Orbital apex syndrome secondary to an orbital sarcoma in a dog

A 12-year-old castrated male cocker spaniel dog was presented with a 4-week history of left episcleral injection and pawing at the face. Clinical examination findings included left internal and external ophthalmoplegia, left dorsal strabismus, pain opening the mouth, and intermittent amaurosis. Imaging studies revealed a left orbital apex mass with adjacent sphenoid bone lysis and extension into the cranial cavity. A left exenteration was performed and histopathology confirmed an orbital soft tissue sarcoma.Key clinical message:This report describes an orbital tumor causing orbital apex syndrome. This condition should be differentiated from cavernous sinus syndrome as the latter does not course with optic neuropathy.     

Ocular teratoid medulloepithelioma in a northern red-shouldered macaw: case report and literature review

A 4-mo-old northern red-shouldered macaw (Diopsittaca nobilis) was admitted to the veterinary hospital of the Arruda Câmara Zoo, in the State of Paraiba, Brazil, for investigation of an orbital mass. Given rapid progression and lack of response to treatment, the bird was euthanized, and an autopsy was performed. Histologically, the mass consisted of a retrobulbar invasive tumor characterized by tubular and rosette-like structures, with interspersed heteroplastic tissues, such as aggregates of neuroglial cells and islands of hyaline cartilage. The tumor was immunopositive for pancytokeratin, GFAP, NSE, and S100. These findings were compatible with an ocular teratoid medulloepithelioma, a neoplasm best described in humans but also reported rarely in young cockatiels and African Grey parrots.     

Feline calicivirus

Feline calicivirus (FCV) is an important and highly prevalent pathogen of cats. It belongs to the family Caliciviridae which includes other significant pathogens of man and animals. As an RNA virus, high polymerase error rates convey upon FCV a high genome plasticity, and allow the virus to respond rapidly to environmental selection pressures. This makes the virus very adaptable and has important implications for clinical disease and its control. Being genetically diverse, FCV is associated with a range of clinical syndromes from inapparent infections to relatively mild oral and upper respiratory tract disease with or without acute lameness. More recently, highly virulent forms of the virus have emerged associated with a systemic infection that is frequently fatal. A proportion of FCV infected cats that recover from acute disease, remain persistently infected. In such cats, virus evolution is believed to help the virus to evade the host immune response. Such long-term carriers may only represent a minority of the feline population but are likely to be crucial to the epidemiology of the virus. Vaccination against FCV has been available for many years and has effectively reduced the incidence of clinical disease. However, the vaccines do not prevent infection and vaccinated cats can still become persistently infected. In addition, FCV strain variability means that not all strains are protected against equally. Much progress has been made in understanding the biology and pathogenesis of this important feline virus. Challenges for the future will necessarily focus on how to control the variability of this virus particularly in relation to emerging virulent strains and vaccination.     

Intra- and interobserver assessments of intestinal wall thickness and segmentations from transverse sections of feline abdominal ultrasound images

Measurements of intestinal wall thicknesses from ultrasound imaging (US) are routinely used to support diagnoses of intestinal disorders in cats, however published studies describing observer agreement are currently lacking. The aim of this retrospective, observer agreement study was to quantify inter- and intraobserver repeatability and agreement in the measurement of intestinal wall layer thicknesses and the segmentation of transverse sections of small intestines in US images of 20 cats. Intestinal wall layer thickness measurements of the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, serosa layer, and total thickness of these layers were performed on five cats with small cell epitheliotropic lymphoma, five with inflammatory bowel disease, and 10 with other conditions. Thickness measurements and the segmentation encompassing the serosa layer were obtained from five observers four times non-sequentially. The average standard deviation in thickness measurements (95% confidence interval) in the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, serosa, and total thickness were 0.35 (0.07–0.95), 0.24 (0.07-0.52), 0.22 (0.06-0.49), 0.20 (0.05-0.49), and 0.57 (0.11-1.60) mm, respectively. The average intraclass correlation coefficients, which estimates the degree of consistency in thickness measurements and segmentation areas for each observer, ranged from 0.355 to 0.870 and 0.850 to 0.993, respectively. The interclass correlation coefficient, which estimates the degree of consistency when measuring a thickness or segmentation area over all observers ranged from 0.115 to 0.753, and 0.811 to 0.902, respectively. The overall average Dice Coefficient, which estimates the extent of overlap of the segmentations for all observers was 0.957 (0.933 to 0.972). Our results suggest segmentations of small intestines have a higher interobserver agreement than measurements of intestinal wall thicknesses.     

The effects of continuous photoperiod (24L:0D) on growth of juvenile barramundi (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lates calcarifer</Emphasis>)

The efficacy of photoperiod manipulation to influence growth and developmental processes is well documented in a range of temperate aquaculture species. However, the application of such techniques with tropical species requires further investigation. This preliminary 20-day study investigated the influence of continuous photoperiod on growth of barramundi (Lates calcarifer). In addition, diel plasma melatonin profiles provided a physiological measure of how the endocrine system of barramundi responded to continuous photoperiod. Juvenile barramundi (1.33 ± 0.02 g) were held in recirculation systems under 12-h light: 12-h dark (12L:12D) or 24-h light (24L:0D) with a light intensity of 1,000 lux throughout the water column. Fish from both treatments grew to more than 14 times their original weight, with final weight (24L:0D = 21.59 ± 0.85 g; 12L:12D = 19.12 ± 0.55 g), total length (24L:0D = 12.67 ± 0.14 cm; 12L:12D = 11.96 ± 0.13 cm) and specific growth rate (24L:0D = 9.60 ± 0.05% bw day⁻¹; 12L:12D = 9.14 ± 0.06% bw day⁻¹) being significantly higher for fish grown on 24L:0D compared with 12L:12D. There were no significant differences in feed intake (24L:0D = 226.46 ± 6.27 g; 12L:12D = 219.02 ± 5.73 g) or feed conversion ratio (24L:0D = 0.71 ± 0.06; 12L:12D = 0.80 ± 0.07) between light treatments. Barramundi held under 12L:12D exhibited diel melatonin secretion, which peaked mid-dark phase (171.83 ± 4.81 pg ml⁻¹) followed by a gradual decrease in base levels at the onset of illumination (68.61 ± 8.77 pg ml⁻¹). When juvenile barramundi were subjected to 24L:0D, the amplitude of peak melatonin secretion was significantly suppressed during the subjective mid-dark phase (129.71 ± 2.36 pg ml⁻¹). This preliminary study confirmed that barramundi respond to photoperiod manipulation in a similar manner to many temperate fish species, thus demonstrating the future potential use of artificial lighting to improve growth in this species commercially.     

Diversity of microbial products—discovery and application

Natural products derived from micro-organisms, plants and animals possess inherent biological properties and are, therefore, an excellent source of lead chemicals on which to base synthesis programmes employing rational design techniques. Only a fraction of the fungal kingdom has been screened systematically for novel metabolites despite their suspected potential. Moreover, the fungi are generally manipulable in laboratory culture systems and, because of their developmental versatility, they offer tremendous potential as sources of novel metabolites. Primary assay systems based on biochemical targets provide an effective means of screening microbial products; such assay systems also efficiently support chemical purification of lead activities and rapid elucidation of new chemical templates.     

Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction Primers for the Detection of Plasmodiophora brassicae in Soil and Water

ABSTRACT The development of specific oligonucleotide primers for Plasmodiophora brassicae has led to a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection method for P. brassicae in soil and water. Initially, the PCR was used to amplify a section of the rDNA repeat. The PCR products were sequenced and the data used to design primers that were directed at the ribosomal RNA genes and internal transcribed spacer regions. Specificity was tested against more than 40 common soil organisms, host plants, and spore suspension contaminants, as well as P. brassicae isolates from around Australia and the world. Sensitivity was determined to be 0.1 fentograms (fg; 10(-15) g) for pure template and as low as 1,000 spores per g of potting mix. In soil, P. brassicae was detected in all soils where the inoculum was sufficient to result in clubroot symptoms. Also outlined is a simple method of DNA extraction from soil.     

Effects of body position and ventilation/compression ratios during cardiopulmonary resuscitation in cats

Eighteen cats were anesthetized and were randomly assigned to 2 groups (9 cats/group). Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was performed on each cat, with the cat in dorsal (group 1) or lateral (group 2) recumbency, by administering 5 external cardiac compressions/1 interposed (diastolic) ventilation (American Heart Association [AHA] technique; n = 3 cats/technique), simultaneous compression and ventilation (SCV; n = 3 cats/technique), or SCV with 1 interposed (diastolic) ventilation every tenth compression (SCV/DV; n = 3 cats/technique). Fourteen of the 18 cats were resuscitated. Central aortic and venous pressures were determined concurrently with lead II electrocardiography. Arterial blood samples were collected during the base-line period (after pressure fluctuations had stabilized, with the cats spontaneously breathing room air), 2.5 minutes after the onset of arrest (defined as the cessation of aortic pressure fluctuations), and after 10 minutes of CPR. Arterial blood gas values during the base-line period or during the period of arrest were not significantly different between group-1 and group-2 cats. After CPR, arterial pH and bicarbonate values were not significantly different between groups or between technique categories. The PaCO2 values were significantly lower in cats resuscitated by SCV or by SCV/DV than in cats resuscitated by AHA (P less than 0.05). The PaO2 values were significantly (P less than 0.001) higher in group-2 cats than in group-1 cats and were significantly (P less than 0.001) different between each technique category, with cats resuscitated by AHA having the lowest PaO2 and cats resuscitated by SCV/DV having the highest PaO2. Body position, CPR technique, sex, weight, or arterial blood gas values after CPR were not predictors of successful resuscitation.