COMPARISON OF ULTRASONOGRAPHIC AND RADIOGRAPHIC MEASUREMENTS OF CANINE PROSTATE DIMENSIONS

The purposes of this study were to: 1) compare prostatic dimensions measured on radiographic and ultrasonographic images and 2) compare a subjective radiographic assessment of prostate size with a previously-described objective method. Thirty-four male dogs undergoing investigation of prostatic disorders were used. Prostate length and depth were measured from ultrasonographic and radiographic images. A subjective assessment of prostate size ('small', 'normal', or 'enlarged') was made in 29 animals by one of the authors who was unaware of radiographic or ultrasonographic measurements. In addition, the distance from sacral promontory to the pubic brim was also measured. A prostate length or depth of >70% of this distance was defined as 'enlarged' and <70% as 'normal'. After the effects of magnification on radiographic measurements were eliminated, there were no significant differences between prostatic length measured by the two methods. However, a significant difference was obtained between prostatic depth measurements. The subjective assessment agreed with a previously described objective assessment of prostatic size in 21/29 dogs for prostate length but in only 12/29 for depth. Prostatic length varied from 46.6 to 116.4% (mean 75.7%) of the distance from the pubic brim to the sacral promontory. Prostatic depth varied from 33.0% to 94.6% (mean 59.7%) of the same distance. It is recommended that prostate length, rather than depth, be used when evaluating prostate size from lateral abdominal radiographs.     

Vaginal position and length in the bitch: relationship to spaying and urinary incontinence

A study was undertaken to determine if the vagina might be a suitable site for the measurement of intra-abdominal pressure during cystometry in the bitch. The position of the cranial vagina and vaginal length were measured radiographically and the effects of spaying and urinary incontinence on these variables were evaluated in 30 continent and 30 incontinent bitches. The study used retrograde vaginourethrograms which had been obtained from animals used in a previous study. The cranial vagina was intra-abdominal on 36 of the vaginourethrograms, being least commonly intra-abdominal in incontinent bitches (11/30). Vaginal position was related linearly to vaginal length and continence status (P < 0.01), while its length was related to bodyweight (P < 0.01). Allowing for bodyweight, neutered animals had significantly shorter vaginas than entire bitches (P < 0.01). Measurement of intra-abdominal pressure with concomitant measurement of intravesical pressure is essential if accurate assessment of detrusor pressure is to be determined during cystometry. The vagina is unlikely to be a useful location from which to measure intra-abdominal pressure since any pressure-measuring catheter inserted into it may fall outside the abdominal pressure zone. This is particularly true of neutered and/or incontinent bitches, the groups in which urodynamic investigations of urinary incontinence are most frequently indicated.     

长江口沿岸碎波带刀鲚仔稚鱼的数量分布

2007年5-10月,每月大潮期间在长江口沿岸碎波带13个站位用小型拖网各采样1次.195次拖网共采获刀鲚(Coilia nasus)仔稚鱼9 358尾,体长范围为3.0～61.2mm,优势体长为6.0～25.0 mm,以10.0～16.0 mm的弯曲期和13.0～21.0 mm的后弯曲期仔鱼为主.采获数量以7月最高,占总数55.0%,主要分布在长江口南支和北支上游,有3个站位(St.5、St.7、St.10)数量较高.其中有1个站位(St.7)刀鲚仔鱼的平均体长按月呈递增趋势,表明刀鲚仔稚鱼有利用沿岸碎波带作为早期生长场所的习性.根据刀鲚仔稚鱼在长江口沿岸碎波带分布和数量变动的调查结果,结合目前刀鲚成鱼资源量贫乏的现状,建议有关部门限制鳗苗定置网等作业,并加强对沿岸碎波带保育场的保护.     

A quantitative interpretation of the entry section of the EPPO decision‐support scheme for pest risk analysis

The development of methods to combine components of risk and their associated uncertainty in Pest Risk Analysis (PRA) has received attention in a number of recent European projects. Many of the risk components distinguished in the EPPO Decision‐support scheme (DSS) for PRA are usually difficult to quantify, but when there is detailed knowledge of the pest and pathway, quantification may be possible to a limited extent for the pest entry section of the scheme. The European Food Safety Authority has recently commissioned a project to investigate approaches to quantitative pathway analysis for pests of commodities entering and moving within the EU (QPA‐Food); a sister project concerns non‐food commodities. This paper illustrates the potential for a quantitative pathway model based closely on the Entry Section of the EPPO DSS for PRA, where existing quantitative definitions of rating categories have been used as a basis to estimate the proportion and number of infested lots on a pathway. Such quantification may provide additional insights without requiring substantial changes to the information elicited via the DSS.     

宫内生长迟缓仔猪T细胞的发育研究

研究旨在探讨从出生到断奶不同日龄宫内生长迟缓(IUGR)猪T细胞的发育变化情况。选用体重相近和配种期相同的达兰初产妊娠母猪30头,分娩时从每窝仔猪中挑选1头正常体重猪和1头IUGR猪,分别在1、7、14、21、28日龄时屠宰取胸腺,分离T细胞,通过流式细胞仪测定CD3、CD4、CD8T细胞的数量,每个日龄6个重复。结果表明:出生后第1天IUGR仔猪与正常仔猪的CD4+CD8+细胞(双阳性T细胞)占总T细胞的百分比差异显著(P<0.05);出生后第7天IUGR仔猪与正常仔猪的CD4细胞占总T细胞的百分比差异极显著(P<0.01);后期各细胞亚群之间没有差异。结果提示,子宫内各种因素的综合影响能造成出生后早期IUGR仔猪T细胞亚群发育不完善,这就从T细胞亚群的发育方面解释了IUGR仔猪免疫力低的原因。     

Germination and seedling establishment of Norway spruce (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Picea abies</Emphasis>) after clear-cutting is affected by timing of soil scarification

Natural regeneration of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) is a relatively common practice in Norway on medium to low site indices. However, seedling establishment is often hampered by rapid regrowth of competing vegetation in scarified patches. The aim of our study was to examine the effect of coordinating scarification towards an expected seed-fall, by studying germination and seedling establishment in scarified patches of different age (fresh, one- and two-year-old). The experiment was conducted in two stands in southeast Norway that were clear-cut in 2007. Scarification was applied to subplots in autumn 2008–2010. To simulate seed-fall, seeds were sown in fresh scarification patches in spring 2009–2011, in one-year-old patches in 2010 and 2011, and in two-year-old patches in 2011. Both germination and seedling survival were negatively affected by the age of the scarified patches. Germination was higher, and mortality lower, at the small fern woodland site, compared with the bilberry woodland site. Sowing in fresh patches also resulted in increased height and root collar diameter of the seedlings compared with sowing in older patches. It is likely that the competing vegetation both on the site and in the scarification patches affected the growth of the seedlings. In conclusion, the age of the scarified patches affected both germination and mortality, as well as early growth of the seedlings.     

Effects of forest residue harvesting on short-term changes in soil solution chemistry

Short-term (three to four years) effects of forest harvesting on soil solution chemistry were investigated at two Norway spruce sites in southern Norway, differing in precipitation amount and topography. Experimental plots were either harvested conventionally (stem-only harvesting, SOH) or whole trees, including crowns, twigs and branches were removed (whole-tree harvesting, WTH), leaving residue piles on the ground for some months before removal. The WTH treatment had two sub-treatments: WTH-pile where there had been piles and WTH-removal, from where residues had been removed to make piles. Increased soil solution concentrations of NO₃–N, total N, Ca, Mg and K at 30?cm depth, shown by peaks in concentrations in the years after harvesting, were found at the drier, less steep site in eastern Norway after SOH and WTH-pile, but less so after WTH-removal. At the wetter, steeper site in western Norway, peaks were often observed also at WTH-removal plots, which might reflect within-site differences in water pathways due largely to site topography.     

A NOVEL,REMOVABLE, CERROBEND,BEAM‐BLOCKING DEVICE FOR RADIATION THERAPY OF THE CANINE HEAD AND NECK: PILOT STUDY

Radiation therapy of the head and neck can result in mucositis and other acute affects in the oral cavity. This prospective pilot study evaluated a novel, intraoral, beam‐blocking device for use during imaging and therapeutic procedures. The beam‐blocking device was made from a metal alloy inserted into a coated frozen dessert mold (Popsicle® Mold, Cost Plus World Market, Oakland, CA). The device was designed so that it could be inserted into an outer shell, which in turn allowed it to be placed or removed depending on the need due to beam configuration. A Farmer type ionization chamber and virtual water phantom were used to assess effects of field size on transmission. Six large breed cadaver dogs, donated by the owner after death, were recruited for the study. Delivered dose at the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the device, with and without the alloy block in place, were measured using radiochromic film. It was determined that transmission was field size dependent with larger field sizes leading to decreased attenuation of the beam, likely secondary to scatter. The mean and median transmission on the ventral surface without the beam‐blocking device was 0.94 [range 0.94–0.96]. The mean and median transmission with the beam‐blocking device was 0.52 [range 0.50–0.57]. The mean and median increase in dose due to backscatter on the dorsal surface of the beam‐blocking device was 0.04 [range 0.02–0.04]. Findings indicated that this novel device can help attenuate radiation dose ventral to the block in dogs, with minimal backscatter.     

A quantitative model for trade pathway analysis of plant pest entry and transfer to a host in European Union territory

A quantitative pathway model, QPAFood, has been designed to support risk assessment for plant pest entry into European Union (EU) territory on a range of edible plant commodities via trade flows. The model calculates the distribution of an imported infested/infected commodity along a pathway into and within the EU from source countries, based on Eurostat data and other data/information. The model determines the implications of global trade pathways for the potential arrival of the infested commodity in the EU28 Member States. Within each Member State, the calculation proceeds by distributing the commodity according to uses, notably retail or processing, to the vulnerable area of commercial host crops determined in each NUTS2 region and then quantifies the consequent potential for pest–host contact which could lead to pest transfer. Annual and monthly estimates of contact risk are tabulated and visualized for Member States and NUTS2 regions. The model was developed originally for the European Food Safety Authority using four case studies of specific pest–commodity combinations. These pests had relatively limited host ranges and the model has now been extended in the context of the EC FP7 DROPSA project for the multiple commodity pathways associated with the highly polyphagous fruit pest Drosophila suzukii.