The effect of weight loss on lameness in obese dogs with osteoarthritis

This paper describes the effect of weight loss on lameness in obese dogs with osteoarthritis (OA). Fourteen obese client-owned dogs with clinical and radiographic signs of OA participated in an open prospective clinical trial. After a screening visit and a visit for collection of baseline data, the dogs were fed a restricted-calorie diet over a study period of 16 weeks that incorporated six follow-up visits. At each visit, body weight and pelvic circumference were measured and severity of lameness was assessed using a numeric rating scale (NRS), a visual analogue scale (VAS) and kinetic gait analysis. This is the first study to assess both subjectively and objectively, the effect of weight loss alone on lameness in obese dogs with OA. The results indicate that body weight reduction causes a significant decrease in lameness from a weight loss of 6.10% onwards. Kinetic gait analysis supported the results from a body weight reduction of 8.85% onwards. These results confirm that weight loss should be presented as an important treatment modality to owners of obese dogs with OA and that noticeable improvement may be seen after modest weight loss in the region of 6.10 – 8.85% body weight.     

The relationship between architectural characteristics and regrowth in Trifolium pratense (red clover)

The relevance of particular architectural characteristics for a good regrowth has not been elucidated yet in red clover. Here, we present the shoot architecture and regrowth of six red clover genotypes analysed under controlled and field conditions, with and without competition from perennial ryegrass. Among the genotypes investigated, Lemmon and Crossway displayed the highest number of nodes and branches, the highest increase in the number of nodes in the basal 7 cm and the highest outgrowth capacity of the nodes in this zone resulting in the highest dry‐matter yields. Our results indicate that selecting genotypes with a high number of first‐order branches, short internodes and the ability to resume growth from the nodes that remain in the uncut zone will allow the development of cultivars with good regrowth.     

Improving survival,growth rate,and animal welfare in piglets by avoiding teeth shortening and tail docking

Piglets are subjected to several painful procedures during their first week of life, including ear tagging, teeth clipping or grinding (although routinely prohibited in Europe), tail docking (although routinely prohibited in Europe), needle injections (vaccination and iron injection), and castration might be performed for male piglets. All these management practices cause pain and stress to the newborn piglets. The hypothesis of this experiment was that reducing painful interventions during the first week of life results in better zootechnical performance of the piglets, reduced piglet mortality, and that the overall welfare is improved. To investigate this, the 4 lightest piglets of the experimental group (EE) were not subjected to tail docking and teeth clipping or grinding. The 4 lightest piglets of the control group (CL) and the other piglets of the experimental group (EC) and the control group (CC) received treatments as the common practice. There were differences in behavior, but there were no differences regarding weight at weaning between CL and EE. However, mortality rate was higher in the lightest piglets, that is, CL (34.1%) and EE (23.0%), whereas mortality rate in the other piglets was much lower (9.0% for CC and 9.3% for EC). This information can be useful for a veterinarian to advise farmers on whether painful interventions should be performed.     

Expression of resistance to the root-knot nematodes,Meloidogyne hapla andM. fallax,in wildSolanum spp. under field conditions

In 1995 two fields in the Netherlands, naturally infested withMeloidogyne hapla (Wageningen) andM. fallax (Baexem), were used to evaluate resistant and susceptibleSolanum genotypes under natural conditions. In April, genotypes were planted in circular microplots. Soil samples were taken and analyzed for the occurrence of second-stage juveniles every six weeks. From August onwards, large differences between resistant and susceptible genotypes in numbers of juveniles were found in the soil. For all resistant wildSolanum genotypes the level of infection in soil at the end of the growing season in October was equal to or lower than at the beginning. Glasshouse experiments were performed with the same genotypes and nematode populations (i.e. originally derived from these fields) and the results were comparable with the observations from the field. It is concluded that resistance, as selected in glasshouse trials, corresponds well with resistant behaviour in the field and that it is worthwhile to transfer the resistance from theseSolanum sources to commercial potato cultivars for successful control of root-knot nematodes.     

African trypanosomosis: from immune escape and immunopathology to immune intervention

African trypanosomes can cause prolonged chronic infections through a mechanism of antigen variation whereby they manipulate the humoral immune system of their hosts. However, besides antigenic variation these extracellular parasites exert other immunoregulatory activities mainly mediated by innate cells in particular macrophage-like (M) cells. In this review, the modulation of M cells through parasite factors and host cytokines as well as their role in parasite control and immunopathology will be examined. The concept of M cell polarization into distinct activation states (M1, M2) that may contribute to trypanosusceptibility or resistance will be discussed. Finally, the possibility to interfere with such activation states hereby providing new therapeutical modalities in the treatment of this infectious disease will be illustrated.     

Quantitative Assessment of Gas Cell Development During the Proofing of Dough by Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Image Analysis

The structure of bread crumb is an important factor in consumer acceptance of bakery products. The noninvasive monitoring of the gas cell formation during the proofing of dough can aid in understanding the mechanisms governing the crumb appearance in the baked product. The development of gas cells during the proofing of dough was monitored in a noninvasive manner using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 4.7‐T. The acquired MRI time series were analyzed quantitatively using image analysis (IA) techniques. The effects of both kneading temperature and mechanical damage by molding were studied. When additional rheological stress was introduced during molding, a more heterogeneous (coarse) gas cell size distribution was observed, and the dough had a smaller specific volume (as measured by MRI). These characteristics were preserved in the bread crumb structure after baking. The fast‐deformation during molding also resulted in an isotropic growth of the dough during proofing, whereas slow‐deformation during molding resulted in anisotropic growth. This can be related to a better conservation of stress in the dough under a moderate molding operation. A higher temperature during kneading also resulted in a coarser distribution of the gas cells and a smaller MRI specific dough volume. No effect of kneading temperature on the growth anisotropy could be detected, however. This indicates that temperature has a smaller effect on the conservation of stress in the dough than molding. The current work illustrates the capability of MRI/IA for understanding and predicting the influence of food processing parameters on consumer‐relevant features in a food product (bread).     

Herpesvirus interference with virus-specific antibodies: bridging antibodies, internalizing antibodies, and hiding from antibodies

Herpesviruses have developed different tools to thwart efficient antibody-dependent neutralisation and lysis of virions and elimination of infected cells. This overview will briefly summarize different of these tools, including (i) viral Fc receptors and the resulting process of antibody bridging, (ii) internalization of individual viral proteins and clustered antibody-antigen complexes from the plasma membrane of infected cells, and (iii) directed egress of virus particles to sites of intimate cell-cell contact that are difficult to access for antibodies.     

Improved broiler performance associated with Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale vaccination in breeders

During a field study in 2010 the daily growth, feed conversion, first-week mortality, broiler loss due to mortality and slaughterhouse condemnation, and production index were monitored in 100 broiler flocks derived from four breeder farms vaccinated with Nobilis OR inac and four Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale-unvaccinated breeder farms of the same organization in Belgium. Other parameters related to the broiler flocks, such as flock size, season, age of the breeders, and corresponding breeder farms, were also noted. All gathered data were examined with ANOVA, linear correlation, and linear regression analyses. Results demonstrated a significant 22.3% lower broiler loss and a significant 3.9% higher production index in the broiler flocks derived from breeders vaccinated with Nobilis OR inac. These results confirm field observations obtained in 1999, thereby providing further evidence for an effect of O. rhinotracheale vaccination in breeders with regard to the improved performance of broilers.