Survival of Phytophthora infestans in Surface Water

ABSTRACT Coverless petri dishes with water suspensions of sporangia and zoospores of Phytophthora infestans were embedded in sandy soil in eastern Washington in July and October 2001 and July 2002 to quantify longevity of spores in water under natural conditions. Effects of solar radiation intensity, presence of soil in petri dishes (15 g per dish), and a 2-h chill period on survival of isolates of clonal lineages US-8 and US-11 were investigated. Spores in water suspensions survived 0 to 16 days under nonshaded conditions and 2 to 20 days under shaded conditions. Mean spore survival significantly increased from 1.7 to 5.8 days when soil was added to the water. Maximum survival time of spores in water without soil exposed to direct sunlight was 2 to 3 days in July and 6 to 8 days in October. Mean duration of survival did not differ significantly between chilled and nonchilled sporangia, but significantly fewer chilled spores survived for extended periods than that of nonchilled spores. Spores of US-11 and US-8 isolates did not differ in mean duration of survival, but significantly greater numbers of sporangia of US-8 survived than did sporangia of US-11 in one of three trials.     

Landscape effects on scales of movement by white-tailed deer in an agricultural–forest matrix

Understanding how organisms respond to landscape heterogeneity is foundational to landscape ecology. We characterized seasonal scales of movement of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus viginianus) in an agricultural–forest matrix using first-passage time analysis (FPT) for 62 GPS-collared individuals. We investigated whether those scales were driven by demographic or landscape features. We found FPT for each individual across all seasons was typically dominated by a peak in variance of FPT/area at scales (radii) from 425 to 1,675 m. These peaks occurred at scales consistent with seasonal space use. We observed additional lower magnitude peaks at larger scales (3,000–6,000 m) and small scales (25–150 m). Peaks at larger scales were associated with seasonal migrations and dispersal events. Small scale peaks may represent resting or foraging behavior. Female movements were organized at smaller scales than males in the spring/summer season. Models relating landscape features to movement scales suggest that deer perceive and move within the landscape differently as the roles of dominant land-cover types shift seasonally. During winter, configuration (interspersion/juxtaposition) of land-cover types is more important to deer than during spring/summer and fall. During spring/summer and fall, movement behavior may be dictated by reproductive and harvest activities.     

Hairy shaker disease of lambs

A serological survey of 213 randomly chosen dairy farm residents in the Manawatu showed that 66 (34%) of the people who milked cows had leptospiral titres ≤ 1:24 by the Microscopic Agglutination Test. Forty-eight (72.7%) of these people had titres to hardjo, while 29 (43.9%) had titres to pomona. Dual hardjo/pomona titres occurred in 12 people. Ballum and Copenhageni accounted for 8% of the titres found. Women milkers and farm residents who did not milk were all serologically negative. A third of the seropositive milkers had a history of clinical leptospirosis. Other factors which significantly correlated with leptospiral titres included the time spent in the dairy shed during milking, the wearing of shorts, the keeping of pigs for sale, and the number of years the individual had been working on a dairy farm. The type of milking shed and the size of the herd were interrelated and both showed strong trends towards a correlation with serological prevalence.     

Dairy cow preference for a soft track surface

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As dairy herds get larger cows have to walk further, and foot care becomes more important. Lameness from bruising of the soles of the feet is a particular hazard (Tranter and Morris 1991 Tranter, W P and Morris, RS. 1991. A case study of lameness in three dairy herds. New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 39: 88–96. [Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], especially on hard tracks with loose angular stones or grit (Clackson and Ward 1991 Clackson, DA and Ward, WR. 1991. Farm tracks, stockman's herding and lameness in dairy cattle. Veterinary Record, 129: 511–512.  [Google Scholar]. One way of reducing this problem might be to provide an overlay of woodchips on top of the normal hard track. This would provide a softer grit-free surface, which could be more comfortable for the cows.     

Leukemia inhibitory factor protein and receptors are expressed in the bovine adrenal cortex and increase cortisol and decrease adrenal androgen release

The release of adrenal steroids during acute stress is primarily regulated by adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). In contrast, during chronic inflammatory stress additional factors are involved in regulating adrenal function. Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) is a pleiotropic cytokine that increases ACTH release from the pituitary. In addition, LIF and LIF receptors (LIFR) are expressed in the human adrenal cortex and the human adrenocortical tumor cell line H295R. Furthermore, LIF increases basal and ACTH-stimulated cortisol release from H295R cells. However, the expression of LIF and LIFR in non-human adrenal glands and the effects of LIF on the release of cortisol from adrenal cells of non-human species have not been determined. Furthermore, the effects of LIF on adrenal androgen release from all species are unknown. In this study, immunohistochemistry, Western blots, RT-PCR, and nucleotide sequencing was utilized to demonstrate that LIF and its receptor are expressed throughout the bovine adrenal cortex. Although LIF did not modify basal cortisol release from dispersed cells isolated from the bovine adrenal zona fasciculate, this cytokine increased ACTH-stimulated release of cortisol from these cells in a manner dependent on the LIF concentration and exposure interval. In contrast, LIF in a concentration-dependent and time-dependent manner decreased basal and ACTH-stimulated adrenal androgen release from dispersed cells isolated from the bovine adrenal zona reticularis. Because LIF release increases during inflammatory stress and this cytokine stimulates adrenal cortisol release and inhibits adrenal androgen release, this cytokine may play an important role in regulating the release of adrenal steroids during inflammatory stress.     

Vegetative Endocarditis in Equids (1994–2006)

Background: Endocarditis is a rare heart condition with variable clinical expressions in equids. Risk factors for this disease are incompletely understood. Objective: Describe risk factors for endocarditis in equids. Animals: One hundred and fifty‐three equids admitted to Liège University, 9 diagnosed with endocarditis and 144 free from endocarditis but admitted to the hospital with a differential diagnosis including this disease. Methods: Retrospective case‐control study. Results: Equids with endocarditis were significantly younger (mean age = 4.84 ± 5.74 years) than control equids (mean age = 10.8 ± 7.73 years) (P= .01). No sex or breed predisposition was observed. Animals with hyperthermia (odds ratio [OR] = 24.4; confidence interval [CI] = 1.40–428), synovial distension (OR = 13.4; CI = 3.00–59.8), lameness (OR = 6.52; CI = 1.63–26.1), hyperglobulinemia (OR = 26.4; CI = 3.03–229), hypoalbuminemia (OR = 11.4; CI = 1.34–96.8), hyperfibrinogenemia (OR = 9.81; CI = 1.16–82.7), or leukocytosis (OR = 7.12; CI = 1.40–36.4) presented a significantly higher risk of having endocarditis than control horses. The presence of two of the clinical signs mentioned above significantly increased the probability of a diagnosis of endocarditis (P≤ .05). Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Age is associated with equine endocarditis. The diagnostic value of certain clinical signs and abnormalities in blood parameters in this disease are described.     

Epidemiology of necrotizing meningoencephalitis in Pug dogs

BACKGROUND: Although the histopathologic features of necrotizing meningoencephalitis (NME) have been described previously, little information is available concerning the signalment, geographic distribution, seasonal onset, treatment, and survival of affected dogs. ANIMALS: Sixty Pugs with NME and 14 contemporaneous control Pugs with other intracranial diseases (non-NME group). METHODS: Pugs that were euthanized or died because of intracranial disease were prospectively obtained. All dogs had necropsy, histopathology, and testing for various infectious diseases and were subsequently divided into NME and non-NME groups. Signalment, geographic distribution, seasonal onset, treatment, and survival were compared between groups. RESULTS: In Pugs with NME, median age at onset of clinical signs was 18 months (range, 4-113 months). A greater proportion of female dogs were present in the NME group (40/60) compared with the control group (6/14). Pugs with NME had a significantly lower mean weight (7.81 kg) than control Pugs (9.79 kg) (P= .012). Mean survival in Pugs with NME was 93 days (range, 1-680 days), with dogs receiving any form of treatment living significantly longer than those that were not treated (P= .003). Anticonvulsive drugs were the only treatment significantly associated with longer survival (P= .003). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: NME appears to be a common cause of intracranial signs in Pugs, based on the high proportion of NME dogs reported in this population. Pugs with NME are most commonly young adult female dogs. Although further investigation is needed to determine the optimal treatment of NME, anticonvulsive drugs appear to beneficially affect duration of survival.     

Radiometric pooled faecal culture for the detection of Mycobacterium avium subsp paratuberculosis in low-shedder cattle

OBJECTIVE: To identify the optimum pooling rate for pooled faecal culture (PFC) as a diagnostic tool in bovine Johne's disease control, for detection of cattle shedding low concentrations of Mycobacterium avium subsp paratuberculosis (Map). METHOD: Thirteen target animals were selected by delayed growth of Map from initial individual radiometric faecal cultures (first growth index at 5 weeks or later). A procedure based on radiometric culture and IS900 polymerase chain reaction and restriction endonuclease analysis confirmation was then used for PFC. RESULTS: Eight samples (stored for up to 17 months at -80 degrees C) yielded Map on subsequent culture, either from undiluted faeces or those mixed with normal cattle faeces at dilution rates from 1 in 5 to 1 in 50. From a regression equation, culture-positive animals were considered to be shedding relatively low levels of Map (< 6 x 10(4)/g of faeces). Pooling dilutions of more than 1 in 5 reduced PFC sensitivity. A minimum incubation period of 10 weeks at a dilution of 1 in 5 is recommended to detect such infected cattle. This pooling rate in radiometric culture is probably capable of detecting cattle shedding < or = 5 x 10(3) Map organisms/g of faeces, representing an estimated inoculum per culture vial of fewer than 20 viable organisms. CONCLUSION: Map was detected in more than 50% of the stored faecal samples from cattle shedding low concentrations of the organism. A pooling rate of 5 samples per pool is required to reliably detect infected low-shedder cattle using PFC based on radiometric culture.