IMAGING DIAGNOSIS—MALIGNANT PERIPHERAL NERVE SHEATH TUMOR PRESENTING AS AN INTRA‐AXIAL BRAIN MASS IN A YOUNG DOG

A 3‐year‐old Labrador retriever was presented with acute onset seizures. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated an intra‐axial mass affecting the right temporal lobe of the brain. Surgical resection and histopathological findings were most consistent with a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor. After initial recovery, deterioration 3 months post surgery prompted euthanasia. Post‐mortem revealed a mass protruding from the ventral surface of the temporal lobe, encroaching upon the optic chiasm and invading the brain. Histopathology findings were again consistent with malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor. Although rare, this tumor should be included as a possible differential diagnosis for intra‐axial brain masses in dogs.     

Pulmonary thromboembolism

Objective – To review the pathophysiology, clinical signs, diagnosis, and treatment of pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) in small animals. Data Sources – Human and veterinary clinical studies, reviews, texts, and recent research in canine and feline PTE diagnosis and thromboembolic therapeutics. Human Data Synthesis – In humans, clinical probability assessment and point‐of‐care D‐dimer‐based algorithms are widely used. Computed tomography pulmonary angiography is the gold standard for PTE diagnosis in humans. Echocardiography is increasingly used for bedside assessment of affected patients. In low‐risk human patients anticoagulants alone are recommended while patients with cardiogenic shock are treated with thrombolytics followed by anticoagulation. Veterinary Data Synthesis – PTE is associated with numerous predisposing conditions causing hypercoagulability, blood flow stasis, or endothelial injury. Identifying at‐risk patients is key to diagnosis in small animals. Thromboelastography provides a method for identifying hypercoagulable patients. Computed tomography pulmonary angiography may replace selective pulmonary angiography as the imaging technique of choice for PTE diagnosis. PTE therapy consists of supportive treatment combined with appropriate, individualized thromboembolic pharmacotherapy for acute treatment and chronic management. Thrombolytic therapy for PTE remains controversial but may be indicated in hemodynamically unstable acute PTE. Thromboprophylaxis in specific conditions is rational although evidence of efficacy is limited. Prognosis depends upon degree of cardiopulmonary compromise and patient response to therapy. Mortality rates in small animals are unknown. Conclusions – New diagnostic techniques and advances in therapy offer significant potential for improvements in the identification and treatment of PTE in small animals. Further study must be directed to validating new diagnostic modalities and evaluating therapeutic regimes.     

Principal component analysis of biogenic amines and polyphenols in Hungarian wines

Biogenic amines, polyphenols, and resveratrol were analyzed quantitatively in 25 different Hungarian wines from the same wine-making region, harvest of 1998. Polyphenols were determined according to a spectrophotometric method, whereas other substrates were analyzed using overpressured-layer chromatography (OPLC). Principal component analyses (PCA) were performed on data matrices consisting of substrates (columns) and different sorts of wines (rows) from the region of Pécs (southern Hungary). It was found that four (unrotated) principal components account for >80% of the total variance in the data. The plots of component loadings showed significant groupings for concentrations of biogenic amines (and polyphenols). Similarly, the component scores grouped according to the different sorts of wines. The loading plots reveal that there is no need to measure all of the variables to achieve the same characterization. It is enough to measure one variable per group. Naturally, this conclusion is valid only within the limits of the present study; wines from other regions may behave differently.     

Multidisciplinary study of a Lateglacial-Holocene sedimentary sequence near Bologna (Italy): insights on natural and anthropogenic impacts on the landscape dynamics

Journal of Soils and Sediments - This study investigated a Lateglacial to Holocene sedimentary sequence derived from a small catchment located at San Lazzaro di Savena in the surroundings of...