Polio associated with high sulfur intake is becoming more frequent in ruminants

[Emily]

http://www.angusbeefbulletin.com/extra/2009/dec09/1209hn_vet_link.html

Vet Link

Polio due to sulfur toxicity

by Bob Larson, professor of production medicine, Kansas State University

Polioencephalomalacia (commonly called polio) in cattle is due to brain damage that can be caused by a number of things, including lead toxicity, salt toxicity or thiamine deficiency.

I see several cases a year of polio caused by high levels of sulfur (S) in the diet. Cattle with polio, regardless of the cause, may have aimless wandering, indications of blindness, head-pressing, stumbling, circling, muscle tremors and possibly convulsions. Polio due to sulfur toxicity is usually seen at least one to three weeks after first starting animals on a diet high in sulfur.

There is great animal-to-animal variation with this toxicity; only 10%-35% of cattle subjected to high-sulfate diets actually develop signs of the disease. Current knowledge of all nutritional factors that interact to cause sulfur-induced polio is not complete, but thiamin or cobalt deficiency, carbohydrate source, and rumen pH, among others, may be involved...

http://vetmed.iastate.edu/diagnostic-lab/diagnostic-services/diagnostic-sections/chemistry-/-toxicology/polio-cattle-can-be-ca

Polio in Cattle can be Caused by Sulfur Toxicity

Polioencephalomalacia (PEM) was first reported in 1956 and was described as a neurologic disorder of cattle characterized by blindness, ataxia, recumbancy and seizures. The micropathologic description was a laminar cortical necrosis. This description of PEM is still accurate 50 years later, but several additional causes have been identified. ..

http://www.hoajonline.com/vetmedanimsci/2054-3425/1/1

A review of polioencephalomalacia in ruminants: is the development of malacic lesions associated with excess sulfur intake independent of thiamine deficiency?

Samat Amat1*, Andrew A. Olkowski2, Metin Atila3 and Tyler J. O'Neill4

*Correspondence: Samat Amat saa647@mail.usask.ca

1. Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B4, Canada.

http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/nervous_system/polioencephalomalacia/overview_of_polioencephalomalacia.html

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In general, younger animals are more frequently affected than adults.
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PEM associated with high sulfur intake is recognized with increasing frequency.
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A pattern observed in brains of cattle with early, severe, acute sulfur-related PEM features multifocal vascular necrosis, hemorrhage, and parenchymal necrosis in deep gray matter including the striatum, thalamus, and midbrain...