Possible blood marker for lymphoma?

 Thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) could prove to be a useful biomarker to identify horses with lymphoma, according to recent
research.

 

Lymphoma is the most common hematopoietic neoplasm (tumour affecting the blood-producing cells) in horses. Lymphomas are less common than sarcoids, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma, and account for about 2% of all equine neoplasia.

 

Lymphomas can appear in different forms depending on which tissues are involved. Those involving the skin are easier to identify and treat. Tumours involving lymphoid tissue in the chest or abdominal organs are more of a challenge. They tend to produce non-specific signs such as fever, weight loss, colic, ventral oedema, and diarrhoea.

 

Confirmation of a diagnosis relies on identification of malignant lymphoid cells in blood or bone marrow, or in pleural or peritoneal fluid. An accurate serum biomarker would make the task much easier.

 

Thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) plays an important role in DNA replication and cell division. It is only present in cells when they are dividing and is quickly broken down afterwards. Cells dividing normally do not release significant amounts of TK1 into the extracellular body fluids, but cancer cells do.

 

Serum TK1 activity has been used as a biomarker for health screening for malignant diseases and to monitor response to treatment in humans and in dogs.

 

Liya Wang and colleagues at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden and the University of Bern, and Agroscope, Bern, Switzerland, conducted a study to evaluate the serum level of TK1 as a biomarker for equine lymphoma. 

 

They collected serum samples from healthy and diseased horses, and measured the levels of TK1.

 

They took blood from seven horses with confirmed lymphoma, five horses with suspected lymphoma, 107 control horses with concurrent diseases and 42 healthy horses.

 

They found that “serum TK1 activity was significantly higher in the lymphoma (p <  0.0005), suspected lymphoma (p <  0.02) and tumour-free with concurrent diseases (p <  0.03) groups than in the controls without concurrent diseases, and there was a significant difference between the lymphoma group and the tumour-free group with concurrent diseases (p <  0.0006).” 

 

They conclude: “These results demonstrated that serum TK1 could serve as a useful biomarker to distinguish individuals with lymphoma from control horses with and without concurrent diseases.”

 

For more details, see: 

 

Molecular characterization of equine thymidine kinase 1 and preliminary evaluation of its suitability as a serum biomarker for equine lymphoma. 

Wang, L., Unger, L., Sharif, H. et al.

BMC Mol and Cell Biol (2021). 22, 59. 

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12860-021-00399-x

Morris Animal Foundation invites funding requests

 Morris Animal Foundation, one of the largest non-profit animal health research organizations in the
world, is now inviting requests for funding for studies focusing on equine behavior and welfare.

“This call for proposals provides researchers the opportunity to take a closer look at behavior issues that impact the health of equid species,” said Dr. Janet Patterson-Kane, Morris Animal Foundation Chief Scientific Officer.

“We recognize the importance of behavior as a component of animal health and overall welfare. This call will advance our knowledge of equine behavior, with a particular emphasis on guiding interventions and improving well-being.”

Proposals should focus on improving the lives of horses by increasing our understanding of the behavioral domain. This includes areas such as cognition, learning, stereotypies, separation anxiety, affiliative behavior toward (bonding with) humans, equine psychopharmacology, and the effects of equine temperament on welfare. Proposals may involve domesticated or wild horses.

The maximum project duration is 12 months, and the budget cannot exceed $10,000 USD.

This Donor-Inspired Study grant is funded by long-time Morris Animal Foundation supporter, Dr. Wendy Koch. Dr. Koch, a veterinarian, has closely followed equine behavior and welfare research over the years and wanted to increase the amount of funding available for studies in these fields.

All proposals submitted to Morris Animal Foundation will be reviewed by a Scientific Advisory Board. Interested researchers can find additional information, including award types and funding levels at:

https://morrisanimalfoundation.org/apply

Easing intramuscular injections

(c) Hvat10     Dreamstime.com

Applying topical anaesthetic to the skin a couple of minutes before vaccinating horses can reduce signs of discomfort recent research has shown.

Puncturing the skin for Intramuscular injections and collecting blood samples are common procedures in equine medicine. However, many horses show signs of discomfort, and may become “needle shy”.

Catherine Torcivia  and Sue McDonnell at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s New Bolton Center,  conducted a study to see if  applying topical anaesthetic before inserting the needle reduced the signs of discomfort..

They explain: “Our experience indicates that horses can begin to develop an injection aversion after only one uncomfortable experience. From that point forward, the typical progression for many horses involves increasingly aggressive handling techniques to attempt to restrain or punish increasingly animated avoidance behavior. This experience can quickly lead to conditioned fear that may generalize beyond injections, making those horses dangerously challenging to handle for other health care procedures.”

“If we can reduce the discomfort of injections, we may be able to avoid development of aversions to injections and other health care procedures, thereby improving welfare both at the time of vaccinations and lifelong.”

The study involved semi-feral ponies from the University’s herd. They were restrained in a holding pen while various management procedures were carried out – such as measuring height and weight with a girth tape, body condition scoring, palpating and estimating the size of testicles, and administering oral anthelmintic - as well as administering two intramuscular vaccinations.

Torcivia and McDonnell applied topical anaesthetic (5% an 10% lidocaine) or a  placebo to the injection site two minutes before injecting the ponies.  Each pony was given two vaccinations – one on either side of the neck, and the researchers, blinded to which concentration of ointment had been used, recorded the ponies’ responses at the moment of each injection

They found that reaction scores for both the 5% and 10% lidocaine groups were significantly lower ( ie showed less reaction) than for the control group. The difference between the 5% and 10% lidocaine groups was not significant. 

They conclude that applying topical anaesthetic can reduce the reaction of horses to intramuscular injection.

“Both the 5% and 10% lidocaine products commercially available for numbing human skin were effective when applied only two minutes before vaccination, making the procedure practical for routine use.”

They suggest that further work should be helpful in optimizing benefit from these and other topical numbing preparations.

For more details, see:

Efficacy of Lidocaine Topical Solution in Reducing Discomfort Reaction of Horses to Intramuscular Vaccination
Catherine Torcivia , Sue McDonnell 
Animals (Basel) (2022) 28;12(13):1659.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12131659

Strip grazing reduces eating but not moving, new study shows

Studies have already shown that strip grazing is an effective way of restricting grass intake in ponies.

Now, new work indicates the added benefit that eating less doesn’t automatically mean moving less.

Restricting grass intake is an essential part of many weight management programmes. Having shown in a previous study that strip grazed ponies gain significantly less weight than ponies with free access to restricted grazing over a 28-day period, SPILLERS and their research collaborators set out to discover whether eating less as a result of strip grazing also means moving less in the field. 

To evaluate the effects on ‘activity levels’ of ponies strip grazing individually, behavioural data from the previous study was analysed. In addition, a second study was evaluated, that had been carried out in collaboration with the Royal Veterinary College, to look at the effects of strip grazing on the behaviour of ponies turned out in groups.

In the second study 10 ponies were randomly assigned to one of two adjacent paddocks. Both paddocks were the same size, had been managed in the same way and subjectively had the same amount of very limited grazing available. Paddock B was divided into seven strips (using electric fencing) with ponies given access to one additional fresh strip of grazing every day; ponies in paddock A had access to the entire paddock for the duration of the study.

In both studies, behaviour and activity levels were assessed on several occasions using a combination of direct observation and activity monitors attached to the poll strap of the ponies’ headcollars. 

The research team found no significant difference in the over-all time strip grazed ponies spent grazing, standing, or moving regardless of whether a back fence was used or if they were turned out individually or as a group.

“The results of both studies showed that the strip grazed ponies moved just as much as the unrestricted ponies,” said Clare Barfoot RNutr, Marketing and Research and Development Director at Mars Horsecare UK, home of the SPILLERS brand. “Similar amounts of time were spent grazing, standing and locomoting (which included walking, trotting and cantering) within the different groups and encouragingly, performance of behaviours related to stress and frustration were low in both studies too.”

“While we were unsurprised to see that the strip grazed ponies preferred to graze the newly accessible grass and spent most time grazing in the four hours after the fence had been moved, we believe this finding could be useful when deciding if and how those prone to laminitis should have access to grass.”

The researchers are now looking into the effects of strip grazing on the water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) or ‘sugar’ content of the grass as well as pasture recovery.

For more details, see:

The effect of strip grazing on physical activity and behaviour in ponies.
A Cameron, A Longland, T Pfau, S Pinnegar, I Brackston, J Hockenhull,  PA Harris, NJ Menzies-Gow. (2021).
Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, (2022) 110, 103745. 
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2021.103745