Occurrence of rift valley fever in cattle in Ijara district,Kenya

Ijara district in Kenya was one of the hotspots of rift valley fever (RVF) during the 2006/2007 outbreak which led to human and animal deaths causing huge economic and public health losses. The main constraint in the control and prevention of RVF is inadequate knowledge on its occurrence during the interepidemic period. This study was aimed at understanding the occurrence of RVF in cattle in Ijara to enable the development of improved community-based disease surveillance, prediction, control and prevention.     

RADIOGRAPHIC DIAGNOSIS OF MECHANICAL OBSTRUCTION IN DOGS BASED ON RELATIVE SMALL INTESTINAL EXTERNAL DIAMETERS

Mechanical obstruction is a frequent cause of acute vomiting in dogs requiring prompt diagnosis to improve patient management and prognosis. The purpose of this retrospective study was to compare small intestinal radiographic characteristics in dogs with versus without mechanical intestinal obstruction. Fifty dogs with gastrointestinal clinical signs and abdominal radiographs were recruited from hospital record archives and assigned to groups (group 1, obstructive, n = 25; group 2, nonobstructive n = 25). Abdominal radiographs were randomized and independently interpreted by three examiners who were unaware of group status. Intestinal dilation was subjectively scored based on distribution (segmental, regional or diffuse), and severity (absent, mild, moderate or severe). Small intestinal maximal diameter (SI_max), L5 vertebral body height, small intestinal minimal diameter (SI_min), and an estimated average of small intestinal diameters (SI_ave) were measured and three ratios were calculated: SI_max/L5, SI_max/SI_min, and SI_max/SI_ave. Segmental dilation was more prevalent in obstructed dogs for all examiners (P ≤ 0.03) and most nonobstructed dogs had no dilation (P ≤ 0.05). All ratios were higher in obstructed dogs (P < 0.002). Subjective dilation scores and ratio measurements had low interobserver agreement (absent to fair, with kappa values between ?0.06 and 0.57) and reproducibility (coefficients of 0.35–0.61). Findings indicated that dogs with SI_max/L5 ≤ 1.4, SI_max/SI_min ≤ 2, and SI_max/SI_ave ≤ 1.3 values are very unlikely to be mechanically obstructed; dogs with SI_max/L5 ≥ 2.4, SI_max/SI_min ≥ 3.4 and SI_max/SI_ave ≥ 1.9 are very likely obstructed, particularly if segmental dilation (less than 25% of the small intestine) is present. Dogs with ratios falling between these thresholds may need further testing unless other signs justify surgical exploration or endoscopy.     

Synthesis of carbenes through substitution reactions at a carbene center

An (amino)(phosphino) carbene can be transformed into (amino)(phosphonio) carbenes, which undergo nucleophilic intermolecular as well as intramolecular substitution reactions at the carbene center. A variety of carbenes can be synthesized starting from a single carbene precursor. The resulting gamut of electronic and steric effects possible should open the way not only to a detailed study of the mechanism, but also to the subsequent improvement of catalytic reactions that involve carbene-transition metal complexes.     

Comment on "The consensus coding sequences of human breast and colorectal cancers"

Sj?blom et al. (Research Article, 13 October 2006, p. 268) reported nearly 200 novel cancer genes said to have a 90% probability of being involved in colon or breast cancer. However, their analysis raises two statistical concerns. When these concerns are addressed, few genes with significantly elevated mutation rates remain. Although the biological methodology in Sj?blom et al. is sound, more samples are needed to achieve sufficient power.     

Synthesis and characterization of a neutral tricoordinate organoboron isoelectronic with amines

Amines and boranes are the archetypical Lewis bases and acids, respectively. The former can readily undergo one-electron oxidation to give radical cations, whereas the latter are easily reduced to afford radical anions. Here, we report the synthesis of a neutral tricoordinate boron derivative, which acts as a Lewis base and undergoes one-electron oxidation into the corresponding radical cation. These compounds can be regarded as the parent borylene (H-B:) and borinylium (H-B(+.)), respectively, stabilized by two cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbenes. Ab initio calculations show that the highest occupied molecular orbital of the borane as well as the singly occupied molecular orbital of the radical cation are essentially a pair and a single electron, respectively, in the p(π) orbital of boron.     

Behavioral evaluation of 65 aggressive dogs following a reported bite event

Peer-reviewed scientific publications on the topic of dog bites are numerous. Montreal was one of the first municipalities in the province of Quebec to require mandatory assessment of aggressive dogs by veterinarians. In 2019, dogs reported as aggressive and considered a potential risk to public safety by city officials were scheduled for a mandatory behavioral assessment by a veterinarian. For the purpose of this study, only aggressive dogs that had bitten (N = 65) were included. The goals were to better describe the aggressive behavior of these dogs (behavioral sequence, type of aggression, and overall reactivity) and perhaps identify new possible risk factors related to severity of injury and dangerousness. The number of signs of increased arousal/reactivity was positively and significantly associated with the injury severity score. Dangerousness increased with size of dogs. Entire males were most dangerous despite absence of recognizable differences in body weight between neutered and unneutered males.