Abstract
Oleander is a spontaneous shrub widely occurring in Mediterranean regions. Poisoning is sporadically reported in livestock, mainly due to the ingestion of leaves containing toxic cardiac glycosides (primarily oleandrin). In this study, 50 lactating Fleckvieh cows were affected after being offered a diet containing dry oleander pruning wastes accidentally mixed with fodder. Clinical examination, electrocardiogram, and blood sampling were conducted. Dead animals were necropsied, and heart, liver, kidney, spleen, and intestine were submitted to histological investigation. Oleandrin detection was performed through ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry in blood, serum, liver, heart, milk, and cheese samples. Severe depression, anorexia, ruminal atony, diarrhea, serous nasal discharge, tachycardia, and irregular heartbeat were the most common clinical signs. The first animal died within 48 h, and a total of 13 cows died in 4 days. Disseminated hyperemia and hemorrhages, multifocal coagulative necrosis of the cardiac muscle fibers, and severe and diffuse enteritis were suggestive of oleander poisoning. The diagnosis was confirmed by the presence of oleandrin in serum, liver, heart, milk, and cheese. Our results confirm the high toxicity of oleander in cattle and report for the first time the transfer into milk and dairy products, suggesting a potential risk for the consumers.
Highlights
Oleander is an evergreen plant, widespread all over the world, belonging to the Apocynaceae family, whose most prevalent species are Nerium oleander from the Mediterranean basin and Asia [1] and Thevetia peruviana from tropical America [2]
All parts of the plant are highly toxic as they contain several non-digitalis cardiac glycosides, including oleandrin, nerin, digitoxigenin, and olinerin, collectively referred to as cardenolides
The poisoning episode occurred in a dairy farm located in the countryside of Cisternino (Brindisi, Italy), where 50 Fleckvieh lactating cows were affected
Summary
Oleander is an evergreen plant, widespread all over the world, belonging to the Apocynaceae family, whose most prevalent species are Nerium oleander (common oleander) from the Mediterranean basin and Asia [1] and Thevetia peruviana (yellow oleander) from tropical America [2]. Accidental poisonings have been frequently described in different animal species [8,9,10], including cattle [11,12,13,14,15]. The risk of poisoning is reduced by the presence of saponins, which in monogastrics may induce vomiting and facilitate the elimination of the ingested toxic vegetables [17]. The lethal dose of dried Nerium oleander leaves (LD) varies according to the animal species. It seems that bovines are more sensitive compared to small ruminants, the LD being 50 mg/kg for cattle, 110 mg/kg for goats, and 250 mg/kg for sheep [1,18,19]. The presence of oleandrin in milk and dairy products was examined
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