Pesq. Vet. Bras. 34(9) The aim of this study is to report cases of spontaneous poisoning of cattle by Ricinus communis (castor beans) in Paraíba, a semiarid region of northeastern Brazil. The cases were observed in 2 herds on neighboring properties in 2013. Clinical signs developed within 6-24 h and consisted of weakness, tachycardia, dyspnea, profuse watery diarrhea, dehydration, depression, instability, cramps, permanent lateral recumbency and death within 48-72 h. Of the 60 cattle at risk, 19 were affected and 14 died. Five fully recovered after the course of 12 days. Three animals were necropsied. The main gross lesions were hemopericardium, hemothorax, pulmonary edema, petechial hemorrhages in the epicardium and endocardium, ecchymoses at the papillary muscles and suffusions on the intercostal muscles. Hemorrhages were also observed in the abdominal cavity, spleen and mucosa of the abomasum and small intestine. The rumen content was liquid with a large amount of castor bean seeds. There were circular, whitish and focally diffuse areas in the liver parenchyma. The main microscopic lesions consisted of multifocal coagulative myocardial necrosis with the presence of mononuclear cell infiltration and varying degrees of bleeding between cardiac muscle fibers. The abomasum and small intestine mucosae and submucosa had mild edema and mononuclear and polymorphonuclear inflammatory cell infiltration. The diagnosis of R. communis was based on the history of plant consumption, clinical signs, pathology of the disease and the presence of large amounts of castor bean seeds in the forestomachs.

RESUMO -O fornecimento da palma forrageira como único alimento não atende as necessidades nutricionais do rebanho, notadamente em proteína e fibra. Nesta pesquisa avaliaram-se fontes de suplementação protéica sobre o desempenho de vacas leiteiras alimentadas com palma e pasto diferido, durante a estação seca, bem como a composição botânica da pastagem. Testaram-se três tratamentos: T 1 = pasto diferido (PD) + palma + cama de aviário; T 2 = PD + palma + farelo de soja e T 3 = PD + palma + uréia/sulfato de amônio, em um delineamento de blocos casualizados. Utilizaram-se 12 vacas mestiças 5/8 Holando-Zebu, com produção média de leite de 5,6 kg/dia/vaca e peso vivo (PV) médio de 452 kg. O experimento teve duração de 121 dias, sendo 21 dias de período de adaptação. Os resultados para produção de leite in natura (3,38, 5,33 e 3,38 kg/vaca/dia), produção de leite corrigido para 4% de gordura (3,15, 4,98 e 3,11 kg/vaca/dia), variação de peso vivo (-351, 77 e -401 g/vaca/dia) e consumo in natura de palma (26,3, 37,8 e 26,3 kg/vaca/dia), para T 1 , T 2 e T 3 , respectivamente, demonstraram a superioridade do farelo de soja como fonte protéica, em relação aos demais tratamentos. No pasto diferido foram identificados 18 famílias, 32 gêneros e 36 espécies. O capim-milhã (Brachiaria plantaginea (Link) Hitch) foi o componente de maior participação na composição botânica da pastagem (28,72%).Palavras-chave: composição botânica, produção de leite, semi-árido, suplemento proteíco. Utilization of Three Nitrogen Sources Associated to Cactus Forage (Opuntia ficus-indica, Mill.) cv. Gigante in Dairy Cows Supplementation Grazing at Differed PastureABSTRACT -The cactus forage only feed for herd not attend nutritional requeriments, because it is poor in protein and fiber. Protein supplementation sources upon the dairy cows performance fed with cactus forage, grazing at differed pasture, and botanic composition of pastre, were evaluated. Three treatments were tested: T1 = differed pasture (DP) + cactus forage (CF) + broiler litter; T2 = DP + CF + soybean meal; T3 = DP + CF + urea/ammonium sulphate mixture. It was used a randomized block design.The experimental animals were twelve 5/8 holstein/Zebu multiparous cows, with an average of seven years of age, milk yield of 5.6 kg/cow/day, and mean of 452 kg of live weight. The experimental period was 121 days and the first 21 days was used as an adaptation period. The results to fresh milk yield (3.38, 5.33 and 3.38 kg/cow/day), 4% fat adjusted milk yield (3.15, 4.98 and 3.11 kg/cow/day), daily live weight gain (-351, 77 and -401 g/cow/ day) and fresh cactus forage intake (26.3, 37.8 and 26.3 kg/cow/day) considering T1, T2 and T3, respectively, showed the best performance to cows fed with soybean meal as supplemental protein source. It was identified 18 families, 32 genus and 36 species in the pasture. The "capim-milhã" (Brachiaria plantaginea (Link) Hitch.) was the main component in the botanical composition (28.72%).

Eight cattle were necropsied. Tissues were collected from abdominal and thoracic cavities, besides brain and spinal cord. The clinical changes consisted in apathy, prolonged sternal recumbency, reluctance to move, fatigue, tachypnea, tachycardia and positive venous pulse. The animals that were forced to move showed instability, muscular tremors and then a single fall followed by vocalizations, paddling and death in 5-7 minutes. Macroscopic changes consisted in pulmonary edema, globular heart with whitish areas, petechiae and ecchymosis in the epicardium, myocardium and papillary muscles. Microscopically there was an increase of eosinophilia of cytoplasm of cardiomyocytes, picnosis, cariorrexia, karyolysis, loss of striations and multifocal areas of cardiac fibrosis. In the kidney, there was hydropic vacuolar degeneration and necrosis of epithelial cells in convoluted tubules. The clinical signs presented by the cattle poisoned were similar to those previously described by plants containing MFA. The macroscopic and microscopic lesions described in the heart and kidneys are of great diagnostic value. A. septentrionalis is the main toxic plant of livestock interests in the studied regions due to direct and indirect economic losses in livestock that causes. INDEX TERMS: Poisonous plants, Amorimia septentrionalis, plant poisoning, sudden death, MFA, cardiac fibrosis, cattle.

The objective of this study was to describe the epidemiological, clinical, and pathological aspects of Palicourea aeneofusca poisoning in cattle in the region of Pernambuco, Brazil and to determine if it is possible to induce food aversion by