Synovitis induced by joint lavage with hypertonic saline solutions in healthy dairy calves

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a single joint lavage with 7.2% or 15% hypertonic saline solutions (HSS) on the tarsocrural joints of healthy calves. The tarsi of 10 calves were randomly lavaged with 7.2% HSS, 15% HSS, or isotonic saline. Synovial fluid samples were collected aseptically on days 1 (before joint lavage), 2, 3, 4, and 8 for complete cytological analysis. Lameness, joint swelling, and pain were recorded daily. Calves were euthanized on day 8 for gross and histological analyses of synovial membranes and articular cartilage. Synovitis was evaluated using a scoring system reflecting inflammatory changes in synovial membranes.Joints irrigated with HSS were more distended and painful compared with isotonic control joints. Swelling decreased consistently in the joints lavaged with 7.2% HSS, whereas it remained unchanged in joints lavaged with 15% HSS. Slight to moderate lameness was observed in the joints lavaged with 15% HSS. In comparison to isotonic saline joints, total protein concentration was significantly increased on day 2 and 3 for the joints lavaged with 7.2% HSS (P ≤ 0.01) and on days 2, 3, and 4 in the joints lavaged with 15% HSS (P ≤ 0.0006). Gross and histological findings revealed that synovitis was more severe in the joints lavaged with 15% HSS but variable in the joints lavaged with 7.2% HSS. No significant differences were observed for the articular cartilage.Fifteen percent HSS is not recommended for joint lavage. Although irrigation with 7.2% HSS may induce a variable synovitis, it was found appropriate for joint lavage. Its effects on septic joints remain undetermined.     

Bulk milk-estimated seroprevalence of Fasciola hepatica in dairy herds and collecting of risk factor data in East Frisia, northern Germany

The liver fluke Fasciola (F) hepatica is one of the most important trematodes in cattle farming worldwide. Fasciolosis in dairy cows is leading to production losses due to decreased milk yield, liver condemnation and impaired reproduction. The treatment of dairy cows is unsatisfactory, because available drugs are either effective against adult flukes only or have long withdrawal times or in some countries may not be used at all. In the present study the prevalence of F. hepatica in dairy farms located in East Frisia, which is part of the federal state Lower Saxony, was investigated. East Frisia is considered a high risk area for Fasciola hepatica infections, because of its coastal location, high precipitation and moist pastures. About 750 bulk milk samples were collected in January and November 2006 and analysed for F. hepatica antibodies using the Pourquier ELISA. In addition, questionnaires, which were answered by 260 of the participating farmers, were evaluated to analyse management-related factors associated with fasciolosis. In January and November, 52.1% and 53.6% of the bulk milk samples, respectively, showed positive results. Thereby, 88.1% of the examined farms showed an unchanged infection status, whereas 6.2% of the farms became seropositive during the grazing season and 5.8% of the dairy herds turned seronegative. Statistical analysis revealed a significant negative association between average annual milk production and the frequency of infections with F. hepatica.     

Partitioning carbon fluxes in a Mediterranean oak forest to disentangle changes in ecosystem sink strength during drought

Net carbon flux partitioning was used to disentangle abiotic and biotic drivers of all important component fluxes influencing the overall sink strength of a Mediterranean ecosystem during a rapid spring to summer transition. Between May and June 2006 we analyzed how seasonal drought affected ecosystem assimilation and respiration fluxes in an evergreen oak woodland and attributed variations in the component fluxes (trees, understory, soil microorganisms and roots) to observations at the ecosystem scale. We observed a two thirds decrease in both ecosystem carbon assimilation and respiration (R_eco) within only 15 days time. The impact of decreasing R_eco on the ecosystem carbon balance was smaller than the impact of decreasing primary productivity. Flux partitioning of GPP and R_eco into their component fluxes from trees, understory, soil microorganisms and roots showed that declining ecosystem sink strength was due to a large drought and temperature-induced decrease in understory carbon uptake (from 56% to 21%). Hence, the shallow-rooted annuals mainly composing the understory have a surprisingly large impact on the source/sink behavior of this open evergreen oak woodland during spring to summer transition and the timing of the onset of drought might have a large effect on the annual carbon budget. In response to seasonal drought R_eco was increasingly dominated by respiration of heterotrophic soil microorganisms, while the root flux was found to be of minor importance. Soil respiration flux decreased with drought but its contribution to total daily CO₂-exchange increased by 11.5%. This partitioning approach disentangled changes in respiratory and photosynthetic ecosystem fluxes that were not apparent from the eddy-covariance or the soil respiration data alone. By the novel combination of understory vs. overstory carbon flux partitioning with soil respiration data from trenched and control plots, we gained a detailed understanding of factors controlling net carbon exchange of Mediterranean ecosystems.     

Effect of rhizobia,mycorrhizal fungi and phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms in the rhizosphere of native plants used to recover an iron ore area in Brazil

The iron-ore deposits in Minas Gerais state are concentrated in an area named Ferruginosous Quadrilateral, in which the dominant vegetation belongs to the Cerrado biome (savanna type, called campo rupestre or rupestrian field). This vegetation occurs in altitudes higher than 1000 m and is one of the most endangered biomes of the world. This study aimed to restore an area of rupestrian field used to keep iron-ore products, in which vegetation had been cut and thus resilience did not occur, worsening the low fertility of the fragile soil. Therefore, a revegetation model was proposed using two native species, Centrosema coriaceum (Leguminosae) and Tibouchina multiflora (Melastomataceae), inoculated with selected strains of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and/or a rhizobium strain. After 48 months of plantation, the plant growth, survival index, physical and chemical soil properties, leaf nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P), and P soil were evaluated. Inoculated plants benefited in all the analyzed aspects. While T. multiflora presented increased P content in leaves and soil rhizosphere only in inoculated plants, C. coriaceum showed the highest P content in both leaves and soil independently of inoculation. Although the inoculated plants presented more intense root colonization (AMF), the same mycorrhizal species were found in both inoculated and non-inoculated plants of C. coriaceum and T. multiflora. However, species of the Gigasporaceae family were favored in the C. coriaceum rhizosphere, as compared with T. multiflora. In addition, C. coriaceum was able to select in its rhizosphere a rhizobia strain efficient in P solubilization and a large and efficient population of phosphorus solubilizing microorganisms (PSM), preferentially composed of fungi. Through the similarity of their Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) sequences, the PSM fungi were identified as Fusarium oxysporum and Aspergillus fischeri using the BLAST database. The data presented suggest that C. coriaceum showed a strong rhizosphere effect in favor of a tripartite action of rhizobia, fungi and AMF populations as strategies to solubilize soil phosphate for survival and plant growth in the rupestrian field. Therefore, the inoculation of these microorganisms is desirable for mine recover.     

A comparison of corneal sensitivity between healthy cats and cats with corneal sequestra

In order to establish reference values for corneal sensitivity in ophthalmologically healthy persians (n = 40) and domestic short hair cats (n = 60) a prospective study was conducted. Furthermore corneal sensitivity in 48 cats with a corneal sequestrum was measured. Corneal sensitivity was recorded with the help of the aesthesiometer according to Cochet and Bonnet in five different corneal locations (central, nasal, dorsal, temporal, and ventral). The sensitivity for the central corneal region was recorded as amounting to 3.58 +/- 0.56 cm in ophthalmologically healthy domestic short hair cats and to 2.97 +/- 0.58 cm in healthy persian cats. The sensitivity of the central corneal area of a cat with a corneal sequester only amounts to 2.03 +/- 0.53 cm. Between the diseased and the healthy eyes no statistical difference could be demonstrated for any of the measured corneal locations. The sensitivity of the peripheral corneal locations is significantly lower than that of the central corneal region in all three groups examined.     

Evaluation of the oral immunisation of wild boar against classical swine fever in Baden-Württemberg

The oral immunisation of wild boar against classical swine fever (CSF) in Baden-Württemberg is described and evaluated. The bait vaccine based on the CSF virus (CSFV) strain "C" proved to be safe in wild boar of all age classes. The modified immunisation procedure consisting of three double vaccinations per year was very effective. CSFV was not detected beyond the second immunisation campaign. The average rate of seropositive wild boar diagnosed over all immunisation periods was 49.2%. The seroprevalence rate increased significantly during the first year of immunisation and reached its maximum after the third vaccination period with 72% antibody positive animals. The higher percentage of seropositive young boars in this field trial compared to the seroprevalence rates in this age class in other field trials in Germany may be attributed to the new vaccination scheme. Factors that may be responsible for the decreased herd immunity after the fourth or sixth immunisation period are discussed.     

Development of a cell-free assay from Botrytis cinerea as a biochemical screen for sterol biosynthesis inhibitors

An assay for measuring ergosterol synthesis in cell-free extracts of the filamentous plant pathogen Botrytis cinerea is described. The extracts capable of synthesizing C4-desmethyl sterols from [2- 14 C]mevalonate were derived by mechanical disruption of young conidial germlings in a Bead-Beater apparatus. The C4-desmethyl sterol fraction consisted of three distinct compounds and totalled 39% of the non-saponifiable lipids formed. Ergosterol accounted for 63% of the C4-desmethyl sterols. Only small amounts of C4-monomethyl sterols were synthesized, while C4, 4-dimethyl sterols made up 29% of the non-saponifiable lipids. The latter fraction mainly consisted of lanosterol (54%) and eburicol (28%). The cell-free system had a narrow pH optimum for synthesis of C4-desmethyl sterols of pH 7.3–7.4. Cell-free synthesis of C4-desmethyl sterols was inhibited by the imidazole fungicide imazalil, concomitant with an accumulation of eburicol. The IC₅₀ value (concentration of fungicide which inhibited cell-free synthesis of C4-desmethyl sterols by 50%) was 9.1 × 10 ?9 M. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that imazalil is a potent inhibitor of the cytochrome P450-dependent sterol 14x-demethylase of B. cinerea. The method described may be used to screen compounds biochemically for inhibition of sterol synthesis in an agriculturally important plant pathogen.     

Ophthalmic patterns of captive brown brocket deer (Mazama gouazoubira)

Captive brown brocket deer (Mazama gouazoubira) were manually restrained to assess tear production by the Schirmer tear test I to measure intraocular pressure by applanation tonometry, to examine ocular conjunctival epithelial cells via cytologic and histologic samples, and to survey ocular conjunctival microflora by microbiologic culture. The mean value for the Schirmer tear test I was 8.9 +/- 1.8 mm/min, and the mean intraocular pressure was 15.3 +/- 3.1 mm Hg. Conjunctival epithelium contained stratified pavimentous layers of cells, and the microflora consisted of predominantly gram-positive bacteria.