Effect of passive pneumoperitoneum on oesophageal pressure, cardiovascular parameters and blood gas analysis in horses

Reasons for performing study: Standing surgical procedures are being employed to an ever‐greater extent in horses. Pneumoperitoneum during abdominal surgery might adversely affect the work of breathing. Objectives: To determine whether development of pneumoperitoneum during abdominal surgery adversely influences the work of breathing. Methods: Eight healthy mature horses were equipped with carotid artery and thoracic vena cava catheters and an intraluminal manometry system. The following measurements were obtained before and at +5, +10, +15 and +30 min following establishment of pneumoperitoneum by paralumbar puncture using an 8 gauge needle: vital signs, oesophageal pressure, gastric pressure, arterial and central venous blood pressures, and arterial and mixed venous blood gas analyses. Results: Significant changes in oesophageal pressure, central venous pressure and results of arterial and mixed venous blood gas analysis were not detected. Arterial diastolic and mean pressures and rectal temperature increased slightly (P≤0.05). Conclusions: Passive pneumoperitoneum did not adversely affect breathing mechanics or haemodynamic variables under experimental conditions. Changes in arterial pressure could have occurred as a response to the passive pneumoperitoneum or be related to handling stress. Subtle variations in rectal temperature were not clinically relevant and likely resulted from stress associated with restraint. Potential relevance: It is unlikely that mature horses will develop signs of respiratory difficulty as a result of the development of passive pneumoperitoneum during standing laparoscopy.     

New method for estimating the volume and volume fractions of the nasal structures in the goose (Anser anser domesticus) using computed tomography images

1. The conchae within the nasal cavity of poultry are important for water and energy conservation, but have not been experimentally evaluated. The aim of the present study was to determine the accuracy of volume and volume fraction estimates of the conchae, nasal septum and nasal cavity.

2. The nasal cavities of 7 adult goose heads were scanned using computed tomography (CT), with images sampled randomly at a 1/5 sampling fraction. Physical sections were obtained from the same samples, using an electric saw that had an adjustable section range, and provided 14 to 15 sections with a thickness of 2.5 mm. The section surface areas of the nasal cavity, nasal septum and conchae were estimated using the Cavalieri principle. Results obtained using the CT and physical section images were compared. Volumes and volume fractions obtained from the physical sections were accepted as the gold standard and differences in the CT images were determined.

3. Multiplication of the data obtained on the CT images with the deviation percentage of the physical sections produced normalised values. No differences were observed between the gold standard data and the CT images. While it was possible to normalise the obtained data using the gold standard values, the raw data could also be used for comparative studies because the deviations from normal would be similar for all groups.

4. Our study showed that the nasal structures could be estimated in vivo using CT images.     

雄蚕品种引进试验初报

雄蚕品种的引进与产业化推广是今后蚕业发展的方向。通过引进雄蚕品种夏华×平 8、华秋×平30在实验室对比和农村示范试验 ,试验结果表明 :雄蚕品种综合性状总体较优 ,但某些性状如产量、蚕茧解舒率等有待于进一步改良和完善     

退化草地生态修复技术试验研究

采用草地生态学、恢复生态学、农业栽培学、畜牧学等多学科理论,应用宏观与微观相结合的方法,对退化草地的生态修复重建技术进行了系统研究.试验研究结果表明:围栏封育、施肥、松土补播均是退化草地修复的有效措施,封育使草地四度一量分别提高1.97倍、1.18倍、3.31倍、5.11倍、1.85倍;施肥使草产量提高21.62%～80.00%;补播提高5.40%～62.16%,退化草地修复后优良植物群落、营养成份明显提高,植物多样性、丰富度、均匀度明显改善,土壤侵蚀量仅为对照草地的13.46%～33.99%.     

Experimental infection with low and high pathogenicity H7N3 Chilean avian influenza viruses in Chiloe wigeon (Anas sibilatrix) and cinnamon teal (Anas cyanoptera)

Two different wild duck species common in Chile and neighboring countries, Chiloe wigeon (Anas sibilatrix) and cinnamon teal (Anas cyanoptera), were intranasally inoculated with 10(6) mean embryo infective dose (EID50) of the H7N3 low pathogenicity (LP) avian influenza virus (AIV) (A/chicken/Chile/176822/02) or high pathogenicity (HP) AIV (A/chicken/Chile/ 184240-1/02), in order to study the infectivity and pathobiology of these viruses. None of the virus-inoculated ducks had clinical signs or died, but most seroconverted by 14 days postinoculation (DPI), indicating a productive virus infection. Both LPAIV and HPAIV were isolated from oral swabs from two of six Chiloe wigeons and from oral and/or cloacal swabs from all five of the cinnamon teal at 2 DPI. Both LPAIV and HPAIV were efficiently transmitted to cinnamon teal contacts but not to Chiloe wigeon contacts. This study demonstrates that the cinnamon teal and Chiloe wigeons were susceptible to infection with both Chilean H7N3 LPAIV and HPAIV, but only the cinnamon teal showed contact transmission of the virus between birds, suggesting that the cinnamon teal has the potential to be a reservoir for these viruses, especially the LPAIV, as was demonstrated in 2001 with isolation of a genetically related H7N3 LPAIV strain in a cinnamon teal in Bolivia. However, the definitive source of the H7N3 Chilean LPAIV still remains unknown.     

Cutaneous pythiosis in a dog from Brazil

This report describes a case of cutaneous pythiosis in a 6‐year‐old female mixed breed dog, from the central west region of São Paulo State, Brazil. The cytological and histopathological analyses showed an intense inflammatory infiltrate with presence of numerous hyphal elements, suggesting infection due to Pythium insidiosum. The diagnosis was confirmed by nested‐PCR, which was carried out with specific primers derived from the ribosomal DNA region. The pathogen occurs in Brazil and veterinarians should be aware of the importance of correctly diagnosing this disease and differentiating it from other fungal diseases.     

Comparative short-term efficacy of Oridermyl? auricular ointment and Revolution? selamectin spot-on against feline Otodectes cynotis and its associated secondary otitis externa

The efficacy of Oridermyl^® (acaricidal/antibiotic/antifungal/anti-inflammatory ointment) and Revolution^® (selamectin spot-on) was compared in a blinded randomized study on 24 adult cats with otoacariasis. Twelve cats were treated once daily for 10 d with Oridermyl^® and 12 cats were treated on Day 0 with Revolution^®. Otitis was assessed with cytological counts of mean number of bacteria and yeast on Days 0 and 10, and scored clinically every other day. All auricular secretions were removed for mite count on Day 10. On Day 0, cytological examination confirmed the presence of secondary bacterial (24/24) and fungal (21/24) infections. No live mites were observed otoscopically after Day 4 and in auricular secretions at Day 10 in both groups. On Day 10, secondary infections were resolved for all cats treated with Oridermyl^® but were present in all cats treated with Revolution^®. Improvement in clinical signs of otitis over time was superior in the Oridermyl^® group (P < 0.001).     

An investigation of Leishmania spp. in Didelphis spp. from urban and peri-urban areas in Bauru (São Paulo, Brazil)

Blood and bone marrow samples were taken from 112 Didelphis spp., collected between March 2005 and February 2006, from urban and peri-urban areas of Bauru, São Paulo State, Brazil, to evaluate the hypothesis that these animals might constitute a reservoir of Leishmania spp. Anti-Leishmania ssp. antibodies were screened in the serum samples using an enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay (ELISA) and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). PCR was performed on fragments of DNA samples from Leishmania spp. using primers 13A and 13B, and showed a positive outcome in 91.6% of the 112 samples tested. Of the 107 samples analyzed by ELISA, 71% were positive. Evidence of epidemiological risk factors such as a circulating parasite and freely moving vectors suggests that Didelphis spp. may participate in the transmission cycle of Leishmania spp. in Bauru.     

The need for built-in validation of surveillance data so that changes in diagnostic performance of post-mortem meat inspection can be detected

Time trends in animal-disease surveillance often are evaluated on the basis of crude estimates of apparent prevalence. In addition to possible changes in the true prevalence of the condition, changes in apparent prevalence over time might reflect changes in sensitivity and/or specificity of the diagnostic classification used. To illustrate this, comparative post-mortem meat inspection data from four Danish slaughter plants sampled in 1993-1994 and 1997-1998 were used to obtain latent-class model estimates of the sensitivity and specificity of traditional and extended post-mortem meat inspection of visceral and parietal chronic pleuritis (CP), respectively.True prevalence of CP was estimated for each study period and slaughter plant by latent-class models. Estimated sensitivities of traditional post-mortem meat (TPM) inspection ranged from 28.8 to 61.4% (1993-1994) and 39.2 to 87.3% (1997-1998). An increase in sensitivity with time was seen for all slaughter plants. Estimated sensitivities of extended post-mortem meat (EPM) inspection ranged from 85.7 to 94.8% (1993-1994) and 73.8 to 93.0% (1997-1998). All estimated specificities were >93.3%.The possible association of the estimated true prevalence of CP with time (1993-1994 versus 1997-1998) was investigated with a logistic-regression model with random effects. A slight, but non-significant decrease in the odds of CP from 1994 to 1998 was found (odds ratio=0.9).In this and similar situations, one should consider conducting ongoing double-classification of samples of units followed by statistical estimation of true prevalences, sensitivities and specificities, so that decisions can be based on such estimates rather than on crude apparent prevalences.     

Comparison of estimates of hip dysplasia genetic parameters in Estrela Mountain Dog using linear and threshold models

Genetic parameters, breeding values, and genetic trends of hip dysplasia in Estrela Mountain Dogs were estimated using a linear model (LM) and a threshold model (TM). A database with 313 animals was used. Right and left hip joints were individually scored, according to the Fédération Cynologic Internationale grading rules of the canine hip dysplasia system, as normal (1), borderline (2), slight (3), moderate (4), and severe (5 and 6). The estimate of repeatability was lower in LM (0.86) than in TM (0.90). The same tendency was verified with the heritability because its estimate in LM was 0.38 and in TM was 0.43. However, these results did not establish any statistical differences between the models. The genetic trend of canine hip dysplasia for LM and TM showed a similarity in shape, but considerable individual differences were found in the EBV ranking lists. Therefore, the selection of breeding animals would not be the same with the 2 methodologies. To select the best method for genetic evaluation of hip dysplasia, further studies using more data and other dog breeds are required.