Splenic lymphoma in a short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)

A 23-year-old, male short-beaked echidna ( Tachyglossus aculeatus ) housed at a North American zoo was successfully treated for flea-associated anaemia, but subsequently died. Cause of death was presumptive septicaemia secondary to splenic lymphoma. This is only the fifth case of neoplasia reported in this monotreme species, and the first from outside of Australia.     

Free Oestrone in Adipose Tissue and its Relation to Androstenone and Skatole in Entire Male Pigs

Relationship between free oestrone and boar taint compounds in adipose tissue were studied in two groups of entire male pigs of different breeds. Group A consisted of 33 entire crossbred male pigs (dam Yorkshire and sire backcross Yorkshire x Wild Boar, generation seven). Group B consisted of 194 entire male pigs of crossbreeds between Swedish Hampshire (H) and Finnish Landrace (L), LH x H, H x LH, LH x LH (dam x sire). The measurements of free oestrone in adipose tissue were performed with a new method developed and validated in our laboratories. The standard curve was linear for concentrations of free oestrone ranging from 0.13 to 5.10 ng/g. The method exhibited parallelism of results between serial dilutions and a mean recovery of 97 +/- 13.7%. Intra-assay variations for samples with concentrations of free oestrone from 0.67 to 2.08 ng/g were from 9.23 to 11.94%. Inter-assay variations for the samples with concentrations of free oestrone from 0.89 to 2.96 ng/g were from 3.78 to 10.11%. The levels of free oestrone in fat from group A were well correlated with fat levels of androstenone (r = 0.66; p < 0.001) and levels of oestrone sulphate in peripheral plasma collected at the same time as the fat (r = 0.74, p < 0.001). The levels of free oestrone in fat from group B were significantly correlated to fat levels of androstenone (r = 0.68, p < 0.001) and skatole (r = 0.29, p < 0.001). In group B, age-related differences in fat levels of free oestrone, androstenone and skatole were studied. Free oestrone and skatole levels increased simultaneously at the age of 22 week (p < 0.05 for both), and androstenone levels increased at the age of 26 week (p < 0.05). It was suggested that the levels of free oestrone in adipose tissue might be used for the evaluation of hormonal status of male pigs as an alternative to plasma levels of testicular hormones. The levels of free oestrone might be involved in the regulation of skatole levels in fat as indicated by both the simultaneous increases in skatole and free oestrone levels in fat and positive correlation between skatole and free oestrone.     

Ultrasonographic Characteristics of Ovulatory Follicles and Associated Endocrine Changes in Cyclic Ewes Treated with Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (MAP)-releasing Intravaginal Sponges and Equine Chorionic Gonadotropin (eCG)

The aim of this study was to assess the ultrasonographic characteristics of ovulatory follicles in cyclic Western White Face ewes (December) that had received intravaginal sponges containing medroxyprogesterone acetate (MAP; 60 mg) for 12 days, with or without an injection of 500 IU of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) at sponge removal. We hypothesized that quantitative echotextural attributes of the follicles in ewes treated only with MAP would differ from those in MAP/eCG-treated ewes, reflecting the increased antral follicular growth and secretory function under eCG influence. Digital images of ovulatory follicles obtained at 0 and 24 h after MAP sponge removal and at 24 h before ovulation in the eCG-treated (five ewes, 13 follicles) and control (six ewes, 9 follicles) animals, were subjected to computerized analyses. The mean diameter of ovulatory follicles increased (p < 0.001) 24 h after eCG treatment. The mean pixel intensity and heterogeneity of the follicular antrum (p < 0.001), as well as mean pixel intensity of the follicular wall and perifollicular ovarian stroma (p < 0.05), were greater in eCG-treated animals compared with control ewes 24 h after sponge removal and at 24 h before ovulation. Mean serum concentrations of oestradiol-17beta tended to increase (p = 0.06) 24 h after eCG treatment and the eCG-treated ewes exceeded (p < 0.05) control animals in progesterone concentrations from days 9-15 after ovulation. Our results support the hypothesis that large antral follicles in eCG-treated ewes exhibit distinctive echotextural characteristics. Follicular image attributes in eCG-treated ewes appear to be indicative of the changes in follicular morphology and secretory activity caused by the administration of the exogenous gonadotropin, which has both FSH- and LH-like activities.     

Inhibitory Effects of Pergolide and Cabergoline Formulations on Daily Plasma Prolactin Concentrations in Geldings and on the Daily Prolactin Responses to a Small Dose of Sulpiride in Mares

Two experiments were conducted to assess the efficacy and duration of action of two dopaminergic compounds, pergolide and cabergoline, on daily prolactin secretion in geldings and on prolactin responses to a small dose of sulpiride over 10 days. In the first experiment, oral administration of 2 mg of pergolide was compared to a single injection of 2 mg of pergolide in a slow-release vehicle and a single injection of 5 mg of cabergoline in slow-release vehicle. Controls received vehicle only. All drug treatments reduced (P < .05) prolactin concentrations relative to that in controls but differed substantially in duration of action (oral pergolide approximately 6 hours or less, injected pergolide 6 to 24 hours, and injected cabergoline at least 6 days). In the second experiment, repeated small doses of sulpiride (2 μg/kg of body weight intravenously) were used to stimulate prolactin release in mares, and the ability of seven daily injections of pergolide (2 mg each) and a single injection of cabergoline (5 mg) in slow-release vehicle to suppress this release were compared. Control mares receiving vehicle injections had robust prolactin responses to the sulpiride injections on all days of injection (days 1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 10 relative to treatment). Prolactin responses were muted (P < .05) by pergolide and cabergoline treatments on the first day of injection (day 0, 30 min after treatment) and were basically absent on days 1 to 8. The single injection of cabergoline continued to be suppressive through day 10, whereas mares previously treated with pergolide (through day 6) had begun to recover a prolactin response by day 10. We conclude that either daily 2-mg pergolide injections in slow-release vehicle or a single injection of 5 mg of cabergoline in slow-release vehicle is an effective way to apply dopaminergic activity to horses for approximately 7 to 10 days and may have application in the treatment of pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction in affected horses.     

Liquorice and canine Addison's disease

Abstract

Extract

Hypoadrenocorticism, or Addison's disease, is an uncommon en-docrinopathy of dogs (Feldman and Nelson 2004 Feldman, EC and Nelson, RW. 2004. “Hypoadrenocorticism (Addison's disease)”. In Canine and Feline Endocrinology and Reproduction, 3rd, 394–439. Philadelphia, , USA: WB Saunders.  [Google Scholar]). Long-term management of affected dogs in New Zealand involves treatment with oral fludrocortisone acetate (Florinef tablets; Bristol-Myers Squibb (NZ) Ltd, Auckland, NZ), which is a relatively expensive synthetic adrenocortical steroid. Table salt may be added to the food, in an attempt to reduce the amount of fludrocortisone required. Despite fludrocortisone therapy, many Addisonian dogs remain hyponatraemic and hyperkalaemic and the required dose of fludrocortisone may need to be increased during the first year of treatment. Increasing the dose of fludrocortisone is not only expensive, but may also have undesirable effects through its potent glucocorticoid action.     

Stimulation of Ovulation in Seasonally Anovulatory and Vernal Transitional Mares with Estradiol and Domperidone: Dose and Combination Studies

Three experiments were conducted to test the efficacy of different doses of estradiol cypionate (ECP) and domperidone for inducing ovulation in seasonally anovulatory (January; Experiments 1 and 2) and transitional period (March; Experiment 3) mares. In the first two experiments, mares in Kentucky and Louisiana were administered domperidone (3 g in biodegradable particles) alone or after pretreatment with 100 or 150 mg of ECP; another group received ECP, domperidone, and progesterone, and a fifth group received ECP and progesterone only (the latter two in Kentucky). Control mares in both states received no treatment. The proportion of mares ovulating within 35 days (for mares treated in January) was greater (P = .0002) for those receiving any combination of ECP plus domperidone relative to mares not receiving the combined treatment. Addition of progesterone to ECP plus domperidone did not enhance (P = .7) the response relative to the combination alone; domperidone by itself, or ECP plus progesterone, did not alter the response relative to controls (P > .24). Experiment 3 was conducted in Louisiana as a 2 × 3 factorial, with two doses of domperidone (1.5 or 3 g) and three doses of ECP (0, 75, or 150 mg). There was no main effect of domperidone or ECP dose; a greater proportion (P = .055) of mares receiving any combination of ECP plus domperidone ovulated in 21 days compared with those receiving no ECP. In conclusion, pretreatment with ECP before injection of domperidone 10 days later can be used to increase the proportion of mares ovulating early in the year; within the limits of the present experiments, there appears to be no difference in doses of ECP of 75, 100, or 150 mg, and no difference in doses of domperidone of 1.5 or 3 g.     

Synchronous climate changes in antarctica and the north atlantic

Central Greenland ice cores provide evidence of abrupt changes in climate over the past 100,000 years. Many of these changes have also been identified in sedimentary and geochemical signatures in deep-sea sediment cores from the North Atlantic, confirming the link between millennial-scale climate variability and ocean thermohaline circulation. It is shown here that two of the most prominent North Atlantic events-the rapid warming that marks the end of the last glacial period and the Bolling/Allerod-Younger Dryas oscillation-are also recorded in an ice core from Taylor Dome, in the western Ross Sea sector of Antarctica. This result contrasts with evidence from ice cores in other regions of Antarctica, which show an asynchronous response between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.