Ciencia y tecnología veterinaria

Clinical Cases and Serum Biochemical Profiles of Horses Naturally Infected with Dourine in Western Arsi Zone, Ethiopia

Abstract

Yonas Gizaw, Hagos Ashenafi and Tilaye Demssie

Dourine a venereal transmitted trypanosomosis is endemic in Ethiopia and is the major health problem threatening equines worldwide. A cross-sectional study design and purposive sampling were used from November 2014 to June 2015 to identify clinical cases of dourine infected horses. Twelve mares with typical signs of dourine and serologically positive with CATT/T. evansi were identified. Despite attempts made to isolate the parasite using woo test, no trypanosomes were detected in all of examined blood samples. Among the serum samples which were taken from clinically dourine suspected mares and tested positive using CATT/T. evansi, 10 positive serum samples were selected purposively. Similarly 10 CATT negative serum samples were taken purposively from horses which were apparently healthy and in good body condition as control group. In such a manner serum samples collected were divided into two groups containing 10 negative (apparently healthy group) and 10 positive serum samples. Even though, not significant variation (p>0.05), a relative increase were observed in the mean values of total protein, AST, ALT and ALP while the mean level of albumin showed a relative decrease in infected group compared to healthy one. Therefore, the effect of infection with Trypanosoma equiperdum on the serum biochemicals should be done in the future by increasing sample sizes and considering early/acute and late/chronic stage.