Effect of sample quality on the sensitivity of endoscopic biopsy for detecting gastric and duodenal lesions in dogs and cats

Background: The quality of histopathology slides of endoscopic biopsies from different laboratories varies, but the effect of biopsy quality on outcome is unknown.
Hypothesis: The ability to demonstrate a histologic lesion in the stomach or duodenum of a dog or cat is affected by the quality of endoscopic biopsy samples submitted. More endoscopic samples are needed to find a lesion in poor-quality tissue specimens.
Animals: Tissues from 99 dogs and 51 cats were examined as clinical cases at 8 veterinary institutions or practices in 5 countries.
Methods: Histopathology slides from sequential cases that underwent endoscopic biopsy were submitted by participating institutions. Quality of the histologic section of tissue (inadequate, marginal, adequate), type of lesion (lymphangiectasia, crypt lesion, villus blunting, cellular infiltrate), and severity of lesion (normal, mild, moderate, severe) were determined. Sensitivity of different quality tissue samples for finding different lesions was determined.
Results: Fewer samples were required from dogs for diagnosis as the quality of the sample improved from inadequate to marginal to adequate. Duodenal lesions in cats displayed the same trend except for moderate duodenal infiltrates for which quality of tissue sample made no difference. Gastric lesions in dogs and mild gastric lesions in cats had the same trend, whereas the number of tissue samples needed to diagnose moderately severe gastric lesions in cats was not affected by the quality of tissue sample.
Conclusions and Clinical Importance: The quality of endoscopically obtained tissue samples has a profound effect on their sensitivity for identifying certain lesions, and there are differences between biopsies of canine and feline tissues.     

Plant availability of phosphorus in dead herbage ingested by surface-casting earthworms

A combined field and glasshouse technique was developed to evaluate the plant-availability of phosphorus from two sources. The first source was ryegrass which had been ingested by earthworms and excreted in surface casts, and the second was untreated ryegrass. Surface casts labelled with ³²P were obtained in the field from earthworms fed with ³²P-labelled ryegrass. In a glasshouse study, labelled casts or labelled herbage were placed on the surface of soil in which ryegrass was growing. Ryegrass recovered proportionately more ³²P from cast material than from dead herbage. The results suggest that earthworms increase the short-term plant availability of P derived from plant litter by two to three fold. The effect of surface-casting earthworms on the rate of cycling of P in soils of different P status is discussed.     

Follicular dysplasia in two cows

The histological features of a follicular dysplasia with pigmentary changes is reported in two adult cows, one a black Brangus-cross and the other a black Angus. Adult onset of diffuse alopecia was present in both cows. Skin biopsies exhibited follicular distortion and atrophy, with melanin clumping in follicular epithelium, hair bulb matrix cells, hair shafts, and infundibular keratin. Both animals were clinically normal apart from the alopecia. This report confirms and expands on the infrequently reported syndrome of follicular dysplasia in cattle.     

Neurologic complications after melarsomine dihydrochloride treatment for Dirofilaria immitis in three dogs

Melarsomine dihydrochloride is highly effective against both sexes of adult and L5 Dirofilaria immitis. Common adverse reactions include injection site irritation and reluctance to move. Neurologic complications associated with i.m. injection of melarsomine dihydrochloride for treatment of heartworm disease in 3 dogs are described. Different degrees of neurologic complications have been identified; the pathophysiologic features are unknown. It is speculated that the compound migrates out of the injection site via fascial planes and causes an ascending inflammation along nerve roots. The resulting extradural cord compression secondary to extensive inflammation and necrosis of epidural fat could induce a variety of neurologic deficits. Alternatively, inappropriate injection technique may result in direct contact of melarsomine with neural tissue. A heightened awareness of proper injection technique might prevent the development of most neurologic complications.     

Cervical Ripening and Parturition in Cows are Driven by a Cascade of Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines

The final stages of cervical ripening and parturition resemble an inflammatory process. Although the role of cytokines in both spontaneous and experimentally induced parturitions has been described in several small laboratory animals and humans, the involvement of pro‐inflammatory and regulatory cytokines in physiologic parturition in cows has not been determined. In this study, the cytokine expression profiles were assessed in bovine cervical tissue at several stages of pregnancy and at parturition. Serial biopsy samples of the cervix were obtained from 10 cows on day 185 and day 275 of pregnancy (which was on average 5.4 days before parturition) and at parturition. Messenger RNA expression levels of interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐8, IL‐10 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)α were determined using real‐time polymerase chain reaction and the number of neutrophils and eosinophils was estimated by Luna and Sirius Red staining. At parturition, IL‐8 expression had increased 430‐fold (p < 0.001) when compared with that of the day 185 of pregnancy, large numbers of neutrophils had invaded the cervix while eosinophils remained scarce, IL‐1β had increased eightfold (p < 0.05) and IL‐6 had not changed significantly. Additionally, IL‐10 was increased by 10‐fold (p < 0.001) and TNFα decreased by 57% (p < 0.05) when compared with that of the day 185 of pregnancy. The large increase in expression of IL‐8, enabling the influx of neutrophils, is indicative of its important role in the final stage of cervical ripening and at parturition. As previous studies have shown that neutrophils excrete matrix metalloproteinases (MMP), this might contribute to softening of the cervix. In contrast, the only slightly increased levels of IL‐1, steady concentrations of IL‐6 and decreased TNFα, the potential consequences of increased IL‐10 expression, indicate that final cervical of cows in ripening at term parturition is an inflammatory process influenced by regulatory cytokines.     

科学构建国家兽医药品公共信息平台促进产业发展

文章探讨了兽医药品信息对政府、企业、消费者以及产业发展的重要意义，国家如何科学地构建行业专业的信息平台，实施兽医药品产业、政务、公共信息数字化网络化，通过信息化建设推进产业发展。     

Ulcerative pododermatitis in a cat associated with Anatrichosoma sp.

A 9-year-old castrated male Chartreaux cat was presented for an ulcerative pododermatitis of all 4 paws. A clinical exam was inconclusive and supportive therapy did not improve the condition. Histologic examination revealed an ulcerative and eosinophilic dermatitis associated with epidermal and dermal nematodes and ova consistent with the aphasmid Anatrichosoma sp. Treatment with ivermectin completely resolved the skin lesions. Anatrichosomiasis should be included in the differential diagnosis of ulcerative pododermatitis in cats, at least in the southwestern United States.