Pathology

Question 0

What can you do to diagnose illnes?

Answer 0

-look at case history and syndrome: species, age, nature of the experiment, transgenesis, breeding results, changes in environment
-clinical investigation:
Appetite, fur, behaviour, respiration, defecation
-additional investigation:
Biopsies, fur/skin monsters, faeces, blood sampling, sampling the throat, nose, for bacteriological investigation
-post-mortal investigation
Bring the animal to the lab asap, wet the fur and pack in plastic bag: cool at 4 degrees. Organs in 4% formaldehyde, max 8 mm thick

Question 1

Give three reasons why animals can get sick

Answer 1

1) Combination of harmful environmental factors (shortage of vitamins, too hot/humid, experimental conditions, infections, genetic factors)
2) Adaptation mechanism itself is decreased and equilibrium is disrupted (irradiation, administration of immunosuppressants, nude-, scid- or beige-mutations
3) Adaptation mechanism is exceeded by abnormal metabolism (diabetes, tumours)

Question 2

Which types of infectious diseases can animals have?

Answer 2

Viruses
Bacteria and mycoplasma 
Protozoa
Fungus and yeast
Endoparasites
Ectoparasites

Question 3

Explain three types of micro-organisms

Answer 3

1) Virulent MO: very pathogenic and infectious
2) obligate pathogen MO: always pathogenic
3) facultative pathogen MO: usually harmless, becomes pathogenic in certain circumstances (e.g. stress)

Question 4

Give examples of viral diseases

Answer 4

Mouse hepatitis virus (MHV)
ROTA-virus, EDIM (episodic diarrhoea of infant mice)
Ectromelia
Mouse Adenovirus
Parvovirus
Mouse Norovirus
Others: Pneumonia Virus of Mice, Reovirus-3, Mouse Cytomegalovirus, Sendaivirus, Theiler’s Murine Encephalomyelitis Virus, Thymic Virus, Hantavirus, Sialodacryodenitis Virus (SDAV)

Question 5

Describe Mouse Hepatitis Virus

Answer 5

• corona virus (infection runs during 2-3 weeks
• very contagious (contact, airborne)
• contaminant of tumours and cell lines
• mostly subclinical
• causes changes in immune system, changes in activity of hepatic enzymes

Question 6

Describe ROTA-virus

Answer 6

-diarrhoea
Airborne, dust and bedding
Young mice get sick, subclinical in adult animals

Question 7

Describe Ectromelia

Answer 7

Mouse pox
Direct contact and through mites
Sensitivity depends on strain
Oedema, swollen legs, necrotic 
Intrauterine infection possible
Very high mortality possible

Question 8

Describe Mouse Adenovirus

Answer 8

mad-1 and Mad-2
Oral transmission
No clinical effects
Causes kidney damage

Question 9

Describe Parvovirus

Answer 9

Different strains (h1, Kilham rat virus, Minute virus of mice, MPV
Very contagious
Direct contact and via urine/faeces
Usually asymptotic, sometimes haemorrhages and necrosis of brain, hepatitis

Question 10

Describe mouse Norovirus

Answer 10

Calicivirus
Related to the Feline Calicivirus and human norovirus
No clear symptoms, impact on experiments unknown
Early pup removal and fostering

Question 11

Give examples of bacterial diseases

Answer 11

Corynebacterium
Staphylococcus aureus
Clostridium piliformis (Tyzzer's disease)
Pasteurella pneumotropica
Pseudomonas aeruginosa 
Mycoplasma pulmonis 
Helicobacter 
Salmonella enteritidis 
Streptobacillus monoliformis (Haverhill fever, rat bite disease)
Streptococcus pneumonia

Question 12

Mycoplasma pulmonis

Answer 12

Gram-negative
Occurs frequently and causes respiratory problems
Transmission through aerosol, intra-uterine
Causes shortage of breath, weight loss, inactivity, sniffing

Question 13

Corynebacterium

Answer 13

Gram-positive
Skin infection in nude mice
In immune-competent animals the infection passes inconspicuously

Question 14

Staphylococcus aureus

Answer 14

Often origin from humans

Abscesses

Question 15

Clostridium piliformis (Tyzzer’s disease)

Answer 15

Gram-negative
Rodents, rabbits, cat, dog, primates, horses
Clinical signs in lactating and weaned animals
Morbidity and mortality varies from very low to very high

Question 16

Pasteurella pneumotropica

Answer 16

Gram-negative
> 95% of the healthy animals of a colony can be infected
Contact and mites
Opportunistic bacteria

Question 17

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Answer 17

Gram- negative
Water, soil, air
Contact, mites 
Can be part of normal gut flora 
Can cause otitis 
Mostly a problem in immune deficient animals

Question 18

Heliobacter

Answer 18

Hellion achter hepatitis
Condition contracted early in life
Liver lesions develop in mice1-4 months of age, but progress by 6-8 months
Liver lesions, hepatitis, tumours, rectal prolaps, disease in the cecum and colon, gall bladder disease, IBD

Question 19

What should you know about heliobacter?

Answer 19

-opportunistic enteric bacteria with only low grade potential to cause disease
Males more affected than females
Certain host strains more affected, e.g. scid, A/J, C3H/HeN…
Detected by ELISA (antibodies) or PCR (genome)
Triple treatment (amoxillin, metronidazole, bismuth)
Eradication: sanitization of empty rooms, repopulation with derived stocks or H. Hepaticus free stock from outside sources

Question 20

Give examples of Protozoa

Answer 20

Encephalitozoon cuniculi - microsporidium, more in rabbits, causes meningoencephalitis
Pneumocystis carinii - not classified, causes lung disease in immune deficient animals
Entamoeba Maris - non-pathogen
Giardia Maris - flagellate, subclinical
Spironucleus muris - flagellate

Question 21

Give an example of fungus and yeast

Answer 21

Trichophyton spp. And microsporum spp.

• dermatofytes
• zoonose
• causes irregular areas of alopecia

Question 22

Give an example of endoparasites and ectoparasites

Answer 22

Endo: pinworm (syphacia obvelata, aspiculuris tetraptera)
Ecto: mites (myocoptes musculinus, myopia musculinus)

Question 23

Which illnes is self-induced (by own species)?

Answer 23

Barbering

Fighting