Renal tubular acidosis in two horses: diagnostic studies

An 11-year-old Quarter Horse mare and a 2-year-old Quarter Horse colt with clinical diagnoses of renal tubular acidosis (RTA) were donated to the University of California Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. A series of diagnostic tests was performed in an attempt to characterize the type and cause of RTA in these horses. Endogenous creatinine clearance and sodium sulfanilate clearance were within reference ranges; thus, no abnormality of glomerular function was detected. To assess renal tubular function in response to acid loading, each horse was given 0.1 g of NH4Cl/kg of body weight via nasogastric tube in 6 L of water. Urine acidification in response to the oral acid load was less than that observed in control horses. The urinary clearance ratio for sodium also was found to be greater for the principals than for the controls. These findings supported a diagnosis of RTA that closely resembled type 1 or distal RTA. In an attempt to determine the cause of RTA, renal ultrasonography, renal biopsy, and a mating study were performed. No abnormalities were identified, and the cause of RTA in these cases remained unknown.     

Studies of embryo transfer from cattle clinically affected by bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)

Semen from 13 bulls, eight with clinical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), was used to artificially inseminate (AI) 167 cows with clinical BSE, and their resultant embryos were collected non-surgically seven days after AI. The viable and non-viable embryos with intact zonae pellucidae were washed 10 times (as recommended by the International Embryo Transfer Society) then frozen. Later, 587 of the viable embryos were transferred singly into 347 recipient heifers imported from New Zealand, and 266 live offspring were born of which 54.1 per cent had a BSE-positive sire and a BSE-positive dam. The recipients were monitored for clinical signs of BSE for seven years after the transfer, and the offspring were monitored for seven years after birth. Twenty-seven of the recipients and 20 offspring died while being monitored but none showed signs of BSE. Their brains, and the brains of the recipients and offspring killed after seven years, were examined for BSE by histopathology, PrP immunohistochemistry, and by electron microscopy for scrapie-associated fibrils. They were all negative. In addition, 1020 non-viable embryos were sonicated and injected intracerebrally into susceptible mice (20 embryos per mouse) which were monitored for up to 700 days, after which their brains were examined for spongiform lesions. They were all negative. It is concluded that embryos are unlikely to carry BSE infectivity even if they have been collected at the end-stage of the disease, when the risk of maternal transmission is believed to be highest.     

The effects of herbaceous and woody competition on planted white pine in a clearcut site

We investigated the effects of herbaceous and woody vegetation control on the survival and growth of planted eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) seedlings through six growing seasons. Herbaceous vegetation control involved the suppression of grasses, forbs, ferns, and low-shrubs, and was maintained for 0, 2, or 4 years after white pine seedlings were planted. Woody control involved the removal of all tall-shrub and deciduous trees, and was conducted at the time of planting, at the end of the second or fifth growing seasons, or not at all. Seedling height and basal diameter responded positively and proportionally to duration of herbaceous vegetation control. Gains associated with woody control were generally not significant unless some degree of herbaceous vegetation control was also conducted. Only herbaceous control increased pine crown closure and rate of crown closure. Herbaceous control and the presence of 5000–15,000 stems per ha of young overtopping aspen were associated with reduced weevil (Pissodes strobi Peck.) injury and increased pine height growth. The study suggests that white pine restoration strategies on clearcut sites should focus on the proactive, early management of understory vegetation and the gradual reduction of overtopping cover from woody vegetation to create a seedling light environment that supports acceptable growth with minimal weevil damage.