Continuous extradural analgesia in a cow with complex regional pain syndrome

A chronic pain syndrome, similar to the complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) described in human beings, was diagnosed in a cow with persisting severe pelvic limb lameness. Diagnosis was based on the disproportionate relationship between the severity and duration of pain and the lesion, the failure of conventional analgesic and surgical therapy and the presence of characteristic clinical features. Multimodal therapy, i.e. a mixture of methadone, ketamine and bupivacaine was administered continuously for 17 days via an extradural catheter to counteract nociceptive hypersensitization. Doses were adjusted daily after assessing the effect, using a composite pain score. Physiotherapy was also performed. The diagnosis of CRPS in cattle is unusual. In this case, treatment was successful and the cow was discharged mildly lame and in improving physical condition. Long-term extradural analgesia proved to be safe and effective in the treatment of this syndrome, which was nonresponsive to conventional therapy.     

Evaluation of administration of isoflurane at approximately the minimum alveolar concentration on depression of a nociceptive withdrawal reflex evoked by transcutaneous electrical stimulation in ponies

OBJECTIVE: To investigate effects of isoflurane at approximately the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) on the nociceptive withdrawal reflex (NWR) of the forelimb of ponies as a method for quantifying anesthetic potency. ANIMALS: 7 healthy adult Shetland ponies. PROCEDURE: Individual MAC (iMAC) for isoflurane was determined for each pony. Then, effects of isoflurane administered at 0.85, 0.95, and 1.05 iMAC on the NWR were assessed. At each concentration, the NWR threshold was defined electromyographically for the common digital extensor and deltoid muscles by stimulating the digital nerve; additional electrical stimulations (3, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 40 mA) were delivered, and the evoked activity was recorded and analyzed. After the end of anesthesia, the NWR threshold was assessed in standing ponies. RESULTS: Mean +/- SD MAC of isoflurane was 1.0 +/- 0.2%. The NWR thresholds for both muscles increased significantly in a concentration-dependent manner during anesthesia, whereas they decreased in awake ponies. Significantly higher thresholds were found for the deltoid muscle, compared with thresholds for the common digital extensor muscle, in anesthetized ponies. At each iMAC tested, amplitudes of the reflex responses from both muscles increased as stimulus intensities increased from 3 to 40 mA. A concentration-dependent depression of evoked reflexes with reduction in slopes of the stimulus-response functions was detected. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Anesthetic-induced changes in sensory-motor processing in ponies anesthetized with isoflurane at concentrations of approximately 1.0 MAC can be detected by assessment of NWR. This method will permit comparison of effects of inhaled anesthetics or anesthetic combinations on spinal processing in equids.     

Effect of management on reproductive performances of the Achai cattle in the Hindu Kush (Northern Pakistan)

This study evaluates the effect of management on the undocumented Achai cattle reproductive performance in transhumant farming systems (TFS) and in sedentary farming systems (SFS) in northwestern Pakistan. Data were collected from 172 households in TFS and 270 households in SFS to analyze the effect of farming systems, parity, and calving season on key reproductive traits. The results show that farming systems significantly affect pubertal age, while parity has no significant effect on any of the key traits. The calving season significantly affects the postpartum anoestrus interval in TFS only. More than 50% of the cows in both systems have postpartum anoestrus intervals and calving intervals within the recommended values for cows in tropical countries. Achai cows have high first-service conception rates (70% and 71% for TFS and SFS, respectively) and require a relatively small number of services per conception (1.53 ± 0.06 and 1.48 ± 0.05 SE for TFS and SFS, respectively). This local breed thus warrants conservation under both farming systems.     

Nitrogen status and biomass determination of oilseed rape by laser-induced chlorophyll fluorescence

Site-uniform nitrogen fertilization can lead to local over- or under-supply of nitrogen on heterogeneous sites. Suitable sensor solutions are needed to perform on-the-fly measurements of the local N-requirement. Sensor systems already in use to this end in agricultural practice are based on light reflectance measurements.By contrast, a measurement principle based on laser-induced two-wavelength chlorophyll fluorescence (LICF) presents some major advantages given that the measurement signals originate only from plant material. The LICF measurement principle measures the chlorophyll fluorescence induced by red laser light at 630 nm at wavelengths of 690 nm and 730 nm. The ratio of the two wavelengths correlates strongly with aboveground N content, with statistical analysis of measurement data providing biomass information. Thus, both N content and biomass can be determined simultaneously using this technology.This work tested the accuracy of this measurement principle in determining N content and biomass of oilseed rape in field trials. LICF measurements were compared to reflectance-based measurements, both of which were referenced against conventionally determined values for N content and biomass dry weight.Our results show that the N status and aerial biomass dry weight determination by LICF measurements are possible with the same accuracy as with the conventional determination. Furthermore, it could be shown that the LICF measurement allows for the determination of biomass independent of the N content. The good performance of LICF-based protocols in determining local N content and biomass supports their potential utility in site-specific fertilizer application.     

Adaptation of ecotypes and cultivars of subterranean clover (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Trifolium subterraneum</Emphasis> L.) to German environmental conditions and its suitability as living mulch

Abstract A total of 320 accessions of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterranenum L.) were screened for adaptation to the environmental conditions in southern Germany, as well as their suitability as cover crops or living mulches. The accessions, derived from collections of the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia and the International Research Center for Agriculture in Dry Areas, were propagated in the greenhouse and grown in rows. Selected accessions were then tested in plots and as an intercrop in wheat, in order to test their suitability as living mulch. Moreover, a frost resistance screening was carried out in a climate chamber. Adaptation to southern German conditions and frost tolerance was generally better than expected, as most accessions survived winters with snow cover and transitory temperatures as low as \(-\,10\,^\circ \)C. Accessions with particularly high frost tolerance were identified and several accessions persisted over four generations of self-reseeding. Although there was a large range of morphological characteristics, no differences concerning their suitability as living mulch could be observed. The results suggest that subterranean clover is sufficiently winter hardy to be grown as an overwintering cover crop or living mulch in southern Germany. Commercially available cultivars appear suitable in the first instance, even though these have not been selected for cold winters. However, adaptation might be further improved by targeted selection among accessions.     

Influence of ambient light and temperature on laser-induced chlorophyll fluorescence measurements

Chlorophyll fluorescence analysis is a powerful tool for the study of spatial and temporal heterogeneities of photosynthetic performance and has been successfully used at the laboratory scale. Field applications, however, are confronted with the challenges presented by fluctuating environmental factors, particularly varying light and temperature conditions.The influence of ambient light and temperature on the measurement signal of the laser-induced two-wavelength chlorophyll fluorescence remains both controversially and largely not well understood. Yet, a thorough understanding of this issue is essential for exploiting the large potential of this measurement method for precision agriculture as well as for precision phenotyping in plant breeding where the influence of ambient light and temperature is inevitably present. To fill this gap in our knowledge, we therefore investigated this area under both field and controlled laboratory conditions.Field measurements of laser-induced two-wavelength chlorophyll fluorescence under variable light conditions show a linear influence of direct sunlight on the ratio of F₆₉₀/F₇₃₀, whereas the ratio is unchanged under diffuse sunlight.We describe these measurement results in terms of a physical model of light–matter interaction in plant leaves. In particular, the results appear to derive from energetic saturation effects of the upper plant layers induced by sunlight, which result in larger mean depths of fluorescence emission induced by additional exciting light (i.e. laser light), in connection with the different scattering properties of the two different fluorescence light wavelengths (690 nm and 730 nm) on their way to the surface. The same model also provides an explanation for the temperature dependence of the fluorescence intensity ratio and is well suited to deal with the effects of both variable light and temperature conditions under field conditions.     

Performance of nitrification inhibitors with different nitrogen fertilizers and soil textures

Nitrification inhibitors (NIs), DCD (dicyandiamide), and DMPP (3,4‐dimethylpyrazole phosphate), in combination with urea (UR) and ammonium sulfate nitrate (ASN) fertilizers were studied under contrasting soil textures (sand, loam, and clay) from cultivated soils collected in Brazil and Germany. Soil samples were incubated over 50 days and the content of ammonium ( ), nitrate ( ), and soil pH were measured periodically. Applied NIs delayed the nitrification process across all soil textures. Correlation analysis indicated that combining ASN with NIs resulted in higher content and efficiency in delaying the nitrification process with high N‐conversion rate (r = –0.82). The combination of ASN+ DMPP increased the efficiency of the N‐conversion rate (r = –0.86) due to H⁺ release in soil, while UR+DCD (r = –0.50) had an efficiency of the N‐conversion rate similar to UR (r = –0.42). All the NIs had a better performance in reducing formation in sandy soils as compared to the loam and clay textured soils. Use of DMPP with an N fertilizer results in a soil pH decrease and can be an option to increase the efficiency of the N‐conversion rate, reducing N losses in soil. Overall, our results suggest that NIs have a better performance in reducing formation in sandy soils as compared to that of the loam and clay textured soils. Use of DMPP with ASN results in a soil pH decrease and can be an option to reduce N losses in soil.     

Inherited erythrocyte Syruvate kinase eficiency in the West Highland white terrier

An eight-month-old male West Highland white terrier (WHWT) presented with mild exercise intolerance and splenomegaly caused by a severe and highly regenerative haemolytic anaemia that persisted until the dog died at two years of age. There was marked erythroid hyperplasia in the bone marrow and progressive osteosclerosis. Erythrocyte pyruvate kinase (PK) deficiency was confirmed by demonstrating a block in glycolysis at the PK step, abnormal erythrocyte PK kinetics, absence of R-type PK isoenzyme, and the presence of M₂-type PK not normally expressed in erythrocytes. From the study of family members it is concluded that erythrocyte PK deficiency in the WHWT is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. Heterozygotes have about half-normal erythrocyte PK activity, do not express the M₂-type PK isoenzyme and are asymptomatic. This disease closely resembles erythrocyte PK deficiency in the basenji breed and should be considered as a differential diagnosis in young dogs with severe haemolytic anaemia.     

Determination of erythrocyte pyruvate kinase deficiency in Basenjis with chronic hemolytic anemia

Erythrocyte pyruvate kinase (PK) deficiency was first described in Basenjis 20 years ago. Although the approach to diagnosis had not been well established, a screening program to detect heterozygotes was thought to have eliminated PK deficiency from the Basenjis of the United States. Four not closely related Basenjis with severe chronic hemolytic anemia, from various parts of the United States, were studied. Their PCV ranged from 16 to 25% and their reticulocyte count was always above 15%. A progressive osteosclerosis was seen in all of the Basenjis and hepatic failure developed in 2 of them. The erythrocyte intermediary metabolite patterns indicated a glycolytic defect at the PK step. Erythrocyte PK activities were markedly increased in the anemic Basenjis, compared with those of a control group, but the enzyme in these Basenjis had abnormal kinetic properties and was thermolabile. An antibody against R-type PK, the regular erythrocyte PK form, did not neutralize the PK activity of affected Basenjis, and results of electrophoretic studies suggested the expression of M2-type PK, a leukocyte and fetal erythroid PK-type. Clinically healthy heterozygous Basenjis had half-normal R-type PK activity and did not express the M2-type in their erythrocytes. We conclude that severe chronic hemolytic anemia, caused by erythrocyte PK deficiency, and associated osteosclerosis still develop in Basenjis. A definitive diagnosis cannot be reached by simply measuring erythrocyte PK activity; rather, diagnosis requires measurement of glycolytic substrate accumulation and enzyme stability and immunologic or electrophoretic studies of erythrocyte PK.     

Sulfadiazine-induced allergy in six Doberman pinschers

Treatment with sulfadiazine-trimethoprim caused serious, but reversible, allergic drug reactions in 6 Doberman Pinschers 10 to 21 days after the first drug exposure and/or within 1 hour to 10 days after reexposure. Nonseptic polyarthritis was found in all dogs. Glomerulonephropathy, focal retinitis, polymyositis, skin rash, fever, anemia, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia were found in some dogs. These clinical abnormalities were typical of an immune-mediated vasculitis and mimicked other immune-mediated disorders. In a drug challenge study, 1 dog was given sulfadiazine and trimethoprim separately. Administration of trimethoprim alone did not result in any abnormalities; however, exposure to sulfadiazine caused recurrence of the polyarthritis, glomerulonephropathy, and focal retinitis within 5 days, suggesting that sulfadiazine likely was the offending agent in all cases. In addition, during the sulfadiazine reexposure, marked complement activation was documented at the time clinical signs were apparent, supporting the suggestion that sulfadiazine caused an immune complex disease (type-III hypersensitivity reaction). Since all dogs were of the same breed, a genetic predisposition of some Doberman Pinschers to react adversely to sulfadiazine was suspected.