CONTRAST RHINOGRAPHY IN THE RADIOGRAPHIC EVALUATION OF DISEASES AFFECTING THE NASAL CAVITY, NASOPHARYNX, AND PARANASAL SINUSES IN THE DOG

Positive-contrast rhinography is a simple noninvasive procedure that can be used for radiographic evaluation of the nasal cavity, nasopharynx, and paranasal sinuses in the dog. After assuring the safety of the procedure, it was employed for evaluation of six dogs with nasal and paranasal disease. Contrast rhinography contributed to the identification and assessment of the disease and aided in the diagnosis in dogs where survey radiography was not helpful. This paper proposes the use of positive-contrast rhinography for radiographic evaluation of diseases affecting the nasal cavity, nasopharynx, and paranasal sinuses in the dog.     

Progress in molecular typing of Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis

Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (M. a. paratuberculosis) is responsible for paratuberculosis or Johne's disease, a chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract in different animal species. Some studies have also established a link between this microorganism and Crohn's disease in humans. Although, M. a. paratuberculosis is a difficult microorganism to cultivate in the laboratory (occasionally is non-cultivable), a proper molecular characterization of M. a. paratuberculosis is necessary to better understand the epidemiology of the disease, and design strategies to eradicate it. In the present review, we compile and discuss the recent progress attained in the diagnostic and characterization of this pathogen.     

Effects of density profile of MDF on stiffness and strength of nailed joints

Nail-head pull-through, lateral nail resistance, and single shear nailed joint tests were conducted on medium density fiberboard (MDF) with different density profiles, and the relations between the results of these tests and the density profiles of MDF were investigated. The maximum load of nail-head pull-through and the maximum load of nailed joints were little affected by the density profile. However, the ultimate strength of lateral nail resistance, the stiffness, and the yield strength of nailed joints were affected by the density profile of MDF and showed high values when the surface layer of the MDF had high density. It is known that bending performance is also influenced by density profile. Therefore, the stiffness and the yield strength of nailed joints were compared with the bending performance of MDF. The stiffness of nailed joints was positively correlated with the modulus of elasticity (MOE); in the case of CN65 nails, the initial stiffness of joints changed little in response to changes in MOE. The yield strength of nailed joints had a high positive correlation with the modulus of rupture (MOR). The stiffness and the yield strength of nailed joints showed linear relationships with MOE and MOR, respectively.     

The transformation of the state extensive growth model in Cuba's sugarcane agriculture

The high levels of land use, inputs, and investment, along with the specific forms of organization and management that characterized Cuba's state extensive growth model during the 1980s, could not overcome the challenges posed by the integrated care required by the sugarcane crop and corresponding industrial activities. Starting in 1993, large state farms have been converted into Basic Units of Cooperative Production with some degree of autonomy. Although first-year production results are not satisfactory, it is too early to evaluate their performance. Their establishment, however, is a step in the right direction to alleviate the problems that the previous forms of organization and management inherent to the state extensive growth model were unable to solve.     

Use of local ecological knowledge,scientist's observations and grey literature to assess marine species at risk in a tropical eastern Pacific estuary

• 1. The loss of marine biodiversity in tropical regions of the world is a major threat to human welfare. Multiple anthropogenic drivers are responsible for this situation, with complex scenarios for coastal areas in third‐world countries, where economic development often competes with conservation plans.
• 2. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species is an influential tool for setting conservation priorities at local and regional levels. The application of IUCN criteria for assessing extinction risk, however, continues to represent a major challenge in data‐poor situations present in many tropical megadiverse countries.
• 3. To overcome these difficulties, three different data sources on invertebrates and fishes present in an estuarine system representative of the tropical eastern Pacific (TEP) region (Bahía Málaga, Colombia) have been used to establish their relative local extinction risk and correlate this information with the existing IUCN Red List categories. Data sources included (1) IUCN global and national listings, (2) traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), and (3) grey literature, scientific and natural history observations.
• 4. In total, 46 threatened species were evaluated after combining the three data sources. Only 17 species were previously identified as threatened by IUCN global and national listings, whereas the remaining 29 species were classified under a threatened category after evaluating TEK, grey literature and scientific information. Some of these species are seriously threatened within the estuary because of overharvesting and habitat destruction.
• 5. Despite most of the species identified having large geographical ranges in the TEP, they may face the same threats throughout their ranges. The approach provides a useful tool to assess species extinction risk in tropical regions where resource exploitation and habitat degradation advance rapidly, making the setting of conservation priorities an urgent task. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

     

Quantitative trait loci associated with salinity tolerance in field grown bread wheat

The differential response to field salinity of the parents of the ITMI wheat mapping population (cv. Opata 85 and the synthetic hexaploid W7984) was exploited to perform a QTL analysis of the response to salinity stress of a set of agronomic traits over two seasons. The material was irrigated either with potable water (EC of 1.0 dS m⁻¹) or with diluted seawater (12.0 dS m⁻¹). Grain yield was positively correlated with tiller number, plant height, percentage survival, ear weight, ear length, grain number per ear, grain weight and thousand grain weight, and negatively with time to booting, anthesis and physiological maturity, under both the control and salinity stress treatments. In all, 22 QTL were detected under control conditions, and 36 under salinity stress. Of the latter, 13 were major loci (LOD > 3.0) and eight were reproducible across both seasons. Chromosome 2D harboured 15 salinity stress associated QTL and chromosome 4A six such QTL. The remaining loci were located on chromosomes 2A, 5A, 6A, 7A, 1B, 4B, 3B, 6B, 7B and 6D.     

Clinical use of blood products in cats: a retrospective study (1997--2000)

The records of the Transfusion Medicine Service of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at The Ohio State University were searched for client-owned cats that received whole blood (WB), packed red blood cells (PRBCs), or fresh frozen plasma (FFP) transfusions between December 1, 1997, and April 1, 2000. Eighty-one cats received 112 units of blood products, consisting of 49 units of WB (administered to 35 cats), 44 units of PRBCs (administered to 34 cats), and 19 units of FFP (administered to 13 cats); 10 cats received more than 1 product each. Anemia was the most common reason for transfusing RBC-containing blood products, requiring 33 units of WB (75%) and 39 units of PRBCs (80%). The 2 most common causes of anemia were blood loss (27%) and renal disease (20%). Hypoalbuminemia (n = 9) and coagulopathies (n = 6), primarily due to liver disease (n = 7), were the 2 most common reasons for cats to receive transfusions of FFP. There were no differences in increase in PCV after administration of either 1 unit of WB or 1 unit of PRBCs (P = .22). Transfusion reactions occurred in 3 cats; 2 reactions were mild febrile events, but a fatal reaction occurred when a type B cat inadvertently received type A blood.     

Polar and neutral lipid composition of the gonads and serum of the plaice,Pleuronectes platessa L.

The individual polar and neutral lipids of plaice (Pleuronectes platessa L.) ovaries, testes and serum were determined, just before spawning, in February 1984 and March 1985. Serum was also assayed in June and September 1984. Phosphatidylcholine (PC) was found to be the major polar lipid in both male and female plaice serum throughout the year and in the ovaries. The testes, however, contained almost equal amounts of PC and phosphatidylethanolamine. The polar lipid levels in plaice gonads, expressed as a percentage of the total lipid present, were higher in the ovaries than in the testes, but in male plaice serum, the percentage of polar lipid was consistently higher than in the female. In plaice testes, 86% of the total neutral lipid occurred as cholesterol, but this represented only 49% of the total neutral lipid in the ovaries, with triacylglycerol as the other major ovarian neutral lipid.     

An In Vitro Evaluation of Biochemical Processes Involved in Lead‐Induced Changes on Ram Spermatozoa

Lead (Pb²⁺) is a toxic heavy metal which interferes with several physiological processes regulated by Ca²⁺, including those characterized by changes of the membrane stability and the motility of spermatozoa necessary for the fertilization of the oocyte. In this study, ejaculated sperm from six rams (Ovis aries) have been incubated in vitro with or without 50 ng Pb²⁺/ml during 30 min and in the presence or absence of three different potential modulators of the effects of Pb²⁺ on changes in the sperm membrane before fertilization: charybdotoxin, quinacrine and staurosporine. Sperm samples incubated with Pb²⁺ have shown significant reductions in acrosome integrity and sperm viability and an increase in progressive movement. None of the studied potential modulators had a protective effect against Pb²⁺ action. On the contrary, Pb²⁺‐incubated sperm in the presence of staurosporine had lower acrosome integrity, and lower sperm viability was observed when spermatozoa were incubated with Pb²⁺ + charybdotoxin. Quinacrine was the only tested substance capable of increasing the concentration of Pb²⁺ in spermatozoa; thus, the enhancement of Pb²⁺ effects produced by staurosporine and charybdotoxin was not produced by an increased uptake of Pb²⁺ by spermatozoa. However, the increase of intracellular Pb²⁺ in those spermatozoa incubated with quinacrine did not result in an adverse effect on sperm motility or viability although the acrosome integrity was negatively affected.