Publications by authors named "Mark F Stidworthy"

The European hedgehog () is a protected species of conservation concern in the UK. In recent years, there have been multiple incidents of fatal encephalitis in captive hedgehogs in wildlife rescue centers associated with the molecular detection of a hedgehog arterivirus (HhAV-1). However, it remains unclear whether the virus is the causative agent of the central nervous system (CNS) lesions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Polyglucosan bodies are accumulations of insoluble glucose polymers and proteins that form intracytoplasmic inclusions in the brain, large numbers of which can be indicative of neurodegenerative diseases such as Lafora disease. Montserrat orioles () are an icterid passerine endemic to Montserrat with conservation populations maintained in captivity abroad. We demonstrate that polyglucosan bodies are unusually abundant in the cerebellar molecular and Purkinje cell layers and cerebellar peduncles of captive-bred and wild-caught Montserrat orioles.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Sulawesi crested macaques (SCMs) are critically endangered and often experience chronic intestinal disease in captivity, with cases frequently labeled as chronic enterocolitis due to unidentified causes despite signs of intestinal inflammation.
  • This study analyzed gastrointestinal tissues from 23 SCMs, using a scoring system (Nancy index) from human medicine to assess the severity of disease, finding significant inflammation in colons of affected macaques and a correlation between the index score and clinical disease severity.
  • The research revealed that 57% of SCMs with clinical signs had moderate to severe intestinal disease, but some with rectal prolapse showed no intestinal inflammation, indicating the need for standardized histopathological evaluations in this species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The Scottish population of the European wildcat is critically endangered and was declared functionally extinct in 2019 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
  • A study reviewed health issues and deaths in captive wildcats from 2000 to 2021, finding that most health problems affected younger cats, primarily related to gastrointestinal and musculoskeletal issues.
  • Mortality was mostly linked to gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases, with a significant number of neonatal deaths highlighting ongoing challenges in managing the wildcat population's health and sustainability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Between 2015 and 2019, a health screening was carried out annually on captive-bred snails prior to export for reintroduction as part of an international effort to repopulate areas of French Polynesia, where the snails were extinct or critically endangered. In total, 129 separate tank populations of 12 different species were screened at ZSL London Zoo. Wet mounts and smears stained with modified Ziehl-Neelsen (MZN) of 535 fecal samples were examined, and 45% contained flagellated protozoa, and 35.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Full medical histories from captive Alaotran gentle lemurs or Bandro () > 1 yr old that died between 1990 and 2016 were requested from holding institutions. Eighty-six individuals died during the period analyzed. Full postmortem reports were received from 40 (46.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The African wild dog () is listed as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and is part of captive breeding programs designed to support free-living populations and genetic diversity. This study's aim was to identify common causes of morbidity and mortality objectively in United Kingdom captive African wild dogs to inform management recommendations that will improve health and welfare and reduce disease prevalence. Data were gathered from 140 individual dogs housed in 10 institutions, with morbidity records for 122 individuals and 70 postmortem reports.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This retrospective study examines pathologic findings in 593 captive cephalopods (340 octopuses, 130 cuttlefish, 33 squid, and 90 nautiluses; 22 species in total) submitted to International Zoo Veterinary Group Pathology between May 2003 and August 2022. Common octopus, European common cuttlefish, hummingbird bobtail squid, and chambered nautilus were the most numerous species from the included orders of Octopoda, Sepiida, Sepiolida, and Nautilida, respectively. Commonly identified conditions included coccidiosis and renal dicyemid mesozoan infection in octopuses, amebiasis in squid, bacterial infections in cuttlefish, and idiopathic multisystemic inflammatory disease in nautiluses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cowpox virus is considered to be a re-emerging zoonotic pathogen and a public health threat due to increasing numbers of cases in humans and animals in Europe over the past decade, including within the United Kingdom (UK). We present epidemiological data and diagnostic features of 27 recent, naturally occurring cowpox cases in zoo and wild animals across the UK, including the first reports of cowpox in two snow leopards (Panthera uncia), a Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), three Chilean pudus (Pudu puda), a Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus) and a Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), and the first reports of Orthopoxvirus infection in a lar gibbon (Hylobates lar), a Southern tamandua (Tamandua tetradactyla) and an aardvark (Orycteropus afer). This study provides a detailed overview of cowpox infections in a wide range of non-domestic animal species, presents a range of methods for diagnosis and demonstrates the value of retrospective analysis of pathology surveillance in revealing epidemiological links.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Amyloidosis is frequently identified during postmortem examination of captive eastern bongo () in the European Endangered Species Programme (EEP). However, its significance and etiopathogenesis are poorly understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of amyloidosis within this population and identify potential predictive factors for the presence of disease.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study catalogued ocular pathology in fish histopathology submissions to a specialist diagnostic service and investigated associations with species and systemic disease, with a focus on species of conservation interest. Cross-tabulations and Fisher's exact tests were used to identify associations among the variables and results are reported as prevalence ratios (PRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Of 12,488 reports reviewed, ocular histology examination was available for 4,572 submissions, in which histopathological ocular lesions were identified in 18% (813/4572).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) are charismatic cartilaginous fish, popular in public aquaria. Almost 200 shark and ray species are listed as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), demonstrating the importance of captive breeding and research programmes. Limited studies investigate diseases of elasmobranchs in captive and free-living environments, and among available literature neoplasia is rarely reported, with even fewer cases of lymphoid neoplasia documented.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Post-vaccinal sarcomas have been reported in cats and rarely in other domestic mammals, but not in birds. Three village weaver birds (Ploceus cucullatus) presented with poor flying ability and abnormal wing carriage attributable to large, unilateral pectoral masses. All had received at least one dose of autogenous Yersinia pseudotuberculosis vaccine into the affected pectoral muscle 74-408 days previously.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The mountain chicken frog () is a critically endangered species highly reliant on conservation programs. In captivity, cholelithiasis has been reported during clinical examinations using diagnostic imaging and observed during postmortem examinations. Some individuals have presented with nonspecific clinical signs potentially associated with this condition, but little is known about its clinical relevance.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

is an extremely successful zoonotic protozoan parasite that has been demonstrated in a wide range of endo- and poikilothermic species. Although infection is widespread amongst domestic animals, overt disease other than abortion in small ruminants is sporadic. This survey evaluates toxoplasmosis in zoo animals based on a systematic review of pathology archive material ( = 33,506 submissions) over a 16-year study period.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Langurs are Asian primates belonging to the Colobinae subfamily. Langur populations are declining, with most species categorized as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Investigation into the threats to population viability and sustainability would be beneficial but there is limited literature available on common diseases or causes of death in these species, either in captive or free-ranging settings.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In captive gorillas, ulcerative colitis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality with no established definitive aetiopathogenesis. The aim of the study was to characterize histopathologically colonic lesions in captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla ssp gorilla) and to apply the Nancy index, a disease activity scoring system for ulcerative colitis in humans. Colon samples from 21 animals were evaluated on the basis of histopathological characteristics for the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease in humans and divided into acute or chronic changes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The mountain chicken frog () is the largest endemic amphibian species in the Western Hemisphere. Since 1998, this critically endangered species has been maintained as a European Endangered Species Programme, but low breeding success and a high mortality rate threaten the sustainability of the captive frog population. In the current study, we analyzed gross and histopathologic postmortem information from 212 mountain chicken frogs that died in European zoological collections from 1998 to 2018.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cryptococcosis is widely reported in North America and Australia but considered rare in the UK. Disease is mainly caused by Cryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii and affects animals and humans. Cases of cryptococcosis have been described in non-human primates, including a few in the Callitrichidae family.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In the fall of 2019, a fatal encephalitis outbreak led to the deaths of >200 European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in England. We used next-generation sequencing to identify a novel arterivirus with a genome coding sequence of only 43% similarity to existing GenBank arterivirus sequences.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Leukoencephalomyelopathy (LEM) is suggested to be an age-related degenerative condition in geriatric Eastern quolls (), manifesting in animals greater than 3.5 yr of age. This case series describes four LEM cases from two zoologic collections; three in nongeriatric animals, with one only 1 yr of age, and details advanced diagnostic investigation, including magnetic resonance imaging, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and electrodiagnostic studies, not previously reported in Eastern quolls.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Fifty-eight frozen postmortem lung and air sac samples were collected from penguins housed at 21 zoological collections throughout the United Kingdom, from 2007 to 2018. , a significant respiratory pathogen of penguins in captivity, was isolated from 15 of the 22 penguins with gross lesions. Of the penguins with gross lesions of aspergillosis at postmortem examination, the pathogen was cultured from 63.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: When suspect were cultured from fish at ZSL London Zoo, investigations were carried out to determine whether they were possible causes of cholera.

Methods: Bacterial culture was carried out on fish examined postmortem and colonies were identified using standard techniques including the API 20NE biochemical test kits. Suspect isolates were submitted to the Public Health England laboratory for additional testing.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Syngnathidae (seahorses, pipefish and seadragons) are charismatic species commonly kept in commercial aquaria, but published literature on syngnathid diseases is limited and immunohistochemical techniques not routinely employed. A retrospective review of 2,541 syngnathid submissions received between March 2003 and October 2016 identified 18 neoplasms including germ cell tumours, exocrine pancreatic and intestinal carcinomas, chromatophoromas, and single cases of lymphoma, thyroid and renal carcinoma, swim bladder and pituitary adenoma. Big-bellied seahorses accounted for 19% of submissions, but 50% of neoplasms were diagnosed in this species.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF