Chronic active hepatitis in 26 Doberman pinschers

Chronic active hepatitis with increased hepatic copper concentration was diagnosed in 25 female and 1 male Doberman Pinscher dogs. Common clinical signs included polyuria/polydipsia, weight loss, anorexia, icterus, and ascites. Increased liver enzyme activities and abnormal liver function test results were the most consistent clinicopathologic changes. The dogs were assigned to 3 groups on the basis of clinical course of the disease. Group 1 dogs (n = 12) had clinical signs of advanced liver failure and died within one week. Group 2 dogs (n = 7) had less severe clinical signs of liver disease and died within one month. Group 3 dogs (n = 5) did not have clinical signs of illness or had mild clinical signs of liver disease and died 1 to 42 months after initial evaluation. One dog could not be reevaluated and another dog was alive 3 months after initial examination. Treatments consisted of supportive care for dogs in group 1, and dietary manipulations and corticosteroids for dogs in groups 2 and 3. The association of increased liver copper concentration and chronic active hepatitis is not known.     

Evaluation of adrenal function in psittacine birds, using the ACTH stimulation test

The effect of ACTH (16 units) on plasma cortisol and corticosterone concentrations in healthy psittacine birds was evaluated. Plasma corticosterone significantly increased (P less than 0.01) from a mean (+/- SD) basal concentration of 3.25 +/ 3.6 ng/ml to 26.47 +/- 9.25 (one hour after ACTH administration) and 25.69 +/- 13.23 ng/ml (2 hours after ACTH administration). For maximal increase in plasma corticosterone as measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA), heat denaturation was necessary to release corticosteroids from steroid-binding proteins. As measured by RIA, plasma cortisol concentrations did not increase, whether or not the heat denaturation step was included. Addition of cortisol to avian plasma did not prevent accurate quantification of cortisol as measured by RIA. Plasma corticosterone concentrations in cockatoos, macaws, Amazon parrots, conures, and lorikeets before and after ACTH administration indicated that the ACTH stimulation test could be used to evaluate adrenal secretory capacity in psittacine birds.     

Procedure for Blood Glutathione Peroxidase Determination in Cattle and Swine

An improved testing system has been developed for direct measurement of glutathione peroxidase activity in heparinized whole blood at 37°C. Without loss in net yield the consumption of reagents has been found to be considerably lower with the new technique than with previously described techniques. Within the range 0–700 mKat/1 the GSH-Px activity in red cells may be measured with a high degree of accuracy and reproducibility without preceding separation and washing. The stability of the enzyme in bovine and porcine whole blood at 22°C, 4°C, and —20°C was determined.     

Yohimbine for treatment of xylazine overdosing in a cat

Xylazine overdosing was diagnosed in a cat. Treatment with yohimbine, a alpha-2-adrenergic blocking agent, resulted in resolution of clinical signs attributed to xylazine intoxication.     

Disposition of sulfadimethoxine in male llamas (Llama glama) after single intravenous and oral administrations.

This study determined the disposition of sulfadimethoxine in six, healthy, adult, gelded male llamas (Llama glama) by using a nonrandomized crossover design with i.v. dosing (58.8 +/- 3.0 mg/kg based on metabolic scaling) followed by oral dosing (59.3 mg/kg +/- 8.3). Blood samples were collected intermittently for a 72-hr period, and serum sulfadimethoxine concentrations were quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography. Serum sulfadimethoxine concentrations across time were subjected to standard pharmacokinetic analysis based on linear regression. Mean maximum serum concentration after oral dosing was 23.6 +/- 14.9 microg/ml, and extrapolated peak concentration after i.v. administration was 246.6 +/- 15.8 microg/ml. Total clearance of sulfadimethoxine was 45.4 +/- 13.9 L/kg. Half-lives after i.v. and oral administration were 541 +/- 111 min and 642.4 +/- 204.8 min, respectively. Oral bioavailability was 52.6 +/- 15%. These data suggest that the oral dose administered to llamas in this study, based on metabolic scaling from cattle, may be inadequate when compared with the reported minimum inhibitory concentration (512 microg/ml) breakpoint for sulfadimethoxine.     

Saponin Adjuvants. Vi. The Adjuvant Activity of Quil a in Trivalent Vaccination of Cattle and Guinea Pigs Against Foot-And-Mouth Disease

The saponin adjuvant Quil A was investigated in trivalent vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease with a concentrated vaccine based on BHK suspension cell virus of the serotypes O, A and G. The activity in cattle was estimated on the basis of seroneutra-lizing antibodies. Five and 10 ml doses with or without 1 mg of Quil A were each injected into 6 animals. Seroneutralizing antibodies were estimated at regular intervals during a period of 29 weeks. The activity in guinea pigs was estimated by experimental challenge. One ml doses of serial 4-fold dilutions of the vaccine with or without 50 µg of Quil A were injected into 24 groups of 20 guinea pigs. Challenge was given 3 weeks after vaccination.It was concluded that Quil A showed adjuvant activity in cattle and guinea pigs with all the serotypes used in the trivalent vaccination.     

Bile acid metabolism in the pig

To study bile acid metabolism in the pig, indwelling catheters were surgically placed in the hepatic portal vein and the anterior vena cava of 12-17 kg crossbred pigs. The pigs were fed ad libitum for one hr at 0800 and 1600 hrs daily. Two weeks after the surgery, 50 microCi of 24[14C] chenodeoxycholic acid were infused into the hepatic portal vein. The radioactivity in plasma from the two veins was monitored hourly for six hrs following each of six consecutive meals over a 3-day period. Fecal and urine radioactivity were determined for 14 days. It was found that the peak levels of radioactivity in the plasma of both veins were reached within two hrs post-feeding. The biological half-life of chenodeoxycholic acid was determined to be 6.4 days.     

The Effect of Medicated Feed on the Nasal Microflora and Weight Gain of Pigs

Antimicrobial agents were added to the feed of swine for three weeks to determine the interrelationships of potentially pathogenic agents in the nasal tract, turbinate atrophy and weight gains.

Bordetella bronchiseptica was not isolated from the groups fed the combination of chlortetracycline, penicillin and sulfamethazine. B. bronchiseptica was found in some pigs after the feeding trail, but this organism was not significantly associated with turbinate atrophy at the time of slaughter.

Mycoplasma hyorhinis was not found in the nasal passages of the pigs that received feed containing high concentration chlortetracycline but was found in pigs that received other diets. Hemophilus suis was not significantly reduced by any of the treatments used.

The organisms studied in the pigs were not isolated from the personnel handling the pigs.