Infectious Diseases & Epidemiology

This flagellated protozoan parasite is found in the gastrointestinal tract of animals including man.

The parvoviruses are small nonenveloped single stranded DNA virus. Three are known to infect dogs.

Cryptococcus neoformans is a saprophytic round yeast-like fungus with the ability to form a heteropolysaccharide capsule in tissues.

In the USA, caused by spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi – it is the most common tick-transmitted zoonotic diseases in North America.

This systemic bacterial infection of dogs (and very rarely, cats) causes mainly acute nephritis and hepatitis, vasculitis, and chronic carrier states.

This disease is caused by the zoonotic hemoflagellate protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi.

Parasites are major causes of respiratory tract disease in the dog and cat. Recent advances in therapy of these diseases have been made providing the practicing veterinarian with a more rational treatment modality.

Filarial nematode infection of dogs and cats – Dirofilaria immitis – adults (female worms up to 30 cm in length) live in pulmonary arteries causing respiratory, cardiac, and in some cases, renal disease.

These tick-borne diseases of dogs and cats cause vasculitis leading to multisystemic dysfunction often characterized by thrombocytopenia and hyperglobulinemia.

Bartonellosis is an important emerging disease in humans and has been recognized to cause clinical disease in several other species, including dogs and cats.

In this three-part video, Dr. Sarah Cleaveland discusses the Afya Serengeti Project.

A new species of Bartonella, Candidatus Bartonella melophagi, that has only recently been identified in sheep has now also been isolated in two women, which adds to the increasing number of Bartonella species that have been found in people in the past 10 years.

Atlanta -- Cumulative veterinary cases of West Nile Virus (WNV) are down to 203 nationwide.

Baton Rouge, La. -- A barn at the New Orleans Fair Grounds Race Course was placed under quarantine Dec. 26 after two horses tested positive for the equine herpes virus (EHV-1).

National report -- Four confirmed cases of contagious equine metritis (CEM) in Kentucky last month triggered an investigation that so far involves all but 12 states, according to the USDA's Animal and Plant Health inspection Service (APHIS).

College Park, Md. -- A team of researchers specializing in the study of the Avian Influenza virus, H9N2, at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine say they have developed a universal vaccine for animals that may also help prevent or delay the spread of the virus to humans.

Researchers in Maryland may have identified a key to a universal flu vaccine.

Ithaca, N.Y. -- Researchers at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine have developed a vaccine against Johne's disease, a contagious, chronic and often fatal infection.

Little Rock, Ark. -- The Arkansas Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) will not oppose a proposed change to the state's rabies vaccination law, but they do have a suggestion.

San Francisco -- The San Francisco Society for the Protection of Animals (SPCA) is cautioning pet owners who use Golden Gate Park in the Haight District to be aware of an increase in canine parvovirus cases in dogs that have visited it.

Columbia, Mo. -- A new Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL) was dedicated earlier this month at the University of Missouri campus giving researchers the necessary tools to study emerging infectious diseases such as West Nile virus and tularemia, pathogens commonly found in Missouri.

Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is feared by people who breed cats. It is also frustrating to the veterinarian because of the difficulties in making a definitive diagnosis.

Feline leukemia virus was initially isolated from a household of cats in Scotland by Dr. Jarrett in 1964.

Feline calicivirus (FCV) is best known for its role in causing acute upper respiratory disease and oral ulceration in kittens and cats.

Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) represents the worst outcome of infection with a common group of viruses: the feline coronaviruses (FCoVs).

Research in antifungal drugs has increased dramatically in the last two decades with the advances in organ transplantation and the epidemic of AIDS.

As long as we've known about, tried to diagnose, and attempted to treat feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), it still eludes us!

In just the past 3 to 5 years, advanced diagnostic capabilities have enhanced our ability to detect infectious pathogens in the dog and have given credence to the term "emerging" infections.

Histoplasmosis is a systemic fungal infection caused by Histoplasma capsulatum.

Simply stated, the goal of vaccination is to sensitize or prime the immune system such that it can generate a population of unique cells capable of mounting an effective immune response subsequent to infection by a pathogenic organism.