Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Ubiquitin expression in degenerating axons of equine cervical compressive myelopathy.
- Journal:
- Veterinary pathology
- Year:
- 1996
- Authors:
- Jortner, B S et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
In a study of four young horses with equine cervical compressive myelopathy, which is a condition that affects the spinal cord, researchers found signs of nerve damage. They observed that the nerve fibers in the spinal cord were swelling and breaking down, a process known as Wallerian degeneration. The presence of a protein called ubiquitin, which is involved in cellular stress responses, was increased in these damaged nerves. This suggests that ubiquitin might play a role in the nerve damage caused by the compression associated with this condition. The findings indicate that there are significant changes in the nerves of horses suffering from this myelopathy.
Abstract
Neuropathologic examination revealed axonal swelling and breakdown leading to Wallerian degeneration of affected myelinated nerve fibers in the spinal cord white matter of four young horses with equine cervical compressive myelopathy. Immunohistochemical reactions for the cell stress protein ubiquitin revealed an enhanced presence in the swollen axons, which may reflect a role for ubiquitin in the neuronal catabolic process of axonal compression and degeneration in this myelopathy.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8740714/