Brief communications of three techniques for detecting bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV1) in naturally and experimentally contaminated bovine semen. Zuchthygiene 23:1-9. 3. Darcel CLQ, Coulter GH: 1976, IBR neutralizing substance in bull seminal fluid and its removal prior to attempts at virus isolation from semen. Can Vet J 17:317-343. 4. Kahrs RF, Johnson ME, Bender GM: 1977, Studies on the detection of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) virus in bovine semen. Proc Annu Meet Am Assoc Vet Lab Diagn 20:187-208. 5. Kahrs RF, Littell RC: 1980, Detection of viruses in bovine semen. Influence of preparative centrifugation on isolation of IBR virus. Proc Annu Meet Am Assoc Vet Lab Diagn 23:251-262.
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6. Loewen KG, Darcel CLQ: 1985, A comparison of two methods for the isolation of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) from extended bovine semen. Theriogenology 23:935-939. 7. Moorthy ARS: 1985, Outbreak of balanoposthitis in breeding bulls. Vet Rec 116:98. 8. Schultz RD, Sheffy BE: 1980, Current status of viral infection of bovine genital tract with emphasis on IBR/IPV virus. In: Current therapy in theriogenology, ed. Morrow DA, pp. 503-509. W. B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, PA. 9. Snowdow WA: 1965, The IBR/IPV virus reaction to infection and intermittent recovery of the virus from experimentally inoculated cattle. Aust Vet J 41:135-142.
J Vet Diagn Invest 4:343-345 (1992)
Listeriosis in California broiler chickens G. Cooper, B. Charlton, A. Bickford, C. Cardona, J. Barton, S. Channing-Santiago, R. Walker Listeria monocytogenes has been isolated from a variety of animals, including fish, birds, and mammals, and is widely 11 distributed in nature. It is especially common in the temperate zones where it can be found in soil, water, and animal feces and on vegetable matter such as silage.5 Diseases caused by the organism include meningoencephalitis, mastitis, abortion, metritis, and Septicemia.5,11 In ruminants, the disease often occurs in winter and is associated with damp, moldy conditions8 and with the feeding of silage.10 Listeria monocytogenes has been isolated from the intestinal tract of many healthy animals, including sheep, cattle,5 deer,8 and chickens.1,2 It is frequently isolated from the environment9,19 and has been recovered from the litter of broiler houses in Norway7 and from soil samples around feeding grounds during outbreaks of the disease in ruminants.8 Listeriosis has been well documented in domestic fowl10 but tends to occur sporadically in these species, resulting in septicemia (with splenomegaly), necrosis of the liver, necrosis of the myocardium, and pericarditis.3 In a 1988 outbreak6 and the outbreak described in this report, the disease occurred in the encephalitic form, with little or no evidence of a septicemic involvement. This article documents the second reported outbreak of encephalitic listeriosis in California broiler chickens. In late January 1991, a disease outbreak characterized by depression, ataxia, torticollis, opisthotonos, lateral recumbency, paddling, leg tremors, and circling was seen in a flock of young broiler chickens on a commercial poultry ranch in From the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, Turlock Branch, University of California-Davis, PO Box 1522, Turlock, CA 95381 (Cooper, Charlton, Bickford, Cardona, ChanningSantiago), the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, San Bernardino Branch, University of California-Davis, 105 W. Central Ave, PO Box 5579, San Bernardino, CA 92412 (Barton), and the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, University of California-Davis, PO Box 1770, West Health Sciences Drive, Davis, CA 95617 (Walker). Received for publication October 31, 1991.
California. Affected birds either died or were culled within 1-2 days of the appearance of symptoms. Morbidity was low; only 0.3% of the flock of 54,000 birds were affected. Gross necropsy findings were not remarkable, but histopathologic examination revealed gliosis and satellitosis in the molecular layer of the cerebellum with extensive perivascular lymphocytic cuffing and gliosis (Fig. 1) and disseminated microabscesses (Fig. 2A) in the midbrain and medulla. Brain tissues (fixed in 10% neutral formalin, sectioned at 6 µm, and stained with the Brown-Hopps Gram stain) revealed large numbers of gram-positive rod-shaped bacteria within the microabscesses and at the periphery of the lesions (Fig. 2B). After culturing directly onto blood agar plates and incubating at 37 C for 24 hours, Listeria monocytogenes was isolated in moderate numbers from the brains of all 6 birds tested and as a single colony from the liver of 1 bird. Isolates from liver and brain sent to the Department of Health and Human Services, Minneapolis, Minnesota, were identified as serotype 4b. The broilers were housed in 10 barns arranged in 2 rows of 5 barns each. Weather conditions had been cold and rainy before the outbreak began, and water stood in puddles between the buildings. The ranch buildings were older and consequently more difficult to weatherproof than those of most of the other ranches operated by the company. During storms, rain water leaked through the roofs and blew through the side curtains of some houses, resulting in excessively moist litter conditions. Water was supplied in drinking cups located near the floor and was readily contaminated with litter and feces. The birds had been debeaked and had received a subcutaneous injection of Chick Vac,a a modified live viral arthritis vaccine, in the neck area at approximately 7 days of age. In February 1991, water and litter samples were collected from each of the 10 poultry barns involved in the outbreak. Litter was collected from each barn at multiple sites and was pooled into samples of approximately 100 g each. A pooled drinking water sample of approximately 100 ml was collected
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
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Brief communications
Figure 1. Photomicrograph of the brain stem of a broiler chicken with encephalitic listeriosis. Lymphocytic perivascular cuffs are clearly visible with diffuse gliosis in the surrounding brain tissue. HE stain.
with syringes from cup drinkers in each barn. Water samples were collected from 8 puddles of water standing between the buildings. One drinking water sample was obtained directly from the main water supply outlet. Soil samples were taken from an area of the ranch close to an adjacent dairy farm and from an area at the opposite end of the broiler ranch. Water and litter samples were held at refrigerator temperatures (2-8 C) until cultured. All samples were cultured within 7-30 days of collection using a series of enrichment broths, beginning with a primary enrichment broth (UVM Listeria broth)b and transferring to a secondary enrichment broth (Frasers broth),b followed by cultivation on Listeria plating mediumb and MOX agar plates,” as previously described.14 Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from litter samples of 4 out of 10 poultry barns and from 4 out of 10 water samples taken from drinking cups. The organism was also isolated from soil collected from an area of the broiler ranch adjacent to the dairy but not from soil taken from the opposite end
of the ranch. The drinking water sample collected from the main water outlet was negative for Listeria, as were 8 water samples taken from puddles between the buildings. The isolates from soil, litter, and water were serotype 4b, the same serotype isolated from brain and liver tissue of infected birds. Because cattle can carry the organism in the intestinal tract and cows with mastitis may shed large numbers of Listeria in the milk,13 the nearby dairy was considered a potential source of the outbreak, and the organism may have washed in with runoff water during the recent rains. However, because Listeria monocytogenes was not isolated from any of the water samples taken from puddles standing between the buildings, this route of infection was considered unlikely. The 1991 outbreak of listeriosis was similar to the outbreak that occurred in broilers 3 years earlier.6 Both outbreaks involved young breeder replacement birds of approximately the same age (4-6 weeks). Signs were very similar, and the microscopic lesions were nearly identical in both outbreaks. Morbidity rates were low in both cases, 0.5% in the first outbreak and 0.3% in the second. The birds were grown by the same company, and management procedures were similar for both outbreak flocks. Rice hulls were used for litter, and birds had been debeaked and vaccinated subcutaneously in the neck area with a modified live viral arthritis vaccine at between 7 and 10 days of age. Both ranches were older and reportedly difficult to weatherproof, and both outbreaks occurred during winter, in late January or early February. In ruminants, listeriosis is often seen in winter.5 The stresses of inclement weather, nutritional deficiencies, and the poor quality of feed available at this time of the year are usually cited as contributing factors.5 Recently, the psychrotrophic properties of the organism itself have been considered significant in the epidemiology of the disease.12 Listeria monocytogenes is able to grow at temperatures as low as -0.4 C,18 which may afford it a selective advantage over competing microorganisms during winter.20 There is also some evidence that virulence factors, such as soluble hemolysins, may be induced or enhanced at low temperatures.12,20
Figure 2. Photomicrograph of a focal microabscess in the brain stem of a broiler chicken with encphalitic listeriosis. A. Necrosis and heterophilic infiltration of a circumscribed focus of inflammation, HE stain. B. Higher magnification of the microabscess, showing slender gram-positive rods at the periphery of the abscess (arrows), Gram stain.
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
Brief communications Although very little is known of the specific conditions necessary for the development of overt disease, in ruminants the encephalitic form of listeriosis can result when the organism enters through minor lesions in the oral cavity, nasal cavity, or conjunctiva and migrates along the peripheral nerves 15,17 Necrosis then occurs in the to the central nervous system. brain stem, often beginning in the trigeminal ganglion.15 When mice were injected with Listeria monocytogenes in the sciatic nerve, the bacterium actively migrated along the nerve axon, resulting in flaccid paralysis within 7-14 days postinoculation. 16 The broilers involved in these outbreaks had been debeaked and had received a subcutaneous vaccination in the neck area several weeks before the onset of the first symptoms, suggesting possible routes of entry for the organism. The only 2 reported outbreaks of listeriosis in broilers in California have involved breeder replacement birds, whereas infection in meat-type chickens, which are far more common in this region but are not debeaked or vaccinated subcutaneously at 7-10 days of age, has not been reported.
Sources and manufacturers a. Salisbury Laboratories, Charles City, IA. b. BBL Microbiological Systems, Cockeysville, MD. c. Oxoid, USA, Columbia, MD.
References 1. Bailey JS, Fletcher DL, Cox RA: 1989, Recovery and serotype distribution of Listeria monocytogenes from broiler chickens in the southeastern United States. J Food Prot 52: 148-150. 2. Bailey JS, Fletcher DL, Cox RA: 1990, Listeria colonization of broiler chickens. Poult Sci 69:457-461. 3. Barnes HJ: 1991, Diseases of poultry, 9th ed., pp. 280-290. Iowa State University Press, Ames IA. 4. Basher HA, Fowler DR, Rodgers FG, Seaman A, Woodbine M: 1984, Pathogenicity of natural and experimental listeriosis in newly hatched chicks. Res Vet Sci 36:76-80. 5. Blood DC, Henderson JA: 1979, Veterinary medicine, 5th ed., pp. 425-428. Lea & Febiger, Philadelphia, PA.
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6. Cooper GL: 1989, An encephalitic form of listeriosis in broiler chickens. Avian Dis 33:182-185. 7. Dijkstra RG: 1987, Listeriosis-joint WHO/ROI consultation on prevention and control, ed. Schonberg A, pp. 68-78. World Health Organization, Berlin, West Germany. 8. Eriksen L, Larsen HE, Christiansen T, Jensen MM, Eriksen E: 1988, An outbreak of meningo-encephalitis in fallow deer caused by Listeria monocytogenes. Vet Rec 122:274-276. 9. Fenlon DR: 1985, Wild birds and silage as reservoirs of Listeria in the agricultural environment. J Appl Bacteriol 59:537-543. 10. Gray ML: 1958, Listeriosis in fowl-a review. Avian Dis 2: 296-314. 11. Gray ML, Killinger AH: 1966, Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria infections. Bacteriol Rev 30:339-382. 12. Juntilla JR, Niemela SI, Him J: 1988, Minimum growth temperature of Listeria monocytogenes and non-haemolytic Listeria. J Appl Bacteriol 65:321-327. 13. Kaufmann HE: 1988, Listeriosis: new findings-current concem. Microb Pathog 5:225-231. 14. McClain D, Lee WH: 1989, FSIS method for the isolation and identification of Listeria monocytogenes from processed meat and poultry products. Laboratory communication no. 57. USDA, FSIS Microbiological Division, Beltsville, MD. 15. Otter A, Blakemore WF: 1988, Observations on the presence of Listeria monocytogenes within axons of central and peripheral nervous systems of sheep. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 14:517. 16. Otter A, Blakemore WF: 1989, Observations on the neural transport of Listeria monocytogenes in a mouse model. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 15:590. 17. Rebhun WC: 1986, Vet Clin North Am Food Anim Pract 3: 75-83. 18. Walker SJ, Archer P, Banks JG: 1990, Growth of Listeria monocytogenes at refrigeration temperatures. J Appl Bacteriol 68:157-162. 19. Watkins J, Sleath KP: 1981, Isolation and enumeration of Listeria monocytogenes from sewage, sewage sludge and river water. J Appl Bacteriol 50:1-9. 20. Wood LV, Woodbine M: 1979, Low temperature virulence of Listeria monocytogenes in the avian embryo. Bakteriol Hyg I Abt 243:74-81.
J Vet Diagn Invest 4:345-347 (1992)
Campylobacter jejuni isolated from ratites Karen Post, Jon R. Ayers, William C. Gilmore, Russell H. Raleigh Ratites (ostrich, emu, and rhea) are increasingly popular as alternative livestock in the United States. These birds are valuable, and public interest in them is increasing. Many diagnostic laboratories, therefore, may become involved with ratite disease diagnosis. This report describes clinical, histologic, and bacteriologic findings in a rhea from which Campylobacter jejuni was isolated and the subsequent isolation of the bacterium from yolk sacs of ostrich chicks. A 3-month-old rhea chick was submitted August 30, 1990, From the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, 6610 Amarillo Blvd. West, Amarillo, TX 79106. Received for publication October 8, 1991.
to the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, Amarillo, Texas. Seven rheas in a flock of 14 died over a 1 -week period. The birds appeared emaciated before death. Rheas of all ages were housed in an outdoor enclosure adjacent to several ostrich pens. Necropsy of the rhea chick revealed multifocal, light tan 1-2-mm-diameter foci (some with darkened centers) at 1 pole of the left lobule of the liver. The musculature was pale and mildly emaciated. Other significant gross lesions were not observed. Heart, lung, ventriculus, proventriculus, small intestine, colon, liver, kidney, skeletal muscle, and multiple sections of brain were fixed in 10% buffered formalin and examined
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
343
6. Loewen KG, Darcel CLQ: 1985, A comparison of two methods for the isolation of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) from extended bovine semen. Theriogenology 23:935-939. 7. Moorthy ARS: 1985, Outbreak of balanoposthitis in breeding bulls. Vet Rec 116:98. 8. Schultz RD, Sheffy BE: 1980, Current status of viral infection of bovine genital tract with emphasis on IBR/IPV virus. In: Current therapy in theriogenology, ed. Morrow DA, pp. 503-509. W. B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, PA. 9. Snowdow WA: 1965, The IBR/IPV virus reaction to infection and intermittent recovery of the virus from experimentally inoculated cattle. Aust Vet J 41:135-142.
J Vet Diagn Invest 4:343-345 (1992)
Listeriosis in California broiler chickens G. Cooper, B. Charlton, A. Bickford, C. Cardona, J. Barton, S. Channing-Santiago, R. Walker Listeria monocytogenes has been isolated from a variety of animals, including fish, birds, and mammals, and is widely 11 distributed in nature. It is especially common in the temperate zones where it can be found in soil, water, and animal feces and on vegetable matter such as silage.5 Diseases caused by the organism include meningoencephalitis, mastitis, abortion, metritis, and Septicemia.5,11 In ruminants, the disease often occurs in winter and is associated with damp, moldy conditions8 and with the feeding of silage.10 Listeria monocytogenes has been isolated from the intestinal tract of many healthy animals, including sheep, cattle,5 deer,8 and chickens.1,2 It is frequently isolated from the environment9,19 and has been recovered from the litter of broiler houses in Norway7 and from soil samples around feeding grounds during outbreaks of the disease in ruminants.8 Listeriosis has been well documented in domestic fowl10 but tends to occur sporadically in these species, resulting in septicemia (with splenomegaly), necrosis of the liver, necrosis of the myocardium, and pericarditis.3 In a 1988 outbreak6 and the outbreak described in this report, the disease occurred in the encephalitic form, with little or no evidence of a septicemic involvement. This article documents the second reported outbreak of encephalitic listeriosis in California broiler chickens. In late January 1991, a disease outbreak characterized by depression, ataxia, torticollis, opisthotonos, lateral recumbency, paddling, leg tremors, and circling was seen in a flock of young broiler chickens on a commercial poultry ranch in From the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, Turlock Branch, University of California-Davis, PO Box 1522, Turlock, CA 95381 (Cooper, Charlton, Bickford, Cardona, ChanningSantiago), the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, San Bernardino Branch, University of California-Davis, 105 W. Central Ave, PO Box 5579, San Bernardino, CA 92412 (Barton), and the California Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory System, University of California-Davis, PO Box 1770, West Health Sciences Drive, Davis, CA 95617 (Walker). Received for publication October 31, 1991.
California. Affected birds either died or were culled within 1-2 days of the appearance of symptoms. Morbidity was low; only 0.3% of the flock of 54,000 birds were affected. Gross necropsy findings were not remarkable, but histopathologic examination revealed gliosis and satellitosis in the molecular layer of the cerebellum with extensive perivascular lymphocytic cuffing and gliosis (Fig. 1) and disseminated microabscesses (Fig. 2A) in the midbrain and medulla. Brain tissues (fixed in 10% neutral formalin, sectioned at 6 µm, and stained with the Brown-Hopps Gram stain) revealed large numbers of gram-positive rod-shaped bacteria within the microabscesses and at the periphery of the lesions (Fig. 2B). After culturing directly onto blood agar plates and incubating at 37 C for 24 hours, Listeria monocytogenes was isolated in moderate numbers from the brains of all 6 birds tested and as a single colony from the liver of 1 bird. Isolates from liver and brain sent to the Department of Health and Human Services, Minneapolis, Minnesota, were identified as serotype 4b. The broilers were housed in 10 barns arranged in 2 rows of 5 barns each. Weather conditions had been cold and rainy before the outbreak began, and water stood in puddles between the buildings. The ranch buildings were older and consequently more difficult to weatherproof than those of most of the other ranches operated by the company. During storms, rain water leaked through the roofs and blew through the side curtains of some houses, resulting in excessively moist litter conditions. Water was supplied in drinking cups located near the floor and was readily contaminated with litter and feces. The birds had been debeaked and had received a subcutaneous injection of Chick Vac,a a modified live viral arthritis vaccine, in the neck area at approximately 7 days of age. In February 1991, water and litter samples were collected from each of the 10 poultry barns involved in the outbreak. Litter was collected from each barn at multiple sites and was pooled into samples of approximately 100 g each. A pooled drinking water sample of approximately 100 ml was collected
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
344
Brief communications
Figure 1. Photomicrograph of the brain stem of a broiler chicken with encephalitic listeriosis. Lymphocytic perivascular cuffs are clearly visible with diffuse gliosis in the surrounding brain tissue. HE stain.
with syringes from cup drinkers in each barn. Water samples were collected from 8 puddles of water standing between the buildings. One drinking water sample was obtained directly from the main water supply outlet. Soil samples were taken from an area of the ranch close to an adjacent dairy farm and from an area at the opposite end of the broiler ranch. Water and litter samples were held at refrigerator temperatures (2-8 C) until cultured. All samples were cultured within 7-30 days of collection using a series of enrichment broths, beginning with a primary enrichment broth (UVM Listeria broth)b and transferring to a secondary enrichment broth (Frasers broth),b followed by cultivation on Listeria plating mediumb and MOX agar plates,” as previously described.14 Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from litter samples of 4 out of 10 poultry barns and from 4 out of 10 water samples taken from drinking cups. The organism was also isolated from soil collected from an area of the broiler ranch adjacent to the dairy but not from soil taken from the opposite end
of the ranch. The drinking water sample collected from the main water outlet was negative for Listeria, as were 8 water samples taken from puddles between the buildings. The isolates from soil, litter, and water were serotype 4b, the same serotype isolated from brain and liver tissue of infected birds. Because cattle can carry the organism in the intestinal tract and cows with mastitis may shed large numbers of Listeria in the milk,13 the nearby dairy was considered a potential source of the outbreak, and the organism may have washed in with runoff water during the recent rains. However, because Listeria monocytogenes was not isolated from any of the water samples taken from puddles standing between the buildings, this route of infection was considered unlikely. The 1991 outbreak of listeriosis was similar to the outbreak that occurred in broilers 3 years earlier.6 Both outbreaks involved young breeder replacement birds of approximately the same age (4-6 weeks). Signs were very similar, and the microscopic lesions were nearly identical in both outbreaks. Morbidity rates were low in both cases, 0.5% in the first outbreak and 0.3% in the second. The birds were grown by the same company, and management procedures were similar for both outbreak flocks. Rice hulls were used for litter, and birds had been debeaked and vaccinated subcutaneously in the neck area with a modified live viral arthritis vaccine at between 7 and 10 days of age. Both ranches were older and reportedly difficult to weatherproof, and both outbreaks occurred during winter, in late January or early February. In ruminants, listeriosis is often seen in winter.5 The stresses of inclement weather, nutritional deficiencies, and the poor quality of feed available at this time of the year are usually cited as contributing factors.5 Recently, the psychrotrophic properties of the organism itself have been considered significant in the epidemiology of the disease.12 Listeria monocytogenes is able to grow at temperatures as low as -0.4 C,18 which may afford it a selective advantage over competing microorganisms during winter.20 There is also some evidence that virulence factors, such as soluble hemolysins, may be induced or enhanced at low temperatures.12,20
Figure 2. Photomicrograph of a focal microabscess in the brain stem of a broiler chicken with encphalitic listeriosis. A. Necrosis and heterophilic infiltration of a circumscribed focus of inflammation, HE stain. B. Higher magnification of the microabscess, showing slender gram-positive rods at the periphery of the abscess (arrows), Gram stain.
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
Brief communications Although very little is known of the specific conditions necessary for the development of overt disease, in ruminants the encephalitic form of listeriosis can result when the organism enters through minor lesions in the oral cavity, nasal cavity, or conjunctiva and migrates along the peripheral nerves 15,17 Necrosis then occurs in the to the central nervous system. brain stem, often beginning in the trigeminal ganglion.15 When mice were injected with Listeria monocytogenes in the sciatic nerve, the bacterium actively migrated along the nerve axon, resulting in flaccid paralysis within 7-14 days postinoculation. 16 The broilers involved in these outbreaks had been debeaked and had received a subcutaneous vaccination in the neck area several weeks before the onset of the first symptoms, suggesting possible routes of entry for the organism. The only 2 reported outbreaks of listeriosis in broilers in California have involved breeder replacement birds, whereas infection in meat-type chickens, which are far more common in this region but are not debeaked or vaccinated subcutaneously at 7-10 days of age, has not been reported.
Sources and manufacturers a. Salisbury Laboratories, Charles City, IA. b. BBL Microbiological Systems, Cockeysville, MD. c. Oxoid, USA, Columbia, MD.
References 1. Bailey JS, Fletcher DL, Cox RA: 1989, Recovery and serotype distribution of Listeria monocytogenes from broiler chickens in the southeastern United States. J Food Prot 52: 148-150. 2. Bailey JS, Fletcher DL, Cox RA: 1990, Listeria colonization of broiler chickens. Poult Sci 69:457-461. 3. Barnes HJ: 1991, Diseases of poultry, 9th ed., pp. 280-290. Iowa State University Press, Ames IA. 4. Basher HA, Fowler DR, Rodgers FG, Seaman A, Woodbine M: 1984, Pathogenicity of natural and experimental listeriosis in newly hatched chicks. Res Vet Sci 36:76-80. 5. Blood DC, Henderson JA: 1979, Veterinary medicine, 5th ed., pp. 425-428. Lea & Febiger, Philadelphia, PA.
345
6. Cooper GL: 1989, An encephalitic form of listeriosis in broiler chickens. Avian Dis 33:182-185. 7. Dijkstra RG: 1987, Listeriosis-joint WHO/ROI consultation on prevention and control, ed. Schonberg A, pp. 68-78. World Health Organization, Berlin, West Germany. 8. Eriksen L, Larsen HE, Christiansen T, Jensen MM, Eriksen E: 1988, An outbreak of meningo-encephalitis in fallow deer caused by Listeria monocytogenes. Vet Rec 122:274-276. 9. Fenlon DR: 1985, Wild birds and silage as reservoirs of Listeria in the agricultural environment. J Appl Bacteriol 59:537-543. 10. Gray ML: 1958, Listeriosis in fowl-a review. Avian Dis 2: 296-314. 11. Gray ML, Killinger AH: 1966, Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria infections. Bacteriol Rev 30:339-382. 12. Juntilla JR, Niemela SI, Him J: 1988, Minimum growth temperature of Listeria monocytogenes and non-haemolytic Listeria. J Appl Bacteriol 65:321-327. 13. Kaufmann HE: 1988, Listeriosis: new findings-current concem. Microb Pathog 5:225-231. 14. McClain D, Lee WH: 1989, FSIS method for the isolation and identification of Listeria monocytogenes from processed meat and poultry products. Laboratory communication no. 57. USDA, FSIS Microbiological Division, Beltsville, MD. 15. Otter A, Blakemore WF: 1988, Observations on the presence of Listeria monocytogenes within axons of central and peripheral nervous systems of sheep. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 14:517. 16. Otter A, Blakemore WF: 1989, Observations on the neural transport of Listeria monocytogenes in a mouse model. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 15:590. 17. Rebhun WC: 1986, Vet Clin North Am Food Anim Pract 3: 75-83. 18. Walker SJ, Archer P, Banks JG: 1990, Growth of Listeria monocytogenes at refrigeration temperatures. J Appl Bacteriol 68:157-162. 19. Watkins J, Sleath KP: 1981, Isolation and enumeration of Listeria monocytogenes from sewage, sewage sludge and river water. J Appl Bacteriol 50:1-9. 20. Wood LV, Woodbine M: 1979, Low temperature virulence of Listeria monocytogenes in the avian embryo. Bakteriol Hyg I Abt 243:74-81.
J Vet Diagn Invest 4:345-347 (1992)
Campylobacter jejuni isolated from ratites Karen Post, Jon R. Ayers, William C. Gilmore, Russell H. Raleigh Ratites (ostrich, emu, and rhea) are increasingly popular as alternative livestock in the United States. These birds are valuable, and public interest in them is increasing. Many diagnostic laboratories, therefore, may become involved with ratite disease diagnosis. This report describes clinical, histologic, and bacteriologic findings in a rhea from which Campylobacter jejuni was isolated and the subsequent isolation of the bacterium from yolk sacs of ostrich chicks. A 3-month-old rhea chick was submitted August 30, 1990, From the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, 6610 Amarillo Blvd. West, Amarillo, TX 79106. Received for publication October 8, 1991.
to the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, Amarillo, Texas. Seven rheas in a flock of 14 died over a 1 -week period. The birds appeared emaciated before death. Rheas of all ages were housed in an outdoor enclosure adjacent to several ostrich pens. Necropsy of the rhea chick revealed multifocal, light tan 1-2-mm-diameter foci (some with darkened centers) at 1 pole of the left lobule of the liver. The musculature was pale and mildly emaciated. Other significant gross lesions were not observed. Heart, lung, ventriculus, proventriculus, small intestine, colon, liver, kidney, skeletal muscle, and multiple sections of brain were fixed in 10% buffered formalin and examined
Downloaded from vdi.sagepub.com at IOWA TESTING PROGRAMS on March 19, 2015
