Comparison of chemistry analytes between 2 portable, commercially available analyzers and a conventional laboratory analyzer in reptiles

Background: Advantages of handheld and small bench‐top biochemical analyzers include requirements for smaller sample volume and practicality for use in the field or in practices, but little has been published on the performance of these instruments compared with standard reference methods in analysis of reptilian blood. Objective: The aim of this study was to compare reptilian blood biochemical values obtained using the Abaxis VetScan Classic bench‐top analyzer and a Heska i‐STAT handheld analyzer with values obtained using a Roche Hitachi 911 chemical analyzer. Methods: Reptiles, including 14 bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps), 4 blue‐tongued skinks (Tiliqua gigas), 8 Burmese star tortoises (Geochelone platynota), 10 Indian star tortoises (Geochelone elegans), 5 red‐tailed boas (Boa constrictor), and 5 Northern pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus), were manually restrained, and a single blood sample was obtained and divided for analysis. Results for concentrations of albumin, bile acids, calcium, glucose, phosphates, potassium, sodium, total protein, and uric acid and activities of aspartate aminotransferase and creatine kinase obtained from the VetScan Classic and Hitachi 911 were compared. Results for concentrations of chloride, glucose, potassium, and sodium obtained from the i‐STAT and Hitachi 911 were compared. Results: Compared with results from the Hitachi 911, those from the VetScan Classic and i‐STAT had variable correlations, and constant or proportional bias was found for many analytes. Bile acid data could not be evaluated because results for 44 of 45 samples fell below the lower linearity limit of the VetScan Classic. Conclusions: Although the 2 portable instruments might provide measurements with clinical utility, there were significant differences compared with the reference analyzer, and development of analyzer‐specific reference intervals is recommended.     

Fungi in Stored Products

Abstract

This paper outlines the occurrence and significance of fungi in stored products and some methods for their isolation.     

Comparison of isothiocyanate metabolite levels and histone deacetylase activity in human subjects consuming broccoli sprouts or broccoli supplement

Increased consumption of cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli may reduce the risk of various cancers. Myrosinase is required to convert dietary glucosinolates from broccoli into bioactive isothiocyanates. We evaluated isothiocyanate excretion profiles in healthy subjects who consumed broccoli sprouts or broccoli supplement (no myrosinase) with equivalent glucosinolate content. Urinary metabolites of two major isothiocyanates, sulforaphane and erucin, were measured by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Peak excretion of sulforaphane and erucin was higher and occurred sooner in subjects who consumed broccoli sprouts as compared to subjects who consumed the supplement. A subject-dependent shift in the ratio of urinary sulforaphane to erucin metabolites was observed in both groups, indicating conversion of sulforaphane to erucin. Lower histone deacetylase activity was observed in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells only in subjects consuming sprouts. Fresh broccoli sprouts differ from broccoli supplements in regards to excretion of isothiocyanates and bioactivity in human subjects.     

Association between the purchase price of Thoroughbred yearlings and their performance during the 2- and 3-year-old racing seasons

OBJECTIVES Describe the association between the purchase price of Thoroughbred yearlings sold in Australia and racing performance as 2- and 3-year-olds. METHODS Race performance data of 2773 Thoroughbred yearlings sold at auction during 2003 were collected. Associations between purchase price and the probability of starting, the number of race starts and the prize money earned were examined. RESULTS In total, 2206 (79.6%) horses started a race. The mean number of race starts was six and the mean prize money earned was A$24,420. A total of 1711 (61.5%) horses earned prize money, 402 (14.4%) earned more than their purchase price, 312 (11.2%) earned more than A$40,000, the estimated cost of training, and 142 (5.1%) earned A$40,000 more than their purchase price. There was a positive association between purchase price category and the probability of starting, number of starts, earning prize money and earning greater than A$40,000 (P < 0.001). Purchase price category was negatively associated with the probability of earning greater than the purchase price (P < 0.001). The proportion of horses earning greater than the purchase price plus $40,000 was significantly different (P = 0.03) among the five price categories. CONCLUSION Yearling purchase price was positively associated with all race performance outcomes measured and researchers examining the race performance of yearlings purchased at sales should consider including purchase price when modelling. The Thoroughbred yearling market in Australia behaves in a similar manner to the United States market; owners pay a premium to enter the sport of racing and an additional premium in the quest to own a champion.     

Diagnosis of botulism types C and D in cattle by a monoclonal antibody-based sandwich ELISA

This study was undertaken to evaluate two monoclonal antibody-based sandwich ELISAs (sELISAs) for the detection of Clostridium botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs) types C and D from culture-enriched intestinal content samples from cattle. To validate the diagnostic significance of the presence of cultivable, toxin-producing C botulinum in the intestines of cattle, samples from both suspect and non-suspect botulism cases were examined. BoNT was detected by both sELISAs in a greater number of suspect animals than by direct testing of uncultured samples by mouse bioassay. One sELISA detected two BoNT C and one BoNT Group III mosaic isoform in three animals that were missed by the other, and both sELISAs failed to identify samples from two mouse bioassay-positive BoNT C animals. BoNT D was also detected in one non-suspect sample by one of the sELISAs.     

Content and uptake of phosphorus and copper by spring wheat: Effect of environment,genotype, and management

Copper (Cu) deficiency in grain crops grown on the Canadian Prairie has increased recently, while nearly 50% of the soils have low available phosphorus (P) levels. This study was conducted to quantify the variation in Cu and P uptake among some common Canadian wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars due to the effects of nitrogen (N) fertilizer and the environment. The effects of N fertilizer application at 0,50, and 100 kg N ha^‐1 and seeding in early May or mid‐May on the P and Cu contents of four wheat cultivars were determined in an experiment conducted over two years at Fort Vermilion (58°24'N, 116°0’ W). Cultivar and N fertilizer produced similar variances in P concentration. Phosphorus uptake was increased by N fertilizer, but was not affected by the cultivars tested. Nitrogen fertilizer produced four times as much variability in Cu concentration and uptake as did the effect of genotypes. Date of sowing within the recommended time frame had no effect on plant P and Cu contents. There was no treatment interaction effect on plant P or Cu content. In a second experiment, situated near Grande Prairie (55°10'N, 118°48'W) and conducted over two years, P and Cu uptake and concentrations were determined for 10 agronomically diverse spring wheat cultivars. The range was 1.2‐ to 1.4‐fold for P and 1.5‐ to 1.7‐fold for Cu concentration. Plant Cu, but not plant P, was correlated with grain yield (r=0.64 to 0.86), suggesting that either varietal differences in Cu uptake may affect yield or prior selection for yield may have resulted in the selection for Cu‐efficient plants as well. Environmental, i.e., site‐year, effects on plant P, and particularly Cu concentrations, were larger than the varietal effects in both studies. These studies indicate that selection of Canadian wheat cultivars should be based on their yield potential rather than their efficiency in Cu or P uptake since crop nutrition can be more readily managed by optimal fertilization.     

Characterizing The Physical And Chemical Properties of a Vermicompost Filter Bed

Vermicompost filtration is a new on-site waste treatment system. Consequently, little is known about the filter medium properties. The aim of this preliminary study was to quantify physical and compositional properties of vermicompost filter beds that had been used to treat domestic solid organic waste and wastewater. This paper presents the trials performed on pilot-scale reactors filled with vermicompost from a full-scale vermicompost filtration system. Household solid organic waste and raw wastewater at the rate of 130 L/m²/d was applied to the reactor bed surface over a four-month period. It was found that fresh casts laid on the bed surface had a BOD of 1290 mg/g VS while casts buried to a depth of 10 cm had a BOD of 605 mg/g VS. Below this depth there was little further biodegradation of earthworm casts despite cast ages of up to five years. Solid material in the reactor accounted for only 7-10% of the reactor volume. The total voidage comprised of large free-draining pores, which accounted for 15-20% of the reactor volume and 60-70% micropores, able to hold up water against gravity. It was shown that water could flow through the medium micropores and macropores following a wastewater application. The wastewater flow characteristics were modeled by a two-region model based on the Richards Equation, an equation used to describe porous spatially heterogeneous materials.     

Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in the Asia‐Pacific region: The role of international assistance

Abstract: The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are a set of international development targets agreed to by members of the United Nations in 2000. The goals aim to improve many of the dimensions of extreme poverty and are to be achieved by 2015. This paper provides an overview of the issues relevant to the achievement of the MDGs in the Asia‐Pacific region. The paper begins by discussing the critiques of the MDGs before assessing whether countries in the region are on track to achieve them. Issues relating to data availability and accuracy are discussed and the need to tailor the MDG targets to the special circumstances of some Asia‐Pacific countries is examined. The paper proceeds by discussing the role of international assistance via international foreign development aid and non‐governmental organisations in the achievement of the MDGs. The paper concludes with some policy implications for the international donor community.     

Unraveling evolutionary relationships among the divergent lineages of colletotrichum causing anthracnose disease in turfgrass and corn

ABSTRACT Colletotrichum species cause anthracnose diseases on a number of grass hosts and are common inhabitants of many others. They are divided into four species: C. sublineolum is pathogenic to Sorghum spp.; C. caudatum is found on C4 grasses such as indiangrass and big bluestem; C. falcatum causes red rot of sugarcane; and C. graminicola sensu lato is a broadly defined species including isolates that attack maize, wheat, oats, and many forage, turf, and amenity grasses of the subfamily Pooideae. In this paper, a combination of hierarchal- and nonhierarchal-based analyses were employed to examine evolutionary relationships among the grass-infecting Colletotrichum species, with special emphasis on isolates from turf and other grasses in the subfamily Pooideae. Reconstructions performed with data sets from over 100 Colletotrichum isolates at three variable loci using phylogenetic and network-based methodologies unambiguously supported the taxonomic separation of maize-infecting isolates of C. graminicola from the pooid-infecting strains of Colletotrichum. To reflect the evolutionary relationships that exist between these distinct lineages, we propose the resurrection of the species name C. cereale to describe the pooid-infecting isolates. There was also support for further subdivision of C. cereale, but the current data are insufficient to confidently subdivide the species, as there was some evidence of recombination between lineages of this species.