Efficacy and Toxicity of Intracavitary Administration of Pegylated Liposomal Encapsulated Doxorubicin (DOXIL) in Dogs with Hemangiosarcoma

Introduction:  Canine hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is a fatal malignancy and most dogs die within 6–8 months of diagnosis. The spleen is a common primary site, representing 50% of all cases. These dogs typically present with clinical signs due to tumor rupture and intra‐abdominal dissemination; the abdomen is also the main site of disease progression when these patients fail. Direct delivery of chemotherapy into the abdominal cavity may therefore be a rational approach in this malignancy.
Methods:  14 dogs with stage 2 or 3 splenic HSA were recruited. Doxil at a dose of 1 mg/kg was diluted in saline and administered via ultrasound‐guidance into the abdominal cavity. The dogs were scheduled to receive 4 treatments every 3 weeks. Samples of plasma and abdominal fluid were collected for pharmacokinetic analysis. All dogs were monitored for recurrence and complete necropsies were requested at death.
Results:  8 dogs with stage 3 and 6 dogs with stage 2 HSA were enrolled. All 14 dogs have died, 12/14 due to tumor and 2 from other causes. There was no difference in median survival days between stages (stage 2: 244, stage 3: 125, p = .22). All 12 dogs that died due to tumor‐related causes failed with intra‐abdominal recurrence. Necropsies showed that the dogs in this study had relatively fewer extra‐abdominal metastasis compared to dogs treated with systemic chemotherapy. Pk analysis showed detectable plasma doxorubicin 1 and 2 weeks after treatment.
Conclusion:  Direct abdominal administration of Doxil did not prevent intra‐abdominal recurrence; however, it appeared to provide effective systemic coverage.     

Differential tolerance of weedy red rice (Oryza sativa L.) from Arkansas, USA to glyphosate

Red rice (Oryza sativa L.), a weedy relative of cultivated rice (O. sativa), is a troublesome weed in rice in the southern United States. It is also very problematic in other world regions where rice is grown. There are many types of red rice. Some have white pericarp. In this paper, the term ‘red rice’ will be used to refer to the weedy types that occur in this region of the southern USA. Because of the great diversity in morphology and phenology of red rice populations in the USA, we hypothesized that these have differential tolerance to glyphosate. Red rice is subjected to selection pressure by glyphosate, which is the principal herbicide used in glyphosate-resistant soybean planted after rice. Two hundred-fifteen red rice accessions were collected in Arkansas, USA between 2002 and 2003 and evaluated for glyphosate tolerance between 2003 and 2006. The commercial dose of glyphosate controlled red rice accessions 81-100% regardless of application timing, by 30 d after treatment. The number of survivors that produced seeds and the seeds produced per survivor differed between accessions. Application of the full dose at the tillering stage was more effective than at the 3- to 4-leaf stages. At half the field dose, 40 to 54% of survivors produced seed, with germination capacity of 30-100%. The lowest dose of glyphosate, 225 g a.e. ha⁻¹, resulted in the widest range of control ratings from 30 to 100%. The red rice accessions differentiated into six tolerance categories. A tolerance map was generated and will be used in educating growers about the proper use of glyphosate for red rice management.     

RFLP variability in apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.)

The level of polymorphism of the restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) detected by 33 almond genomic and cDNA probes was studied in a set of 52 European and North-American apricot cultivars. Eighteen of these probes were polymorphic and yielded a total of 48 scorable bands, allowing the identification of 45 different phenotypes. Most cultivars (43) had an individually distinguishable RFLP phenotype, and three of the five clusters with the same phenotype contained cultivars that were likely to be synonymous. The group of Spanish cultivars (25) had a lower level of polymorphism than the others, suggesting that bottlenecks may have occurred in the recent history of the apricot that have eroded its genetic variability.     

Protein and cellulose level in diet: Effects on enzymatic activity,metabolite and amino acid profiles in freshwater anomurans Aegla uruguayana (Decapoda: Anomura)

The aims of this study were to evaluate the short‐term effects of artificial diets with different protein: cellulose ratios (D1 = 60:0, D2 = 45:15 and D3 = 30:30) on the enzymatic activity and metabolite profile and to probe the suitability of the amino acid profile of the different diets in Aegla uruguayana. The different artificial diets affected the digestive total protease and amylase activities in a short period of time. Lipases were not affected by the diets. In the haemolymph, an effect of the diet was found in glucose and triglyceride measurements. Particularly, the glucose of the organisms fed D1 was significantly lower than that of organisms fed D2, without significant differences in D3. The concentrations of triglycerides were different among organisms subjected to the treatments, indicating a greater concentration in organisms fed D2 than in those fed D1. In muscle tissue, the concentration of glycogen followed the same trend as haemolymphatic glucose, indicating that the organisms fed D2 had a higher concentration of this metabolite compared to the rest. The amino acid profile of muscle tissue of wild and fed aeglids had a high and significant correlation in all cases, showing few changes in the short‐term feeding regime. Some changes were observed mainly in aeglids fed D3, which exhibited the lowest amounts of methionine, lysine and arginine and the highest amounts of aspartic + glutamic acids. In addition, D2 has a good quality of EAA, fulfilling almost all the requirements of a wild aeglid.     

Use of different geometric morphometrics tools for the discrimination of phenotypic stocks of the striped clam Ameghinomya antiqua (Veneridae) in north Patagonia,Argentina

The striped clam (Ameghinomya antiqua (King, 1832)) metapopulation of the San José Gulf is a good model for phenotypic stocks studies based on the shell shape variation in different fishing grounds. These sites show differences in circulation, tidal currents, coastal topography, and bathymetry. Furthermore, it is known that the diverse environments produce differences in the growth rate of this species. In the current work, we study the shell shape changes in the striped clam from different fishing grounds of the San José Gulf through geometric morphometrics methods. Outlines and landmarks analyses were successful to determinate the provenance of the individuals, with almost the 90% of correct assignations for the most of the fishing grounds. The different methodologies showed variations in diverse morphological traits, and as a result different patterns of the shell shape among localities were evidenced. Moreover, each site presented a typical shell shape. Our results showed that the geometric morphometrics methods are powerful tools to identify and separate intra-specific groups. This approach is applicable to other exploited species with subtle shape variations.     

Preliminary assessment of in vivo safety of potentially probiotic lactic acid bacteria for American bullfrog culture

The effect of the administration of beneficial lactic acid bacteria (LAB): Lactococcus lactis CRL 1584, L. lactis CRL 1827, Enterococcus gallinarum CRL 1826 and combined CRL 1584+ CRL 1826 on the development of bullfrog embryos from the hatching stage until 31 days (tadpole) was evaluated. In vitro assays indicated that 10³, 10⁶ and 10⁹ CFU mL^?1 single LAB strains remained viable until 24 h in 10% Ringer. Around 10⁹ CFU mL^?1 LAB (individually and combined) were used in an experimental design built to evaluate their effect when administrated at different intervals (three 7‐day cycles with 5‐day rest periods in between) to embryos until day 31. The highest potentially beneficial population (LAB) numbers were detected in the LAB‐treated groups. All the LAB‐treatments increased it and were significantly higher than the controls. Although the highest, potentially pathogenic, population (Red‐Leg Syndrome‐RLS‐related pathogens) numbers were detected in the control and the lowest in the CRL 1584+ CRL 1826‐treated group, they did not differ significantly. Stereoscopic studies showed no malformations in any LAB‐treated group and all the specimens reached the same stage of their biological cycle with a survival >94%. The histological structure of target organs for RLS‐associated pathogens (intestine and skin) and stomach was not affected and the spleen was developed. Only the LAB‐treated groups showed microorganisms associated with the intestinal mucus, without inflammatory reaction in the lamina propria. This is the first report on the evaluation of the absence of adverse effects after LAB administration to bullfrog embryos using indigenous microorganisms.     

α-Rhamnosyl-β-glucosidase-catalyzed reactions for analysis and biotransformations of plant-based foods

Most aroma compounds exist in vegetal tissues as disaccharide conjugates, rutinose being an abundant sugar moiety in grapes. The availability of aroma precursors would facilitate analytical analysis of plant-based foods. The diglycosidase α-rhamnosyl-β-glucosidase from Acremonium sp. DSM 24697 efficiently transglycosylated the rutinose moiety from hesperidin to 2-phenylethanol, geraniol, and nerol in an aqueous-organic biphasic system. 2-Phenethyl rutinoside was synthesized up to millimolar level with an 80% conversion regarding the donor hesperidin. The hydrolysis of the synthesized aroma precursors was not detected in an aqueous medium. However, in the presence of ethanol as a sugar acceptor, the enzyme was able to transfer the disaccharide residue forming the alkyl-rutinoside. The aroma precursors were significantly hydrolyzed (up to 3-4% in 2 h at 30 °C), which indicated the potential use of the enzyme for biotechnological applications, for example, in aroma modulation of fermented foods.     

Nitrapyrin effectiveness in reducing nitrous oxide emissions decreases at low doses of urea in an Andosol

In the tropics,frequent nitrogen(N)fertilization of grazing areas can potentially increase nitrous oxide(N₂O)emissions.The application of nitrification inhibitors has been reported as an effective management practice for potentially reducing N loss from the soil-plant system and improving N use efficiency(NUE).The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the co-application of nitrapyrin(a nitrification inhibitor,NI)and urea in a tropical Andosol on the behavior of N and the emissions of N₂O from autotrophic and heterotrophic nitrification.A greenhouse experiment was performed using a soil(pH 5.9,organic matter content 78 g kg^-1,and N 5.6 g kg^-1)sown with Cynodon nlemfuensis at 60%water-filled pore space to quantify total N₂O emissions,N₂O derived from fertilizer,soil ammonium(NH₄⁺)and nitrate(NO₃^-),and NUE.The study included treatments that received deionized water only(control,NI).No significant differences were observed in soil NH₄⁺content between the UR and UR+NI treatments,probably because of soil mineralization and NO₃^-produced by heterotrophic nitrification,which is not effectively inhibited by nitrapyrin.After 56 d,N₂O emissions in UR(0.51±0.12 mg N₂O-N concluded that the soil organic N mineralization and heterotrophic nitrification are the main processes of NH₄⁺and NO₃^-production.Additionally,it was found that N₂O emissions were partially a consequence of the direct oxidation of the soil's organic N via heterotrophic nitrification coupled to denitrification.Finally,the results suggest that nitrapyrin would likely exert significant mitigation on N₂O emissions only if a substantial N surplus exists in soils with high organic matter content.