A neurologic syndrome in Golden Retrievers presenting as a sensory ataxic neuropathy

BACKGROUND: A sensory ataxic neuropathy has been observed in Swedish Golden Retrievers recently. ANIMALS: Twenty-one affected Golden Retrievers. METHODS: Clinical and neurologic status, electrophysiologic, and pathologic status as well as pedigree analyses were evaluated. RESULTS: Clinical signs had an insidious onset between 2 and 8 months of age and a slowly progressive course. Affected dogs were ataxic and dysmetric. They had abnormal postural reactions and decreased spinal reflexes but no apparent muscle atrophy. Clinical pathology, radiography, and electrophysiology of motor systems were all within reference values. Sensory nerve conduction results of affected dogs were significantly different from those of a group of control dogs. Necropsy revealed a chronic progressive central and peripheral sensorimotor axonopathy; the proprioceptive pathways were most severely affected. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: This disease in these Golden Retrievers is distinct from other canine breed-related neurodegenerative diseases or hereditary neurodegenerative diseases described in humans. Pedigree analyses indicated a hereditary background, but the mode of inheritance could not be established.     

Control of irrigation amounts using velocity and position of wetting front

A new approach for the estimation and control of the quantity of water applied in an irrigation is presented in which irrigation is stopped when the wetting front reaches a critical depth, Z _L. An expression for calculating the critical depth Z _L was developed. A major parameter in this expression is the velocity of advance of the wetting front, V, which was shown to be directly related to the application rate, IR, and inversely related to the initial soil water content, _i. A depth probe (patent pending) was designed, constructed and tested for the purpose of monitoring the position of the wetting front during infiltration and redistribution and for computing the value of V. Equations developed for relating the velocity of advance of the wetting front to _i as well as for estimating the value of the critical depth Z _L were successfully tested under conditions of uniform distribution of the initial soil water content. An iterative learning process which utilizes the real time output from the depth probe during each irrigation and is therefore capable of handling realistic field conditions where nonuniformity is the rule is presented. The acquired information is used to estimate a critical depth of the wetting front, Z _L, for a planned final wetted depth, Z _F, during each irrigation. This process is incorporated in the depth probe and is used to stop irrigation and thus control the quantity of water applied.     

Agricultural practice changes with cultivating genetically modified herbicide-tolerant oilseed rape

To facilitate weed suppression, oilseed rape or canola (Brassica napus) has been genetically modified (GM) over the last two decades to incorporate herbicide tolerance (HT). The introduction of oilseed rape in commercial agriculture raises concerns about potential adverse agronomic and environmental effects linked to both the genetic modification and altered agricultural practice. How will this new crop modify the existing cropping practice? What are the potential agro-environmental implications of its introduction? This paper analyses and schematises recorded and conceivable agricultural practice changes with GMHT oilseed rape introduction and its likely agro-environmental effects. It develops a conceptual systematics of influencing factors, subsequent practice changes and likely agro-environmental effects. The results can be used to design the mandatory monitoring of adverse GM crop effects.     

农牧交错区耕地净第一性生产力动态变化研究——以陕西榆林市榆阳区为例

以榆林市榆阳区1984～2003年各乡镇的粮食产量统计数据为依据,选用了适合农用地的净第一性生产力估算模型,对该区耕地净第一性生产力单位面积量及总量进行分区动态测算,以揭示生态环境对耕地净第一性生产力的影响.研究表明:(1) 1984～2003年间,榆阳区耕地净第一性生产力总量在波动中上升,20 a内总物质量从21.94×104 t/a增加到57.98×104 t/a,年度递增率为5.24%.(2) 在1984～2001年间,榆阳区北部耕地净第一性生产力远高于南部,且呈较快上升趋势,而南部黄土丘陵沟壑区的耕地净第一性生产力呈较平缓的波动变化,且略有下降.(3) 在1984～2001年间,榆阳区城区、近郊、远郊的差异性在单位耕地面积净第一性生产力上体现为城区＞近郊＞远郊;在耕地NPP总量方面,城区、近郊和远郊都表现为在波动中上升,三区变化以远郊波动幅度最大.(4) 榆阳区耕地净第一性生产力总量的大幅增长有农业投入增加的原因,但主要得益于该区的生态环境的改善.     

不同耐旱性玉米根系解剖结构比较研究

以大田生长的不同耐旱性玉米品种为试验材料,采用徒手切片法和常规石蜡制片法对玉米的初生根和各层次生根的基部、中部和根毛区显微结构进行了系统研究和比较.结果显示:与不酎旱品种玉米的根系相比,耐旱玉米的初生胚根的皮层细胞层数较少,木质部导管数量较多、导管直径较小;各层次生根的皮层细胞层教相对较少,木质部导管数量相对较多,导管直径相对较小.     

Incidence,risk factors,and outcomes for early postoperative seizures in dogs with rostrotentorial brain tumors after intracranial surgery

BackgroundSeizures in the early postoperative period after intracranial surgery may affect outcome in dogs.ObjectivesTo determine the incidence of early postoperative seizures (EPS) in dogs with brain tumors, identify specific risk factors for EPS, and determine if EPS affects outcome.AnimalsEighty‐eight dogs that underwent 125 intracranial surgeries for diagnosis and treatment of rostrotentorial brain tumors.MethodsRetrospective cohort study. All patients with a diagnosis of rostrotentorial brain tumor from 2006 to 2020 were included. Early postoperative seizures were diagnosed by observation of seizure activity within 14 days of neurosurgery. Previously diagnosed structural epilepsy, perioperative anticonvulsant drug (ACD) use, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and tumor characteristics were evaluated. Outcome measures included neurologic and nonneurologic complications, duration of hospitalization, and survival to discharge.ResultsDogs with rostrotentorial brain tumors had EPS after 16/125 (12.8%) neurosurgical procedures (95% confidence interval [CI], 7%‐19%). Presence of previous structural epilepsy was not associated with EPS risk (P = 1). Perioperative ACD use also was not associated with EPS (P = .06). Dogs with EPS had longer hospitalization (P < .001), were more likely to have neurologic complications postsurgery (P = .01), and were less likely to survive to discharge (P = .01).Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceIt is difficult to predict which dogs are at risk of EPS because the presence of previous structural epilepsy and the use of perioperative ACDs was not associated with EPS. However, seizures in the early postoperative period are clinically important because affected dogs had prolonged hospitalization, more neurologic complications, and decreased short‐term survival.     

Field estimates of scalar advection across a canopy edge

Measurements of the horizontal and vertical fluxes of energy and mass were taken at a crop canopy edge and downwind of it to examine the effects of inhomogeneity on surface-atmosphere exchange, for the ideal case of flat uniform terrain. Energy balance closure was also examined and the effects of the often-neglected advection terms on the energy budget were evaluated. The results show that neither vertical nor horizontal advection should be neglected for moderate distances downwind from heterogeneous boundaries, with the energy budget closure near the leading edge improved by more than 20% with the inclusion of the horizontal and vertical advection of latent and sensible heat. Significant mean advective horizontal and vertical flux divergences of water vapor and temperature were found even in typical daytime conditions. In stable conditions horizontal advection can be responsible for more than 15% of the scalar (water vapor) transport 136 canopy heights downwind of a change in water vapor source density and surface roughness.