Effectiveness of a program aimed at the elimination of BLAD-carrier bulls from Polish Holstein-Friesian cattle.

The molecular basis of BLAD is the D128G mutation of the gene coding for the CD18 subunit of beta-2 integrin. This mutation is lethal, since homozygous (BL/BL) animals die before they reach sexual maturity. In the 1990s, BLAD was the most widespread genetic disease in HF cattle worldwide.

[Necrotizing fasciitis in a patient during interferon-alpha treatment for hepatitis C virus infection: case report].

Necrotizing fascitis (NF) is a rare disease with a mortality rate ranging from 24 to 60 percent. The infection may be mono- or polymicrobial and is characterized by extensive necrosis of the skin and muscle, as well as fascia and subcutaneous tissue. NF may develop at the site of injury, e.

[The hypereosinophilic syndrome: case report].

The hypereosinophilic syndrome is a multi-organ disease characterized by large counts of eosinophils in peripheral blood observed during at least six months without any evidence for other known causes of eosinophilia. Idiopathic hypereosinophilia is rare and is always diagnosed by exclusion of other disease. This work describes a man aged 21 years who was hospitalized at the Department of Dermatology because of skin manifestations resembling eczema and urticaria.

Deletion/insertion polymorphism of the prion protein gene (PRNP) in Polish Holstein-Friesian cattle.

The aim of the present study was to identify the deletion/insertion polymorphism of the bovine prion protein gene (PRNP) within the promoter sequence (23 bp), intron 1 (12 bp) and 3' untranslated region (14 bp). DNA was isolated from blood of 234 randomly tested Polish Holstein-Friesian cows and from semen of 47 sires used for artificial insemination (AI) in 2004. No statistically significant differences were found in the frequency of genotypes and alleles between cows and breeding bulls in the 3 analysed polymorphic sites within the PRNP gene.

No incidence of DUMPS carriers in Polish dairy cattle.

DUMPS (Deficiency of Uridine Monophosphate Synthase) is a hereditary recessive disorder in Holstein cattle causing early embryo mortality during its implantation in the uterus. The only way to avoid the economic losses is early detection of DUMPS carriers. Because American Holstein semen has been intensively imported to Poland since 1970, there was a risk that DUMPS could have spread in Polish dairy cattle.