Pathological and immunohistochemical studies for diagnosis of infectious agents associated with reproductive tract in small ruminants Sran Ravneet Kaur1, Mahajan Vishal2,*, Leishangthem Geeta Devi1, Bal Mandeep Singh2, Filia Gursimran2, Banga Harmanjit Singh1 1Department of Veterinary Pathology, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana-141004, Punjab, India 2Animal Disease Research Centre, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana-141004, Punjab, India *Address for Correspondence, Dr Vishal Mahajan, Animal Disease Research Centre, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana-141004, Punjab, India, E-mail: mahajanv17@gmail.com
Online Published on 28 July, 2022. Abstract The present study was conducted to decipher important and specific infectious agents affecting the reproductive tract of small ruminants viz. Brucella abortus, Chlamydophila abortus and Neospora caninum in Punjab using gross, histopathological and immunohistochemical techniques. A total of 11 aborted fetuses, 15 placental tissues and 26 female reproductive tracts (uterus) were collected from multiple locations. Immunohistochemical (IHC) examination revealed positive immunoreactivity for Brucella abortus and Chlamydophila abortus in placenta and uterus sections of small ruminants. For Brucella, 6/15 placental tissues, 3/16 uterus and 1/6 fetal tissues were positive by IHC. For Chlamydia, 3/15 placental tissues, 3/16 uterus were positive. No positive immunoreactivity was seen for Neospora in the present study. Histopathogical changes were co-related with IHC findings. It was found that microscopical changes ranged from chronic to mixed inflammatory cell infiltration in tissues infected with Brucella, whereas in chlamydial infections, tissues showed mixed cell infiltration to neutrophilic infiltration. Altogether, it is suggested that the immunohistochemical technique supplements the conventional methods of diagnosis of above mentioned diseases. Top Keywords Histopathology, Immunohistochemistry, Reproductive diseases, Small ruminants. Top |