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Management of Bleeding Canker of Chestnut is not definitive and treatments are currently being investigated. Because the pathogen can be spread by contaminated tools, cultural practices are important to management. Tools should be cleaned and used with caution after being used on infected trees. Recovery of trees is possible, so management strategies are focused on keeping trees healthy so they can recover. One recommendation is to add fertilizer that contains Potassium phosphate. Soil de-compaction, providing good drainage, and mulching to minimize fluctuation of soil temperature and moisture are all ways to improve or maintain tree health and to manage the pathogen.
Chemical methods can be used to help the tree maintain health and avoid progress of the disease. Management strategies are currently being developed. A study performed in 2015 examined the infection on trees and found that 41 F1 progeny parent tree source had the most promising lines of viability for resistance.
Thousand cankers disease can be spread by moving infected black walnut wood. Trees intended for shipment should be inspected for dieback and cankers and galleries after harvest. G. morbidia or the walnut twig beetle ("Pityophthorus juglandis") are not currently known to be moved with walnut seed . There is currently no chemical therapy or prevention available for the disease making it difficult to control the spread of the disease from the west to the eastern united states. Wood from infected trees can still be used for commercial value, but safety measures such as removing the bark, phloem, and cambium to reduce the risk of spreading the disease with shipment. Quarantines have been put in place in some states to reduce the potential movement of fungus or beetle from that region. On May 17th, 2010, the Director of the Michigan Department of Agriculture issued a quarantine from affected states to protect Michigan’s black walnut ecology and production. Contacting the appropriate entities about possible infections is important to stopping or slowing the spread of thousand cankers disease.
Diagnosis is most commonly done with the identification of bacteria in the lesions by a microscope observation. Ticks, biting flies, and contact with other infected animals also causes the spread of rainscald. A scab will be taken from the affected animal and stained so that the bacteria are visible under a microscope inspection. A positive diagnosis of rainscald can be confirmed if filamentous bacteria are observed with as well as chains of small, spherical bacteria. If a diagnosis cannot be confirmed with a microscope, blood agar cultures can be grown to confirm the presence of "D. congolensis". The resulting colonies have filaments and are yellow in colour.
Control of the beetle vector is the most effective management technique for disease prevention. Conventional methods of tree thinning and the use of insecticides have been used to combat the western bark beetles, but are only effective before the beetles have colonized and before the fungus has invaded the tree. Other cultural techniques of sanitation and overall health of the oak trees by keeping up with watering, fertilizer or mulch needs, and pruning may help. It is very important to diagnose foamy bark canker disease correctly and promptly in order to manage the disease properly because if a tree is already infected, the removal of the tree is the most effective way to prevent the disease from spreading.
Control of Leucostoma Canker is possible through a combination of pest and crop management techniques following life cycles of the trees. The strategy is implemented following techniques aimed at reducing number of pathogenic inoculum, minimizing dead or injured tissues to prevent infection, and improving tree health to improve rapid wound healing. Chemical controls have not been very effective at controlling this disease with no fungicides registered specifically for control of "Leucostoma" spp., and demethylation-inhibiting (DMI) fungicides having almost no effect on "L. persoonii".
The genus Geosmithia (Ascomycota: Hypocreales) are generally saprophytic fungi affecting hardwoods. As of its identification in 2010, the species G. morbida is the first documented as a plant pathogen. The walnut twig beetle ("Pityophthorus juglandis") carries the mycelium and conidia of the fungus as it burrows into the tree. The beetle is currently only found in warmer climates, allowing for transmission of the fungus throughout the year. Generations of the beetle move to and from black walnut trees carrying the fungus as they create galleries, the adults typically moving horizontally, and the larvae moving vertically with the grain. As they move through the wood, the beetles deposit the fungus, which is then introduced into the phloem; cankers then develop around the galleries, quickly girdling the tree. The fungus has not been found to provide any value to the beetle. A study done by Montecchio and Faccoli in Italy in 2014 found that no fungal fruiting bodies were found around or on the cankers but in the galleries. Mycelium, and sometimes conidiophores and conidia were observed in the galleries as well. No sexual stage of the fungus has currently been found.
Rainscald normally heals on its own, however as the condition can spread to involve large areas, prompt treatment is recommended. Although some cases can be severe, most rain scald is minor and can be easily and cheaply treated at home naturally.
First groom the affected parts carefully, to remove any loose hair. Be extremely gentle, the area is very sore itchy and horses will very quickly get fidgety. Next shampoo the area, use warm water and a soft cloth or brush, and massage the lather through the coat as much as the horse will tolerate. It is best to use Neem shampoo here, as this will treat as well as clean, but any mild shampoo is fine. Remove as much water as possible and dry the horse off, either use a hair drier or let him/her stand in the sun until completely dry. It is important not to let the horse roll! The rain scald bacteria may be picked up from the soil.
When the horse is completely dry, gently brush off any more loose hair. Next apply a salve or cream containing a high percentage of neem oil, or even pure neem oil, to liberally coat the affected area. Rub it in using fingertips, massage the area as much as the horse will tolerate. This will be very greasy. Smooth the hair back down and apply a rug to keep the horse dry, this prevents the neem being washed off as well as protecting from more dampness issues. Turn the horse out as normal.
Check it every day, and reapply the neem salve/cream if it seems to have dried away. The area should remain greasy with neem. Every 2–3 days or so, go through and scrape/pick off as much of the scabs as possible without upsetting the horse or making it bleed, then reapply the neem. Typically there will be improvement in a few days, and in a week there'll be some sign of new hair growing back. More severe rain scald may take longer.
Once all the scabs are gone and there is new hair fuzz growing in all over, use neem shampoo to clean the area of greasy residue, and dry well. Keep the horse covered for some time after rain scald has been treated, particularly in wet weather. Do not allow the skin to remain damp. It is advisable to shampoo the horse after riding or exercising, to remove sweat, which may encourage rain scald conditions, and make sure the coat is completely dry afterwards.
This treatment works in many ways. First, shampooing cleans the area of any contaminants, remove a lot of loose hair and scabs, and the rubbing stimulates the circulation. The neem is an antifungal agent, and works to eliminate the bacteria that cause the infection. It soothes the irritation in the area, and its greasiness provides the ideal environment for the raw skin to heal and grow new hair. It also helps to soften and lift the scabs. The new hair cannot grow in until those scabs are removed from the surface, but they are very painful to pick and remove, and most horses are intolerant of this procedure. After the neem has soaked into these scabs they will come away much more freely, and soon new hair will grow through.
In conventional treatment, scabs are softened with benzoyl peroxide and chlorhexidine and removed in order to speed the healing process. In severe or chronic cases, penicillin and streptomycin are injected into the horse to kill the bacteria.
Typically the disease is not life-threatening, nor does it impact the welfare of the horse, so treatments are more for the owner's sake of mind and cosmetic appeal of the animal.
Bleeding canker of horse chestnut is a common canker of horse chestnut trees ("Aesculus hippocastanum", also known as conker trees) that is known to be caused by infection with several different pathogens.
Infections by the gram-negative fluorescent bacterium "Pseudomonas syringae" pathovar "aesculi" are a new phenomenon, and have caused most of the bleeding cankers on horse chestnut that are now frequently seen in Britain.
There are many strategies to cultural management. Establishment of new trees that are disease free by trying to plant trees as soon as they are received from the nursery to reduce the amount of stress the tree undergoes to reduce the amount of dead tissue. Apply insecticides to prevent insects such as, peach tree borer to prevent disease causing conidia from entering wounded parts of the tree that the insects create. Prune trees appropriately and at the correct time when buds start to break to promote wide angled branching. Infection at pruning sites is less common when done during late spring because of the smaller amount of inoculum present at this time. Inspect trees occasionally and removed any dead branches to prevent infection at these sites. Training trees properly also helps foster decreased amount of disease. Training trees during the first season to have branches develop wide crotch angles to sustain long orchard life. Avoid excessive and late fertilization during cold season to avoid low temperature injury. Fertilize trees during the early spring to prevent cold-susceptible growth.
The foamy bark canker is a disease affecting oak trees in California caused by the fungus "Geosmithia pallida" and spread by the Western oak bark beetle ("Pseudopityopthorus pubipennis"). This disease is only seen through the symbiosis of the bark beetles and the fungal pathogen. The bark beetles target oak trees and bore holes through the peridermal tissues, making tunnels within the phloem. The fungal spores are brought into these tunnels by the beetles and begin to colonize the damaged cells inside the tunnels. Symptoms of the developing fungus include wet discoloration seeping from the beetle entry holes as the fungus begins to consume phloem and likely other tissues. If bark is removed, necrosis of the phloem can be observed surrounding the entry hole(s). As the disease progresses, a reddish sap and foamy liquid oozes from entry holes, thus giving the disease the name Foamy bark canker. Eventually after the disease has progressed, the tree dies. This disease is important because of its detrimental effects on oak trees and its ability to spread to several new Californian counties in just a couple years.
Dead arm, sometimes grape canker, is a disease of grapes caused by a deep-seated wood rot of the arms or trunk of the grapevine. As the disease progresses over several years, one or more arms may die, hence the name "dead arm". Eventually the whole vine will die. In the 1970s, dead-arm was identified as really being two diseases, caused by two different fungi, "Eutypa lata" and "Phomopsis viticola" (syn. "Cryptosporella viticola").
Dead arm is a disease that causes symptoms in the common grapevine species, "vitis vinifera", in many regions of the world. This disease is mainly caused by the fungal pathogen, "Phomopsis viticola", and is known to affect many cultivars of table grapes, such as Thompson Seedless, Red Globe, and Flame Seedless. Early in the growing season, the disease can delay the growth of the plant and cause leaves to turn yellow and curl. Small, brown spots on the shoots and leaf veins are very common first symptoms of this disease. Soil moisture and temperature can impact the severity of symptoms, leading to a systemic infection in warm, wet conditions. As the name of this disease suggests, it also causes one or more arms of the grapevine to die, often leading to death of the entire vine.
Canker and anthracnose generally refer to many different plant diseases of such broadly similar symptoms as the appearance of small areas of dead tissue, which grow slowly, often over years. Some are of only minor consequence, but others are ultimately lethal and therefore of major economic importance in agriculture and horticulture. Their causes include such a wide range of organisms as fungi, bacteria, mycoplasmas and viruses. The majority of canker-causing organisms are bound to a unique host species or genus, but a few will attack other plants. Weather and animals can spread canker, thereby endangering areas that have only slight amount of canker.
Although fungicides or bactericides can treat some cankers, often the only available treatment is to destroy the infected plant to contain the disease.
Blight refers to a specific symptom affecting plants in response to infection by a pathogenic organism. It is a rapid and complete chlorosis, browning, then death of plant tissues such as leaves, branches, twigs, or floral organs. Accordingly, many diseases that primarily exhibit this symptom are called blights. Several notable examples are:
- Late blight of potato, caused by the water mold "Phytophthora infestans" (Mont.) de Bary, the disease which led to the Great Irish Famine
- Southern corn leaf blight, caused by the fungus "Cochliobolus heterostrophus" (Drechs.) Drechs, anamorph "Bipolaris maydis" (Nisikado & Miyake) Shoemaker, incited a severe loss of corn in the United States in 1970.
- Chestnut blight, caused by the fungus "Cryphonectria parasitica" (Murrill) Barr, has nearly completely eradicated mature American chestnuts in North America.
- Fire blight of pome fruits, caused by the bacterium "Erwinia amylovora" (Burrill) Winslow "et al.", is the most severe disease of pear and also is found in apple and raspberry, among others.
- Bacterial leaf blight of rice, caused by the bacterium "Xanthomonas oryzae" (Uyeda & Ishiyama) Dowson.
- Early blight of potato and tomato, caused by species of the ubiquitous fungal genus "Alternaria"
- Leaf blight of the grasses
On leaf tissue, symptoms of blight are the initial appearance of lesions which rapidly engulf surrounding tissue. However, leaf spot may, in advanced stages, expand to kill entire areas of leaf tissue and thus exhibit blight symptoms.
Blights are often named after their causative agent, for example Colletotrichum blight is named after the fungi "Colletotrichum capsici", and Phytophthora blight is named after the water mold "Phytophthora parasitica".
Washing the infected area with an antiseptic solution is part of the treatment for mud fever. However, washing a horse's legs repeatedly can remove the natural oils in the skin and may allow the condition to become established. The legs should be dried thoroughly after washing with antibacterial shampoo using paper towels,
The horse should be kept in a clean, dry indoor barn stall with wood shavings for bedding to prevent a moist environment around the legs.
Grapevine trunk diseases (GTD) are the most destructive diseases of vineyards worldwide. Fungicides (such as sodium arsenite or 8-hydroxyquinoline, used to fight esca) with the potential to control GTD have been banned in Europe and there are no highly effective treatments available. Action to develop new strategies to fight these diseases are needed.
The following fungal species are responsible for grapevine trunk diseases:
- "Botryosphaeria dothidea" and other "Botryosphaeria" species, such as , "B. obtusa", "B. parva" and "B. australis",
- "Cylindrocarpon" spp., "Ilyonectria" spp., "Dactylonectria" spp. and "Campylocarpon" spp.(cause of black foot disease)
- "Diplodia seriata" (cause of bot canker)
- "Diplodia mutila" (cause of Botryosphaeria dieback)
- "Dothiorella iberica"
- "Dothiorella viticola"
- "Eutypa lata" (cause of Eutypa dieback)
- "Fomitiporia mediterranea" (cause of esca)
- "Lasiodiplodia theobromae" (cause of Botryosphaeria dieback)
- "Neofusicoccum australe"
- "Neofusicoccum luteum"
- "Neofusicoccom parvum"
- "Phaeoacremonium minimum" (cause of esca and Petri disease) and other "Phaeoacremonium" species
- "Phaeomoniella chlamydospora" (cause of esca and Petri disease)
This bacterium is present in soil and is transmitted to horses through open wounds, abrasions or mucous membranes.
It is important to reduce the amount of environmental contamination to prevent the spread of insects or fomites. Owners should regularly apply insect repellent and routinely check their horses for open wounds to prevent chance of infection. A regular manure management program is recommended, including removal of soiled feed and bedding, as the bacteria can survive in hay and shavings for up to two months. Since the disease lives in the ground and is spread by flies, pest control is a good defense but not a guarantee. Horses being introduced to new environments should be quarantined and any infected horses should be isolated to prevent spread of the bacteria. There is currently no vaccination for Pigeon Fever.
Treatment for horses with thrush includes twice-daily picking of the feet, taking special care to clean out the two collateral grooves and the central sulcus. The feet may then be scrubbed clean using a detergent and/or disinfectant and warm water, before the frog is coated with a commercial thrush-treatment product, or with iodine solution, which may be soaked into cotton balls and packed into the clefts. Several home remedies are used, such as a hoof packing of a combination of sugar and betadine, powdered aspirin, borax, or diluted bleach. It is best, however, to speak with the horse's veterinarian, to be sure these home remedies are effective and, more importantly, safe for use on horses.
Horses with thrush, or those at risk for contracting it, are best kept in a dry, clean environment. Daily cleaning of the hooves also contributes to the prevention of thrush. In general, thrush is relatively easy to treat, although it can easily return and it can take up to a year for a fully healthy frog to regrow after a severe infection.
There are no tests required to diagnose widow spider bites, or latrodectism symptoms. The diagnosis is clinical and based on historic evidence of widow spider bites. Pathognomonic symptoms such as localized sweating and piloerection provide evidence of envenomation. Unlike the brown recluse, the widow species are easily identified by most people.
Diagnosis is obvious in most people reporting contact with a "Latrodectus" spider. However, without a spider, either through inability to communicate or unawareness, the diagnosis may be missed as symptoms overlap with a variety of other serious clinical syndromes such as tetanus or acute abdomen. Blood values are typically unimportant but may be needed to show myocarditis or dehydration from vomiting.
Few treatments are fully efficacious once lesions have appeared. The only effective form of treatment is preventitive - i.e. prevent further insect bites - so these techniques will also be discussed here. Treatments generally fall into one of the following categories:
1) Insecticides and Repellents: These may be applied to the horse or its environment. The most commonly used and effective are permethrins. and benzyl benzoate Citronella has been used, with variable effect. Some sources advocate draining of any stagnant water or pools, to reduce the local breeding potential of the insects. Midge numbers are often larger near water sources, for example ponds, bogs, and slow moving water. Moving the horse away from these areas may help to prevent further problems.
2) Barrier Techniques: Rugs etc., that prevent flies and midges settling on the animal's skin to bite. These include "Boett Rugs" and fly masks. In addition, thin screens may be placed over stable doors and windows to exclude biting insects. Stabling the horse at times of day when the midges are most prevalent is also quite effective.
3) Immunotherapy: A wide variety immunotherapy and desensitisation protocols have been trialled in attempts to reduce or modify the immune response, with considerable success rates. So far, there appear to a significant benefit in more than 80% of equine cases. This particular BioEos product is now available through The National Sweet Itch Centre in the UK and ProVet in the EU. The underlying immune modulation is now proven to shift the immune system from a Th2 to a Th1 mode. BioEos is a research and development company with worldwide patents derived from many years of research at University College London and the many applications are being developed for use in both human, agricultural and aquaculture treatments. Current clinical trials for the treatment of pancreatic cancers (Immodulon Therapeutics) and the treatment of other chronic immune deficiency disorders (ActinoPharma) are putting this research into practical effect.
4) Nutritional supplements: Various supplements may be effective in individuals, including fatty acid supplemantation and linseed oil. However, although owners perceived an improvement, this was not bourne out by objective statistical analysis.
5) Symptomatic Control: Control of symptoms to some degree can be achieved with antihistamines (especially hydroxyzine, and with corticosteroids, although the potential side effects (e.g. laminitis, immune suppression) make this a less preferred option. In addition, antibiotics may be required to manage any secondary infection.
6) Alternative Medicines: A wide variety of herbal, homeopathic and other alternative remedies have been suggested. Among the natural remedies suggested are sulfur, wild geranium (as the base for a shampoo), Lavender oil, Aloe vera (to reduce the itching).
Overall, the wide variety of treatments proposed leads to the conclusion that no one method is universally effective.
Genetic predisposition may be confirmed through a DNA test.
There is no treatment as such, owners can attempt to manage the condition though various types of hoof care, and/or the use of special shoes. Such treatment is expensive and labour-intensive. Environmental conditions can make the condition worse (alternating wet/dry hooves). Protecting the hooves from such variations may reduce the effect of the disease.
Possible complications include the horse becoming a chronic carrier of the disease, asphyxia due to enlarged lymph nodes compressing the larynx or windpipe, bastard strangles (spreading to other areas of the body), pneumonia, guttural pouch filled with pus, abscesses, purpura haemorrhagica, and heart disease. The average length for the course of this disease is 23 days.
The Coggins test (agar immunodiffusion) is a sensitive diagnostic test for equine infectious anemia developed by Dr. Leroy Coggins in the 1970s.
Currently, the US does not have an eradication program due to the low rate of incidence. However, many states require a negative Coggins test for interstate travel. In addition, most horse shows and events require a negative Coggins test. Most countries require a negative test result before allowing an imported horse into the country.
Horse owners should verify that all the horses at a breeding farm and or boarding facility have a negative Coggins test before using the services of the facility. A Coggins test should be done on an annual basis. Tests every 6 months are recommended if there is increased traveling.