Pancreatic cyst in a cat

CASE HISTORY: A 5-year-old neutered male Cornish Rex cat was presented for evaluation with a history of vomiting over the previous 5 days.

CLINICAL FINDINGS: An abdominal mass was palpated, which was shown to be cystic by ultrasound examination. Exploratory surgery revealed this to be associated with the pancreas and it was duly resected. Histopathology was performed on the cystic mass.

DIAGNOSIS: Pancreatic cyst with associated chronic active infl ammation.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This is the first report of a true pancreatic cyst in a cat.     

Pathogenesis of reproductive failure induced by Trypanosoma vivax in experimentally infected pregnant ewes

The present study was aimed at investigating the effect of experimental infection by Trypanosoma vivax in different stages of pregnancy, determining the pathogenesis of reproductive failure, and confirming transplacental transmission. We used 12 pregnant ewes distributed into four experimental groups: G1, was formed by three ewes infected with T. vivax in the first third of pregnancy (30 days); G2 comprised three infected ewes in the final third of pregnancy (100 days); G3 and G4 were composed of three non-infected ewes with the same gestational period, respectively. Each ewe of G1 and G2 was inoculated with 1.25 × 10⁵ tripomastigotes. Clinical examination, determination of parasitemia, serum biochemistry (albumin, total protein, glucose, cholesterol, and urea), packed cell volume (PCV), serum progesterone, and pathological examination were performed. Placenta, amniotic fluid, blood and tissues from the fetuses and stillbirths were submitted to PCR. Two ewes of G1 (Ewe 1 and 3) presented severe infection and died in the 34^th and 35^th days post-infection (dpi), respectively; but both fetuses were recovered during necropsy. In G2, Ewe 5 aborted two fetuses on the 130^th day (30 dpi) of pregnancy; and Ewe 6 aborted one fetus in the 140^th day (40 dpi) of gestation. Ewes 2 and 4 delivered two weak lambs that died five days after birth. Factors possibly involved with the reproductive failure included high parasitemia, fever, low PCV, body score, serum glucose, total protein, cholesterol, and progesterone. Hepatitis, pericarditis, and encephalitis were observed in the aborted fetuses. The presence of T. vivax DNA in the placenta, amniotic fluid, blood, and tissues from the fetuses confirms the transplacental transmission of the parasite. Histological lesion in the fetuses and placenta also suggest the involvement of the parasite in the etiopathogenesis of reproductive failure in ewes.     

Geospatial variation of physical attributes and sugarcane productivity in cohesive soils

Precision Agriculture - Sugarcane productivity is highly variable across space, and knowledge about the spatial distribution of soil physical attributes is important to guide management practices...     

Identification of coagulase-negative staphylococci from bovine mastitis using RFLP-PCR of the groEL gene

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) have become the predominant pathogens causing bovine mastitis in many countries. CNS infections are associated with damage to milk secretory tissue of the mammary gland by increased connective tissue stroma, moderate increases of somatic cells count in milk and significant production decreases. These consequences impose serious economic losses for the farmers and the dairy industry. Routine veterinary laboratories do not usually identify CNS at the species level. Thereby, the aims of this study were to identify the most common staphylococcal pathogens involved in bovine mastitis using PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of a partial groEL gene sequence and to compare our results with the identification carried out by the conventional method. A total of 54 isolates of Staphylococcus, involved in bovine mastitis, were analyzed by this method. The size and number of the fragments obtained by either AluI or HindIII/PvuII digestions made possible to form clear patterns differentiating, among the isolates, 11 of the most common species of animal staphylococcal pathogens. Most of the isolates clustered together with the reference strain of Staphylococcus chromogenes (28) and the type strain of Staphylococcus epidermidis (8). Besides, some isolates clustered together with the type strain of Staphylococcus aureus (5). All patterns were confirmed by the conventional biochemical method, showing concordant results. Thus, the PCR-RFLP of the groEL gene constitutes a reliable and reproducible molecular method for identification of CNS species responsible for bovine mastitis.     

Evaluation of the humoral and cellular immune response to different antigens of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis in Canindé goats and their potential protection against caseous lymphadenitis

Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis is the etiologic agent of caseous lymphadenitis, a disease that affects goats and sheep, and can cause severe economic losses. In this study, four different antigenic extracts were obtained from the attenuated strain T1, which was isolated in the state of Bahia (Brazil). Forty-four Canindé breed goats were divided in five groups, each receiving a different antigen solution and saline buffer as a control. The humoral response was monitored through the identification of specific IgG by indirect ELISA and Western Blotting, and the production of IFN-gamma was followed in order to observe the activation of cellular response. After twelve weeks of antigen inoculation, the animals were challenged with 2 x 10(5)CFU of a wild strain, also isolated in Bahia, and necropsy was performed on all animals twelve weeks afterwards. It was observed that the attenuated bacteria gave a protection of 33.3%, in addition to the weak humoral response elicited. Animals inoculated with secreted antigen associated with Freund's incomplete adjuvant and oligodeoxynucleotide containing unmethylated CpG dinucleotides (CpG ODN) showed a strong humoral response, but this inoculation could not prevent the spread of challenge bacteria in the majority of animals. These results demonstrate the immunogenic potential of the attenuated T1 strain in the development of a vaccine against caseous lymphadenitis in goats.     

Histopathological findings in the early diagnosis of granulosa cell tumour in bitches

Granulosa cell tumour (GCT) is a majorly observed ovarian tumour in female dogs. It is essential to diagnose GCT in its initial phase before any symptoms occur, as histological and physiological differences may be observed based on the evolution of this neoplasia. This study aimed to analyse the anatomic histopathology of GCT in its initial stage, with findings of ovaries not yet with the suspicion of neoplasms in the Canis familiaris. A sample including 55 ovaries presented GCT in 40 female dogs. The histopathological analysis was performed considering the intensity of pleomorphism, vascularization and inflammatory infiltrate. Furthermore, we evaluated the mitoses count in 10 fields using 40× magnification. Out of the 40 animals evaluated, 62.5% (25/40) presented the tumour in only one ovary. The Call‐Exner corpuscle was present in 65% (26/40) of the cases. The follicular histological pattern was present in 52.5% (21/40) of the animals. The presence of the Call‐Exner bodies and the degree of tumour cell pleomorphism (p = 0.033) were associated. Moreover, the degree of vascularization and the intensity of the inflammatory infiltrate were also related (p = 0.001). In addition, there was a positive relationship between the increase in pleomorphism and the mean age of the animals (p = 0.044). This study confirmed that the appearance of this tumour may precede any clinical symptomatology. In this study, the most frequent histopathological pattern was the follicular. The characteristics of the granulosa cell tumour diagnosed early were poorly pleomorphic cells, low mitotic index and presence of Call‐Exner body.     

Protective activity against oocyst shedding in cats vaccinated with crude rhoptry proteins of the Toxoplasma gondii by the intranasal route

This study evaluated a vaccine made from crude rhoptry proteins of Toxoplasma gondii with Quil-A, which was administered to cats by the intranasal route. Eleven short-hair domestic cats were divided into four groups: G1 (n=3) received three doses (200 microg/dose) of the rhoptry vaccine with Quil-A (20 microg); G2 (n=3) received PBS with Quil-A (20 microg); G3 (n=3) and G4 (n=2) received only PBS. Treatments were administered at days 0, 21, and 42 by the intranasal route. Challenge was done to G1, G2, and G3 animals with 600 cysts of the VEG strain on day 51 (challenge day); G4 animals were unchallenged. The anti-T. gondii IgG and IgA antibody levels from sera were measured by indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). At challenge, two animals from G1 revealed antibody levels for both IgG and IgA; oocysts were not detected in feces of these two cats. There were no differences in hematological values between groups throughout the experiment (p>0.10). Preventable fractions were 67% in G1 and 0% in G2 and G3. Comparatively, G1 animals shed 89.3% and 90.8% less oocysts than G3 and G4, respectively. Two out of three cats were protected against T. gondii oocyst shedding when the rhoptry vaccine was administered by the intranasal route. This is the first study using crude rhoptry proteins as vaccine by the intranasal route in cats to evaluate protection against oocysts shedding.     

Self-oriented regular arrays of carbon nanotubes and their field emission properties

The synthesis of massive arrays of monodispersed carbon nanotubes that are self-oriented on patterned porous silicon and plain silicon substrates is reported. The approach involves chemical vapor deposition, catalytic particle size control by substrate design, nanotube positioning by patterning, and nanotube self-assembly for orientation. The mechanisms of nanotube growth and self-orientation are elucidated. The well-ordered nanotubes can be used as electron field emission arrays. Scaling up of the synthesis process should be entirely compatible with the existing semiconductor processes, and should allow the development of nanotube devices integrated into silicon technology.     

Are the Australian poultry industries vulnerable to large outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza?

Objective   To describe the structure of the Australian poultry industry and discuss the potential for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) to spread between Australian poultry farms.
Procedure   High densities of poultry farms, frequent contacts between farms by service providers, the supply of live poultry markets (LPM) and the presence of free-range duck flocks in affected regions have been identified as risk factors for the spread of HPAI between flocks in outbreaks causing the death or destruction of over 1 million poultry overseas. Data on 1,594 commercial Australian chicken meat, chicken egg, duck and turkey farms were collected by a telephone questionnaire of farm managers to assess the risk of a HPAI outbreak in Australia.
Results and Discussion   Five regions of Australia had farm densities comparable to overseas regions that experienced widespread HPAI. Common service providers routinely contacted different classes and types of farms over wide geographic areas. However, no responding farms supplied LPM and the majority of duck farms did not produce free-range ducks.
Conclusion   Outbreaks of HPAI have the potential to cause serious impacts on the Australian poultry industry. The risk posted by LPM and free-range ducks is limited, but the movement of genetic stock and common service providers could spread infection between companies, industries or geographical regions. Biosecurity measures are therefore considered critical to limit the secondary spread of infection should an outbreak occur.     

Improvement of degraded physical attributes of a saline-sodic soil as influenced by phytoremediation and soil conditioners

This study aimed to evaluate the use of phytoremediation and soil conditioners in the recovery of physical attributes of a saline-sodic Fluvic Neossol in Brazil Northeast. The applied treatments were: Atriplex nummularia L., as phytoremediation plant, due to its ability to extract salts from the soil; organic conditioners, such as bovine and sheep manure; gypsum and polymer, as chemical conditioners. Samples with preserved structure were collected at the time of the experiment installation and 18 months after in the layers 0–10 cm and 10–30 cm. The analyzed attributes were: water dispersed clay, dispersion index, bulk density, penetration resistance, soil porosity, and saturated hydraulic conductivity. The use of sheep manure, gypsum and polymer promoted an increase in saturated hydraulic conductivity in the 0–10 cm layer from 4.51 to 16.37 cm day^?1, 11.26 to 23.95 cm day^?1 and 7.24 to 22.77 cm day^?1, respectively. Gypsum increased the macroporosity in the superficial layer by 42.6%. Atriplex and polymer were more efficient at reducing soil penetration resistance. The polymer was more efficient at improving the physical properties. However, it is necessary to consider phytoremediation with Atriplex as a more sustainable alternative that can still be used as complementary fodder in animal feed.