EFFICACY AND TOXICITY OF AN ACCELERATED HYPOFRACTIONATED RADIATION THERAPY PROTOCOL IN CATS WITH ORAL SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common feline oral tumor. Standard radiation protocols have been reported to achieve tumor control durations of 1.5–5.5 months (45–165 days). The purpose of this study was to describe the efficacy and toxicity of an accelerated hypofractionated radiation therapy protocol in cats with oral SCC. Twenty‐one cats with histologically confirmed oral SCC and T1‐3N0M0 were treated with 10 once‐daily fractions (Monday–Friday) of 4.8 Gy. Seventeen cats had macroscopic disease and four were microscopic after incomplete excision. Acute toxicity consisted of grade 2 mucositis in all cats and this was effectively managed using esophageal or gastric tube feeding, pain medication, and antibiotics. Late toxicity effects for cats with available follow‐up data included alopecia (4 cats), leukotricia (6), tongue ulceration (1), and oronasal fistula (1). Response could be assessed in 17 cats (seven complete response and five partial response). Four cats (19%) developed metastatic disease without evidence of local progression. The median progression‐free survival (PFS) was 105 days (1 year PFS of 23%), median local progression‐free survival (LPFS) was 219 days (1 year LPFS of 41%), and median overall survival (OS) was 174 days (1 year OS of 29%). Only tumor stage was prognostic, with T1 having a median PFS of 590 days. Findings indicated that this accelerated hypofractionated radiation therapy protocol was well tolerated in cats with oral SCC, with manageable adverse events. Tumor response was observed in most cats and long tumor control durations were achieved in some cats.     

Reduction of bacterial infections in newly hatched chicks by the use of antimicrobial dips: Preliminary approaches

Summary

Bacteriological examination of hatchery waste eggs, identification of the isolated bacteria, and susceptibility testing against seven antimicrobial agents were used in an attempt to establish a rational basis for reducing bacterial infections in newly hatched chicks.

Chloramphenicol at 1000 ppm was selected as the antibiotic for preliminary dipping trials and 0.45% iodophore (Wescodyne) was added for later trials. The control treatment consisted of formaldehyde fumigation. The following conclusions can be drawn:

(1) Hatchery waste eggs are highly contaminated (69.1%) and enterobacteriaceae predominate (26.6%).

(2) Chloramphenicol is the most effective antimicrobial tested.

(3) Dip treatments with either chloramphenicol alone or chloramphenicol plus Wescodyne result in a reduced percentage of abnormal navels (8.4% and 10.4%), as compared with 21.9% for the control treatment.

(4) Hatchability of either group of dipped eggs is reduced in comparison with fumigated eggs.

(5) Dip treatment with chloramphenicol plus Wescodyne significantly reduces the anal carrier rates for Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella spp., and Staphylococcus aureus. This treatment reduces the incidence of bacterial infection in abnormal navels to zero.     

Systematic Review of Brain Tumor Treatment in Dogs

Intracranial neoplasia is commonly diagnosed in dogs and can be treated by a variety of methods, but formal comparisons of treatment efficacy are currently unavailable. This review was undertaken to summarize the current state of knowledge regarding outcome after the treatment of intracranial masses in dogs, with the aim of defining optimal recommendations for owners. This review summarizes data from 794 cases in 22 previously published reports and follows PRISMA guidelines for systematic review. A Pubmed search was used to identify suitable articles. These then were analyzed for quality and interstudy variability of inclusion and exclusion criteria and the outcome data extracted for summary in graphs and tables. There was a high degree of heterogeneity among studies with respect to inclusion and exclusion criteria, definition of survival periods, and cases lost to follow‐up making comparisons among modalities troublesome. There is a need for standardized design and reporting of outcomes of treatment for brain tumors in dogs. The available data do not support lomustine as an effective treatment, but also do not show a clear difference in outcome between radiotherapy and surgery for those cases in which the choice is available.     

A case of nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism in a Siberian tiger cub

A three-month-old female Siberian tiger cub with hindlimb ataxia was referred to the veterinary teaching hospital of Konkuk University. The patient was fed only beef without supplementation of calcium and vitamins after weaning. The tiger was presented with ataxia and back pain on digital palpation. In addition, abnormal gait, reluctance to move, and depressed withdrawal reflex were noted at the neurological examination. The overall osteodystrophic change of the lumbosacral vertebrae was observed on the lateral and ventrodorsal view of radiographic examination. And also PTH level was increased in hormonal assay when compared to that of cat reference range. Based on the results of examinations, nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism was diagnosed. Clinical signs of this patient were improved after administration of vitamin D and calcium. This case demonstrates that nutritional hyperparathyroidism could be occurred in wild animals raised on a meat diet containing imbalanced calcium and phosphate.     

Turnover of Village Chickens Undermines Vaccine Coverage to Control HPAI H5N1

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) subtype H5N1 remains an enzootic disease of village chickens in Indonesia, posing ongoing risk at the animal–human interface. Previous modelling showed that the fast natural turnover of chicken populations might undermine herd immunity after vaccination, although actual details of how this effect applies to Indonesia's village chicken population have not been determined. We explored the turnover effect in Indonesia's scavenging and mixed populations of village chickens using an extended Leslie matrix model parameterized with data collected from village chicken flocks in Java region, Indonesia. Population dynamics were simulated for 208 weeks; the turnover effect was simulated for 16 weeks after vaccination in two ‘best case’ scenarios, where the whole population (scenario 1), or birds aged over 14 days (scenario 2), were vaccinated. We found that the scavenging and mixed populations have different productive traits. When steady‐state dynamics are reached, both populations are dominated by females (54.5%), and ‘growers’ and ‘chicks’ represent the most abundant age stages with 39% and 38% in the scavenging, and 60% and 25% in the mixed population, respectively. Simulations showed that the population turnover might reduce the herd immunity below the critical threshold that prevents the re‐emergence of HPAI H5N1 4–8 weeks (scavenging) and 6–9 weeks (mixed population) after vaccination in scenario 1, and 2–6 weeks (scavenging) and 4–7 weeks (mixed population) after vaccination in scenario 2. In conclusion, we found that Indonesia's village chicken population does not have a unique underlying population dynamic and therefore, different turnover effects on herd immunity may be expected after vaccination; nonetheless, our simulations carried out in best case scenarios highlight the limitations of current vaccine technologies to control HPAI H5N1. This suggests that the improvements and complementary strategies are necessary and must be explored.     

民和县种畜场哺乳仔猪死亡原因分析

以民和县种畜场的哺乳仔猪为材料，从仔猪初生重，仔猪死亡时间和母猪产仔胎次三个角度对仔猪断奶前死亡原因进行了系统分析。     

Characterization of blood cells in the Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis)

Background: The Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) is the most frequently encountered wild cat in most of Southeast Asia. Limited hematologic investigation exists for this species. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess routine hematologic measurements and parameters and characterize the morphology, cytochemical staining, and ultrastructural features of blood cells in Leopard Cats. Methods: Blood samples were collected from 12 adult healthy captive Leopard Cats (7 males and 5 females). Complete blood counts were performed using an automated hematology analyzer and manual differential counts. Cytochemical staining (Sudan black B [SBB], peroxidase [PO], periodic acid‐Schiff [PAS], α‐naphthyl acetate esterase [ANAE], and β‐glucuronidase [BG]) and scanning and transmission electron microscopy were performed using standard methods. Results: Median (range) hematologic results were as follows: PCV 0.46 L/L (0.30–0.55 L/L), hemoglobin 136.5 g/L (100–183 g/L), WBC 9.0 × 10⁹/L (6.9–15.2 × 10⁹/L), band neutrophils 0.07 × 10⁹/L (0–0.30 × 10⁹/L), segmented neutrophils 2.9 × 10⁹/L (1.2–6.34 × 10⁹/L), lymphocytes 5.3 × 10⁹/L (2.7–8.1 × 10⁹/L), eosinophils 0.14 × 10⁹/L (0–0.73 × 10⁹/L), basophils 0/L (0–0.22 × 10⁹/L), and monocytes 0.08 × 10⁹/L (0–0.30 × 10⁹/L). Neutrophils stained strongly positive for SBB, PO, and PAS; lymphocytes had fine granular positivity for ANAE and BG; monocytes were weakly positive for ANAE and BG; and basophils were strongly positive for BG. Ultrastructurally, eosinophils contained many large rod‐shaped granules with prominent crystalloid core structures, ribosomes, and mitochondria. Basophils contained many round to oval specific granules with homogeneous contents. Low number of basophils contained a few small vacuoles that usually were not detected by light microscopy. Conclusion: These findings will facilitate interpretation of hematologic results for future investigative and diagnostic studies of this species.