Computed Tomography and Fluorescence Spectroscopy Blood Plasma Analysis Study for Kynurenic Acid as a Diagnostic Approach to Chronic Coenurosis in Sheep

Abstract

Coenurosis is a parasitic disease caused by the larval stage of Taenia multiceps, Coenurus cerebralis, typically found in the central nervous system of different livestock such as sheep and goats. The blood plasma from fifteen clinically healthy sheep and six sheep with neurological symptoms was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy in order to establish the contribution of kynurenic acid (KYNA), the neuroprotective metabolite of the kynurenine pathway, to the total fluorescence of the plasma. CT scans were used to confirm the presence of cysts in the central nervous system of sheep with neurological symptoms. The fluorescence spectroscopy analysis and further spectra deconvolution process revealed some significantly lower KYNA contributions to the total plasma fluorescence in sheep with coenurosis compared to healthy controls. Our results indicate that KYNA emission parameters could serve as valuable diagnostic markers, particularly for detecting preclinical cases of coenurosis, thus allowing for improved farm management practices.