When normal is abnormal: keys to laboratory diagnosis of hidden endocrine disease

Although veterinary clinicians commonly rely on panels of laboratory tests with individual results flagged when abnormal, care should be taken in interpreting normal test results as well. There are several examples of this in evaluating patients with endocrine disease. The finding of a normal leukogram (absence of a stress leukogram) can be indicative of adrenal insufficiency in dogs, and this disorder can be especially elusive when there are no overt indicators of mineralocorticoid deficiency. Cats with hyperthyroidism can have normal serum thyroid hormone concentrations, normal hematocrits, and normal serum concentrations of creatinine despite the presence of disease that affects these parameters. A normal serum phosphorus concentration, in the face of azotemia, isosthenuria, and hypertension can point a clinician toward a diagnosis of primary hyperaldosteronism rather than primary renal disease. A normal serum parathyroid hormone concentration in the face of hypercalcemia is inappropriate and can indicate the presence of primary hyperparathyroidism. Similarly, hypoglycemia accompanied by a normal serum insulin concentration can be found in cases of hyperinsulinism. These normal findings in abnormal patients, and their mechanisms, are reviewed.     

Hypertension in Cats With Chronic Renal Failure or Hyperthyroidism

The Doppler ultrasonic recording technique was used to measure systolic and diastolic blood pressures indirectly in 28 cats with naturally occurring renal failure, 39 cats with hyperthyroidism, and 33 clinically normal cats. The mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures in the normal cats were 118.4 +/- 10.6 mm Hg and 83.8 +/- 12.2 mm Hg, respectively. In the cats with chronic renal failure, both the systolic (146.6 +/- 25.4 mm Hg) and diastolic (96.6 +/- 15.2 mm Hg) blood pressures were significantly higher (P less than 0.0001 and P less than 0.01, respectively) than in the normal cats. Elevations in systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure were recorded in 17 (61%) of the 28 cats with chronic renal failure. In the 39 untreated hyperthyroid cats, both the mean systolic (167.9 +/- 28.9 mm Hg) and diastolic (111.6 +/- 21.5 mm Hg) pressures also were significantly higher (P less than 0.0001) than normal. Increased systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure was recorded in 34 (87%) of the 39 hyperthyroid cats. In seven cats with hyperthyroidism that were reevaluated two to four months after successful treatment of the hyperthyroid state, there was a significant fall in mean systolic pressure (P less than 0.05) from a pretreatment value of 159.5 +/- 15.4 mm Hg to a posttreatment value of 132.0 +/- 1.62 mm Hg. Overall, the results of this study indicate that mild to moderate hypertension is common in cats with chronic renal failure and in cats with untreated hyperthyroidism. In addition, the hypertension appears to be reversible following successful treatment of the hyperthyroid state.     

Estimating landscape resistance to dispersal

Dispersal is an inherently spatial process that can be affected by habitat conditions in sites encountered by dispersers. Understanding landscape resistance to dispersal is important in connectivity studies and reserve design, but most existing methods use resistance functions with cost parameters that are subjectively chosen by the investigator. We develop an analytic approach allowing for direct estimation of resistance parameters that folds least cost path methods typically used in simulation approaches into a formal statistical model of dispersal distributions. The core of our model is a frequency distribution of dispersal distances expressed as least cost distance rather than Euclidean distance, and which includes terms for feature-specific costs to dispersal and sex (or other traits) of the disperser. The model requires only origin and settlement locations for multiple individuals, such as might be obtained from mark–recapture studies or parentage analyses, and maps of the relevant habitat features. To evaluate whether the model can estimate parameters correctly, we fit our model to data from simulated dispersers in three kinds of landscapes (in which resistance of environmental variables was categorical, continuous with a patchy configuration, or continuous in a trend pattern). We found maximum likelihood estimators of resistance and individual trait parameters to be approximately unbiased with moderate sample sizes. We applied the model to a small grizzly bear dataset to demonstrate how this approach could be used when the primary interest is in the prediction of costs and found that estimates were consistent with expectations based on bear ecology. Our method has important practical applications for testing hypotheses about dispersal ecology and can be used to inform connectivity planning efforts, via the resistance estimates and confidence intervals, which can be used to create a data-driven resistance surface.     

Expression pattern of HIF1alpha and vasohibins during follicle maturation and corpus luteum function in the bovine ovary

The aim of this study was to characterize expression patterns of hypoxia‐inducible factor‐1alpha (HIF1A) and vasohibin family members (VASH1 and VASH2) during different stages of ovarian function in cow. Experiment 1: Antral follicle classification occurred by follicle size and estradiol‐17beta (E2) concentration in the follicular fluid into 5 groups (<0.5, 0.5–5, 5–40, 40–180 and >180 E2 ng/ml). Experiment 2: Corpora lutea (CL) were assigned to the following stages: days 1–2, 3–4, 5–7, 8–12, 13–16 and >18 (after regression) of oestrous cycle and of pregnancy (months 1–2, 3–4, 6–7, >8). Experiment 3: Cows on days 8–12 were injected with a prostaglandin F2alpha (PGF) analogue and CL were collected before and 0.5, 2, 4, 12, 24, 48 and 64 hr after PGF injection. Expression of mRNA was measured by qPCR, steroid hormone concentration by EIA and localization by immunohistochemistry. HIF1A mRNA expression in our study increases significantly in follicles during final maturation. The highest HIF1A mRNA expression was detected during the early luteal phase, followed by a significant decrease afterwards. In contrast, the mRNA of vasohibins in small follicle was high, followed by a continuous and significant downregulation in preovulatory follicles. The obtained results show a remarkable inverse expression and localization pattern of HIF1A and vasohibins during different stages of ovarian function in cow. These results lead to the assumption that the examined factors are involved in the local mechanisms regulating angiogenesis and that the interactions between proangiogenic (HIF1A) and antiangiogenic (vasohibins) factors impact all stages of bovine ovary function.     

Flame retardant properties of triazine phosphonates derivative with cotton fabric

The flame retardant behavior of cotton fabric treated with phosphorus-nitrogen containing triazine compound was evaluated. It was found that cyanuric chloride (2,4,6-trichloro-1,3,5-triazine) is an excellent starting material for the preparation of phosphonate flame retardants that interact well with cotton to improve flame resistance (FR) performance. Tetraethyl 6-chloro-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diyldiphosphonate (TECTDP) has been prepared by a simple one-step reaction in high yield (98.0 %). Cotton fabrics treated with TECTDP result in covalent bond formation between TECTDP and hydroxyl groups in cotton fabrics. This FR system provides an efficient flame retardant for cotton textiles at low cost to meet government mandates. In this study, the FR material was synthesized and characterized by ¹H and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and LC-MS spectroscopy. The chemical structure of cotton twill fabric treated with TECTDP by pad-dry-cure method was analyzed by FT-MIR and SEM. Furthermore, the thermal and flammability properties were evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), limiting oxygen index (LOI, ASTM D-2863-09), and a vertical flame test (ASTM D-6413-08).     

Uterus Cryopreservation: Maintenance of Uterine Contractility by the Use of Different Cryoprotocols

Cryopreservation of cells and even tissue is feasible. New exciting findings arise in the promising field of cryobiology, e.g. the cryopreservation of whole ovaries. Uterus cryopreservation would be advantageous not only for experimental biology, but also for transplantation surgery. The objective of this study was to evaluate various cryopreservation protocols as well as various storage temperatures in cryopreservation of whole swine uteri. The used freezing protocol was slow (0.2°C/min) after arterial perfusion with 1%, 5% or 10% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) solution for 10 min and equilibration in this solution for 30 min. Viability of the organs was tested by histological examination, biochemical parameters and by the capability of rhythmical contractions in a perfusion system. Eighty swine uteri were cryopreserved. All uteri that were frozen with 10% and 5% DMSO were viable after thawing for at least 1 h, whereas only 40% survived with the use of 1% DMSO and 0% with the use of 0.5% DMSO, respectively. There was no difference regarding the survival rates after various cryostorage periods for up to 16 weeks or after cryostorage for 2 weeks in −70°C or −130°C. The cryopreservation of a whole organ such as the swine uterus is a valuable method for the study of cryoprotective agents and freezing protocols. This study demonstrates clearly that the perfusion of the organ with cryoprotectants is the only factor which allows the uterus to contract.     

Heat inactivation of the neuraminidase and haemagglutinin estimated in the agglutination-separation reactions using red blood cells sensitized with Newcastle disease virus.

The agglutination-separation (AS) reactions estimate the effects of heat on the release of altered Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and HN glycoprotein spikes from red blood cells (RBC) sensitized with NDV (SRBC), the inactivations of the neuraminidase (NA), then the haemagglutinin (HA) in a direct assay. Heating SRBC for 1.5 min at 56 degrees C inactivated the NA by 50%; after 4.5 min no separation occurred indicating 100% inactivation of the NA. Heating a suspension of NDV for 78 min inactivated the NA 50% as assayed by cleavage of fetuin. Comparatively, the AS test was up to 52-fold (78 min/1.5 min = 52) more efficient in detecting NA inactivation than was the basic reference test where cleavage of fetuin was assayed. The HA was 50% inactivated after 18 min of heating and 100% inactivated after 36 min as no agglutination was seen. Free HA on SRBC was agglutinated by and thus was titrated with the sialic acid on NRBC. The large area of RBC increased the efficiency of the AS test when compared with tests using suspensions of NDV. At 51-60 degrees C all NA and HA inactivations were sequential, and invariably the NA was more heat labile than the HA. The release of altered NDV and HN spikes was inhibited with mild heat although the separation of SRBC and NRBC continued. Biological purifications showed that the heat stability of the HA and the lability of the NA were genetically stable.