. Overall, just over half a century of research on cattle foot and claw diseases, bovine digital dermatitis is the most studied disease. Grouping related disorders revealed that laminitis-related diseases are being studied more than infectious diseases since the 1980s, from when studies on individual foot diseases in cattle increased to the detriment of studies that aimed to evaluate them as a unique problem. Our study, the first scientometric analysis in the subject area, compiles valuable information that can help researchers to develop future projects.