Clinical, haematological, and biochemical changes in buffaloes with natural Anaplasma infection

Reports and documentation were very limited on buffaloes with natural Anaplasma infection in India. The present research was undertaken to record the prevalence, clinical signs, haematological, and serum biochemical alterations in buffaloes with anaplasmosis at College of Veterinary Sceince, Proddatur, Andhra Pradesh from January 2022 to December 2022. Buffaloes with signs of fever, emaciated body condition, lymphadenopathy, and congested mucus membranes were selected for the study. Peripheral blood smears, whole blood, and serum were collected for laboratory analysis. Confirmation of the anaplasmosis was done by microscopic examination of stained blood smears. Anaplasmosis was identified as the presence of round, dense dot-like organisms i.e., marginal bodies of Anaplasma marginale, and the prevalence of the anaplasmosis was 9.58%. The predominant clinical signs were the absence of rumination, complete anorexia, loss of milk yield, fever, depression, emaciation, scleral congestion, icteric mucous membranes, tachypnea, sunken eyeballs, lymphadenopathy, dyspnoea, nasal discharges, ocular discharges, haemoglobinuria, and pale mucous membranes. Specific haematological findings were decreased haemoglobin, packed cell volume, total erythrocyte count, and neutrophils: increased eosinophils and monocytes. Serum biochemical findings revealed decreased albumin, glucose, calcium, phosphorous, sodium, potassium and chloride; increased globulin, aspartate aminotransferase, bilirubin, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, cholesterol, lactate dehydrogenase, gamma glutamyl transferase, and creatine kinase myocardial band isoenzymes than compared with the apparently healthy buffaloes. Present research study documented the predominant signs, blood changes, and biochemical alterations during the natural Anaplasma infection. These findings are helpful to the other researchers to follow the therapeutic interventions by variations in the complete blood count and biochemical parameters. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature.