Toxic myopathy and acute hepatic necrosis in cattle caused by ingestion of Senna obtusifolia (sicklepod; coffee senna) in Brazil

Poisoning by Senna obtusifolia in sheep

“…The shortage of forage was due to a high stocking rate (53 sheep and goats in an area of 1.5 hectare during 40 days) at the start of the dry season. These epidemiologic conditions are similar to those reported in outbreaks of S. obtusifolia poisoning in cattle (Henson et al 1965, Queiroz et al 2012, Carvalho et al 2014, Furlan et al 2014. Senna obtusifolia is a common weed in Northeastern Brazil; however, the poisoning has not been reported previously in ruminants in this region.…”

“…In the present outbreak, the clinical signs and pathology in sheep were similar to that observed in poisoning by S. obtusifolia and S. occidentalis in cattle, characterized by segmental degeneration and necrosis in striated muscles accompanied by high CK serum activity, myoglobinuria in most cases, and different degrees of liver lesions (Carvalho et al 2014, Furlan et al 2014. In previous experiments with small ruminants, it was not demonstrated that Senna spp.…”

“…It should be determine if this situation is due to fact that the plant is only consumed when there is shortage of forage and/or high stocking rate or if there are variations in the toxicity of the plant. In an experimental reproduction of the poisoning in cattle, it was suggested that there are variation in the toxicity of the plant from different places and in different seasons (Furlan et al 2014). The toxic compound of S. obtusifolia and S. occidentalis has not been definitively isolated and characterized.…”

“…The genus Senna (Leguminoseae Caesalpinioideae) is constituted by nearly 300 species with a circumtropical distribution (Souza & Bortoluzzi 2012). Poisoning by Senna obtusifolia in cattle was reported as a cause of segmental muscle degeneration and necrosis in United States of America (Henson et al 1965, Nicholson et al 1977, McCormack & Neisler 1980 and southern and central-western Brazil (Froehlich 2010, Queiroz et al 2012, Carvalho et al 2014, Furlan et al 2014. Poisoning by Senna occidentalis seeds or leaves had been reported in horses (Oliveira-Filho et al 2013) and pigs (Martins et al 1986) in southern Brazil, and cattle from Texas (Henson et al 1965, Pierce & O'Hara 1967 and southern Brazil (Barros et al 1990, 1999, Barth et al 1994, Carmo et al 2011.…”

MORTALITY AND EVIDENCE OF CLINICAL-PATHOLOGICAL ABNORMALITIES IN CAPTIVE MOUFLON SHEEP (Ovis orientalis) AFTER INCLUSION OF COTTONSEED CAKE IN THEIR RATION

“…Wild ruminants are highly sensitive to oxidative stress induced by the naturally occurring polyphenols in their diets, particularly the ration containing cottonseed meal (Javed et al, 2015;Zubair et al, 2016). Gossypol intoxication has occasionally been reported under natural conditions, however, it is reported that animals ingesting higher level of gossypol in their feed showed ascites, anasarca, hydrothorax and centrilobular necrosis of liver (Furlan et al, 2014;Câmara et al, 2016). Endotheliotoxic properties of the polyphenolic compounds have been associated with congestive heart failure and these compounds also enhance the erythrocytes fragility by impairing the oxygen exchange and lipid peroxidation of the membrane phospholipids (Lindsey et al, 1980;Kirmizigul et al, 2016).…”