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Normal haematological values and fibrinogen levels were obtained from a number of healthy adult Felidae in the collection of the Zoological Society of London. The group comprised 29 pumas (Felis concolor), 32 lions (Panthera leo), 27 tigers (P tigris), 19 leopards (P pardus), 18 jaguars (P onca) and 22 cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus). The values provided a basis for identifying abnormalities in the blood of sick individuals of these species and for undertaking interspecies comparisons.

Three wild caught littermate cheetahs succumbed to feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) after being in captivity for approximately 9 weeks. A necropsy and histopathological examination on one revealed typical signs of FIP as well as histopathological lesions in the liver and brain of concomitant toxoplasmosis. Hypochromic anaemia, neutrophilia, lymphopaenia, eosinopaenia and elevations of alpha 2-globulin and gamma-globulin fractions of the blood were present in the one animal examined. These findings together with some clinical signs are reported.

1. 1. Human pancreatic α-amylase (E.C. 3.2.1.1) was isolated and used to immunise rabbits. 2. 2. The antisera produced inhibited human pancreatic, salivary and serum amylases. 3. 3. The inhibitory effects of the antisera on other mammalian serum amylases were studied. 4. 4. Sera from representatives of Primates, Carnivora and Pholidota gave inhibition patterns similar to those shown by human serum. 5. 5. However, amylases from members of the order Artiodactyla showed little inhibition. 6. 6. These results could suggest that Primates, Carnivora and Pholidota, having diverged early in mammalian evolution, retain a primitive condition involving amylase expression; whereas the lack of reactivity in Artiodactyla reflects later specialisation.

Male cheetahs, tigers, leopards, and pumas maintained under the same conditions were anesthetized and 1) serially bled before, during, and after electroejaculation (EE); 2) serially bled only (AO); or 3) serially bled before and after receiving adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH). Ejaculates from leopards contained higher (p less than 0.05) sperm concentrations than cheetahs and pumas but lower (p less than 0.05) sperm motility ratings than all other species. Tigers produced a larger seminal volume and the greatest number of motile sperm/ejaculate (p less than 0.05). The percentage of morphologically abnormal spermatozoa was greater (p less than 0.05) in cheetahs (64.6%), leopards (79.5%), and pumas (73.5%) than in tigers (37.5%). The most prevalent spermatozoal deformities included a tightly coiled or bent flagellum, a deranged midpiece, or a residual cytoplasmic droplet. Mean baseline serum cortisol concentrations in leopards were 2- and 4-fold greater (p less than 0.05) than in tigers and cheetahs, respectively. Basal cortisol concentrations in pumas were similar to those of tigers, but irrespective of treatment increased 2-fold (p less than 0.01) during the bleeding period. An acute rise and fall in cortisol attributable to EE was observed only in cheetahs. In tigers and leopards, mean peak cortisol concentrations after ACTH were similar to maximal values observed after EE. However, peak cortisol levels in cheetahs and pumas after ACTH were greater (p less than 0.01) than the concentrations measured after EE, indicating that these manipulatory procedures were not eliciting a maximal adrenal response. In the EE groups, luteinizing hormone (LH) and testosterone levels in cheetahs were lower (p less than 0.05) than in other species, whereas levels of both hormones were comparable (p greater than 0.05) in tigers, leopards, and pumas. Elevated cortisol levels in cheetahs and pumas had no discernible effect on LH/testosterone patterns; however, the results were equivocal in tigers, and, among leopards, testosterone concentrations consistently declined over time. In this study, using a standardized approach, we identify different ejaculate and endocrine characteristics of captive cheetahs, tigers, leopards, and pumas. The data extend earlier observations and demonstrate that some, but not all, Felidae species ejaculate high numbers of pleiomorphic spermatozoa. However, inter-species differences in sperm integrity do not appear related to inter-species variations in cortisol, LH, or testosterone. The observation of continuously declining testosterone concentrations only in leopards after AO, EE, or ACTH treatment suggests that rising and/or elevated cortiso

Two North American fossil species of large felids, hitherto regarded as Late Cenozoic pumas (mountain lion), are in fact closely related to the living cheetah, Acinonyx, of Africa and Eurasia. A new subgenus (Miracinonyx) is proposed for the American species. Cheetahs and pumas may have had a common ancestor in the Miocene of North America.

A cytopathogenic virus with size and structural characteristics of a Herpesviridae was isolated from a cheetah with severe ulcerative dermatitis. Restriction endonuclease analysis and cross-hybridization studies revealed that the isolate was related to feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1). Antigenic comparison studies using anti-FHV-1 serum demonstrated the presence of common antigens in the FHV-1 and the isolate from the cheetah.

The structural morphology of the mandibula is presented and correlated to various types of mastication in several Mammalian species. The latter include: Carnivores (Dog, Cat, Cheetah, Lion); Omnivores (Man, Chimpanzee, Hog); Herbivores (Horse, Ox, Goat, Camel, Rabbit). While the mandibula is studied as a composite unit, a more analytical, segmental approach has been included, and both are illustrated by X-rays. The aspects presented underline the distribution as well as the local modifications of compact bone, and in addition, the arrangement and the development of spongy bone trabeculae. A preliminary classification with respect to structural elements has been suggested from two viewpoints: that of tension, the other of compression. Are also presented those variations linked to diet and alimentary intake, as well as their functional correlates.

Lifelike models of the oscillating legs treated as three-segment systems show the course of kinetic and potential energy over the locomotor cycle for a cheetah, pronghorn, jackrabbit, and elephant running at speeds approaching their maxima. The models can be adjusted to eliminate differences among the animals in time intervals, mass or length of limb, and joint angles. This facilitates analysis of the influence on total energy of each of these variables and of the distribution of mass among leg segments. Fast-cycling legs of the carnivore type have significantly more energy than those of the hoofed type. This may contribute to the lesser endurance that is usual for carnivores that hunt using a high-speed dash.

Case reports of a paraesophageal hiatal hernia in a French bulldog and an invagination of the stomach into the esophagus in a cheetah are presented. In both cases there was an enlarged hiatus and in the cheetah the hiatus was clearly bounded by a muscular loop. Treatment consisted of surgical narrowing of the hiatus. The pathophysiology of hiatal hernia is discussed with reference to experimental studies in dogs.

The steroidal anaesthetic agent Saffan (a 1,2% m/v mixture of alphaxalone and alphadolone) induced a state of poikilothermia in cheetahs. On a warm day (maximum temperature 29 degrees C) rectal temperatures rose in 7 of 8 male cheetahs given Saffan. The highest rectal temperature recorded was 41 degrees C. On a cool day (minimum temperature 19,5 degrees C) rectal temperature fell in 6 of 6 male cheetahs. The lowest rectal temperatures recorded was 36,2 degrees C. Saffan at 3 mg/kg intravenously in cheetahs is an excellent and safe hypnotic but should be used with caution on both hot and cold days.

Acinonyx Brookes, 1828. Cat. Anat. Zool. Mus. J. Brookes, Lond., p. 16, 33. COMMENT: Availability of Brookes catalogue names is uncertain (CPG). ISIS NUMBER: 5301412007003000000., Published as part of James H. Honacki, Kenneth E. Kinman & James W. Koeppl, 1982, Order Carnivora, pp. 244-289 in Mammal Species of the World (1 st Edition), Lawrence, Kansas, USA :Alien Press, Inc. & The Association of Systematics Collections on page 277, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7352980

Luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH, 50 μg) or saline was administered (i.m.) to adult female and male cheetahs under anaesthesia to evaluate pituitary and gonadal response. Serum LH levels did not fluctuate over a 120-min sampling period in saline-treated animals. Serum LH concentrations were raised (P < 0·05) in both female and male cheetahs after LHRH injection, the temporal response being similar to previously reported results in unanaesthetized, domestic carnivores. The magnitude of the LHRH-induced LH response was sex-dependent. Over a 120-min post-injection period both saline control and LHRH-induced LH levels were about twofold greater in males than females. Although LHRH had no acute influence on ovarian oestradiol-17β production in the female, serum testosterone levels were raised (P < 0·05) in male cheetahs by 60 min after treatment. This study (1) provides introductory endocrine information on the cheetah, an endangered species, and (2) indicates that exogenous LHRH is effective in acutely altering pituitary (female) and pituitary/gonadal (male) function in an anaesthetized, non-domestic felid. J. Endocr. (1984) 101, 51–56

Acinonyx jubatus (Schreber, 1776). Saugethiere, 3: pl. 105 (text 3:392, 1777). TYPE LOCALITY: South Africa, Cape Prov., Cape of Good Hope. DISTRIBUTION: Steppe and savanna zones from Baluchistan through Iran and Turkmenia (U.S. S.R.) to N.E. Arabia; widespread in Africa except the Sahara; formerly India and Egypt. PROTECTED STATUS: CITES - Appendix I and U.S. ESA - Endangered. ISIS NUMBER: 5301412007003001001., Published as part of James H. Honacki, Kenneth E. Kinman & James W. Koeppl, 1982, Order Carnivora, pp. 244-289 in Mammal Species of the World (1 st Edition), Lawrence, Kansas, USA :Alien Press, Inc. & The Association of Systematics Collections on page 277, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7352980

Electrocardiograms were recorded on 19 cheetahs immobilized with the steroidal anaesthetic-hypnotic agent Saffan comprising 0,9% m/v alphaxalone and 0,3% alphadolone. Sinus rhythm was recorded in all animals and heart rate was rapid averaging 173 +/- SD 18 beats per minute. The average of mean electrical axes in the frontal plane was + 76 degrees +/- SD 13 degrees. Mean +/- SD durations in milliseconds on lead II were: P 47 +/- 6,5; PR 93 +/- 11,5; QRS 53 +/- 7,5; QT 193 +/- 19,7. The amplitude of limb lead electrocardiographic complexes were low, resembling those of the domestic cat more closely than those of the dog.

A sample of 55 South African cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) from two geographically isolated populations in South Africa were found to be genetically monomorphic at each of 47 allozyme (allelic isozyme) loci. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of 155 abundant soluble proteins from cheetah fibroblasts also revealed a low frequency of polymorphism (average heterozygosity, 0.013). Both estimates are dramatically lower than levels of variation reported in other cats and mammals in general. The extreme monomorphism may be a consequence of a demographic contraction of the cheetah (a population bottleneck) in association with a reduced rate of increase in the recent natural history of this endangered species.

A case of relapsing "creeping eruption" connected with parasites of the cheetah is reported in the man. The parasitological examination, carried out in two cheetahs liable of this syndrome, has shown two different helmintic species: Ancylostoma caninum and Ancylostoma tubaeforme.

The cheetah in the wild is "racing towards extinction" mostly due to habitat destruction. Its survival will probably depend on accelerated captive breeding. At this time, however, reproductive failure and liver disease threaten the future of the captive cheetah population. Histopathological evaluation of more than 100 cheetah livers identified venocclusive disease as the main hepatic lesion responsible for liver disease in this species. Analysis of the commercial feline diet by high-performance liquid chromatography and gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry revealed large amounts of two phytoestrogens identified as daidzein and genistein. These compounds were found to be derived from a soybean product that was a component of the cheetah diet, and their concentrations both ranged from 18 to 35 micrograms/g diet. The adult cheetah consequently consumes approximately 50 mg/day of these weak estrogens. When extracts of the diet were tested for estrogenicity using a bioassay, a dose-related increase in uterine weight was observed. In 4 cheetahs studied, withdrawal of this feline diet by substitution with a chicken diet resulted in an improvement in conventional liver function tests and a normalization in the appearance of hepatic mitochondria. We conclude that the relatively high concentrations of phytoestrogens from soybean protein present in the commercial diet fed to captive cheetahs in North American zoos may be one of the major factors in the decline of fertility and in the etiology of liver disease in this species. The survival of the captive cheetah population could depend upon a simple change of diet by excluding exogenous estrogen.

Editorial a propos d'un article consacre a l'action des œstrogenes de l'alimentation sur les guepards en captivite

The mycoplasmas isolated from captive wild felines showed a strong relationship to but were not identical with Mycoplasma felis. Exceptions were M arginini and strain PU, isolated from pumas, which were distinct.

Feline coronavirus genetic elements were detected by polymerase chain reaction from blood, fecal samples, and effusive fluid collected from 33 cheetahs in the U.S.A. Feline coronavirus-specific serum antibodies were also measured by indirect immunofluorescence. Ten cheetahs were positive for viral shedding by polymerase chain reaction, whereas 13 were seropositive by immunofluorescence. Results of serology did not consistently correlate with shedding of virus, and the capture antigen used for detection of feline coronavirus-specific antibodies had a significant impact on results. Testing of samples from one population over a 1-yr period indicated chronic infection in some animals. These relatively healthy carrier animals were a source of virus for contact animals. Screening programs in cheetah populations for feline coronavirus infection may be most reliable if a combination of serologic analysis and viral detection by polymerase chain reaction is used.

The extent and progression of exposure to feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) virus in the cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, was monitored by a world-wide serological survey with indirect fluorescent antibody titers to coronavirus. The indirect fluorescent antibody assay was validated by Western blots, which showed that all indirect fluorescent antibody-positive cheetah sera detected both domestic cat and cheetah coronavirus structural proteins. There was a poor correlation between indirect fluorescent antibody results and the presence of coronaviruslike particles in cheetah feces, suggesting that electron microscopic detection of shed particles may not be an easily interpreted diagnostic parameter for FIP disease. Low, but verifiable (by Western blots [immunoblots]) antibody titers against coronavirus were detected in eight free-ranging cheetahs from east Africa as well as from captive cheetahs throughout the world. Of 20 North American cheetah facilities screened, 9 had cheetahs with measurable antibodies to feline coronavirus. Five facilities showed patterns of an ongoing epizootic. Retrospective FIP virus titers of an FIP outbreak in a cheetah-breeding facility in Oregon were monitored over a 5-year period and are interpreted here in terms of clinical disease progression. During that outbreak the morbidity was over 90% and the mortality was 60%, far greater than any previously reported epizootic of FIP in any cat species. Age of infection was a significant risk factor in this epizootic, with infants (less than 3 months old) displaying significantly higher risk for mortality than subadults or adults. Based upon these observations, empirical generalizations are drawn which address epidemiologic concerns for cheetahs in the context of this lethal infectious agent.

The low incidence of clinical signs or pathological lesions compatible with feline panleukopenia in cats has created the perception among practitioners that the disease has disappeared since the emergence of canine parvovirus type 2 in the late 1970s.Three parvoviruses that were recently isolated from a domestic cat and 2 cheetahs in cell culture or detected by means of the polymerase chain reaction were shown to be typical feline parvoviruses. Phylogenetic comparison with other FPV isolates did not reveal a particular African cluster.

An outbreak of feline panleukopaenia virus (FPLV) infection was diagnosed by pathology, electron microscopy and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in vaccinated captive-bred subadult cheetahs in South Africa. Subsequent to this disease outbreak, 12 cases of FPLV diagnosed on histology were confirmed by PCR in captive African black-footed cat, caracal, cheetah, lion, ocelot and serval. Phylogenetic analyses of the viral capsid protein gene on PCR-positive samples, vaccine and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) reference strains identified a previously unknown strain of FPLV, present since at least 2006, that differs from both the inactivated and the modified live vaccine strains. A previously described South African strain from domestic cats and cheetahs was identified in a serval. Surveys of FPLV strains in South African felids are needed to determine the geographical and host species distribution of this virus. Since non-domestic species may be reservoirs of parvoviruses, and since these viruses readily change host specificity, the risks of FPLV transmission between captive-bred and free-ranging carnivores and domestic cats and dogs warrant further research.Keywords: feline panleukopaenia; parvovirus; felid; cheetah; vaccination

The aim of this retrospective cross-sectional study was to present comprehensive information about the age-dependent change of skeletal characteristics in captive cheetahs with known age and to assess the benefit of these variables for age estimation in this species. Radiographs of 162 known-age captive and semi-captive cheetahs were retrospectively examined and age-related changes of skull, axial and appendicular skeletal systems were documented. Metric and non-metric variables were used. These parameters were checked for the best correlation with age using a multiple stepwise regression analysis. An overview about the time frames, in which ossification centers appeared and physeal closure occurred is presented. Multiple stepwise regression analysis revealed the status of closure of the coronal suture, the maximum length of the frontal sinus, the condylobasal-, hard palate, and facial length are most significantly correlated with age. Together with the pulp size of the upper canine, these values can be used for an age approximation in cheetahs.