Host range relationships and the evolution of canine parvovirus.

Canine parvovirus (CPV) is an example of an unusual class of emerging virus-those that gain an altered host range through genetic variation and subsequently become widespread pathogens of their new and previously resistant host species. CPV was first detected in 1978 as the cause of new diseases in dogs throughout the world, when it rapidly spread throughout domestic populations, as well as becoming widespread in wild dogs. CPV was soon shown to be a variant of the long recognized feline panleukopenia virus (FPV), from which it differed in less than 1% at the nucleotide sequence level. Genetic analysis showed that virtually all of the biological differences between CPV and FPV, including the canine host range, were determined by three or four sequence differences in the viral capsid protein gene. Analysis of the atomic structures of the CPV and FPV capsids showed that the differences controlling host range were located within two different structural regions and were exposed on the capsid surface. The CPV which first emerged in 1978 appeared to be derived from a single ancestral sequence, which has allowed the ready analysis of the subsequent evolution of the virus in nature. Sequence analysis has also revealed that CPV strains have undergone a series of evolutionary selections in nature which have resulted in the global distribution of new virus variants. This was first seen in the global replacement between 1979 and 1981 of the original (1978) strain of the virus by a genetically and antigenically variant strain, and the subsequent widespread selection of other variants which have also become globally distributed. The genetic and antigenic variation in the virus strains was also correlated with changes in the host range of the virus, in particular in the ability to replicate in cats, and in canine host range differences seen in tissue culture cells.     

Glucose-glucagon relationships in adult sheep.

Glucose-glucagon relationships were examined in adult sheep. Hyperglycemia was induced by infusing glucose at 120 mg/hr/kg body weight. Hypoglycemia was obtained by infusing insulin at 1.2 U/hr. In several experiments glucose at 40 mg/hr/kg was infused with insulin to obtain hyperinsulinemia without hypoglycemia to distinguish glucose-insulin effects. Glucagon concentrations decreased during hyperglycemia and increased during hypoglycemia. This study indicates that glucose-glucagon interactions may be important in regulation of glucagon secretion in sheep.     

Protein and energy relationships in dairy cattle. 1. Dry cows

Nitrogen metabolism in ruminants is a dynamic process depending on level of intake and composition of dietary dry matter and on the physiological state of the animals. These parameters were analysed in a regression model for the requirements of nitrogen absorbed in the small intestine in relation to nitrogen balance of dry cows fed at maintenance level. The amount of total dietary nitrogen and the apparent nitrogen digestibility vary notably according to energy intake and energy concentration in dietary dry matter. On the contrary, the amount of nitrogen absorbed in the small intestine is only slightly affected by these parameters. The discrepancy between these statements lies mainly in differences in intestinal nitrogen absorption and in altered fermentation processes of the large intestine in response to changes in energy supply and ME concentration in dietary dry matter.     

Experimental studies on the serological relationships between Yersinia enterocolitica and Brucella abortus.

Yersinia enterocolitica O9 was shown to provoke O, OH and H antibody response in calves. Brucella abortus failed to generate Yersinia H antibody response and generated Brucella O antibodies that cross-reacted with Yersinia O and OH antigens. The presence of Yersinia H agglutinins along with a higher titre of Yersinia OH antibody than Brucella O antibody is suggestive of subclinical infection with yersiniosis rather than brucellosis. Cross-absorption of sera from calves with established Yersinia infections indicated that absorption of sera with Brucella O antigens, although completely removing Brucella O antibodies, failed to remove completely Yersinia O, OH and H antibodies, and thus provides an additional method of distinguishing between the two infections.     

Immunoblotting study of the antigenic relationships among eight serogroups of Leptospira.

Seven strains of Leptospira interrogans belonging to seven different serogroups, and one strain of Leptospira biflexa were analysed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) with gradient gels and immunoblotting with hyperimmune rabbit sera raised against each strain. The molecular masses of the proteins were calculated with a polynomial regression model. The SDS-PAGE patterns of the L. interrogans strains were similar and characterized by 24 common bands. This profile was not found for L. biflexa. The immunoblots obtained either with the seven anti-L. interrogans sera or the anti-L. biflexa serum allowed a clear distinction between the two species. Taken as a whole, the L. interrogans strain patterns revealed by the seven anti-L. interrogans sera were similar, sharing eight common major bands. A serovar- or serogroup-specific antigenic zone, ranging from 21 to 26 kDa, was also identified.     

Protein and energy relationships in dairy cattle. 2. Lactating cows

Nitrogen requirements of lactating cows were calculated by means of statistical relationships established for nitrogen excretion in faeces and urine, for nitrogen balance, and for nitrogen flow in proximal duodenum and terminal ileum. The data used for elaboration of the relationships came from simultaneous measurements of nitrogen and energy balances. It appears that an increase in dietary nitrogen solubility augments total nitrogen and apparently digestible nitrogen requirements of the animals because of higher urinary nitrogen losses. This effect can be off-set by an increased metabolizable energy intake. High proportions of concentrates in the diets cause a shift in nitrogen excretion from faeces to urine. Requirements of intestinal absorbed nitrogen and its conversion into milk protein are dependant of dietary nitrogen solubility and metabolizable energy concentration, while they are favourably influenced by energy supply. Crude protein concentration is not an adequate way for expressing optimal protein supply in lactating cows because it may vary between 11.2% and 20.0% according to dietary characteristics for the same animal.     

The growth of turkeys 2. Body components and allometric relationships

ABSTRACT

1. The relationships between the main components of the body and body protein among males and females of BUT 6 (BUT) and Hybrid Converter (HYB) turkey strains were examined.

2. The weights of breast meat, breast skin, drumstick meat, drumstick skin, thigh meat, thigh skin and wing-plus-skin as well as the head, neck, feet, blood, heart, liver and gizzard were measured at different stages of growth after which all components of each bird were minced together in order to determine the feather-free body protein weight of each bird sampled. Using the weights of the components and the protein content of each bird the allometric relationships between the components and body protein were determined and then compared for each strain x sex combination.

3. By excluding the breast weights at day-old and at 7 d, the remaining points produced an acceptable allometric relationship (R² = 0.992). Thigh weight could be predicted for all strain x sex combinations using one allometric equation, as could drumstick skin weight. Breast and thigh skin weights differed between males and females. Females of the HYB strain exhibited heavier drumstick and wing-plus-skin weights at a given body protein weight than the other three strain x sex combinations. These differences in both the constant term and regression coefficient in the allometric equations between genotypes are probably due to differences in the amount of lipid that is deposited in these tissues.

4. Sexes differed in the allometric relationships for head, feet, heart and liver, while breeds differed in gizzard weight. A common relationship between the four genotypes could be used to predict the weight of blood in the carcass.

5. The allometric equations fitted to the data in this trial enable the accurate prediction of the weights of the different physical components given the weight of body protein.     

The zinc-myoglobin relationships in porcine muscles.

Zinc and myoglobin content in muscles from pigs were studied under various conditions. Zinc concentration was considerably higher in red than in white muscles. In muscles, where the metabolic pattern changes from glycolytic to oxidative during the period from birth to weaning, a simultaneous increase in zinc content was seen. A significant positive correlation exists between myoglobin and zinc content under normal conditions. However, while myoglobin concentration decreases due to iron deficiency anaemia no changes occur in zinc content. It is concluded that no functional link seems to exist between zinc metabolism and myoglobin synthesis in porcine muscles.     

ONCHOCERCA GUTTUROSA IN Danish cattle. Prevalence, geographic distribution and host-vector relationships.

1. Onchocerca gutturosa is reported in Danish cattle for the first time. Microfilariae were found in 38 (9.4%) of 406 cows that were 2 years or older.
2. Microfilariae were not randomly distributed throughout the skin but were concentrated in the umbilical area.
3. No difference in prevalence was observed between breeds of cattle.
4. Most of the infected cows had grazed on fields close to streams that contained Simulium ornatum, the vector of O. gutturosa.
5. Differences in preferred biting sites of S. ornatum from cow to cow were correlated with the arrangement of hair.

     

Effect of including relationships in the estimation of genetic parameters of beef calves.

Variances and covariances for birth weight, gain from birth to weaning (ADG), and 205-d weight were obtained from a sire-dam model and a sire-maternal grandsire model for a herd of Angus and a herd of Hereford cattle. Estimates of direct additive genetic variance (sigma 2A), maternal additive genetic variance (sigma 2M), covariance between direct and maternal additive genetic effects (sigma AM), permanent environmental variance (sigma 2PE), and residual variance (sigma 2e) were obtained both with and without the inverse of the numerator relationship matrix (A-1) included. Estimates of heritability for direct genetic effects (h2A), maternal genetic effects (h2M), and the correlation between direct and maternal effects (rAM) for birth weight were .37, .18, and -.01 in Angus and .53, .23, and -.19 in Herefords, respectively, for the analyses without A-1. For the analyses with A-1, estimates of h2A, h2M, and rAM were .42, .22, and -.12 for Angus and .58, .22, and -.13 for Herefords, respectively. Estimates of h2A, h2M, and rAM for ADG were .43, .15, and -.44 in Angus and .52, .38, and -.03 in Herefords, respectively, without A-1. With A-1, estimates of h2A, h2M, and rAM were .57, .15, and -.32 for Angus and .58, .39, and -.05 for Herefords, respectively. Estimates of h2A, h2M, and rAM for 205-d weight were .49, .15, and -.46 for Angus and .58, .43, and -.06 for Herefords, respectively, without A-1. With A-1, estimates of h2A, h2M, and rAM were .63, .16, and -.36 for Angus and .66, .43, and -.08 for Herefords, respectively. Estimates of h2A were higher with A-1 than without A-1, but estimates of h2M were similar. Using variances and covariances obtained from analyses including A-1 generally gave higher estimates of direct breeding values than using variances and covariances obtained from analyses not including A-1. Both Pearson product-moment and Spearman rank correlations were high (.99) between estimates of breeding values from the two analyses, although some changes in rank did occur.     

Hematological parameters and visceral lesions relationships in rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease.

Twenty rabbits were inoculated with a suspension of Viral Hemorrhagic Disease virus. Hemostatic functions were assessed every sixth hour from 6 to 60 hours post-inoculation. Tissue samples obtained at the same intervals allowed the study of the development of lesions throughout the experiment. Biological signs of Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) were detected on and after 30 h post-inoculation and consisted of prolonged One Stage Prothrombin Time and Activated Partial Thrombin Time, the decrease of factors V, VII, and X and high levels of soluble fibrin monomer complexes and D-dimers. A reduction of thrombocyte numbers, heterophils and lymphocytes was associated. The close association of DIC and necrotizing hepatitis lesions suggested the hepatic lesions to be the most important DIC triggering factor. Other mechanisms are discussed.     

The orbivirus genus. Diversity, structure, replication and phylogenetic relationships

The general properties of the orbiviruses have been examined at the physical, structural and molecular level. At the structural level, the orbiviruses (with the exception of the Kemerovo serogroup) appear similar. The replicative events are also similar, however differences in the ultrastructure of virus-specific structures and their association with components of the host cell have been observed. Further research in this area may be used to differentiate between the serogroups and even some serotypes, of orbiviruses. At the molecular level the properties of the genome can be used to determine relationships between members of the orbivirus genus. These relationships are revealed using a variety of techniques including serology and gene sequence analysis. Not only are the different serological responses to gene products present in the mature virus particle used for differential diagnosis, but the gene sequences themselves can also be utilized. Understanding of the relationships between these viruses is progressing to the point that insights into orbivirus molecular epidemiology is now possible.     

Fats and amino acids in broiler rations. 6. Synergic relationships in fatty acid utilisation

A series of experiments has been carried out to establish the extent to which the inclusion of a source of unsaturated fatty acid (soyabean oil) in a more saturated fat (beef tallow) resulted in a synergistic relationship in terms of the usefulness of the resultant fat in feeding. In the evaluation of fat the importance of the greater sensitivity of digestibility measurements as opposed to growth records is emphasised. It has been shown that the inclusion of 5 per cent soyabean oil in a beef tallow preparation will increase the digestibility from around 75 per cent to 87 per cent. Values for the digestibility of various fats available for poultry feeding have been determined.     

Practical relationships between the biology and control of cattle grubs

This paper deals with the toxic effects of treatment of cattle against warble infestations, including the incidence of symptoms and whether these are due to death of migrating larvae or insecticide poisoning, or both. It was concluded that the likelihood of deaths associated with treatment by systemic insecticides is much less than 1 in 5 000 and may be as rare as 1 in 100 000. The importance of a national scheme to eradicate cattle grubs in Britain was stressed in view of the successes in controlling cattle grubs in Northern Ireland and in Eire.     

Genetic evaluation in the presence of uncertain additive relationships. I. Use of phenotypic information to ascertain paternity

A simulation was carried out to investigate the implementation of a genetic evaluation when the additive relationship matrix is not completely known due to the presence of uncertain paternity in the pedigree. Data were simulated and analyzed using a linear mixed model that included a fixed contemporary group effect plus random additive and residual effects. For the univariate scenario, either 1 or 2 records of a single trait with heritabilities of 33, 50, and 67% were used to compute the probability of being the true sire (PTS) of each candidate sire for a given offspring. One record of 3 correlated traits was used to compute PTS in a 3-trait scenario. A Bayesian procedure via Markov Chain Monte Carlo was used to carry out the implementation, in which the PTS was computed without the need to invert the relationship matrix. The average probability of the true sire being identified as such (PSA), as well as the percentage difference (PD) between PSA and an equal prior probability assigned to each candidate sire, were computed for the single and 3-trait scenarios. Using 1 trait, PSA increased with an increase in heritability. When repeated records were considered, the PD was increased by 50 to 386% compared with using just 1 record per animal for the varying heritabilities and number of candidate sires, suggesting that phenotypic information was better able to discriminate among candidate sires when more than 1 record was used to determine PSA. Using 3 correlated traits increased PD by 77 to 98% when compared with using 1 record of a trait with 67% heritability. Similarly, the PD was increased by 105 to 1,021%, when compared with using 1 record of a trait with 33% heritability. These results indicate that the probability of identifying the true sire increased when 3 correlated traits were used to compute PSA. The correlations between true and predicted breeding values of 3 traits were increased by 6 to 7% for all animals and 64 to 89% for animals with unknown paternity in the pedigree when estimated probability of paternity was used as compared with equal prior probability assigned to each candidate sire. For traits such as birth weight and weaning weight, in which only 1 measurement is taken, the 3-trait scenario could result in more animals being assigned the true sire than if birth or weaning weight was used separately. Further research is needed to determine the performance of this methodology in field data as well as the potential implementation of this methodology in conjunction with molecular information.