Results of diagnostic investigations and long-term outcome of 33 dogs with brain infarction (2000-2004)

Medical records of 33 dogs presented for acute onset, nonprogressive, intracranial dysfunction that had a magnetic resonance imaging diagnosis of brain infarction were reviewed. Postmortem confirmation of brain infarction was available in 10 dogs. All dogs were evaluated by CBC, serum biochemistry, thyroid and adrenal testing, urinalysis, thoracic and abdominal imaging, and cerebrospinal fluid analysis. Results of coagulation profile and arterial blood pressure were available in 32/33 and 28/33 dogs, respectively. On the basis of the imaging findings, infarcts were classified depending on their type (territorial or lacunar) and location within the brain (telencephalic, 10/33; thalamic/midbrain, 8/33; cerebellar, 15/33). No marked associations among location or type of infarct and patient age and sex, occurrence of systemic hypertension, and the presence or absence of a concurrent medical condition were identified. Small breed dogs (< or =15 kg) were significantly more likely to have territorial cerebellar infarcts, whereas large breed dogs (>15 kg) were significantly more likely to have lacunar thalamic or midbrain infarcts. A concurrent medical condition was detected in 18/33 dogs with brain infarcts, with chronic kidney disease (8/33) and hyperadrenocorticism (6/ 33) being most commonly encountered. Of 33 dogs, 10 were euthanized because of the severity and lack of improvement of their neurologic status or the severity of their concurrent medical condition. No association was identified between type or location of infarct and patient outcome. Dogs with concurrent medical conditions had significantly shorter survival times than those with no identifiable medical condition and were significantly more likely to suffer from recurrent neurologic signs because of subsequent infarcts.     

Multiple causes of high extinction risk in large mammal species

Many large animal species have a high risk of extinction. This is usually thought to result simply from the way that species traits associated with vulnerability, such as low reproductive rates, scale with body size. In a broad-scale analysis of extinction risk in mammals, we find two additional patterns in the size selectivity of extinction risk. First, impacts of both intrinsic and environmental factors increase sharply above a threshold body mass around 3 kilograms. Second, whereas extinction risk in smaller species is driven by environmental factors, in larger species it is driven by a combination of environmental factors and intrinsic traits. Thus, the disadvantages of large size are greater than generally recognized, and future loss of large mammal biodiversity could be far more rapid than expected.     

Towards More Efficient Incentives for Agri‐environment Measures in Degraded and Eroded Vineyards

Evaluating the economic damage caused by soil erosion is important. In addition to increasing the awareness of the problem among farmers and policy makers, evaluation of the economic damage caused by erosion can promote the implementation of more sustainable soil management practices. In the present study, we describe a new approach to evaluate incentives for the adoption of agri‐environment measure (AEM) in degraded and eroded vineyards. To estimate this incentive, the replacement cost (RC) and the loss of income are calculated when the vineyard is managed with conventional tillage versus a cover crop (AEM). Our findings show that the incentive could range from the loss of income due to AEM adoption to the ecosystem service benefit (RC_C − RC_AEM). In our case study, the incentive ranged from 315 € ha⁻¹ (loss of income) to 1,088 € ha⁻¹ (ecosystem service benefit). Within this range, the incentive amount is determined according to efficiency criteria based on vineyard slope. We also present a conceptual model of public spending efficiency that should help policy makers decide how to allocate the incentives so as to maximize the economic return associated with ecosystem services. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Migration of nonylphenol from plastic containers to water and a milk surrogate

Nonylphenol (NP) is used as an antioxidant and plasticizer in some plastic products. After the discovery of its endocrine-disrupting potential, concern over human exposure to this chemical has increased. Recently, a group in Germany estimated the average daily intake of NP from food (7.5 microg/day), excluding water. In the present study, NP, octylphenol (OP), and their respective ethoxylates (1-5) were measured in spring water bottled in three different types of plastic (HDPE, PET, and PVC). NP was present in water from HDPE and PVC containers, at 180 and 300 ng/L respectively, which represent 4.8% and 8% of the value calculated by the German group assuming a consumption of 2 L of water per day. OP was found in water from HDPE extracts in lower amounts, 12 ng/L, and neither the NP- nor the OP-ethoxylates were detected in any of the samples. Attempts to measure these compounds in tap water were unsuccessful, probably because reaction with residual chlorine results in the formation of chlorinated byproducts. Migration of NP from HDPE containers to a milk surrogate was also evaluated; results indicate that the amounts of NP leaching into milk might be similar to those in bottled water.     

Procarbazine as adjunctive therapy for treatment of dogs with presumptive antemortem diagnosis of granulomatous meningoencephalomyelitis: 21 cases (1998-2004)

BACKGROUND: Granulomatous meningoencephalomyelitis (GME) is an idiopathic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Remission often is short-lived in dogs treated with glucocorticoids. Procarbazine is T cell-specific and crosses the blood-brain barrier. HYPOTHESIS: Dogs with presumptive antemortem diagnosis of GME given procarbazine as adjunctive therapy to prednisone will have improved long-term outcome compared with dogs given no treatment or glucocorticoids alone. ANIMALS: Two groups were studied: (1) Dogs with presumptive antemortem diagnosis of GME treated with procarbazine and prednisone (n = 21); (2) Dogs that had a histologic diagnosis of GME at postmortem examination and received no treatment (n = 11). METHODS: Dogs with presumptive GME treated with procarbazine were identified retrospectively from medical records of 2 veterinary referral hospitals. Selection criteria required all dogs have a neurologic examination, blood work, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and brain imaging (MRI or CT). RESULTS: Median survival time for all dogs studied was 5.0 months. Median survival time for dogs treated with procarbazine was 14.0 months and for untreated dogs, 0.73 months. Treatment with procarbazine was significantly correlated with survival time (P < .001). Procarbazine was the only independent predictor of survival. Prednisone was reduced in dosage or discontinued in 17 dogs. Adverse reactions to procarbazine therapy included myelosuppression in 7 dogs and hemorrhagic gastroenteritis in 3 dogs. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that procarbazine treatment of presumptive GME may result in greater improved long-term outcome than has been previously reported for glucocorticoid treatment alone and may complement other immunomodulatory therapies. Procarbazine-treated dogs must be monitored for adverse reactions.     

Optimizing the growth of forage and grain legumes on low pH soils through the application of superior Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae strains

Climate variability and current farming practices have led to declining soil fertility and pH, with a heavy reliance on fertilizers and herbicides. The addition of forage and grain legumes to farming systems not only improves soil health but also increases farm profitability through nitrogen (N) fertilizer cost offsets. However, the formation of effective symbioses between legumes and rhizobia can be unreliable and is considered at risk when combined with dry sowing practices such as those that have been designed to obviate effects of climate change. This research was initiated to improve the robustness of the legume/rhizobia symbiosis in low pH, infertile and dry soils. Production from two cultivars of field pea (Pisum sativum) and two species of vetch (Vicia spp.), and symbiotic outcomes when inoculated with a range of experimental rhizobial strains (Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae), was assessed in broad acre field trials which simulated farmer practice. New rhizobia strains increased nodulation, N fixation, produced more biomass and higher seed yield than comparator commercial strains. Strain WSM4643 also demonstrated superior survival when desiccated compared to current commercial strains in the laboratory and on seed when delivered as inoculant in peat carriers. WSM4643 is a suitable prospect for a commercial inoculant in Australia and other agricultural areas of the world where growing peas and vetch on soils generally considered problematic for this legume/rhizobia symbiosis. A particular advantage of WSM4643 may be that it potentiates sowing inoculated legumes into dry soil, which is a contemporary response by farmers to climate variation.     

Glyceryl ether metabolism: regulation of buoyancy in dogfish Squalus acanthias

The ratios of concentrations of diacyl glyceryl ethers to triglycerides are increased significantly in the livers of weighted dogfish (Squalus acanthias) in comparison to an unweighted control group. The hydrostatic properties of the liver may be regulated through the metabolism of these two classes of lipids which have different specific gravities.     

Method Dependency in the Measurement of BTEX Levels in Contaminated Soil

Environmental consultants and analytical laboratories are increasingly realizing the importance of analytical method selection and validation for the reliable measurement of soil contamination. Aromatic hydrocarbons (BTEX) is one class of environmentally significant soil contamination for which testing is required by regulatory authorities in most industrialized countries. Unfortunately, in most guidelines there is a lack of direction for the selection of a testing method for BTEX and, in practice, any one of a variety of methods may be employed. The fact that these may not all yield comparable results is a source of much frustration in the industry and there is a paucity of published research into this problem. In a number of carefully controlled experiments, the method dependency of measured BTEX levels in contaminated soil samples has been investigated. Three commonly employed methods, namely, (methanol extraction) purge-and-trap/gas chromatography with mass selective detection (P&T/GCMSD), headspace/GCMSD and dichloromethane (DCM) extraction/gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GCFID) have been compared in the analysis of 109 gasoline-contaminated soil samples collected from station sites in Melbourne, Australia. Measurable BTEX concentrations were recorded in 92% of the samples using P&T/GCMSD, 59% using DCM/GCFID, and 40% using headspace/GCMSD. Correspondingly, the magnitudes of the recovered concentrations were significantly higher by P&T/GCMSD than by DCM/GCFID, which in turn were significantly higher than the magnitudes determined by headspace/GCMSD. These trends are evident for both clay and sandy soils. These studies clearly demonstrate that, for the three commonly employed methods described, measured BTEX levels are extraction and analytical method dependent in at least two different soil types.     

Immunochemical evaluation of bovine beta-casein and its 1-28 phosphopeptide in cheese during ripening

Polyclonal antibodies raised against the plasmin-released 1-28 phosphopeptide from bovine beta-casein [i.e., beta-CN(f1-28)4P] specifically recognized the tryptic beta-casein 1-25 and 2-25 peptides, whatever the degree of phosphorylation, but were unresponsive to the shortened beta-casein 16-22 phosphopeptide. These antibodies were able to recognize the parent bovine beta-casein as well as the homologous water buffalo protein, but they could not detect the homologous counterparts from ovine and caprine milks. Such antibodies were used in competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to monitor the plasmin-mediated release of the 1-28 phosphopeptide from beta-casein and to evaluate the residual native beta-casein in bovine cheese sampled during ripening. Applications of these polyclonal antibodies are suggested mainly for estimating the age of hard cheeses and, possibly, for tracing the presence of bovine casein in fresh ovine and caprine cheeses.