Toxic peripheral neuropathy with demyelination in Sprague-Dawley rats given CGS 21595--a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor.

Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were given CGS 21595, a pro-drug that is almost immediately metabolized to CGS 19213, a naphthoquinone that acts as a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor. The compound was administered by gavage to five groups of Sprague-Dawley rats (group Nos. 1, 5, n = 30; group Nos. 2-4, n = 20) at daily doses of 0, 50, 150, 500, or 1,000 mg/kg for 13 weeks. Rats in the higher dose groups had a reduced weight gain, but significant neurologic signs were not observed. A peripheral neuropathy consisting predominantly of myelin destruction in the spinal nerve roots and sciatic nerves in male rats treated with greater than or equal to 150 mg/kg CGS 21595 and in female rats treated with greater than or equal to 50 mg/kg CGS 21595 for 13 weeks. This lesion was not fully reversible after a recovery period of 4 weeks. Lesions consisted of ballooning of myelin sheaths, infiltration by macrophages, demyelination, and occasional areas of remyelination. Axons were generally preserved, and the brain and spinal cord were not affected. Male and female rats in all treatment groups had cytoplasmic hyaline droplets in the proximal renal tubules. This change was reversible after 4 weeks and was not associated with any other adverse effects on the kidney.     

Cytology of the cerebrospinal fluid in dogs with brain tumors and spinal cord compression. Part 4]

The results of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cytology of 9 dogs with brain tumors and 50 dogs with spinal cord compression are discussed. Of the 50 dogs with spinal cord compression, disc protrusion was diagnosed in 31, myelomalacia in 7, discospondylitis in 3 and spinal cord tumors in 9 dogs. In 4 of 9 dogs with brain tumors, tumor cells could be found by the sedimentation apparatus of K?lmel. Pleocytosis existed in 6 patients. In about 70% (29 of 41) of cases with disc protrusion, more than 200 cells could be evaluated in the CSF sediment, consisting mostly of transformed lymphocytes and activated monocytes. As the neurologic deficits increased, the amount of cells and especially cell complexes increased. This was especially evident in cases with myelomalacia of the spinal cord. Only in cases with discospondylitis or spinal cord neoplasia was the CSF cytology unchanged.     

Effects of predator-induced visual and olfactory cues on 0+ perch (Perca fluviatilis L.) foraging behaviour

Abstract –  Foraging juvenile fish with relatively high food demands are usually vulnerable to various aquatic and avian predators. To compromise between foraging and antipredator activity, they need exact and reliable information about current predation risk. Among direct predator-induced cues, visual and olfactory signals are considered to be most important. Food intake rates and prey-size selectivity of laboratory-reared, naive young-of-the-year (YOY) perch, Perca fluviatilis , were studied in experiments with Daphnia magna of two size classes: 2.8 and 1.3 mm as prey and northern pike, Esox lucius , as predator. Neither total intake rate nor prey-size selectivity was modified by predator kairomones alone (water from an aquarium with a pike was pumped into the test aquaria) under daylight conditions. Visual presentation of pike reduced total food intake by perch. This effect was significantly more pronounced (synergistic) when visual and olfactory cues were presented simultaneously to foraging perch. Moreover, the combination of cues caused a significant shift in prey-size selection, expressed as a reduced proportion of large prey in the diet. Our observations demonstrate that predator-induced olfactory cues alone are less important modifiers of the feeding behaviour of naive YOY perch than visual cues under daylight conditions. However, pike odour acts as a modulatory stimulus enhancing the effects of visual cues, which trigger an innate response in perch.     

Relationships between soil and vegetation characteristics of tundra ecosystems and their use to assess soil resilience, degradation, and rehabilitation potentials

Definitions of the notions of soil resilience and degradation of the soil-vegetation cover are suggested. These problems are considered with respect to vulnerable tundra ecosystems. The analysis of available experimental data made it possible to obtain empirical equations characterizing the relationships between the plant productivity and the soil properties. These equations can be used to predict the degree of soil degradation under particular types of technogenic loads and the soil and vegetation potential for the natural restoration or artificial rehabilitation of the soil-vegetation cover in tundra ecosystems. The results obtained can be applied for the development of optimal nature management strategies in the areas of oil and gas fields in the north.     

Validation of the accuracy of household reporting of subsistence fishing catch and effort: a Fijian case study

Abstract  The accuracy of household reporting of subsistence fishing catch and effort and seafood consumption on the Fijian island of Ono-i-Lau was studied. A creel survey was carried out concurrently to validate the household survey data. Reported estimates of fishing participation, effort, and fish consumption were not significantly different to the creel survey estimates. Householder's appeared to overestimate the number of fish from the most abundant family Lethrinidae, and underestimate rarer fish. However, there was no significant difference between the reported and observed contribution of the majority of finfish families and invertebrate taxa. The reported and observed catch rate estimates were not significantly different, indicating that Ono-i-Lau villagers are relatively accurate in their estimation of the number and size of fish from recalled catches.     

Growth of triploid oyster, Crassostrea madrasensis (Preston)

The performance of I and II meiotic triploids and control oysters (Crassostrea madrasensis) reared at Tuticorin Bay was compared to determine if the improvements in the growth of edible oysters were additive to faster growth in triploids. After a grow‐out period of 12 months, both mean whole weights and shell heights were in order I meiotic triploid>II meiotic triploid>control. Mean whole weights and shell height of different oyster lines were all significantly different (P<0.05). On an average, larger morphological traits indicated that growth improvements from triploids were additive, and throughout the study triploid oysters maintained faster growth rate than their diploid siblings. Condition index and adductor muscle diameter of both triploids were higher than those of control.     

Genetic diversity of herbicide-resistant and -susceptible Avena fatua populations in North Dakota and Minnesota

Genetic diversity within and among 20 herbicide-resistant (HR) and 16 herbicide-susceptible (HS) Avena fatua multi-field populations was determined using 82 polymorphic loci resulting from two intersimple sequence repeat (ISSR) primers and one long-primer random amplified polymorphic DNA (LP-RAPD) primer. Collections from the Red River Valley of North Dakota and Minnesota, sampled in 1964 and 2000, represented A. fatua populations before and after intensive exposure to herbicides. A 1995 collection from south-west North Dakota represented A. fatua exposed to low herbicide selection. Despite differences in years of herbicide exposure among collections, both HR and HS populations from every collection maintained nearly similar levels of ISSR and RAPD diversity. Genetic differentiation among populations (G_ST) varied from 11% to 13% among HR populations and from 9% to 16% among HS populations, indicating that 84–91% of total variation remained within HS or within HR populations. Minimal difference in gene diversity between HR and HS is consistent with multiple origins of resistance, where HR A. fatua most likely evolved from diverse founding individuals.     

Ultrasonographic and Gross Pathological Findings in the Mammary Glands of Weaned Sows Having Suffered Recidiving Mastitis Metritis Agalactia

In a large pig breeding herd with high prevalence of post-parturient diseases of the sows, weaned sows of different parity groups with (n = 663) or without (n = 1125) recidiving mastitis metritis agalactia (MMA) in their previous history were subjected to ultrasonography. A total of 114 of 663 sows with recidiving MMA in their previous history and with ultrasonographic visible mammary gland changes, and 157 of sows without recidiving MMA in their previous history were culled and subjected to gross pathological and bacteriological examination of their mammary glands. The sows having suffered MMA had more (p < 0.001) hyperechogenic images in their mammary glands compared with the sow having suffered no recidiving MMA. Abdominal glands were more (p < 0.01) prone to pathological changes compared with the pectoral ones. Sows of high parity had more hyperechogenic images and gross pathological changes in their mammary glands compared with the sows of low parity.