An Investigation of Uterine Nitric Oxide Production in Mares Susceptible and Resistant to Persistent Breeding‐Induced Endometritis and the Effects of Immunomodulation

The first objective of this study was to evaluate intrauterine nitric oxide (NO) and endometrial inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in mares susceptible or resistant to persistent breeding‐induced endometritis (PBIE) within 24 h after breeding. Mares susceptible (n = 6) or resistant (n = 6) to PBIE were inseminated over five cycles, and uterine secretions and endometrial biopsies were collected before and 2, 6, 12 and 24 h after insemination. Uterine secretions were analysed for NO and biopsies were analyzed for iNOS expression. A second experiment evaluated the effect of treatment with dexamethasone or mycobacterial cell wall extract (MCWE) on uterine NO production and endometrial iNOS mRNA expression. Six susceptible mares were inseminated over three cycles with (i) killed spermatozoa without treatment (control), (ii) killed spermatozoa with 50 mg of dexamethasone IV or (iii) MCWE IV 24 h prior to insemination with killed spermatozoa. Six resistant mares were inseminated with killed spermatozoa as a control. Six hours after breeding, uterine biopsies and secretions were collected and evaluated for NO and iNOS mRNA. In Experiment 1, resistant mares had an increase in iNOS mRNA expression 2 h post‐breeding compared to baseline (p = 0.045), 12 h (p = 0.014) and 24 h (p = 0.001). Susceptible mares had higher expression 2 h compared to 6 h (p = 0.046). No differences were observed in mRNA or protein expression of iNOS between resistant and susceptible mares. Resistant mares had a relatively steady amount of total intrauterine NO over 24 h, while susceptible mares had an increase over time, with a significantly higher increase in total NO than resistant mares at 6 (p = 0.04) and 12 h (p = 0.032). In Experiment 2, no differences were observed for iNOS mRNA expression. Susceptible mares had increased NO when compared to resistant mares (p = 0.008) and MCWE decreased NO (p = 0.047).     

Bilateral Testicular Seminoma in a Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

A 10-year-old male mini Lop rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) was presented with a 2-month history of progressive enlargement of the hemiscrotal sacs. On palpation, both testicles were enlarged, with the left being larger than the right. A bilateral orchiectomy was performed and the testicular tissue submitted for pathological examination. The histopathological diagnosis of the tissue revealed a right gonadal intratubular seminoma and diffuse seminoma of the left gonad. Although seminomas have been reported in several domestic and wild animals, including rabbits, this is, to the authors' knowledge, the first report of bilateral seminomas with dissimilar structural patterns in rabbits.     

European pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) from Portugal: Chemical composition of essential oil and antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of extracts and essential oil

There is a growing interest of industry to replace synthetic chemicals by natural products with bioactive properties from plant origin. The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition of European pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) essential oil and to characterize the in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of its water (hot and cold) and ethanolic extracts and of the essential oil. The essential oil revealed menthone, pulegone and neo-menthol as the main constituents, comprising 35.9, 23.2 and 9.2% of the essential oil, respectively. The hot water extract exhibited the highest antioxidant activity and phenol content. In contrast, the extracts were not very effective to inhibit the growth of the seven foodborne spoilage and pathogenic bacteria tested, but the essential oil showed antibacterial activity against all bacterial strains. In conclusion, extracts and essential oil of M. pulegium from Mediterranean origin have huge potential as an alternative to chemical additives for the food industry.     

Dilated cardiomyopathy and sinoatrial dysfunction in an Estrela mountain dog

A 1 yr old male Estrela mountain dog was evaluated as a part of a screening program for dilated cardiomyopathy. The dog came from a family with a history of dilated cardiomyopathy but was asymptomatic. Occult dilated cardiomyopathy and sino-atrial dysfunction were diagnosed based on echocardiography and electrocardiography. These two disorders may be associated given that related dogs have been diagnosed with the same disorders. The dog has remained asymptomatic for 4 years following initial evaluation.     

Influence on pulping yield and pulp properties of wood density of Acacia melanoxylon

Wood density and pulp yield are key parameters in the evaluation of tree productivity and quality for pulping and their relationships are of high practical importance. The influence of wood density on pulp yield and other pulp quality parameters was investigated using Acacia melanoxylon and its natural variability as a case study. Twenty trees were harvested (five trees in each of four sites in Portugal), and wood discs taken at different height levels, from the base to the top of the tree, providing 100 wood samples, covering the natural variability of wood density ranging from 449?kg?m^?3 to 649?kg?m^?3. Under the same experimental conditions of kraft pulping, screened pulp yield ranged 47.0?C58.2?%, Kappa number 10.9?C18.4, ISO brightness 14.9?C45.6, fibre length 0.660?C0.940?mm and fibre width 16.2?C22.9???m. The pulp yield and Kappa number were not correlated with wood density. Higher pulp yields were associated with lower Kappa numbers and alkali consumption, suggesting the important role of chemical composition of wood on kraft cooking. The results confirm the high pulping potential of Acacia melanoxylon trees grown in Portugal and suggest the possibility of tree selection using both wood density and pulp yield.     

Role of vinylcatechin in the formation of pyranomalvidin-3-glucoside-+-catechin

Reactions between malvidin-3-glucoside (mv3glc) and 8-vinylcatechin were carried out to synthesize pyranomv3glc-(+)-catechin pigment and to study the formation of intermediates. A rapid decrease of mv3glc content concomitant with the formation of more complex structures such as mv3glc-vinylcatechin [precursor of pyranomv3glc-(+)-catechin pigment] and mv3glc-divinylcatechin was observed. On the other hand, 8-vinylcatechin undergoes acid-catalyzed dimerization in model wine solution, giving rise to 8-vinylcatechin dimers. These compounds were also found in the reaction between mv3glc and (+)-catechin mediated by acetaldehyde, which provides evidence for the formation of 8-vinylcatechin and its involvement in the formation of pyranoanthocyanins in aged red wines.     

Estimation of genetic parameters using spatial analysis of Pinus elliottii Engelm. var. elliottii second-generation progeny trials in Argentina

Non-spatial and spatial analyses were carried out to estimate genetic parameters for growth and stem straightness traits between ages 4 and 7 in two series of eight progeny trials of Pinus elliottii Engelm. var. elliottii (PEE) established in 2004 and 2008, comprising 429 open-pollinated families from Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA) tree breeding population in Argentina. A first-order autoregressive spatial mixed model was found to significantly improve the fit of the model, compared with the standard non-spatial mixed model approach, due to substantial spatial heterogeneity within sites. The average individual-tree narrow-sense heritability estimates based on this spatial analysis were 0.49 for diameter at breast height, 0.36 for total height, and 0.48 for volume, with stem straightness being low to moderate (average?=?0.11). The additive genetic correlation estimates between growth traits were positive (0.51?≤?\(\hat{r}_{a}\)?≤?0.99) and statistically significant from zero. In contrast, the genetic correlations between growth traits and stem straightness although in general also positive were not significantly different from zero (??0.22?≤?\(\hat{r}_{a}\)?≤?0.59). Age-to-age genetic correlations were consistently higher for growth traits (\(\hat{r}_{a}\)?≥?0.81) than for stem straightness (\(\hat{r}_{a}\)?≥?0.33). The average additive genetic correlation estimated between sites within test series was high for all traits evaluated (average?>?0.72). In contrast, average additive genetic correlation estimated between sites across series was slightly lower (average?<?0.63). Implications of all these parameter estimates for genetic improvement of PEE in Argentina are discussed.

     

Early selection in eucalypt breeding in Australia – optimum selection age to minimise the total cost of kraft pulp production

Optimum ages for early combined-trait selection were derived for a breeding objective of reducing the total cost of unbleached eucalypt kraft pulp, assuming typical heritabilities and age-age genetic correlations for basic density and growth. The optimum biological selection age, the selection age where average annual gain is maximised, was four years for an assumed rotation age of 15 years. The optimum economic selection age, the selection age where the present value of all future gains is maximised, was three years. These conclusions were relatively robust to changes in assumptions used in analysis.     

A remote sensing-based approach to estimating montado canopy density using the FCD model: a contribution to identifying HNV farmlands in southern Portugal

Mapping the land-cover pattern dominated by complex Mediterranean silvo-pastoral systems with an accuracy that enables precise monitoring of changing tree-cover density is still an open challenge. The main goal of this paper is to demonstrate the implementation and effectiveness of the Forest Canopy Density (FCD) model in producing a remote sensing-based and detailed map of montado canopy density over a large territory in southern Portugal. This map will make a fundamental contribution to accurately identifying and assessing High Nature Value farmland in montado areas. The results reveal that the FCD model is an effective approach to estimating the density classes of montado canopy (overall accuracy = 78.0 %, kappa value = 0.71). The study also shows that the FCD approach generated good user’s and producer’s accuracies for the three montado canopy-density classes. Globally, the results obtained show that biophysical indices such as the advanced vegetation index, the bare soil index, the shadow index and the thermal index are suitable for estimating and mapping montado canopy-density classes. These results constitute the first remote sensing-based product for mapping montado canopy density that has been developed using the FCD model. This research clearly demonstrates that this approach can be used in the context of Mediterranean agro-forestry systems.