The use of small (2.7 mm) screws for arthroscopically guided repair of carpal chip fractures

Reasons for performing the study: Removal of large chip fractures of the carpal bones and the osteochondral deficits that result, have been associated with a worse prognosis than removal of small fragments in similar locations. Hypothesis: Reducing the articular defects by repair of large osteochondral fragments may have advantages over removal. Methods: Horses with osteochondral chip fractures that were of sufficient size and infrastructure to be repaired with small (2.7 mm diameter) AO/ASIF cortex screws were identified and repair effected by arthroscopically guided internal fixation. Results: Thirty‐three horses underwent surgery to repair 35 fractures of the dorsodistal radial carpal bone (n = 25), the dorsal margin of the radial facet of the third carpal bone (n = 9) and the intermediate facet of the distal radius (n = 1). There were no surgical complications and fractures healed satisfactorily in 26 of 28 horses and 23 horses returned to racing performance. Conclusion: Arthroscopically guided repair of carpal chip fractures with small diameter cortex screws is technically feasible and experiences with 33 cases suggest that this may have advantages over fragment removal in managing such cases. Potential relevance: Surgeons treating horses with large chip fractures of the carpal bones should consider arthroscopically guided internal fixation as an alternative to removal.     

Eperythrozoon wenyonii infection in dairy cattle

Approximately 10 of 100 young heifers that had recently delivered their first calf--members of a large Colorado dairy herd--had a syndrome of swollen teats and distal portions of the hind limbs, prefemoral lymphadenopathy, transient fever, rough coat, decreased milk production, and subsequent weight loss and reproductive inefficiency. Acute clinical signs of disease were associated with large numbers of Eperythrozoon wenyonii seen on blood smears, and resolution of signs correlated with reduction or disappearance of the parasite. Other known causes of peripheral edema could not be documented. The parasite was transmitted to 4 of 7 nonlactating dairy cows destined to be culled and a splenectomized calf via IV inoculation of blood from parasitemic heifers, but clinical signs of infection were not induced.     

Splenic torsion in an alpaca

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical signs, diagnostic evaluation and surgical management of an alpaca with splenic torsion. ANIMALS: Six-year-old female alpaca. RESULTS: Splenic torsion and uterine torsion were the inciting cause for persistent abdominal discomfort in this alpaca. Rectal examination, abdominocentesis, and transabdominal ultrasonographic findings were suggestive of a splenic lesion. Surgical management involved splenectomy of a necrotized spleen. CONCLUSIONS: Although rare in occurrence, splenic torsion should be considered as a potential cause of abdominal discomfort in alpacas. Splenectomy is a reasonable and successful method of treatment for a devitalized spleen secondary to splenic torsion in alpacas. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Splenic torsion causes persistent abdominal discomfort in camelids and may be associated with uterine torsion. Rectal examination, transabdominal ultrasound and abdominocentesis are useful diagnostic tools to differentiate splenic torsion from other causes of abdominal discomfort. Splenectomy is an uncomplicated procedure in camelids and has a favorable prognosis.     

Effect of Rous associated virus number 7 on lymphoid cells and tissues of the chicken

Infection of chicks or chick embryos with Rous associated virus number 7 (RAV-7) led to a decreased blastogenic response to Concanavalin A (Con A) by lymphocytes isolated from the spleen and thymus. Chicks infected with RAV-7 8 days after hatch manifested decreased Con A blastogenesis 5 weeks postinfection, while chicks infected in ovo at 10 days of incubation showed an unusual pattern of cell density dependent decreased blastogenesis two weeks post-hatch (three weeks post-infection). Histopathological examination of tissues from RAV-7 infected chicks revealed evidence of lymphoid organ involution and widespread lymphoproliferative lesions by 3 weeks of age. The combination of decreased in vitro lymphoid blastogenesis and in vivo lymphoproliferation suggests that RAV-7 interacts with lymphocytes in a fashion that has not previously been described in the chicken.     

Greenhouse gas mitigation potential of agricultural land in Great Britain

The aim of this paper is to assess the greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation potential of croplands and grasslands in Great Britain under different management practices. We consider the feasible land management options for grass and cropland using county level land‐use data with estimates of per‐area mitigation potential for individual and total GHGs, to identify the land management options with the greatest cost‐effective mitigation potential. We show that for grasslands, uncertainties still remain on the mitigation potential because of their climatic sensitivity and also their less intensive management. For croplands in Great Britain, the technical mean GHG mitigation potentials for all cropland management practices range from 17 Mt CO₂‐eq. per 20 yr to 39 Mt CO₂‐eq. per 20 yr. There are significant regional variation in all cases, with the greatest potentials in England, negligible potential in Wales and intermediate potential in Scotland, with country differences largely driven by the areas of cropland and grassland in each country. Practices such as agronomic improvement and nutrient management are the most promising options because of their impact on N₂O emissions and also their larger potential at low cost. In terms of annual emissions from agriculture, calculated mitigation potentials are small, where the technical mitigation potential of agronomy and nutrient management strategies are ca. 4.5 and 3.8%, respectively (agricultural emissions account for ca. 9% or 47.7 Mt CO₂‐eq., of total Great Britain GHG emissions, Department of Energy and Climate Change, UK). However when compared with the land use, land‐use change and forestry sector (LULUCF) emissions, nutrient management would reduce further emission reductions by approximately half of the 2005 LULUCF sink (i.e. ?1.6 Mt CO₂‐eq. per year).     

Evidence for functional G-coupled protein receptors 43 and 120 in subcutaneous and intramuscular adipose tissue of Angus crossbred steers

We conducted 3 independent experiments to demonstrate functional G-coupled protein receptor 43 (GPR43) and GPR120 in bovine intramuscular (i.m.) and subcutaneous (s.c.) adipose tissues. We hypothesized that media volatile fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids would affect cAMP-activated protein kinase-alpha (AMPKα) protein expression and cAMP concentrations differently in i.m. and s.c. adipose tissue. Experiment 1: oleic acid (18:1n-9) decreased phosphorylated AMPKα protein (p-AMPKα) and the p-AMPKα/AMPKα protein ratio in i.m. preadipocytes, increased the p-AMPKα/AMPKα protein ratio in bovine satellite cells, and had no effect in s.c. preadipocytes. Experment 2: ex vivo explants from the 5th to 8th longissimus thoracic rib muscle section of Angus crossbred steers were cultured 48 hr in media containing 0.25 µM ciglitizone, 5 mM glucose, and 5 mM acetate, in the absence or the presence of 100 µM oleic acid. Oleic acid increased acetate incorporation into fatty acids and GPR43 gene expression in i.m. adipose tissue (P < 0.05), but oleic acid had no effect on fatty acid synthesis or GPR43 expression in s.c. adipose tissue. Experiment 3: fresh s.c. and i.m. adipose tissue from the 5th to 8th longissimus thoracic rib muscle section of Angus crossbred steers was transferred immediately to 6-well culture plates containing 3 mL of KHB/Hepes/5 mM glucose. Samples were preincubated with 0.5 mM theophylline plus 10 μM forskolin for 30 min, after which increasing concentrations of acetate or propionate (0, 10⁻³, 10^−2.3, and 10⁻³ M) in the absence or the presence of 100 μM oleic acid or 100 µM palmitic acid (16:0) were added to the incubation media. Acetate had no effect on forskolin-stimulated cAMP production in s.c. adipose tissue but decreased cAMP in i.m. adipose tissue (P < 0.05); this indicates a functional GPR43 receptor in i.m. adipose tissue. The combination of 10⁻² M acetate and oleic acid decrease cAMP production in s.c. adipose tissue, consistent with GPR120 receptor activity, but oleic acid and palmitic acid attenuated the depression of cAMP production caused by acetate in i.m. adipose tissue. Palmitic acid depressed cAMP production in s.c. adipose tissue, and increased cAMP production in i.m. adipose tissue (P < 0.05). Propionate had no effect on cAMP production in s.c. or i.m. adipose tissue. These results provide evidence for functional GPR43 receptors in i.m. adipose tissue and GPR120 receptors in s.c. adipose tissue, both of which would suppress lipolysis.     

A proposal to leverage high-quality veterinary diagnostic laboratory large data streams for animal health,public health,and One Health

Test data generated by ~60 accredited member laboratories of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD) is of exceptional quality. These data are captured by 1 of 13 laboratory information management systems (LIMSs) developed specifically for veterinary diagnostic laboratories (VDLs). Beginning ~2000, the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) developed an electronic messaging system for LIMS to automatically send standardized data streams for 14 select agents to a national repository. This messaging enables the U.S. Department of Agriculture to track and respond to high-consequence animal disease outbreaks such as highly pathogenic avian influenza. Because of the lack of standardized data collection in the LIMSs used at VDLs, there is, to date, no means of summarizing VDL large data streams for multi-state and national animal health studies or for providing near-real-time tracking for hundreds of other important animal diseases in the United States that are detected routinely by VDLs. Further, VDLs are the only state and federal resources that can provide early detection and identification of endemic and emerging zoonotic diseases. Zoonotic diseases are estimated to be responsible for 2.5 billion cases of human illness and 2.7 million deaths worldwide every year. The economic and health impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is self-evident. We review here the history and progress of data management in VDLs and discuss ways of seizing unexplored opportunities to advance data leveraging to better serve animal health, public health, and One Health.