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A 6-month-old Morgan colt was evaluated because of a 10-cm right-sided retropharyngeal swelling. The swelling was soft and moveable on examination, and palpation did not elicit signs of pain. Radiography revealed a large space-occupying mass ventral to the second cervical vertebra; ultrasonography revealed an anechoic fluid-filled structure with a well-defined hyperechoic capsule. Fine-needle aspiration yielded a viscous amber fluid. Cytologic evaluation indicated that the fluid was an exudate; anaerobic and aerobic bacterial culture did not yield any growth. Histologic examination of a portion of the cyst capsule revealed a connective tissue wall lined by pseudostratified columnar to cuboidal epithelium, consistent with a branchial cyst. The cyst wall was marsupialized to the skin, and iodine sclerotherapy was performed twice daily for 14 days, at which time forceps were introduced into the cyst and the cyst lining was removed. The site was allowed to heal by second intention, but 10 days later, the swelling recurred. An incision was made over the previous marsupialization site, and residual remnants of the cauterized cyst lining were removed with a forceps. The foal did not have any other complications during the subsequent 2 years. Branchial arch cysts are uncommon embryonic anomalies of horses, mice, cats, dogs, and cattle. Results suggest that marsupialization and iodine sclerotherapy may be a viable alternative to surgical excision in horses with branchial cysts; however, the entire cyst lining must be removed at the completion of sclerotherapy to prevent recurrence and abscess formation.

An adult, wild-caught, female prairie falcon (Falco mexicanus) was presented with the chief complaint of anorexia. Radiographic findings included increased densities within the air sacs, and coelomic endoscopy revealed numerous slender worms within the air sacs and on the serosal surfaces of the ovary, oviduct, liver, proventriculus, and ventriculus. The bird seemed to improve for a short period of time with antiparasitic therapy (ivermectin and fenbendazole) and supportive care. Twenty-one days after initial presentation, the bird became recumbent with increasing pelvic limb neurologic deficits and was euthanized. On histopathologic examination, mature nematodes and larvated eggs identified as Serratospiculoides amaculata were found within the subdural space of the distal thoracolumbar and synsacral spinal cord and within the coelomic cavity. This case suggests that S. amaculata can cause clinically significant lesions in its falconiform host with potentially fatal results.

In the present work, the production of ligninolytic enzymes by semi-solid-state cultures of Phanerochaete chrysosporium BKM-F-1767 (ATCC 24725), employing different lignocellulosic wastes as support, was investigated. The waste materials employed were grape seeds, wheat straw and wood shavings. Maximum lignin peroxidase activities of 1,620 +/- 123 U/l,364 +/- 35 U/l and 571 +/- 42 U/l were attained, respectively. Nevertheless, low manganese-dependent peroxidase activities were found, being insignificant in the grape seed cultures. Moreover, the in vivo decolourisation of a model dye compound, the polymeric dye Poly R-478 (polyvinylamine sulfonate anthrapyridone), by the above-mentioned cultures was monitored to assess the degrading capability of the extracellular liquid secreted by such cultures. The percentage of biological decolourisation attained by grape seed and wood shaving cultures was around 74% and 63%, respectively, whereas it was rather low (40%) in the wheat straw ones.

Actinomyces sp. are commensal, filamentous, gram-positive, acid-fast-negative bacteria that can cause pyogranulomatous inflammation in animals and humans. Central nervous system (CNS) disease is a rare presentation of actinomycosis and is usually due to extension from infected wounds or seeding from distant sites. A dog with progressive, poorly localized neurologic signs had primary CNS actinomycosis without history or evidence of previous trauma or other organ involvement. Histologically, there was a severe pyogranulomatous meningoencephalitis with intralesional filamentous bacteria that were also visible on cytology of the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) postmortem. Actinomyces sp. was cultured postmortem from the CSF, confirming the diagnosis. This case demonstrates that Actinomyces sp. can be a causative agent of primary CNS disease in dogs.