Introduction to General

Veterinary Pathology

PATH 2302 ---3(2-1)

General Veterinary Pathology

Dr. Muti-ur-Rehman Khan Niazi

DVM, PhD
 Recommended Books
Text Book:
1. Zachary, J.F., and McGavin, 2013.Pathological basis of Veterinary Disease, 5th Ed.,
Elsevier, USA.

Recommended Books
1. Macfarlane P.S., R. Reid and R. Callander, 2011. Pathology Illustrated, 7th Ed.,
Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh, UK.
2. Slauson, D.O. and B.J. Cooper, 2002. Mechanisms of Disease: A textbook of
Comparative General Pathology. 3rd Ed. Mosby Inc, A Harcourt Sciences Company, St
Lousi MO 63146.
What is Pathology?

• Pathology is a combination of two words

patho=disease
logos =study
• The scientific Study of disease is called
pathology
• The study of disease except treatment is called
pathology
• "scientific study of the molecular, cellular, tissue,
or organ system response to injurious agents."
…….What is Pathology?

• The study of structure and function of the body

in disease condition is called Pathology.
• Pathology deals with the following questions?
1. What is wrong with the normal?
2. Why and how the wrong has happened?
• The study of molecular, biochemical, structural
and functional changes in the cells/organs of
the body is called pathology.
Why we study pathology?
• To understand the causation and mechanism of
disease development.
• Who is a pathologist?
• A person trained in the mechanisms,
morphological and functional alterations and
diagnosis of disease.
• A "bridge" or "link" between the preclinical
sciences (anatomy, physiology, ……etc.) and
the courses in clinical medicine.
Objectives of A Pathologist.

• The objectives of a pathologist are to find

out the lesions, name them and interpret
them to make a diagnosis
• His main purpose is to help the clinician in
arriving at a correct conclusion for the
diagnosis of the disease.
Branches of Pathology
• General pathology
It is concerned with the study of basic reactions
of cells and tissues to abnormal stimuli that deals
with all diseases.
• Systemic pathology
It deals with specific diseases of all organs of
different systems of the body.
• Clinical pathology
It deals with the application of laboratory methods
in the clinical diagnosis of a disease.
• Molecular Pathology: To Study molecular basis of
diseases
• Chemical pathology
The study of biochemical changes in tissues
and fluids in disease conditions.
• Experimental pathology
It is the study of diseases produced under
experimental conditions.
• Reproductive pathology
It is the study of genital organs in various
reproductive disorders which is important from
veterinary point of view
• Poultry pathology
It deals with the study of diseases of poultry
Terminology used in pathology
• Etiology. it refers to the cause of disease. it is of
two types
• Intrinsic (inside)
• Extrinsic (outside)
• symptom. is that which is described by a person
not observed (in human only)
• Clinical sign. which is observed not described by a
person (in animals only)
• Lesion.it is the structural/ functional alteration
induced in the cells of the body.(Gross /
microscopic or molecular lesions)
• Pathogenesis.it is the mechanism of disease
development
• Diagnosis.it is the reasonable conclusion
point upon which treatment ,control and
preventive measures can be suggested.
• Prognosis .it is the probable outcome of a
disease.
• Postmortem/autopsy/necropsy.
examination of the body after death to
observe the lesions for diagnosis/ cause of
death.
• Autopsy (in humans)
• Necropsy (in animals)
• Biopsy.it is the removal and microscopic
examination of tissues from the living body for
diagnosis
• antemortem examination: Live animal
examination; Before death examination
• Morbid changes. changes that develop before
death.
• Postmortem changes. changes that develop
after death.
• Morphological changes
The structural alterations in cells or tissues
• Clinical changes
The clinical features (symptoms,signs,course and
prognosis of the disease)
Disease

• French word “Des” (away) “aise” (ease)

• it is a condition in which the individual

suffers from discomfort i.e. not at
harmony with its environment.
What is Disease?
• Malfunction of the body is called Disease.

What is Health?
 Normal function of the body is called
Health.
 Lesion
It is the abnormal structural or functional
change in the body as a result of disease
and may be detected by gross (necropsy),
microscopic (histopathology) or
biochemical methods (clinical pathology).
Pathognomonic lesion
An alternation that indicates without doubt
the cause of a particular disease e.g.
finding of Negri bodies in rabies etc
Pathogenesis
• Process of disease development is called as
pathogenesis. It is a progressive mechanism
from its initiation to conclusion in recovery or
death.

• Disease is a dynamic process which

progresses from molecular or bio-chemical
alternations to structural (ultra-structural,
microscopic and gross lesions) and to
functional changes which are seen as signs
and symptoms of disease.
 Functional

Structural
Pathological
changes Moderate

Time
Diagnosis
• It is the identification of disease through
the clinical examination and application of
various laboratory tests.
• A pathological diagnoses should include
lesions, etiology (cause) pathogenesis and
clinical consequences.
Prognosis
• It is the estimation of the clinician or
pathologist regarding the expected outcome
of disease like favorable, guarded or grave
ete
 Etiology
• It is a study of the causes of disease.
• An etiologic agent induces cell and tissue
injury leading to clinical manifestations of
disease
• There are numerous causes of disease
which are divided into
1. Exogenous (Environmental or extrinsic factors)
2. Intrinsic Internal defects
I. Exogenous Factors
(Environmental or extrinsic factors)

A. Physical like

i) Mechanical trauma Cutting trauma,

compression,
fractures
ii) Electrical injury Lightning, electrocution
(high-voltage
current)
iii) Heat Heatstroke, fever,
burns
iv) Cold Frostbite, cold shock
v) Radiant energy UV light, X-irradiation
vi) Pressure Too much or decreased
B.Chemical

i) Biologic toxins Bacterial, fungal

toxins, venoms
ii) Therapeutic toxins Tetracycline etc.
(Iatrogenic, nosocomial)
iii)Pesticides Organophosphates
(parathion)
iv)Herbicides Paraquat,
2, 4-D,
dinitrophenols
v) Environmental poisons Metals, nitrates,
C.Biological
i) Acellular agents Viruses, prions
ii) Prokarytoes Bacteria
iii)Eukaryotes Fungi, protozoa,
algae
iv)Metazoan parasites Cestodes,
nematodes,
trematodes, insects

D. External deficiencies
i) Nutritional deficiency Protein, vitamins,
calories
ii) Environmental deficits Water, oxygen,
sunlight
II. Internal defects
A. Host factors (Endogenous, Intrinsic)
Species, breed, age, sex, even color often
act as predisposing causes.
B. Immunologic defects Autoimmune
disease
C. Genetic defects Single mutant gene
to chromosomal breaks
D. Hereditary defects Transmitted from
parents
Acquired Disease
• Diseases may be acquired by the animal in
utro or post-natally

Congenital Disease
• A disease present in the animal at birth. It
may be hereditary or acquired.
Multiple causation theory
• Most diseases result from interaction of
intrinsic and extrinsic factors, examples
are tuberculosis, leukemia viruses etc.

Predisposing and exciting causes

• Factors which make a disease more likely
to occur e.g. stress, deficiencies etc.
History
• The first concept of disease  The demoniac
concept of disease- witch doctor (17 thousand
years old-Paintings in the caves of Pyrenees
mountains)
• Theological concept of disease 4000 B.C.
(embalming)- disease due to divine displeasure-
Priest
• Humoral concept of disease- Greece-
Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.)-
– Blood-warm and moist (air)
– Phlegm- cold and moist (water)
– Yellow bile- warm and dry (fire)
– Black bile- cold and dry (earth)
Development of Anatomy,
Physiology, and Pathology

• Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) - modern anatomy

and physiology

• Claudius Galen (131-206 A.D.)- Father of

anatomy
First Textbook on
Veterinary Medicine
• Renatus Vegetius (450-500 A.D.) “Book of
the Veterinary Art” – father of veterinary
medicine
Century of Anatomy
• Antanio Benivieni (1440-1502)-
postmortem examination- father of
Pathological anatomy
• Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)- Artist-
Anatomy of horse
• Andreas Vesaleus (1514-1564)-
Belgian- At the age of 24 became
Professor of anatomy at Padua, in Italy
Discovery of Blood Circulation

• William Harvey (1578-1657)- Englishman-

airtree
• Marcello Malpighi (1628-1694)- Italian-
capillaries and erythrocytes, and
microscopic description of kidney, lungs,
and spleen
Invention of Microscope

• Antony van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723)-

Dutch draper- made 200 microscopes
First Text Book of Pathology

• Jean Fernet (1497-1558)-

Frenchman
• Giovanni Battista Morgagni (1682-
1771)-modern Pathology- Seats and
causes of disease in 5 volumes-
correlation of lesions with the
symptoms
Father of Histology

• Marei-Farancois Xavier Bichat (1771-

1802)- Frenchman – body composed of 21
tissues
Father of Immunology

• Edward Jenner (1749-1823)- Englishman-

discovered vaccination
• Material from cowpox lesions could be
used to protect small pox in humans
Establishment of First
Veterinary School
• Jacques Labessie De Solleysel
(1617-1680) – Complete book on
veterinary medicine
• Claude Bourgelat (1712-1779) –
lawyer – book on equine medicine
January 1, 1762 in Lyon, France
First Experimental Pathologist

• John Hunter (1728-1793) – Scotch-

Blood, inflammation, gunshot
wounds, monograph “Venereal
Disease”- Syphilis
Treponema pallidum

• Julius Cohnheim (1839-1884) –

German - Inflammation
Cellular Pathology
• Johannes Mueller (1801-1858)- German-
used microscope to study tissues
• Rudolph Virchow (1821-1902)- Book
“Cellular Pathology” . Father of Cellular
Pathology or Father of Modern
Pathology.
Most of the terms used in pathology are
coined by him
Germ Theory of Disease

• Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) – France –

germ theory of disease
• Robert Koch (1843-1910)-
Discovery of Phagocytosis

• Elie Metchnikoff (1845-1916) - Russian

Discovery of Lysosomes

• Christian de Duve (1955) in Belgium-

fractional centrifugation
• Novikoff
• Confirmed presence of lysosomes by EM.
Discovery of Prions

• Proteinaceous infective particle

(Prion)
• Lack nucleic acid(RNA, DNA)
• No inflammatory or immune reponse
• Resistant to UV light & disinfectants
• Cause tranmissible spongiform
encephalopathies (TSE’s)