Green leaves of Myoporum laetum were collected during spring and summer, and administered to five sheep and six steers at dosages of 20 and 30 g/kg. Liver biopsies were taken before (Controls) and 1, 3 and 7 days after dosage. In sheep, the clinical signs were depression, rumen hypomotility, dried feces, tenesmus, teeth grinding, dyspnea and typical lesions of photosensitization. In cattle, the clinical picture was much less pronounced. The main histological findings in sheep were vacuolization of hepatocytes, portal fibrosis, bile duct proliferation and necrosis of periportal hepatocytes; the ultrastructural examination revealed hyperplasia of the smooth endoplasmic reticulum, hepatocellular hydropic degeneration, presence of crystals and several other degenerative changes. In cattle both, the histological and the ultrastructural findings, were less evident.
Poisonous plants; plant poisoning; Myoporum laetum; sheep; cattle
