Efficacy of dog-appeasing pheromone (DAP) for ameliorating separation-related behavioral signs in hospitalized dogs

Dogs hospitalized in veterinary clinics are likely to show signs of separation-induced anxiety from hospitalization. The study assessed the effect of dog-appeasing pheromone (DAP) on 10 typical separation-related behavioral signs in hospitalized dogs. A DAP treated group (n = 24) was compared with a placebo control group (n = 19). There was overall amelioration of the signs without ‘vigilance’ and ‘anorexia’ in the DAP-treated dogs; marked decreases were noted in elimination (P = 0.038), excessive licking (P = 0.005), and pacing (P = 0.017). The results suggest that the use of DAP could decrease separation-induced anxiety, distress, and fear in inpatients, and possibly facilitate recovery in hospitalized dogs.     

Original Study: Comparison of three intraosseous access techniques in cats

Objective – To compare the placement feasibility and amount of bone trauma induced by 3 intraosseous (IO) access techniques in cats: an automatic impact penetration device (A), an automatic rotary insertion device (B), and a manual IO needle (C). Design – Prospective ex vivo study. Setting – University. Animals – Eighteen adult mixed breed feline cadavers. Interventions – Cadavers provided 72 total IO insertion locations divided equally between the right and left humerus and tibia. The 3 IO techniques were randomly allocated to these locations. Time to successful insertion, ease of insertion, and success rate were recorded. Each insertion site was analyzed for the number of bone fragments and defect diameter by computed tomography. Measurements and Main Results – Device B had lower time of insertion (P=0.01) compared with devices A and C. Device B had better ease of insertion scores (P<0.01) compared with devices A and C. No differences were detected between insertion sites (tibia versus humerus). No differences in the number of bone fragments, defect diameter, or success rate were detected among devices (P=0.06, 0.31, and 0.14, respectively). Conclusions – All 3 IO access methods evaluated yield acceptable results. Device B is significantly faster and easier to place in cat cadavers when compared with other methods.     

Screening thirty soybean genotypes under solid and intercropping plantings in Egypt

Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology - Cropping systems are relatively more important for testing soybean genotypes under Egyptian conditions. A field experiment was carried out at the...     

Quality indices of Jew's mallow and spinach during frozen storage

In this study, Jew's mallow and spinach were heat treated and kept frozen, at –18°C, for 3 months. Analysis of some chemical components and enzymatic activities as well as a sensory evaluation were undertaken. At the end of the storage period, blanched spinach showed no PPO (polyphenyloxidase) activity at all, but still contained PO (peroxydase) and LO (lipoxygenase) activities. The untreated spinach stored under the same conditions showed high activities of PO, PPO and LO. The heat treated mallow still contained high enzyme activities which decreased slowly during frozen storage. Statistical analysis of the chemical composition and the sensory evaluation results indicated that heat treatments of mallow caused significant differences in total solids, pH, chlorophylla and total chlorophyll, while frozen storage, of samples of the same treatment for 3 months caused no significant differences in moisture, ash, oxalic acid, pH, chlorophylla and total chlorophyll. No significant differences could be noticed in the overall acceptability between mallow samples mixed with hot water and those mixed in the overall acceptability between mallow samples mixed with hot water and those mixed with a hot 0.1% MgCO₃ solution. Significant differences were found between the heat treated and the untreated mallow. Changes of the chemical composition and the overall acceptability of blanched spinach during frozen storage showed almost the same trend noticed for the Jew's mallow.     

Response of Thawed Epidi dymal Red Deer Spermatozoa to Increasing Concentrations of Hydrogen Peroxide,and Importance of Individual Male Variability

Oxidative stress represents a challenge during sperm manipulation. We have tested the effect of increasing hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) levels on red deer spermatozoa after cryopreservation, and the role of male‐to‐male variation in that response. In a first experiment, eight thawed samples were submitted to 0, 25, 50, 100 and 200 μm H₂O₂ for 2 h at 37°C. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (H₂DCFDA‐CM) increased with H₂O₂ concentration, but we only detected a decrease in sperm function (motility by CASA and chromatin damage by sperm chromatin structure assay) with 200 μm . Lipoperoxidation assessed by the thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) method increased slightly with 50 μm H₂O₂ and above. In a second experiment, samples from seven males were submitted to 0 and 200 μm H₂O₂ for 2 h, triplicating the experiment within each male. Males differed at thawing and regarding their response to incubation and H₂O₂ presence. We found that the kinematic parameters reflected male‐to‐male variability, whereas the response of the different males was similar for lipid peroxidation and viability. A multiparametric analysis showed that males grouped differently if samples were assessed after thawing, after incubation without H₂O₂ or after incubation with H₂O₂. Red deer spermatozoa are relatively resilient to H₂O₂ after thawing, but it seems to be a great male‐to‐male variability regarding the response to oxidative stress. The acknowledgement of this individual variability might improve the development of optimized sperm work protocols.     

Effects of floor heating and litter quality on the development and severity of foot pad dermatitis in young turkeys

Actions concerning animal health in turkey production are coming more and more to the fore. Litter quality has a great impact on the bird's health and welfare. This study aimed at evaluating the effects of using floor heating, different litter materials, and exposure to litter with a "critical moisture content" of 35% for 16 or 24 hr/day on the severity of foot pad dermatitis (FPD), a widespread disease in fattening turkeys. Four groups of 2-wk-old female turkeys, with 20 birds in each, were reared during 3 wk. All turkeys were fed a commercial pellet diet ad libitum. The first two groups were kept on wood shavings (35% moisture) without and with floor heating. The other two groups were housed on lignocellulose (Soft Cell) of 35% moisture without and with floor heating. In each group, half of the birds were housed for 8 hr/day in adjacent separate boxes where the litter was kept clean and dry throughout the experimental period. Foot pads were assessed weekly for external and at day 35 for histopathologic scoring (scores: 0 = healthy; 7 = ulcer). At day 14 each bird had normal and healthy foot pads. The results indicate that using floor heating resulted in significantly lower FPD scores (0.8 +/- 0.2) compared to groups without floor heating (2.0 +/- 0.8). Using lignocellulose as a litter material resulted in significantly lower histopathologic FPD scores (1.4 +/- 0.7) compared with wood shavings (1.7 +/- 0.8). In all birds housed on dry litter for 8 hr/day, significantly lower FPD scores were found compared to birds housed on wet litter for 24 hr. In conclusion, using floor heating, even with wet litter (35% moisture), independent of the litter type, resulted in reduced severity of FPD compared to those birds housed in pens without using floor heating. Additionally, using lignocellulose as a litter material resulted in lower FPD compared with wood shavings. Keeping litter dry and "warm" could be achieved by using floor heating, which is considered a practical step to enhance animal health and welfare.     

PsoP1, a milk-clotting aspartic peptidase from the basidiomycete fungus Piptoporus soloniensis

The first enzyme of the basidiomycete Piptoporus soloniensis, a peptidase (PsoP1), was characterized after isolation from submerged cultures, purification by fractional precipitation, and preparative native-polyarylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The native molecular mass of PsoP1 was 38 kDa with an isoelectric point of 3.9. Similar to chymosin from milk calves, PsoP1 showed a maximum milk-clotting activity (MCA) at 35-40 °C and was most stable at pH 6 and below 40 °C. The complete inhibition by pepstatin A identified this enzyme as an aspartic peptidase. Electrospray ionization-tandem MS showed an amino acid partial sequence that was more homologous to mammalian milk clotting peptidases than to the chymosin substitute from a fungal species, such as the Zygomycete Mucor miehei. According to sodium dodecyl sulfate-PAGE patterns, the peptidase cleaved κ-casein in a way similar to chymosin and hydrolyzed β-casein slowly, as it would be expected from an efficient chymosin substitute.     

Hematologic,lipid profile,immunity, and antioxidant status of growing rabbits fed black seed as natural antioxidants

Tropical Animal Health and Production - It is known that using antibiotics by way of growth promoters has harmful side effects on both animals and consumer health due to cross-resistance among...     

Response of nitrogen fixation,nodule activities,and growth to potassium supply in water‐stressed broad bean

Three‐week‐old nodulated faba bean plants were subjected to two levels of water stress (0.5 and 0.25 field capacity; soil water content of 20 and 10%) for five weeks. Half of the stressed plants was treated with potassium chloride (KC1) at 10 (K₁) and 150 mg (K₂)/kg soil at the beginning of water deficit. Nodulation was examined and some nodule activities were assayed. Nodulation, nitrogenase activity, total nitrogen (N), and dry matter yield were significantly decreased by increasing stress but were significantly higher with the two levels of potassium (K) supply. Leghaemoglobin and protein contents of cytosol as well as nodule protease and invertase were severely depressed by drought stress. Soluble carbohydrate contents of nodules, however, was significantly increased. Protein and leghaemoglobin contents and enzyme activities were greater with K fertilization but less soluble carbohydrate was accumulated. The results indicate that K supply, particularly at the 150 mg/kg soil level, increased faba bean resistance to water stress.