Alpha-chloralose poisoning in dogs and cats: a retrospective study of 33 canine and 13 feline confirmed cases

Alpha-chloralose (AC) is an anaesthetic compound also used as a rodenticide, and has dose-dependent central nervous system mixed effects of excitation and depression. The objectives of this study were to detail the clinical and clinicopathological characteristics, as well as the treatment and prognosis, of AC toxicosis in dogs and cats. Medical records were retrospectively reviewed for AC poisoning between the years 1989 and 2004, and 33 dogs and 13 cats were included in the study. The most common clinical signs were seizures, muscle tremor, hyperaesthesia, hypothermia, salivation, myosis, stupor, coma and ataxia. Coma was more common, while salivation and ataxia were less common in cats compared to dogs. Although hypothermia was very common, especially in cats (90.9%), hyperthermia was frequently observed in dogs (21%). Treatment in all patients was supportive and symptomatic, and the most commonly used anticonvulsants were diazepam and barbiturates; however, severe unresponsive seizures in three dogs had to be controlled with inhalant gas anaesthesia. The hospitalisation period was 1-3 days, and the overall mortality rate was 6.5%. Alpha-chloralose poisoning seems to have a favourable prognosis in dogs and cats.     

Fuel-powered artificial muscles

Artificial muscles and electric motors found in autonomous robots and prosthetic limbs are typically battery-powered, which severely restricts the duration of their performance and can necessitate long inactivity during battery recharge. To help solve these problems, we demonstrated two types of artificial muscles that convert the chemical energy of high-energy-density fuels to mechanical energy. The first type stores electrical charge and uses changes in stored charge for mechanical actuation. In contrast with electrically powered electrochemical muscles, only half of the actuator cycle is electrochemical. The second type of fuel-powered muscle provides a demonstrated actuator stroke and power density comparable to those of natural skeletal muscle and generated stresses that are over a hundred times higher.     

Structure—activity relationships for some organotin molluscicides

Bioassay data are reported for 12 organotin compounds, R₃SnX, against the adult snail, Biomphalaria glabrata, an intermediate host of schistosomiasis. The relationship between the molluscicidal activity and the nature of the R and X groups in the organotin compounds is discussed, as well as the possible mode of toxic action of these compounds.     

The neural basis of economic decision-making in the Ultimatum Game

The nascent field of neuroeconomics seeks to ground economic decision making in the biological substrate of the brain. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging of Ultimatum Game players to investigate neural substrates of cognitive and emotional processes involved in economic decision-making. In this game, two players split a sum of money;one player proposes a division and the other can accept or reject this. We scanned players as they responded to fair and unfair proposals. Unfair offers elicited activity in brain areas related to both emotion (anterior insula) and cognition (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex). Further, significantly heightened activity in anterior insula for rejected unfair offers suggests an important role for emotions in decision-making.     

Phosphorus sequestration in soil aggregates after long-term tillage and cropping

Cultivated soils in the Everglades are being converted to their historic use as pastures or seasonally flooded prairies as parts of restoration efforts, but long-term cultivation may have altered soil P distribution and availability which may pose eutrophication hazards upon change in land use. The objectives of this study were to determine the distribution of P in soil chemical and physical fractions for contrasting long-term land management practices. The distribution of P in labile, Fe–Al bound, Ca bound, humic–fulvic acid, and residual pools in five aggregate-size fractions were measured for fields under sugarcane (Saccharum sp.) cropping for 50 years and perennial pasture for 100 years. Both land uses were characterized by a high degree of macroaggregation, as aggregates >0.25 mm contained 76 and 83% of the total soil under cultivation and pasture, respectively. Soils under sugarcane sequestered a total of 77 kg ha⁻¹ more P than pasture at 0–15 cm. The distribution of P in chemical fractions significantly varied between land uses as cultivation increased P sequestration in Ca-bound fractions more for sugarcane (244 kg P ha⁻¹) than pasture (65 kg P ha⁻¹). Pasture sequestered more P in organic pools, as storage in humic–fulvic acid and residual fractions were 26 and 25%, respectively, higher than sugarcane. Labile P was 100% higher for pasture than sugarcane, but Fe–Al bound P storage did not differ between land uses. Aggregation increased P sequestration in humic–fulvic acid and residual fractions, and P storage in organic pools increased with increasing aggregate size. In contrast, cultivation decreased aggregation and increased P accumulation in inorganic fractions. Long-term cultivation altered the distribution of soil P from organic to inorganic pools. The P stored in inorganic pools is stable under current land use, but may be unstable and pose eutrophication hazards upon onset of future land use change to the seasonally flooded prairie ecosystem.     

Use of the Biological Flora framework in the United Kingdom Overseas Territories: Euphorbia origanoides L.

The United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are globally important for a high diversity of endemic and threatened plant species but are poorly represented in plant ecological literature. This lack of ecological research is compounded by a lack of funding and skills. Cost effective approaches of compiling conservation relevant information are required. Here we present the first examination of a species from the UKOTs presented within the standard framework of a Biological Flora. This framework allows a convenient way to compile ecological information and assess missing data. The account reviews all available information on Euphorbia origanoides L. (Ascension spurge) from Ascension Island (South Atlantic Ocean) relevant to understanding its ecology and conservation, including soil chemistry, climate and plant community data. E. origanoides is an endemic perennial, found in dry, lava plains of Ascension Island with soils comprised of weathered volcanic scoria. E. origanoides has suffered habitat loss through the introduction of invasive species and survival in the wild is currently under threat. We relate the information gathered for this Biological Flora to the conservation of the species in the wild and propose the framework should be used as one way of compiling information relevant for conservation managers. The framework is beneficial as it allows an evidence-based approach to conservation but also permits the prioritisation of research and can help conservation managers to meet targets for the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.     

Feline herpesvirus

Feline herpesvirus (FHV-1; felid herpesvirus 1 (FeHV-1)) is an alphaherpesvirus of cats closely related to canine herpesvirus-1 and phocine herpesvirus-1. There is only one serotype of the virus and it is relatively homogenous genetically. FeHV-1 is an important cause of acute upper respiratory tract and ocular disease in cats. In addition, its role in more chronic ocular disease and skin lesions is increasingly being recognised. Epidemiologically, FeHV-1 behaves as a typical alphaherpesvirus whereby clinically recovered cats become latently infected carriers which undergo periodic episodes of virus reactivation, particularly after a stress. The primary site of latency is the trigeminal ganglion. Conventional inactivated and modified-live vaccines are available and protect reasonably well against disease but not infection, although viral shedding may be reduced. Genetically engineered vaccines have also been developed, both for FeHV-1 and as vector vaccines for other pathogens, but none is as yet marketed.     

Fertilization and Bioaugmentation for Oil Biodegradation in Salt Marsh Mesocosms

Biodegradation of crude oil is often dependent on the population sizes and metabolic activity of hydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms in addition to nutrient supply. Fertilization with N and P and bioaugmentation of oil-contaminated soil with hydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms may serve to enhance oil biodegradation rates. Glasshouse experiments were conducted to determine the impacts of fertilization and commercial bioremediation products on crude oil biodegradation and on changes in nutrient concentrations and populations of hydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms in salt marsh mesocosms growing Spartina alterniflora. Experiments were conducted under continuously-flooded and alternately-flooded/drained conditions with and without N and P fertilization. MaxBac, a slow-release fertilizer, was applied at a rate of 100 kg N ha^-1 and 20 kg P ha^-1, while additional P was applied at 20 kg P ha^-1. Commercial products failed to enhance total oil or total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) degradation under either continuously or alternately-flooded conditions. An average of 62% of TPH was degraded by 33 d under continuously-flooded conditions, while 59% was degraded by 41 d after oil application under alternately-flooded conditions. Products generally did not increase population sizes of heterotrophs orhydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms. Concentrations of NH₄ ⁺ and P decreased during experimentation, and fertilization with N and P stimulated total oil and TPH degradation under continuously-flooded, but not under alternately-flooded conditions.     

Creaming in black tea

Tea cream is the precipitate formed as tea cools. Its formation has been studied by X-ray scattering, and it is shown that a higher tea concentration leads to earlier onset of creaming and larger particles and that addition of theaflavin and calcium promotes creaming. Association constants between the major components of black tea have been obtained using NMR and show that calcium and glucose enhance the self-association of caffeine, polyphenols, and theaflavin but have little effect on hetero-association. Glycosylation of a polyphenol reduced self-association and reduced binding to caffeine. We conclude that theaflavin is important for the initiation of creaming, forming nanoclusters of typically 3 nm diameter, whereas caffeine acts more to fill in the gaps within the clusters and thus adds to the bulk of tea cream without being necessary for its initiation. Tea creaming may be reduced by increasing the solubility of the polyphenols (i.e., by glycosylation) or by removing calcium. Tea cream; theaflavin; caffeine; small-angle X-ray scattering; NMR; colloid.     

Nutrient Availability Response to Sulfur Amendment in Histosols having Variable Calcium Carbonates

High soil pH and excessive calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) in the Everglades Agricultural Area of south Florida reduce the availability of phosphorus and micronutrients to crops. Sulfur (S) amendment is recommended to reduce soil pH and enhance nutrient supply. The study’s objective was to determine the sulfur amendment effectiveness on soil pH and nutrient availability in organic soil as CaCO₃ content increases in soil. An experiment of four S rates (0, 90,224, and 448 kg ha^?1) and three added CaCO₃ (0%, 12.5%, and 50% by volume) in organic soil was established. Sulfur application had limited effects on soil pH reduction as CaCO₃ level increased and therefore failed to enhance nutrient availability; however, it increased sulfate concentration in soils, which could be at risk for export from the field. Unexpected increases in manganese concentration with added CaCO₃ was associated with reducing conditions due to increased soil bulk density, which changed the soil physical properties.