Penrith M L, Tustin R C, Thornton D J, Burdett P D
Pathology Section, Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute, South Africa.
J S Afr Vet Assoc. 1996 Jun;67(2):93-6.
Ataxia associated with myelopathy and low liver copper concentrations is described in a blesbok (Damaliscus dorcas phillipsi) and black wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou) from the Karoo Nature Reserve, Graaff-Reinet. This syndrome, which occurs in neonatal and delayed forms, has been described in sheep, goats, pigs and domesticated red deer, but reports in other ungulates, including antelope, are very rare and generally unconfirmed by histopathological examination. The 2 animals examined exhibited a typical pattern of Wallerian degeneration in selected tracts of the spinal cord. Many blesbok in the reserve are markedly pale in colour. Fading of the hair is also associated with copper deficiency in ungulates. High lamb mortality occurs as a result of the ataxia and threatens the survival of the blesbok herd in the reserve. Confirmation of low liver copper concentrations in affected animals offers direction towards the solution of the problem.
在格拉夫-里内特卡鲁自然保护区的一头白纹牛羚（南非白面大羚羊）和一头黑尾牛羚中，发现了与脊髓病和肝脏铜浓度低相关的共济失调。这种综合征有新生儿型和迟发型，在绵羊、山羊、猪和家养马鹿中已有描述，但在包括羚羊在内的其他有蹄类动物中的报道非常罕见，且通常未经组织病理学检查证实。接受检查的这两只动物在脊髓的特定区域表现出典型的华勒氏变性模式。保护区内的许多白纹牛羚毛色明显变浅。毛发褪色在有蹄类动物中也与铜缺乏有关。共济失调导致羔羊死亡率很高，威胁到保护区内白纹牛羚种群的生存。对患病动物肝脏铜浓度低的确认，为解决该问题提供了方向。
