Characterization of peripheral blood and pulmonary leukocyte function in healthy foals

Studies in infants and foals indicate an age-dependent maturation of peripheral lymphocyte subsets. The age-dependent relationship for maturation of cellular immune responses, such as phagocytosis and lymphocyte responses of the peripheral and pulmonary-derived leukocytes, has not been characterized in foals. Lymphocyte subpopulations, mitogen stimulation response of lymphocytes, lymphokine-activated killing cell activity, phagocytosis and oxidative burst activity, and serum immunoglobulin (Ig) classes G and M concentrations were determined in developing foals. This study illustrates age-dependent changes in immunoglobulin class concentrations, lymphocyte subsets, and EqMHC Class II expression in cells of the peripheral blood and lungs of developing neonatal-to-weanling foals. The increase in peripheral blood and BAL B-lymphocytes and serum immunoglobulins in developing foals suggests expansion of immune cell populations during a time in which environmental pathogen exposure is great. General immune function, mitogenic responses, LAK cell activity, opsonized phagocytosis, and oxidative burst activity of newborns was similar to the adult horse. Total immune-cell numbers, rather than function, seemed to be the limiting factor in the development of the equine neonatal immune system. There was an age-related percent increase in the appearance of pulmonary lymphocytes, but a percent decrease in macrophages. Although development of the respiratory immune system follows changes in the peripheral blood, cellular expansion, activation, and migration may occur at a slower pace, making the respiratory environment susceptible to pathogens prior to optimal immune system maturity.     

Pharmacokinetics of moxidectin and ivermectin following intravenous injection in pigs with different body compositions

Macrocyclic lactones (ML) are highly effective anthelmintics that provide a long protective period after administration because of their extensive distribution into fat. This study examined whether the body composition of the animal at the time of treatment had any influence on the pharmacokinetics of two MLs, moxidectin (MOX) and ivermectin (IVM). 'Fat' and 'lean' lines of pigs were established using two different diets, with weekly determination of liveweight and backfat thickness confirming the difference in body condition between the groups. Blood samples were taken at regular intervals following i.v. injection of IVM or MOX at a dose of 300 microg/kg and the plasma was analysed using fluorescence high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine the concentration of IVM or MOX in the samples. Regardless of body composition IVM and MOX kinetics were very different with MOX having a greater apparent volume of distribution, longer distribution and elimination half-lives and a slower clearance rate than IVM, which led to MOX being detectable in plasma for >40 days compared with only 8-10 days for IVM. Altering body composition had no detectable influence on the kinetic disposition of IVM in this study. In contrast, although there was no difference in AUC or the volume of distribution, MOX was distributed within and eliminated from the lean animals more rapidly than from the fat animals.     

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO POSTWEANING DIARRHOEA IN A LARGE INTENSIVE PIGGERY

Some aspects of postweaning diarrhoea (PWD) in a piggery during the first week after early weaning were investigated. A haemolytic enterotoxigenic strain of E. coli (0149: K88: H10) was regularly recovered from piglets with PWD while rotavirus was demonstrated on a number of occasions. Prior to weaning piglets were either free of, or shed very few, haemolytic E. coli in their faeces. However, all piglets were excreting haemolytic E. coli between 5 and 7 days after weaning. The role of rotavirus in PWD was unclear. There appeared to be a direct relationship between serum antibodies to rotavirus in the sow at farrowing and those of the piglets soon after birth. The decline of maternal neutralising antibody to rotavirus coincided with the immediate postweaning period (3 to 5 weeks after birth). This was followed by an increase in antibody levels, 5 to 8 weeks after birth. There was no significant difference in the growth rate between affected and unaffected piglets over a period of 120 days. Medication of water during the first week after weaning had no significant effect on the incidence of PWD in the herd. A change in both the weaner diet and the weaning procedure reduced piglet mortality associated with PWD by more than half.     

Evaluation of the precision of the rising plate meter for measuring compressed sward height on heterogeneous grassland swards

Accurate estimation of herbage mass (HM) is essential for optimising grass utilisation and increasing profit for pasture-based livestock agriculture. The rising plate meter (RPM) is used for predicting HM based on average compressed sward height (CSH). Sampling resolution and distribution are primary parameters in determining spatial heterogeneity of HM. There is no definitive sampling protocol for the RPM. The objectives of this study were to: investigate spatial variation of HM within pastures, determine the number of RPM measurements required to accurately predict mean HM, and assess the precision of the RPM in terms of measurement repeatability. Intensive CSH measurements and HM reference cuts were carried out on controlled plots and grazed paddocks over two grazing seasons. Sward heterogeneity was estimated as the coefficient of variation (CV) of CSH and compared to empirically derived ‘true’ sward heterogeneity in terms of HM CV. Retrospective analysis simulations were performed to identify the effect of various reduced measurement resolutions on estimated mean CSH error. Repeated measures analysis was performed on grass samples to determine RPM measurement system precision. Results indicated that pasture heterogeneity varied by 36% across the growing season and was affected by grazing, fertilisation, sward composition and seasonality. Mean CSH could be estimated to within 5% relative prediction error by recording 24 measurements per ha in a random stratified manner. The standard deviation of RPM measurement repeatability was calculated to be 4.34 mm. The findings of this study will be used to inform the implementation of a more optimum grass measurement protocol.

     

The effect of dicyandiamide on rumen and blood metabolites,diet digestibility and urinary excretion

The excretion of urine by dairy cows provides a source of nitrogen (N) to pasture. Excess N from urine patches can be lost through nitrate (NO₃⁻) leaching and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions. Dicyandiamide (DCD) inhibits nitrification in the soil and is usually applied to the pasture by blanket spreading the entire field. This study assessed the potential of pulse-dosing cows with DCD so that the DCD will be excreted in the urine and deposited directly onto the urine patches. The objective of this study was to measure the recovery of DCD in urine and faeces and to assess the effects of DCD on rumen and blood metabolites and diet digestibility. Eight non-lactating Holstein–Friesian dairy cows fitted with rumen cannulae were assigned to two treatments in a Latin square design over two periods. The two treatments used were (1) control (CON) consisting of 500 ml distilled water and (2) DCD consisting of 0.1 g DCD per kg liveweight (LW) suspended in 500 ml distilled water. Both treatments were pulse-dosed into the rumen daily for 6 days with half the volume dosed in the morning and the remainder in the afternoon. The administration of DCD into the rumen had no effect on rumen and blood metabolites, and diet digestibility when compared to the control treatment, as all were not significantly different from the control treatment and were within the normal biological range. During 6 days of dosing with DCD the average recovery of the dosed DCD in urine was 82.3%, with a further 2.1% recovered in the faeces. No DCD was recovered in the urine and faeces 10 days following the cessation of dosing. These results could provide the basis for a novel mitigation strategy to reduce NO₃⁻ leaching and N₂O emissions from urine patches in grazed grassland.     

Defining a Safe Operating Space for inland recreational fisheries

The Safe Operating Space (SOS) of a recreational fishery is the multidimensional region defined by levels of harvest, angler effort, habitat, predation and other factors in which the fishery is sustainable into the future. SOS boundaries exhibit trade‐offs such that decreases in harvest can compensate to some degree for losses of habitat, increases in predation and increasing value of fishing time to anglers. Conversely, high levels of harvest can be sustained if habitat is intact, predation is low, and value of fishing effort is moderate. The SOS approach recognizes limits in several dimensions: at overly high levels of harvest, habitat loss, predation, or value of fishing effort, the stock falls to a low equilibrium biomass. Recreational fisheries managers can influence harvest and perhaps predation, but they must cope with trends that are beyond their control such as changes in climate, loss of aquatic habitat or social factors that affect the value of fishing effort for anglers. The SOS illustrates opportunities to manage harvest or predation to maintain quality fisheries in the presence of trends in climate, social preferences or other factors that are not manageable.     

In vitro study of the function of adrenocortical cells from pigs of differing in vivo response to adrenocorticotropin

A study was conducted to determine whether within-breed differences in adrenocortical response to exogenous adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) might be accounted for by differences in responsiveness of the adrenocortical cells per se. Large White x Landrace male pigs (n = 20) were used; 10 had high adrenocortical response to ACTH administration and 10 had low response. Five high and 5 low responders were euthanatized at 15 weeks of age, and the remaining 5 high and 5 low responders were euthanatized at 21 weeks of age. Adrenal glands were removed and weighed, and adrenocortical cells were dispersed by tryptic digestion and incubated for 2 hours with synthetic ACTH at concentrations ranging from 0.5 to 10,000 pg/ml. Samples were taken at 30-minutes intervals, and cortisol concentration was determined by use of a radioimmunoassay. Results indicate that for pigs of both age groups, high responders had heavier adrenal glands, with higher adrenocortical cell density and higher cell yield than did low responders. Synthetic ACTH had a stimulatory effect on dispersed porcine adrenocortical cells, as indicated by changes in cortisol concentration in vitro. Adrenocortical cells from high responders produced less cortisol, on a per-cell basis, than did those from low responders. However, when corrected for total cell yield, the potential cortisol production by each pair of adrenal glands was significantly (P less than 0.05) higher in the high responders than in the low responders. Thus, high-responding pigs have larger adrenal glands and higher adrenocortical cell density, which may result in higher output of cortisol after ACTH administration or exposure to stressors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)