Double-blind evaluation of implants of gold wire at acupuncture points in the dog as a treatment for osteoarthritis induced by hip dysplasia.

Thirty-eight dogs with hip dysplasia were studied to evaluate the use of gold wire implants at acupuncture points around the hip joints. They were assigned at random into two groups of 19. In the treated group, gold wire was inserted through hypodermic needles at electrically found acupuncture points around both hips. In the control group, the areas were prepared in the same way but had only the skin pierced at sites which were not acupuncture points, with a needle of the same size as that used in the treated group. Over a period of six months the dogs were studied repeatedly by two veterinarians and by the dogs' owners who were unaware of the treatments the dogs had received; they assessed the dogs' locomotion, hip function and signs of pain. Radiographs were taken at the beginning and end of the study. Although the data collected from both groups by the veterinarians and the owners showed a significant improvement of locomotion and reduction in signs of pain (P=0.036 for the veterinary evaluation and locomotion and P=0.0001 and P=0.0034 for the owners' evaluation of locomotion and pain, respectively), there were no statistically significant differences between the treated and control groups (P=0.19 and P=0.41, P=0.24, respectively).     

Postovulatory Effect of Intravenous Administration of Lipopolysaccharide (Escherichia coli, O55:B5) on the Endocrine Status of Recently Ovulated Sows

The effects of lipopolysaccharide ( Escherichia coli , O55:B5), administered 18 h after ovulation in the second oestrus after weaning on the hormonal profiles in 14 Swedish cross-bred (Landrace × Yorkshire) multiparous sows were studied. The endotoxin group (E-group) sows were administered with 300 ng/kg of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) whereas the control group (C-group) sows were administered 5 ml of saline intravenously via an indwelling jugular cannula. Blood samples for hormonal analyses were collected from all sows until slaughter. In the E-group, progesterone, cortisol and prostaglandin F_2α metabolite levels increased significantly (p < 0.05) following LPS compared with the C-group. It can be concluded from this study that apart from elevating cortisol and prostaglandin F_2α metabolite, LPS also elevates progesterone levels.     

Characterization of and radioimmunoassay for canine thyroglobulin

Canine thyroglobulin (cTg) has been isolated and purified. It has similar electrophoretic patterns as Tg from other mammalian species. The main fraction had a MW of 660,000, whereas also fractions of a MW of approximately 1,300,000 (dimer) and 330,000 (subunit) were present. The iodine content was 0.8 to 1.0 % (w/w). cTg did not cross-react with antibodies against human Tg to a degree that would allow the use of a radioimmunoassay for human Tg for the determination of cTg in serum or plasma. Therefore a polyclonal antiserum was raised against cTg and a homologous radioimmunoassay was developed, which was sensitive (0.4 μg/l) and specific (cross-reactivity in cTg assay of human Tg, goat Tg, T₄, T₃, and DIT < 0.01 %).

Plasma Tg levels in normal dogs of both sexes and aged 3–15 years amounted to 192 ± 73 μg/l (mean ± SD, n=30). There was no relation between plasma Tg and T₄ levels.     

Impact of pig slurry on soil properties, water salinization, nitrate leaching and crop yield in a four-year experiment in Central Spain

Abstract. The repeated application of pig slurry to agricultural soils may result in an accumulation of salts and a risk of aquifer pollution due to nitrate leaching and salinization. Under Mediterranean conditions, a field experiment on a sandy loam soil (Typic Xerofluvent) was performed with maize (Zea mays) in 1998, 1999 and 2001 to study the effects of applying optimal (P1) and excessive rates (P3) of pig slurry on soil salinization, nitrate leaching and groundwater pollution. The rate of pig slurry was established considering the optimal N rate for maize in this soil (170, 162 and 176 kg N ha^?1 for 1998, 1999 and 2001, respectively). Pig slurry treatments were compared to an optimal N rate supplied as urea (U) and a control treatment without N fertilizer (P0). The composition of the slurries showed great variability between years. Mean NO₃^? leaching losses from 1998 to 2001 were 329, 215, 173 and 78 kg N ha^?1 for P3, P1, U and P0 treatments, respectively. The amount of total dissolved salts (TDS) added to the soil in slurry application between 1998 and 2001 was 2019 kg TDS ha^?1 for the P1 treatment and 6058 kg TDS ha^?1 for the P3 treatment. As a consequence, the electrical conductivity (EC) of the slurry‐treated soils was greater than that of the control soil. The EC correlated significantly with the sodium concentration of the soil solution. Over the entire experimental period, 2653, 2202 and 2110 kg Na ha^?1 entered the aquifer from the P3, P1 and P0 treatments, respectively. The P3 treatment did not significantly increase grain production in 1999 and 2001 compared with that achieved with the optimal N rate treatment (P1). This behaviour shows the importance of establishing application guidelines for pig slurry that will reduce the risk of soil and groundwater pollution.     

Fertilizing capacity of the ejaculate of nutria (Myocastor coypus) after the removal of the seminal vesicles as evaluated by the penetration test and natural mating

The fertility of male coypu sperm following seminal vesicle extirpation was investigated using the penetration test into the egg of Syrian golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). Ejaculates were obtained from five males by means of electro-ejaculation under halothane narcosis. The results of the zona-free hamster eggs (ZFHE) penetration test showed that the ejaculates of all the surgically treated coypu males were fertile and that ZFHE value fluctuated from 54 to 76.6%. The results obtained in experiments with natural mating revealed that the extirpation of male coypu seminal vesicles did not affect their fertility. In total 47 foetuses were found post mortem in ten coypu females covered by surgically treated males, which on average represented 4.7 foetuses per female.