Taiwan Veterinary Journal

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is a vector-borne disease of cattle and water buffalo caused by the lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) of the Capripoxvirus genus. LSD mainly affects the skin and the lymphatics of animals, and manifests as firm skin nodules, low feed intake, and a drop in milk production. Animal-to-animal contact, blood-feeding insects, animal products, stable flies, and mosquitoes can facilitate the transmission of LSD across herds and borders. The first case of LSD was reported in 1929 in Zambia. It was endemic to Africa until 1985 and later spread to Eastern Europe and Asia. The latest outbreak of LSD was reported in the Asia-Pacific region. At present, biosafety measures (control of animal movement, vectors, and animal products) are being devised by authorities to tackle LSD. Vaccines are also being developed for LSDV in recent decades. Live attenuated vaccines of both homologous and heterologous (of the Capripoxvirus genus) virus strains were utilized. A few side effects of the live vaccines were observed, such as skin nodules, low feed intake, and a drop in milk production. Inactivated LSDV vaccines were produced, showing a higher safety profile than live vaccines, yet offering only partial protection and lacks cross-protection. Recombinant LSDV vaccines are also under development; however, challenges remain in terms of the best vaccine delivery methods and antigen selection from the large poxvirus genome. Overall, mass vaccination with an effective vaccine may play a central role in the control of LSDV.

Infectious bronchitis (IB) is common in poultry and difficult to control. Vaccination is currently considered the best way to prevent IB. The IB virus (IBV) isolated in Taiwan could be clustered into two groups, Taiwan Group I (TW-I or TW1) and Taiwan Group II (TW-II or TW2). An IBV strain 3575/08 was isolated from an IBV-vaccinated chicken farm. Through sequencing analysis, this strain was clustered into TW-I. However, through cross-neutralization test, we found that 3575/08 has a serological correlation with TW-I and TW-II, with relatedness (R) values of 14.20% and 10.24%, respectively. Moreover, its R-value with Massachusetts (H120) is 5.64%. The broad cross-reaction with other serotypes, strain 3575/08 might be a good candidate for vaccine preparation. Therefore, we developed a recombinant adenovirus vector IBV 3575/08 S1 subunit vaccine (rAdS1), which utilizes a recombinant adenovirus expression system to induce humoral protective immunity. This adenovirus vector IBV vaccine may aid in the field control of IB in the future.

This study reports on diseased Chelidonichthys spinosus fish that were originally obtained from the Taiwan Strait for exhibition in an aquarium. These fish showed abnormal swimming behavior, eye damage and skin lesions. Gross examination and histopathology revealed that the C. spinosus was suffering from severe nematode infections in the pyloric caeca, liver and mesentery. Marine nematodes from internal organs were verified by partially sequencing the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene. Sequencing results revealed that the nematodes shared 99.75% sequence identity with Raphidascaris lophii (GenBank accession No. MW132926). Additionally, secondary Vibrio harveyi infections were also detected in some C. spinosus. This is the first report of R. lophii infection in C. spinosus.

Image-guided stereotactic techniques can display the locations of surgical instruments and biopsy targets in real time, allowing minimally invasive brain biopsies with reduced risk. This study aimed to assess the accuracy of an optical frameless neuronavigation system in feline cadavers and describe potential influencing factors. Phantom lesions were created in different brain regions and depths in 15 feline cadavers. After installing eight fiducial markers in the frontal bone and zygomatic arches, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed, and the images were imported into the neuronavigation system. Following patient and instrument registration, diluted gadolinium was injected into the phantom lesion (target), guided by the neuronavigation system. The coordinates of the target and contrast points were determined on repeated MRI scans and the distance between them was defined as the targeting error. The time from target selection to the completion of gadolinium injection was recorded as the required time. The targeting error and required time were compared between the initial 30% and final 30% of the collected data to assess the influence of operator experience. Among 76 lesions, the mean targeting error was $2.96\pm 0.86$mm (95% confidence interval 2.76–3.15mm). Lesion location, lesion depth, and operator experience did not affect the accuracy; however, operator experience reduced the required time. This frameless optical neuronavigation system is potentially feasible for feline brain biopsy. The demonstrated accuracy substantiates its clinical utility for feline brain lesions $>3.15$mm, and is comparable to that of other neuronavigation systems described in dogs.

Although salmonellosis has been considered an important problem in the ruminant farm from 10 weeks to 14 months old, there is no information about the disease in goats, especially in 2 to 3-day-old kids, in recent years. The goat farmers complained that the 2 to 3-day-old kids showed clinical signs of depression, weakness, lameness, and diarrhea. The kids might die within one week after the symptoms appeared. The mortality reached 60% (48/80). After many antimicrobial agents were dosed, no better outcome was expected. The farmer sent one kid to the official deputy for further investigation. By helping with bacterial and molecular biological techniques, autopsy, serotyping, and histopathological diagnosis, the kids were infected by Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Havana strain. After a farm visit, a moldy floor contaminated by 2 to 3cm thick feces was identified on the floor. After removing the mold and implementing disinfection, the outbreak was stopped. In conclusion, this report proves that salmonellosis has recently been identified in goat farms, especially in kids, within one week. Moreover, good hygiene and keeping feces out of barns are essential to preventing salmonellosis.

A 11-month-old intact male Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (CKCS) dog was presented at the Teaching Hospital of National Chung Hsin University (NCHU-VMTH) due to thrombocytopenia without relevant clinical signs and no significant improvement after medication treatment. As per the complete blood profile, there was significant thrombocytopenia (platelet count 1–$31\times 10^3/\mu$ L) with mean platelet volume (MPV) ranging from 20.3 to 25.7fl. Tests for Babesia canis, B. gibsoni, Ehrlichia canis and Anaplasma phagocytophilum yielded negative results. Despite treatment with antibiotics and immunosuppressive drugs, the dog’s condition did not improve. The dog’s platelet morphology and absence of symptoms raised the suspicion of inherited macrothrombocytopenia. Genomic DNA sequencing analysis of the $\beta$1-tubulin gene revealed a single-point mutation, specifically c.745G>A. This genetic analysis confirmed the presence of a $\beta$1-tubulin mutation, marking the first reported case of such a mutation in a CKCS in Taiwan. Despite the diagnosis of this condition, both partial thromboplastin time (PTT) and active partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) were within normal ranges before neutering. When diagnosing the causes of thrombocytopenia in young patients, especially when there are no related clinical signs, it is crucial to consider prioritizing inherited macrothrombocytopenia, then thrombocytopenia secondary to parasite infection, or immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (IMT) to minimize unnecessary medication.