Saliva,an Alternative Biologic Matrix to Detect Glucocorticoid Treatment in Calves: Experimental Contribution

Veterinary Research Communications - Cabassi, E., Miduri, F., Di Lecce, R., Marin, A., Ferri, L. and Corradi, A., 2007. Saliva, an alternative biologic matrix to detect glucocorticoid treatment in...     

aroA gene PCR-RFLP diversity patterns in Haemophilus parasuis and Actinobacillus species

The Haemophilus parasuis aroA gene encodes 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase and participates in the aromatic amino acids and the folic acid universal metabolic pathway of bacteria. The application of aroA-based PCR-RFLP methodology yields a significant degree of diversity in H. parasuis and Actinobacillus species. PCR amplification of the aroA gene rendered a 1,067-bp fragment in all 15 H. parasuis serovars, and also in Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serotypes 1-12, Actinobacillus lignieresii, Actinobacillus equuli, Actinobacillus porcinus, Actinobacillus rossii, Actinobacillus suis, Actinobacillus ureae, Actinobacillus minor and Actinobacillus indolicus. Sau3AI and RsaI digestions of the aroA PCR products rendered seven different restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns: group I (H. parasuis serovars 1, 2, 4-6, and 8-15, A. porcinus and A. ureae), group II (H. parasuis serovars 3 and 7, and A. pleuropneumoniae serotypes 1, 4, 5, 9, 11 and 12), group III (A. lignieresii), group IV (A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 7), group V (A. pleuropneumoniae serotypes 2, 3, 6 and 8, A. equuli, A. rossii, A. minor and A. indolicus), group VI (A. suis) and group VII (A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 10). This is the first report describing the presence of aroA gene in H. parasuis, A. lignieresii, A. porcinus, A. rossii, A. suis, A. ureae, A. minor and A. indolicus and the data presented here demonstrates a significant degree of aroA genetic diversity in H. parasuis and species of the genus Actinobacillus.     

Reemergence of Dourine in Italy: Clinical Cases in Some Positive Horses

In 2011, Trypanosoma equiperdum reemerged in Italy, almost 10 years after its last appearance. A total of eight infected horses have been observed to date. Six horses were affected by natural outbreaks of the disease, whereas two were infected experimentally. The aim of this study was to offer a recent perspective on clinical cases of dourine in Europe. Investigation of the clinical aspects confirmed the three stages reported in the literature: stage 1 (genital lesions), stage 2 (cutaneous signs), and stage 3 (nervous signs). The most common signs in the horses under study were notable weight loss, edematous skin eruptions and oedemas of the abdomen, mammary glands and hind legs. Three animals presented neurological signs (lip ptosis of lower lip and ataxia). Infections were paucisymptomatic or asymptomatic in some animals. Hyperthermia was not reported in infected animals and considerable anemia was observed. High antibody titers did not always correspond to clinical signs. Positive polymerase chain reaction test results of blood or tissue (skin, eye swab) often correspond to an advanced stage of the disease. Dourine is a variable disease; owing to its low prevalence and chronic manifestation, it can be difficult to make a quick diagnosis when facing a Dourine-positive horse.     

Bird communities following high-severity fire: Response to single and repeat fires in a mixed-evergreen forest,Oregon, USA

Fire is a widespread natural disturbance agent in most conifer-dominated forests. In light of climate change and the effects of fire exclusion, single and repeated high-severity (stand-replacement) fires have become prominent land management issues. We studied bird communities using point counting in the Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregion of Oregon, USA at various points in time after one or two high-severity fires. Time points included 2 and 3 years after a single fire, 17 and 18 years after a single fire, 2 and 3 years after a repeat fire (15 year interval between fires), and >100 years since stand-replacement fire (mature/old-growth forest). Avian species richness did not differ significantly among habitats. Bird density was highest 17 and 18 years after fire, lowest 2 years after fire, and intermediate in repeat burns and unburned forest. Bird community composition varied significantly with habitat type (A = 0.24, P < 0.0001) with two distinct gradients in species composition relating to tree structure (live to dead) and shrub stature. Using indicator species analysis, repeat burns were characterized by shrub-nesting and ground-foraging bird species while unburned mature forests were characterized by conifer-nesting and foliage-gleaning species. Bird density was not related to snag basal area but was positively related to shrub height. Contrary to expectations, repeated high-severity fire did not reduce species richness, and bird densities were greater in repeat burns than in once-burned habitats. Broad-leaved hardwoods and shrubs appear to play a major role in structuring avian communities in the Klamath-Siskiyou region. In light of these results, extended periods of early seral broadleaf dominance and short-interval high-severity fires may be important to the conservation of avian biodiversity.     

Tannin composition of barbatimão species

A comparative study of tannin composition of three species known as barbatim?o (Stryphnodendron adstringens, Stryphnodendron polyphyllum and Dimorphandra mollis) was developed by TLC, hydrolysis followed by PC, and colorimetry. Principal component analysis of the data obtained showed strong differentiation between the genus Dimorphandra and Stryphnodendron. Additionally, barks from the two Stryphnodendron sp. also presented considerable differences in the tannin structure.     

Multivariate approach to evaluate the penetrometer resistance in different tillage systems

At present, the penetrometer is the most widely used instrument for assessing in situ soil strength, one of the extrinsic factors affecting plant growth and crop productivity. In this paper we propose a method that discriminates penetrometer resistance due to different soil treatments, by means of Principal Component (PC) analysis. We hypothesized and demonstrated that penetrometer resistance values measured at different soil depths are correlated among themselves (multicollinearity). Considering measurements at each depth as different variables, PC analysis restructured data sets containing these correlated variables into a smaller number of components, whose scores were utilized in univariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) to test differences among imposed soil treatments. We applied the procedure to penetrometer resistance values measured by means of a hand-held cone penetrometer in two long-term experiments conducted in southern Italy, on durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) under continuous cropping. In the first trial, four different soil tillage treatments were compared; in the second, two different tillages and two residue management systems were examined. In both trials, PC analysis reduced the original 14 depths of measurements into only 4 PC's, based on correlations of their resistance values, explaining more than 80% of the total variation. Furthermore, ANOVA applied to the scores of each PC, clearly indicated treatment effects on soil strength.

The proposed method has thus allowed assemblage a posteriori of penetration resistance data into only a few significative intervals, using correlations among the measurements made at the different depths. This way, the possible resistance differences due to tillage and/or management treatments have been more easily and more unambiguously showed.