Evaluation of a single injection of 99mTc-labeled diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid for measuring glomerular filtration rate in horses.

Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was measured in 12 clinically normal horses, using the standard inulin clearance method, and values were compared with values for 2 methods, using a single rapid IV injection of 99mTc-labeled diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (99mTc-DTPA). The first 99mTc-DTPA method used a 2-compartment model to calculate GFR blood clearance of the tracer. The second method used sequential digital gamma camera images of the kidneys to determine fractional accumulation of the total dose of the tracer in the kidneys (percentage of injected dose, gamma camera) from 0 to 10 minutes after radionuclide administration. Linear correlation among the 3 methods was determined. Mean (+/- SD) GFR, using the inulin clearance method, was 154.67 +/- 42.28 ml/min/100 kg of body weight. Mean GFR, using the 2-compartment blood clearance curve, was 146.92 +/- 27.49 ml/min/100 kg. Mean GFR, using percentage of injected dose (gamma camera method) was 154.7 +/- 22.00 ml/min/100 kg. The percentage of injected dose (gamma camera method) did not correlate significantly to the inulin clearance results. However, a significant (r = 0.666, P less than 0.018) correlation was observed between the inulin method and the 99mTc-DTPA blood clearance method. Significant (P less than 0.0001) difference also was observed in the split function of the equine kidneys, with GFR of the right kidney contributing 60.1 +/- 9.12% of the total function, as determined by 99mTc-DTPA gamma camera imaging. Because the 99mTc-DTPA blood clearance method does not require urine collection, it may be a more practical procedure to measure GFR in the horse.     

Comparison of a competitive inhibition ELISA and the card agglutination test for detection of antibodies to Anaplasma marginale and Anaplasma centrale in cattle

OBJECTIVE: To compare a recently developed recombinant MSP-5 competitive inhibition ELISA with a card agglutination test for detection of antibodies to Anaplasma marginale and Anaplasma centrale in Australian cattle. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The ELISA was compared with the card agglutination test using 208 sera from cattle in Anaplasma-free herds, 86 sera from cattle experimentally infected with A marginale or A centrale and 757 sera from cattle in areas endemic for A marginale. RESULTS: The specificity of the ELISA, based on testing 208 sera from cattle in Anaplasma-free areas, was 99.5%, and the sensitivities for detection of antibodies to A marginale and A centrale in sera from the experimentally infected cattle were 98.0% and 100%, respectively. For the same sets of sera, the specificity of the card agglutination test was 98.6% and the sensitivities for detection of antibodies to A marginale and A centrale were 98.0% and 100%, respectively. For the 757 sera collected from cattle in areas endemic for A marginale, the agreement between the ELISA and the card agglutination test depended on the positive threshold selected for the ELISA. The maximum achievable agreement was 91.5% (kappa = 0.73; 95% confidence interval 0.66, 0.79). CONCLUSION: We conclude that the competitive inhibition ELISA is a useful alternative to the card agglutination test for detection of A marginale or A centrale infection in cattle. The assay should be particularly useful for epidemiological applications such as prevalence studies and control programs.     

Magnetic Collapse in Transition Metal Oxides at High Pressure: Implications for the Earth

Magnetic collapse in transition metal ions is predicted from first-principles computations at pressures reached in the Earth's lower mantle and core. Magnetic collapse would lead to marked changes in geophysically important properties, such as elasticity and conductivity, and also to different geochemical behavior, such as element partitioning, than estimated by extrapolating low-pressure data, and thus change the understanding of Earth's structure and evolution. Magnetic collapse results from band widening rather than from changes in crystal field splitting under pressure. Seismic anomalies in the outer core and the lowermost mantle may be due to magnetic collapse of ferrous iron, dissolved in iron liquid in the outer core, and in solution in magnesiowustite in the lowermost mantle.     

养殖和野生亚东鲑机体成分比较分析

亚东鲑(Salmo trutta fario)是鲑属鱼类在青藏高原仅有的鱼类种群,是亚东地区全国农产品地理标志产品。本研究对西藏亚东地区野生和养殖亚东鲑的常规营养成分及各组织氨基酸和脂肪酸组成进行分析,旨在比较野生和养殖亚东鲑营养成分的异同,为养殖亚东鲑的品质评价和饲料配方的完善提供参考信息。实验采集亚东河中野生亚东鲑和亚东渔业产业园中使用配合饲料养殖的亚东鲑各10尾用于相关成分分析,每尾为一个独立样本。结果显示,野生组肥满度显著低于养殖组,而全鱼水分和灰分显著高于养殖组。全鱼粗蛋白、粗脂肪以及肝脏常规成分在野生组和养殖组间无显著差异。野生组肌肉粗脂肪显著低于养殖组,而水分含量显著高于养殖组。野生组全鱼必需氨基酸总量显著高于养殖组,且野生组肌肉中苏氨酸、缬氨酸、苯丙氨酸、赖氨酸和甘氨酸含量显著高于养殖组。野生组全鱼、肌肉和肝脏中饱和脂肪酸、n-3多不饱和脂肪酸(n-3 PUFA)总量、EPA、C20:4n-6以及肌肉中DHA含量高于养殖组,而全鱼和组织中单不饱和脂肪酸和n-6 PUFA总量低于养殖组。综上所述,目前养殖亚东鲑和野生亚东鲑在机体成分上存在较大差异。由于养殖鱼类体成分很大程度上反映了饲料组成,因此,亚东鲑养殖中饲料营养组成可能有待进一步优化。     

Transferable antibiotic resistance

Extract

Skin disease could well be described as the biggest diagnostic headache of small-animal practice. No other body system is subjected to disease caused by such a wide range of aetiological agents yet reacts with such a limited range of observable responses that can be differentiated on clinical grounds.     

Rib osteomyelitis in three foals

Three foals aged between 21 and 44 days were presented for evaluation of pyrexia and lameness. Each had subcutaneous abscessation associated with osteomyelitis of a rib at the costochondral junction and pathological fracture of the affected rib; one foal had more than one rib affected. Other localised sites of infection included other sites of osteomyelitis, omphalophlebitis, uveitis, enterocolitis, and calcaneal bursitis. The subcutaneous abscessation and rib osteomyelitis was treated surgically in two foals. Salmonella typhimurium was isolated from the subcutaneous abscess in one foal and from the faeces of another. Two of the three foals were euthanased. Ultrasonography was a more useful modality than radiography for establishing the diagnosis of costal osteomyelitis.