EFFECTS OF GADOXETATE DISODIUM (EOVIST®) CONTRAST ON MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LIVER IN CLINICALLY HEALTHY DOGS

Gadoxetate disodium (Gd‐EOB‐DTPA; gadolinium‐ethoxybenzyl‐diethylene triamine penta‐acetic acid) is a newly developed paramagnetic contrast agent reported to have a high specificity for the hepatobiliary system in humans. The purpose of this prospective study was to describe effects of Gd‐EOB‐DTPA contrast administration on MRI characteristics of the liver in eight clinically healthy dogs. Precontrast dorsal and transverse T1‐weighted spin echo, T2‐weighted fast spin echo, and transverse T1‐weighted 3D gradient echo (VIBE; volume‐interpolated body examination) pulse sequences were acquired for each dog. Dogs were assigned to four groups based on contrast dose administered (0.0125 mmol/kg or 0.025 mmol/kg), and pulse sequences acquired after contrast administration (T1‐weighted spin echo and T1‐weighted 3D gradient echo). Liver signal intensity ratios were calculated and compared between the two contrast dose groups and two postcontrast pulse sequence groups using ANOVA. No adverse effects of contrast administration were observed. All dogs exhibited homogeneous contrast enhancement of the liver with no statistical difference in enhancement between the two different contrast doses. Contrast enhancement in all dogs peaked between 1 and 10 min after intravenous injection. There was a significant difference in mean signal intensity ratios between sequences (P = 0.035) but not between doses (P = 0.421). Postcontrast signal intensities of the liver parenchyma were significantly higher for the T1‐weighted 3D gradient echo images when compared to the T1‐weighted spin echo sequences. Findings indicated that Gd‐EOB‐DTPA contrast administration is safe in healthy dogs and causes homogeneous enhancement of the liver that is more pronounced in T1‐weighted 3D gradient echo MRI pulse sequences.     

Air-breathing ecology of Arapaima sp.: Conservation implications for an imperilled fish

1. Arapaima (Arapaima sp.) are highly overexploited fish endemic to the Amazon basin. Because the fish are obligate air-breathers, it is possible to use surface-breathing events to count individuals visually for population censuses important for conservation, yet uncertainties remain about body size and environmental influences on air-breathing intervals, and thus count accuracy.
2. This study examined relationships between breathing intervals and environmental parameters (e.g. water temperature and transparency) and body size for radio-tagged arapaima (n = 12) in an upland river-floodplain (Lake Ayapuá, Amazonas, Brazil). Generalized additive mixed models were used to evaluate environmental, size, and behavioural correlates of breathing intervals.
3. Temperature was the most influential predictor of air-breathing intervals, followed by body size. The shortest breathing intervals were associated with consecutive ‘aggressive’ breaths while the longest breathing intervals had consecutive ‘calm’ breaths. Type of breath, size, and temperature predictors revealed that breathing intervals ranged from 4 to 46 min and were not significantly different among life stages (  = 15.9 min for sub-adults and adults (>1 m);  = 14.8 min for juveniles (<1 m)).
4. Whereas the current population census method uses fish counts in 20-min intervals, this study found that 15% of observed breaths, and two thirds of fish, took longer than 20 min to breathe. These findings were obtained in relatively cool-water environments, so it is recommended that future population census methods consider water temperature (e.g. extend intervals used for counts in cooler waters), which may improve the accuracy of census counts and thus further enhance arapaima conservation efforts.
5. This study demonstrated an effective method in which fundamental biological information is used to inform and improve population census methods for an imperilled fish in a region where traditional stock assessment is ineffective. Similar approaches for adaptive stock assessments could be applied to improve conservation of other air-breathing fishes (e.g. lungfishes) globally.

     

Intensification of Shrimp Culture in Earthen Ponds in South Carolina: Progress and Prospects

Experiments on the intensive cultivation of Pacific white shrimp, Penueus vunnumei, in ponds in South Carolina were begun in 1985 at the Waddell Mariculture Center. A preliminary study involved two 0.1 ha ponds stocked at an average of 43 postlarvae/m², with management practices based on those used in Taiwan for intensive pond culture of Penueus monodon. Harvest yields averaged 6,757 kg/ha for one crop, demonstrating the technical feasibility of such intensive culture of P. vannumei. In 1986, 2.5 ha of ponds at the Waddell Center (six ponds totaling 2.0 ha at 40 postlarvae/m² and two totaling 0.5 ha at 60/m²) yielded a total of 13,606 kg (5,442 ke/hn). These results were obtained even though aeration and water exchange rates were substanthlly reduced and South Carolina experienced its worst heat wave and drought. This served as a pilot-sde, proof-ofconcept test. Tank studies in 1985 and 1986 showed little effect of stocking density on shrimp growth rate at densities of 20–100 animals/m². This was confirmed in ponds in 1987 when no differences in growth rates were observed at densities of 20–100 postlarvae/m². Harvest biomass increased directly with stocking density in all trials, reaching a maximum of 12,680 kg/ha/crop at 100 shrimp/m² in 1987. Initial attempts to intensify production in the nascent South Carolina shrimp farming industry occurred in 1986, when approximately 32 ha of private ponds were stocked at densities of 10–32 postlarvae/m². Farm harvests increased with stocking density, with maximum yield of 3,656 kg/ ha/crop. This trend toward intensification in the private sector is continuing, and in 1987 maximum harvests from private ponds were 5,050 kg/ha from a 0.3 ha pond and 4,625 kg/ha from a 1.5 ha pond. Prospects for further implementation of intensive culture in the private sector appear excellent, with yields of ≥ 10,000 kg/ha/crop expected from private farms within the next few years.     

Electrical stimulation of spermatophore expulsion in marine shrimp,Penaeus spp

Electrical stimulation (4–6 V AC) applied near the male gonopores at the base of the fifth pereopods caused expulsion of the spermatophore in Penaeus setiferus, P. stylirostris, and P. vannamei. For healthy animals, some degree of spermatophore expulsion occurred in 80% of the attempts. Complete expulsion of one or both spermatophores occurred in only 47% (29–65%, depending on species). Shrimp with melanized terminal ampullae generally did not expel a spermatophore following electrical stimulation. The technique needs further refinement for routine use with penaeids.