Histomorphometry and μCT scan analysis of osteoporosis in spayed female dogs

Background:Both humans and small animals suffer from similar metabolic and structural diseases that impact the musculoskeletal system; however, instead of studying animal disease in its own right, animals are more often used as models for research into various human ailments, such as osteoporosis. There are few studies indicating that animals may suffer from osteoporosis, which raises the question of why small animals, which we believe to be equally susceptible, receive so little attention. With this research, we hope to draw the attention of researchers to the fact that the examination of animals for this disease is just as important as the examination of humans; human osteoporosis research receives a great deal of attention, while animals and their health are neglected.Aims:We aimed to analyze the bone volume fraction (BV/TV) and thickness of first (L1) and second (L2) lumbar vertebrae samples from five cadavers using histomorphometric analysis. In addition, we aimed to investigate one cadaver using microcomputed tomography (μCT) imaging.Methods:The L1 and L2 vertebrae from five dog carcasses were used to evaluate the BV/TV and the trabecular thicknesses. We used precise sampling criteria, and also developed a methodological approach to the study of the vertebrae. Using semi-automated methods, we performed histomorphometric analysis and μCT data analysis.Results:We used five dog cadavers in this research. During the histomorphometry study, we observed that the lowest L1 BV/TV ratio was 7.88% and the highest was 23.08%. The L2 vertebrae BV/TV ranged from 11.58% to 23.7%. The L1 and L2 lumbar trabeculae thicknesses were also measured. L1’s smallest trabecula was 17.34 microns and its largest was 31.88. The L2 vertebrae trabecula thickness was 18.76–30.75 microns. BV/TV and trabecular thickness were positively correlated (and vice versa). The two-tailed p value was less than 0.00001. This difference is statistically significant. After μCT analysis, we discovered regions in the vertebral body with low porosity; these cavities are usually filled with connective tissue. The bone tissue in these areas is more vulnerable, meaning fracture risk has increased.Conclusions:Animals should not just be considered as models for osteoporosis in humans, but also as potential patients. A single test, such as histomorphometry, may not be sufficient; more advanced technology, such as μCT, is required, since it reveals the pores that make the vertebral column more brittle and susceptible to fracture.     

Land Cover Change Impacts on Beef Cattle Productivity under Changing Climate: Case of Ilemela and Magu Districts,Tanzania

The study focused on contributing to the spatial knowledge of the impacts of land cover changes on beef cattle production under a changing climate in rangelands of the Lake Victoria Basin (LVB), so as to establish a strategy for improving beef cattle production in the area. We used supervised classification of satellite imagery to analyze land cover changes between the years 1980–2000 and 2000–2010. Results revealed that for the periods 1980–2000 and 2000–2010, settlements increased by 1% and 8%, and cultivated area increased by 0.58% and 0.30%, respectively. Riverine vegetation declined by 0.26% and increased by 0.16%, and woodlands declined by 6% and 13% respectively. The trend of beef cattle numbers against rainfall and pasture area (riverine vegetation and woodland) over the study period 1980–2010 showed a non-significant trend of increasing rainfall in the study area. In Ilemela District, pasture area and beef cattle numbers declined by 33% and 4% respectively. In Magu District, beef cattle numbers increased by 64% and pasture area declined by 84%. This implies that the effect of urbanization is more severe in Ilemela than in Magu District. Land use planning, enhancing of mixed crop-livestock farming systems, intensification of livestock practices, forage conservation, planting of fodder trees, and matching of cattle numbers with pasture availability are recommended. In addition, education is needed on effective cattle farming as a strategy for improving beef cattle production in the face of land cover changes due to climate variability in the area.     

Properties of strand boards with uniform and conventional vertical density profiles

Randomly oriented strand boards with both uniform and conventional vertical density profiles (VDP) were manufactured, and their properties were evaluated and compared. The bending modulus of elasticity (MOE) of conventional strand boards was predicted using the laminated beam theory and the MOE-density regression equation from the uniform strand boards. The results showed that the predicted MOE of conventional strand boards was close to the measured MOE with a difference of less than 10%. The internal bond strength values of uniform strand boards were found to be higher than conventional strand boards while no significant difference was found in water-related properties. Compared with uniform strand boards, MOE values of conventional strand boards were improved only at higher density level. About 10% of improvement in MOE can be obtained for the strand boards investigated by manipulating the VDP. Steeper VDPs were predicted to be required for thinner boards than for thick boards in order to achieve the same improvement in MOE.     

Determination of elements removal in different harvesting scenarios of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stands

Increasing demand for renewable energy and limiting CO₂ emissions have stimulated much interest in wood-based biofuels. Unfortunately, expanding the utilization of forest biomass may cause nutrient depletion in forested environments. This study investigates the element content from various parts of the tree. Comparisons were made between different harvesting scenarios and their impact on the amount of nutrients removed from the forest environment. The harvesting scenarios were: stem-only harvesting (SOH), branch and stem harvesting (BSH), and two variants of whole-tree harvesting (WTH). The elements taken into account were: carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), sulphur (S), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb). To make the results comparable, the same amount of removed biomass was taken into calculation. The differences between harvesting scenarios were significant. The amounts of removed elements formed similar pattern: the lowest level was found in SOH, average in BSH, and highest in both variants of WTH. This confirms that the application of WTH is connected with increased risk of nutrient depletion, even when the volume of harvest would be equal to other variants.     

Using a Numerical Model to Track the Discharge of a Wastewater Treatment Plant in a Tidal Estuary

Along the coast of Maine, USA, there are numerous wastewater treatment plants that discharge their treated effluents into a river estuary which is shared by commercial fishing and shellfish harvesting. Occasionally, there can be failures or bypasses of treatment plants that lead to untreated or partially treated sewage flowing into shellfish harvesting waters. To prevent any toxic contamination of harvested shellfish, a prohibitive zone is established around the treatment plant where shellfish harvesting is prohibited. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has conducted numerous dye studies on both coasts of the USA to determine these prohibitive zones, based on the guidelines of the National Shellfish Sanitation Program. In May 2010, the FDA conducted such a dye study at the Yarmouth, Maine wastewater treatment plant. The results are compared with a numerical coastal model that provides the velocity field for the currents around the treatment plant. This model includes a diffusion equation to simulate dye dispersion from a point source which is used to determine the prohibitive zone. The numerical model shows good correlation with the FDA dye study report and establishes a prohibitive zone for commercial harvesting in keeping with that of the FDA study. The benefits of the numerical model include sampling at thousands of locations simultaneously, seasonal changes in river volumes, and changes in plant discharge volumes.     

Germplasm sources of protective glandular leaf trichomes of hop (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Humulus lupulus</Emphasis>)

We report here that small but numerous foliar glands are present near the base of the abaxial leaf blades of hop (Humulus lupulus L.) at about 2.6 times the density found in the more distal regions, and this concentration of glands appear to protect the basal region from damage by insects. Distinctive wild taxa of H. lupulus are native to distinctive regions of the north temperate world. The much higher presence of protective glands in the three native North American Humulus taxonomic varieties in comparison with the varieties native to Europe and Asia suggests specialized leaf feeders in North America have been responsible for the evolution of greater gland density. Commercial domesticated hop cultivars trace most of their germplasm to the European hop (H. lupulus var. lupulus), which possesses a much lower concentration of leaf glands than the native hops of all other regions of the world, and therefore is likely relatively susceptible to damage. We suggest that breeding for increased density of protective foliage glands may be a non-chemical way of alleviating foliar feeding damage in cultivated hops.     

Pyrethroid insecticides derived from 2,2′ -bridged biphenyl-3-ylmethanols

The addition of a hydrocarbon bridge between the 2- and 2′-positions in biphenyl constrains the twist angle between the two phenyl rings to fairly small limits. It has been found that the biological activity of a series of pyrethroid esters, of hydrocarbon bridged biphenyl-3-ylmethanols and of heterocyclic hydrocarbonbridged biphenyl analogues, changes with the length of the bridge. The optimum activity and the maximum biological activity spectrum were found for the esters of three-carbon bridged alcohols. The relationship of the activity to the twist angle for these bridged esters was compared with the activity and spectrum of a series of biphenyl and heterocyclic biphenyl analogues previously reported. A parallel exists between the two series. The optimum twist angle between the aromatic rings of the alcohols, in both the bridged and free rotating analogues, is around 50°. Pyrethroid esters showing the highest activity were produced from 6, 7-dihydro-5H-dibenzo-[a,c]cyclohepten-4-ylmethanol. The biological activity of a series of pyrethroid esters of this alcohol is also reported.     

Chemoprophylaxis of cryptosporidiosis in chickens, using halofuginone, salinomycin, lasalocid, or monensin

Chemoprophylaxis of Cryptosporidium baileyi infections was attempted by feeding 4 groups of chicks diets containing 3 mg of halofuginone/kg of feed, 60 mg of salinomycin/kg, 75 mg of lasalocid/kg, or 110 mg of monensin/kg. Rations were fed 5 days before oral or intratracheal inoculation with oocysts and were continued for 20 days. None of the drugs prevented C baileyi infections. Clinical signs of respiratory tract disease and gross lesions of airsacculitis were observed in intratracheally inoculated birds in all treatment groups and nonmedicated controls. Orally inoculated birds did not develop clinical signs of infection. Pathogenic bacteria were not isolated from the respiratory tract systems of any chicks. Halofuginone delayed the establishment of infections of the bursa of Fabricius and cloaca, but not of the trachea.