Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Two-month-old dog with brain and muscle infection from Sarcocystis
By Dubey, J P et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology·2014·United States Department of Agriculture, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Sarcocystis neurona schizonts-associated encephalitis, chorioretinitis, and myositis in a two-month-old dog simulating toxoplasmosis, and presence of mature sarcocysts in muscles.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 9-week-old golden retriever from Mississippi was brought in with severe symptoms that included neurological issues and eye problems, which were similar to those seen in toxoplasmosis. Tests revealed a rare infection caused by a protozoan called Sarcocystis neurona, which is typically associated with fatal diseases in horses. The dog had lesions in multiple organs, including the brain and muscles, and the infection was likely passed from the mother during pregnancy. Unfortunately, despite the diagnosis, the infection was severe and resulted in the dog's death.
People also search for: golden retriever neurological problems · dog eye issues · Sarcocystis neurona infection in dogs · puppy toxoplasmosis symptoms · dog protozoan infection treatment
Abstract
Sarcocystis neurona is an unusual species of the genus Sarcocystis. Opossums (Didelphis virginianus, D. albiventris) are the definitive hosts and several other species, including dogs, cats, marine mammals, and horses are intermediate or aberrant hosts. Sarcocysts are not known to form in aberrant hosts. Sarcocystis neurona causes fatal disease in horses (Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis, EPM). There are numerous reports of fatal EPM-like infections in other species, usually with central nervous system signs and associated with the schizont stage of S. neurona. Here, we report fatal disseminated S. neurona infection in a nine-week-old golden retriever dog from Mississippi, USA. Protozoal merozoites were identified in smears of the cerebrospinal fluid. Microscopically, lesions and protozoa were identified in eyes, tongue, heart, liver, intestines, nasal turbinates, skeletal muscle and brain, which reacted intensely with S. neurona polyclonal antibodies. Mature sarcocysts were seen in sections of muscles. These sarcocysts were ultrastructurally similar to those of S. neurona from experimentally infected animals. These data suggest that the dog is another intermediate host for S. neurona. Data suggest that the dog was transplacentally infected.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24680604/