ArticleVeterinary medicine and science2025
Stillbirth Caused by Vitamin A Deficiency in Captive African Lion Cubs (Panthera leo).
Article in Veterinary medicine and science, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- First report of viableFood and waterborne parasitology · 2026Article
- Stillbirth Caused by Vitamin A Deficiency in Captive African Lion Cubs (Panthera leo).Veterinary medicine and science · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThis study investigates the pathology of two stillborn lion cubs presented to the Laboratory of Pathology by analysing their necropsy findings and concluding with possible diagnoses.
methodsAt first, a systematic necropsy was performed, and then, the samples of various tissues were collected and divided into three parts for bacterial culture, histopathology studies and molecular analysis. The conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was conducted to detect common foetal infectious agents associated with stillbirth in carnivores, such as canine adenovirus-2, canine distemper virus, canine parainfluenza virus, canine parvovirus and Toxoplasma gondii. In the case of the liver, an additional sample was taken for vitamin A analysis.
resultsAs reported in history, the lions were kept in a small zoo, where they were fed the same amount of chicken and red meat. At necropsy, it was observed that both cubs had haemoperitoneum and haemothorax. Moreover, diffuse congestion and focal haemorrhage were observed in the lung, heart, liver, kidney, spleen and tight muscles. Notably, extensive haemorrhage was observed in the adrenal gland. The marked thickening of the cranial (skull) bones associated with the brain compressing and marked vascular congestion was found. At PCR, no infectious agent was found. At microscopic examinations, the tracheal epithelium showed squamous metaplasia along with focal and mild vascular congestion. Additionally, the desquamation of epithelium was observed in the stomach and intestine along with mild focal congestion. Notably, severe and extensive haemorrhage and necrosis were found in the other examined tissues. The liver vitamin A levels in both stillborn cubs were significantly low, at 85.7 and 23.3 µg/g of tissue, respectively.
conclusionOur findings supported a diagnosis of vitamin A deficiency when compared with the normal reference value reported in another previous study on wet liver samples obtained from a wild lion. It is suspected to be the cause of stillbirths, neonatal deaths and multiple anomalies in lion cubs.
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