MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING FINDINGS ASSOCIATED WITH LATERAL CEREBRAL VENTRICULOMEGALY IN ENGLISH BULLDOGS

Multiple congenital or developmental anomalies associated with the central nervous system have been reported in English Bulldogs. The purpose of this retrospective study was to identify and describe the prevalence and MRI characteristics of these anomalies and their association with presence and degree of cerebral ventriculomegaly. Magnetic resonance imaging studies of 50 English Bulldogs were evaluated. Forty‐eight dogs had some degree of cerebral ventriculomegaly, 27 of which had an otherwise normal brain. Presence of lateral ventriculomegaly was not significantly associated with presence of another intracranial lesion. Appearance of the septum pellucidum was variable, ranging from intact to incomplete or completely absent. The corpus callosum was subjectively thinned in all but three dogs, two of which had normal lateral ventricles. Fusion of the rostral colliculi was not found in any dog. A persistent craniopharyngeal canal was identified in one dog. Aqueductal stenosis caused by fusion of the rostral colliculi was not identified in any dog. Findings indicated that cerebral ventriculomegaly is a common finding in English Bulldogs with or without other intracranial lesions, aqueductal stenosis caused by fusion of the rostral colliculi is unlikely to be a common etiology leading to obstructive hydrocephalus, and a large craniopharyngeal canal is a rare finding that has unknown clinical significance at this time.     

Structure and molecular mechanism of a nucleobase-cation-symport-1 family transporter

The nucleobase-cation-symport-1 (NCS1) transporters are essential components of salvage pathways for nucleobases and related metabolites. Here, we report the 2.85-angstrom resolution structure of the NCS1 benzyl-hydantoin transporter, Mhp1, from Microbacterium liquefaciens. Mhp1 contains 12 transmembrane helices, 10 of which are arranged in two inverted repeats of five helices. The structures of the outward-facing open and substrate-bound occluded conformations were solved, showing how the outward-facing cavity closes upon binding of substrate. Comparisons with the leucine transporter LeuT(Aa) and the galactose transporter vSGLT reveal that the outward- and inward-facing cavities are symmetrically arranged on opposite sides of the membrane. The reciprocal opening and closing of these cavities is synchronized by the inverted repeat helices 3 and 8, providing the structural basis of the alternating access model for membrane transport.     

Fc and C3b receptors on pulmonary endothelial cells: induction by injury

Receptors for the activated third component of complement and for the Fc portion of immunoglobulin G are not expressed by apparently normal bovine pulmonary endothelial cells, but are expressed when the cells are exposed to white cell lysates or are infected with influenza or cytomegalovirus. The unmasking of these latent receptors may contribute to the pulmonary inflammatory response characteristic of, for example, anaphylaxis and to those lung diseases characterized by the deposition of immune complexes.     

Characterization of vegetable oils: detailed compositional fingerprints derived from electrospray ionization fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry

Adulteration of vegetable oil is of concern for both commercial and health reasons. Compositional based fingerprints can potentially reveal both the oil source and its possible adulteration. Here, electrospray ionization (ESI) Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) resolves and identifies literally thousands of distinct chemical components of commercial canola, olive, and soybean oils, without extraction or other wet chemical separation pretreatment. In negative-ion ESI FT-ICR MS, the acidic components of soybean oil are easily distinguished from those of canola and olive oil based on relative abundances of C(18) fatty acids, whereas olive oil differs from canola and soybean oil based on relative abundances of tocopherols. In positive-ion ESI FT-ICR MS, the three oils are readily distinguished according to the relative abundances of di- and triacylglycerols with various numbers of double bonds in the fatty acid chains. We demonstrate the detection of soybean oil as an adulterant of olive oil, based on relative abundances of members of each of several chemical families. We suggest that the detailed chemical compositions of vegetable oils can be used to characterize them and to detect and identify adulterants.     

Phosphorus and its utilization in soils of dry regions

This review deals with selected aspects of the forms, behavior and utilization of phosphorus in soils of dry regions. Such regions embrace most developing nations in the world. Amounts and major forms of phosphorus in the soils, indices of availability, fertilizer sources, initial and residual effects, modes of application and possibilities for improved utilization are considered. The supply and availability of phosphorus is a key factor in crop production. Consequently, for appreciable increases in production in dry regions, improvements in utilization of phosphorus are needed. Several possible improvements are therefore proposed as the final part of this paper.     

Farmer attitudes toward wolves: Implications for the role of predators in managing disease

The potential for disease transmission between wild and domestic animals may interfere with wildlife and habitat conservation on lands surrounding protected areas. Recently, possible transmission of bovine tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) from wild ungulates to domestic livestock has affected the Riding Mountain National Park region in Manitoba, Canada. Wolf (Canis lupus) predation on ungulate populations may help lessen the risk of disease transmission to livestock. We conducted an exploratory analysis of causal factors associated with farmer attitudes toward observing wolves on their farms. A survey to 4 220 farms within 50 km of the Park resulted in an adjusted response rate of 25%. We constructed several logistic regression models with factors hypothesized to influence whether farmers agreed with the statement “I enjoy seeing wolves on my land”, and three candidate models received reasonable support. Factors most affecting attitudes were, in order of importance, perceived wolf population size, frequency of seeing wolves, perceived seriousness of wolf damage, distance to Park boundary and number of beef cattle (Bos taurus) owned. The factors least influential on attitudes were education and age. Concern over bovine tuberculosis in wild elk also had minimal influence. Of respondents who perceived the wolf population as “too high”, 60% were extremely concerned about bovine tuberculosis in wild elk. Although the role of wolf predation as a potential natural regulator of disease in wild ungulates might not be widely recognized in many areas, we believe this provides a unique opportunity to re-examine the significance of maintaining viable wolf populations.     

Stimulating disease suppression in soils: sulphate fertilizers can increase biodiversity and antibiosis ability of root zone bacteria against Streptomyces scabies

The value of ammonium sulphate (+SO₄) fertilizer as a method of controlling potato common scab varies from field to field and from year to year. We examined the influence of two fertilizer regimes on the biodiversity and antibiosis activity (in vitro) of culturable rhizobacterial populations recovered from fields with a similar history of potato common scab. Root zone soils treated with +SO₄ fertilizers were colonized by significantly (P=0.05) more species-diverse communities of bacteria than those managed with ammonium nitrate fertilizers (+NO₃). In bioassays conducted on artificial media adjusted to pH 4.9 (acid) or pH 6.8 (base), in vitro antibiosis in bacterial strains against Streptomyces scabies was found to be dependent on fertilizer regime (P=0.023), with more isolates with antibiosis ability being recovered from +SO₄ compared to +NO₃ treated soils. Overall, bacterial species from the genera Bacillus (18-35%) and Pseudomonas (15-18%) were major components of those rhizoflora communities antagonistic to S. scabies. Under our field conditions, soil acidification with +SO₄ treatments stimulated the development of rhizobacterial communities that generated secondary metabolites with (in vitro) antibiosis ability, against S. scabies. This occurred both in the liquid and vapour phase (volatile gases); the latter most notably by Bacillus cereus, Bacillus pumilus and Pseudomonas chlororaphis. We postulate that in hot, dry seasons, antibiosis against S. scabies mediated by +SO₄ treatments, and the competitive bacterial communities they engender, would be less effective in controlling potato common scab, as the active moieties would be rapidly volatilized into the atmosphere. In contrast, biocontrol would be more effective in wetter seasons, the active moieties being retained, in and around the potato root zone for greater biologically significant periods of time.     

Evaluation of biological and economic efficiency of the All Heifer,No Cow beef production system using a system dynamics model based on 6 yr of demonstration herd data

Alternative management strategies with no cows and all heifers may improve biological and economic efficiency of beef production. The All Heifer, No Cow (AHNC) beef production system involves insemination of nulliparous heifers with female sex-selected semen (FSS) to produce primarily female calves that are early weaned at 3 mo of age. Dams are finished on a high concentrate diet and harvested before 30 mo of age. The objectives of this research were to: 1) build a dynamic model of an AHNC beef production system to quantify system biological and economic efficiency; 2) compare effects of utilizing FSS vs. conventional semen on biological and economic efficiency; 3) evaluate what-if scenarios to determine the effects on biological and economic efficiency of changing variables ±5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% from initial observed values; and 4) evaluate the effects on biological and economic efficiency of changing variables ±10% from initial observed values. A model was built over a 21-yr horizon using Stella Architect. Biological parameter values in the model were based on the 6 yr of data collected from the management of an AHNC demonstration herd. In the model animal, total digestible nutrients (TDN) intake, hot carcass weight (HCW), and age at harvest were randomized. Feed, animal, and carcass prices included in the model were based on 10 yr of historical U.S. price data. Key response variables were biological and economic efficiency (mean ± SD). Biological efficiency was defined as the ratio of output (kilograms of HCW produced) to input (lifetime kilograms of feed TDN consumed), and economic efficiency was measured using a benefit–cost ratio (BCR) and unit variable cost (UVC). Over 40 simulation runs, the predicted mean biological efficiency was 0.0714 ± 0.0008. Economic efficiency was 0.95 ± 0.02 and US $445.41 ± 0.06 for BCR and UVC, respectively. Biological and economic efficiency was improved in the conventional semen scenario; biological efficiency was 0.0738 ± 0.0008, and BCR and UVC were 0.99 ± 0.04 and US $407.24 ± 0.006, respectively. Under this parameterization and market conditions, the AHNC beef production system failed to achieve profitability under any scenario that was evaluated. However, this review did not account for the potential increased genetic benefit from a decreased generation interval and the reduction in feed energy in comparison to a conventional cow/calf system.