Differential expression of surface membrane antigens on bovine monocytes activated with recombinant cytokines and during Trypanosoma congolense infection

The expression of surface membrane antigens on peripheral blood monocytes (PBM) of cattle of the Boran and N'Dama breeds activated with recombinant cytokines (TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma) and during experimental infection with Trypanosoma congolense was investigated using monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) and fluorescein-activated cell sorter (FACS). The surface antigens investigated were C3bi receptor, major histocompartibility (MHC) II complex (Ia antigen) and two monocyte/macrophage (Mphi) differentiation antigens. The study revealed that both cytokines caused the enhancement of the expression of all the PBM surface antigens studied. rBolFN-gammaat low concentrations was more efficient in causing the activation of PBM. While the PBM of Boran cattle were more significantly activated to express the C3bi receptor vis-à-vis the Ia antigen than N'Dama cattle, the reverse was the case with the PBM of N'Dama cattle which expressed more Ia antigens than Boran PBM. Similar results were observed during T. congolense infection in the two breeds of cattle. The significantly higher expression of C3bi receptor and correspondingly lower Ia antigen expression by the PBM of Boran cattle, both during trypanosomosis and in vitro may be responsible for the higher rate of erythrocyte phagocytosis, hence the development of more severe anaemia by Boran cattle during trypanosomosis than N'Dama. In addition, the expression of significantly higher numbers of Ia antigen by N'Dama Mphi, hence are more able to process, present and initiate better trypanosome antigen-specific immune response than Boran cattle during infection. These two attributes are known genetic characteristics of trypanotolerance in cattle.     

SCINTIGRAPHIC EVALUATION OF THE STIFLE IN NORMAL HORSES AND HORSES WITH FORELIMB LAMENESS

We tested the hypotheses that mature horses without lameness have a repeatable radiopharmaceutical uptake pattern in the stifle, which is bilaterally symmetric; immature horses have a different radiopharmaceutical uptake pattern; and forelimb lameness alters the radiopharmaceutical uptake pattern in the stifle. The objectives of the study were to describe the normal radiopharmaceutical uptake patterns using region of interest (ROI) analysis; to compare uptake patterns between left and right stifles of the same horse and between mature and immature horses; to compare radiopharmaceutical uptake in mature normal horses with those with forelimb lameness. Lateral scintigraphic images of the stifle from 51 horses aged 2-16 years were evaluated using seven ROIs and a reference site (midfemur). After subtraction of a background count, ratios between the mean counts per pixel for each ROI to the reference site were calculated. There was a repeatable radiopharmaceutical uptake pattern in mature normal horses that was bilaterally symmetrical. The caudoproximal aspect of the tibia and the patella had the highest ratios. Radiopharmaceutical uptake patterns in horses with forelimb lameness were not significantly different. Immature normal horses had a different symmetric pattern, with greatest radiopharmaceutical uptake ratios in the caudoproximal aspect of the tibia and the tibial crest. It was concluded that there are symmetric, repeatable radiopharmaceutical uptake patterns in both immature and mature horses, which are not altered by forelimb lameness.     

The toxicity of Castanospermum australe seeds for cattle

Two calves given a mean of 16.1 g and 16.4 g ripe Castanospermum australe seeds/kg body weight daily for 13 and 16 days respectively developed haemorrhagic gastroenteritis. The first calf died. The second calf had mild myocardial degeneration and necrosis and mild nephrosis at necropsy. Two calves given a mean of 16.8 g unripe C. australe seeds/kg body weight daily for 18 days remained clinically normal and had mild gastritis at necropsy. The activity of alpha-glucosidase was reduced in the mononuclear cells of peripheral blood and in skeletal muscle. This was attributed to the presence of the indolizidine alkaloid, castanospermine, in the seeds. The toxin causing the gastroenteritis and other lesions is unknown.     

The first case of genetically confirmed monozygotic twinning in the dog

Monozygotic twinning has not previously been genetically confirmed in the dog. This case report describes the finding of two viable male monozygotic foetuses within one placental site during caesarean section. Their umbilical cords attached to a single placenta. Genetic profiling using a total of 38 microsatellite markers, as well as amelogenin and SRY for sex determination, revealed identical DNA profiles, whether derived from blood or tissue (buccal swabs) samples. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of monozygotic twinning in the dog confirmed using DNA profiling.     

SCINTIGRAPHIC EVALUATION OF THE PROXIMAL METACARPAL AND METATARSAL REGIONS IN CLINICALLY SOUND HORSES

In recent years, pain arising from the proximal metacarpal and metatarsal regions has become well recognized as a cause of lameness and various disease entities have been identified. However, our knowledge of normal patterns of radiopharmaceutical uptake is limited, making interpretation of images problematic. It is therefore important to characterize normal patterns of radiopharmaceutical uptake at specific sites to ensure valid interpretation of images in clinical cases with subtle lesions. The purpose of this study was to describe the pattern of radiopharmaceutical uptake in the proximal metacarpal and proximal metatarsal regions in clinically sound horses. Scintigraphic images from 64 clinically normal horses were evaluated. All the images were assessed subjectively. The lateral, dorsal, and plantar scintigraphic images were assessed qualitatively using horizontal line profiles through the proximal metacarpal and proximal metatarsal regions. Mean ratios of radiopharmaceutical uptake were calculated from three regions of interest sited over the proximal metacarpal and proximal metatarsal regions and a reference site. In 78% of forelimbs the peak of radiopharmaceutical activity was at the dorsal to central portion of the proximal metacarpal region. Seventy-five per cent of the dorsal plane profiles of activity were symmetrical, with the highest peak over the medial to central portion of the proximal metacarpal region. In 80% of hindlimb lateral images the peak radiopharmaceutical activity was at the central to plantar aspect of the proximal metatarsal region. All (100%) plantar image profiles of activity were symmetrical, with the highest peak being over the lateral portion of the proximal metatarsal region. There was no significant left and right variation between sites for mean ratios on the lateral and dorsal images of the proximal metacarpal region. However, using lateral images the mean ratios from all regions of the right proximal metatarsal were greater than left (dorsal P = 0.003, plantar P < 0.0001 and whole proximal metatarsal, P = 0.0006). There was no significant variation in mean ratios between left and right on plantar images. However, the mean ratio for the lateral proximal metatarsal region was significantly greater than for the medial proximal metatarsal regions (P < 0.0001). There was no significant effect of age. Left/right symmetry of radiopharmaceutical uptake was shown in the proximal metacarpal region. However, there was a significant difference between left and right proximal metatarsal regions. There was higher radiopharmaceutical uptake in the right proximal metatarsal region than the left, which agrees with previous studies of the tarsal and metatarsophalangeal joints. There were differences in the pattern of radiopharmaceutical uptake between the forelimbs and hindlimbs. In the forelimbs maximum radiopharmaceutical uptake was located at the dorsal to central portion of the proximal metacarpal region in the lateral image, with peak activity over the medial to central portion of the proximal metacarpal region on dorsal images. In the hindlimbs the maximum radiopharmaceutical uptake was at the central to plantar aspect of the proximal metatarsal region in the lateral image, with peak activity over the lateral portion of proximal metatarsal region on plantar images. The results of this study support the hypothesis that there would be a standard pattern of radiopharmaceutical uptake across the proximal metacarpal and l metatarsal regions, but the pattern of uptake observed would be different in the proximal metacarpal region compared with the proximal metatarsal region. There was left/right symmetry of radiopharmaceutical uptake in the proximal metacarpal region. However, there was a significant difference between left and right proximal metatarsal regions, with higher radiopharmaceutical uptake in the right. There was no variation of radiopharmaceutical uptake pattern with age.     

Diffuse Extreme-Ultraviolet Emission from the Coma Cluster: Evidence for Rapidly Cooling Gases at Submegakelvin Temperatures

The central region of the Coma cluster of galaxies was observed in the energy band from 0.065 to 0.245 kiloelectron volts by the Deep Survey telescope aboard the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer. A diffuse emission halo of angular diameter approximately 30 arc minutes was detected. The extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) emission level exceeds that expected from the x-ray temperature gas in Coma. This halo suggests the presence of two more phases in the emitting gas, one at a temperature of approximately 2 x 10(6) kelvin and the other at approximately 8 x 10(5) kelvin. The latter phase cools rapidly and, in steady state, would have produced cold matter with a mass of approximately 10(14) solar masses within the EUV halo. Although a similar EUV enhancement was discovered in the Virgo cluster, this detection in Coma applies to a noncooling flow system.     

Stormy weather in galaxy clusters

Recent x-ray, optical, and radio observations coupled with particle and gas dynamics numerical simulations reveal an unexpectedly complex environment within clusters of galaxies, driven by ongoing accretion of matter from large-scale supercluster filaments. Mergers between clusters and continuous infall of dark matter and baryons from the cluster periphery produce long-lived "stormy weather" within the gaseous cluster atmosphere-shocks, turbulence, and winds of more than 1000 kilometers per second. This weather may be responsible for shaping a rich variety of extended radio sources, which in turn act as "barometers" and "anemometers" of cluster weather.     

Further investigation of lead exposure as a potential threatening process for a scavenging marsupial species

There is a growing recognition of the harmful effects of lead exposure on avian and mammalian scavengers. This can lead to both lethal and non-lethal effects which may negatively impact wildlife populations. Our objective was to assess medium-term lead exposure in wild Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii). Frozen liver samples (n = 41), opportunistically collected in 2017–2022, were analysed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to determine liver lead concentrations. These results were then used to calculate the proportion of animals with elevated lead levels (>5 mg/kg dry weight) and examine the role of explanatory variables that may have influenced the results. The majority of samples analysed were from the south-east corner of Tasmania, within 50 km of Hobart. No Tasmanian devil samples were found to have elevated lead levels. The median liver lead concentration was 0.17 mg/kg (range 0.05–1.32 mg/kg). Female devils were found to have significantly higher liver lead concentrations than males (P = 0.013), which was likely related to lactation, but other variables (age, location, body mass) were not significant. These results suggest that wild Tasmanian devil populations currently show minimal medium-term evidence of exposure to lead pollution, although samples were concentrated in peri-urban areas. The results provide a baseline level which can be used to assess the impact of any future changes in lead use in Tasmania. Furthermore, these data can be used as a comparison for lead exposure studies in other mammalian scavengers, including other carnivorous marsupial species.     

水稻RIL群体高密度遗传图谱的构建及苗期耐热性QTL定位

【目的】 随着全球气候变暖,高温严重威胁粮食安全,发掘耐热基因资源是培育耐高温新品种和消除高温危害最直接的绿色生态途径,也是阐明耐热生理生化和分子遗传机理的基础。【方法】 构建苗期耐热性鉴定评价方法,以热敏感品种周南稻和强耐热品种赣早籼58号杂交衍生的重组自交系（recombinant inbred lines,RIL）群体为研究材料,利用高通量测序技术对亲本和RIL群体进行全基因组测序;依据171个家系的基因型数据,利用滑动窗口法将SNP信息转换成Bin基因型,预测染色体上的重组断点,构建RIL群体高密度BinMap遗传图谱,结合耐热表型数据,运用QTL IciMapping软件完备复合区间ICIM的作图方法,进行高温胁迫下幼苗存活率和耐热等级QTL分析。【结果】 构建了一张包含3 321个Bin标记高密度遗传图谱,各染色体Bin标记数为159—400个,标记间平均物理距离为106 kb;利用逐步高温胁迫方式鉴定亲本和RIL家系幼苗耐热表型,高温胁迫下,幼苗存活率和耐热等级存在极显著负相关性,且幼苗存活率与籼型基因频率存在显著正相关性,籼型基因频率越高,耐热性越好,RIL群体表型性状呈现双峰连续分布,苗期耐热性可能受少数几个主效QTL调控;共检测到12个苗期耐热性相关的QTL,其中,调控幼苗存活率和耐热等级的QTL分别有8和4个,幼苗存活率和耐热等级相关QTL存在遗传重叠现象,形成调控耐热性的主效QTL簇qHTS2、qHTS7和qHTS8,三者在调控苗期高温抗逆中具有重要作用,其中,qHTS7为新发现主效QTL,对增强苗期耐热性具有较强的功效。【结论】 构建了一张包含3 321个Bin标记的高密度分子遗传图谱,解析了耐热品种赣早籼58号苗期耐热基因,鉴定出3个苗期耐热调控关键QTL簇,发掘了一个新主效QTL簇qHTS7,基于高密度遗传图谱高效获取目标区段及候选基因,筛选出8个苗期耐热性调控的关键目标基因。     

Histological Appearance of Naturally Occurring Canine Physeal Fractures

The Salter-Harris classification system is widely used to describe the anatomical appearance of and predict the prognosis for physeal fractures in canine clinical patients. Salter and Harris classified experimentally induced physeal fractures on radiographic and histological appearance, however, the good prognosis afforded Salter-Harris type I and II fractures in experimental animals has been questioned for the canine patient. Twelve naturally occurring physeal fractures from five traumatized dogs, who were euthanatized at the request of their owners, and one resected femoral head were examined histologically. Ten of the 13 physeal fractures disrupted the cells in the proliferative zone. The histological appearance of growth plate disruption in the injured animal correlates more closely with the clinical observations of growth retardation than the experimental observation of continued growth after fracture through the hypertrophic zone. The results of this study indicated that considerable damage to the physeal cartilage occurred during the traumatic incident in most of these clinical animal patients.