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Teratogenic Effects of Plants on Lambs

Teratogenic Effects of Plants on Lambs. Jess Russ Chase Constant. Case Summary. Lambing problem in Spanish Forks, Utah Drought kept herds on mountain pastures later into fall breeding season Rancher described the following in lambs: Distorted upper jaw, cleft palate, and cyclopia

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Teratogenic Effects of Plants on Lambs

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  1. Teratogenic Effects of Plants on Lambs Jess Russ Chase Constant

  2. Case Summary • Lambing problem in Spanish Forks, Utah • Drought kept herds on mountain pastures later into fall breeding season • Rancher described the following in lambs: • Distorted upper jaw, cleft palate, and cyclopia • Motor-nerve paralysis • Surviving lambs had shortened legs

  3. Cyclopia in lambs

  4. Possible Causes • Two toxic plants were found on the pasture land • Veratrum sp. (commonly known as Corn Lily) • Lupinus sp. (Lupine)

  5. Veratrum sp. • Contains 3 teratogenic alkaloids • jervine, cyclopamine, and cycloposine • Inhibits proteoglycan synthesis resulting in defective chondrongenesis • results in head, trachea, and bone malformations • Cyclopamine and jervine inhibit Shh signaling during gastrulation-stage

  6. Teratogenic Effects of Veratrum sp.

  7. Lupinus sp. • Contains the toxic alkaloid anagyrine • Ewes may be symptomatic with the following: • salivation, ataxia, seizures, and head-pressing • The alkaloid is NOT teratogenic to sheep fetuses • Causes “crooked calf syndrome” in cattle

  8. Lupine Effects in Cattle • Cow rumen metabolizes anagyrine resulting in a teratogenic derivative • Causes an immobilizing effect on fetus • Fetus malformations occur because the fetus remains in one position for a prolonged period • Occurs when exposure is 40-70 days in gestation

  9. Diagnosis • The symptoms that the rancher noted were indicative of the toxic Corn Lily • The Lupine, while toxic to sheep, was not the underlying cause of the noted problem

  10. Keep ewes in their first trimester off the problematic pastures No treatment options are available Management Suggestions

  11. References Chan A, Downs D, Tsai C, Begley B, Triplett J. Poisonous Plants. http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/poison/plants/ppweste.htm. University of Pennsylvania. 2006 Apr. 19. Lee ST, Panter KE, Gaffield W, Stegelmeier BL. Development of an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for the veratrum plant teratogens: cyclopamine and jervine. J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Jan 29;51(3):582-6.

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