Noninvasive Clinical Assessment of Systolic Torsional Motions by Two‐Dimensional Speckle‐Tracking Echocardiography in Dogs with Myxomatous Mitral Valve Disease

Background

Left ventricular torsional motion plays an important role for effective pump function. However, noninvasive clinical assessment of torsional deformations by two‐dimensional speckle‐tracking echocardiography (2D‐STE) in dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) has not been reported.

Hypothesis

Left ventricular torsion is determined by the native orientation of the helical myocardial fibers, such that it might provide better assessment of myocardial function than conventional methods.

Animals

Sixty‐seven client‐owned dogs with MMVD were classified into 3 classes based on the International Small Animal Cardiac Health Council classification and 16 weight‐ and age‐matched healthy dogs.

Methods

Dogs were examined for myocardial deformations by 2D‐STE and were evaluated for peak systolic rotation and rotation rate at each basal and apical view. Dogs also were evaluated for peak systolic torsion and torsion rate.

Results

Peak systolic torsion was higher in class II than in class I (P < .001) dogs. Peak systolic torsion was lower in class III than in class II (P = .001) dogs and controls (P = .003).

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

Torsional deformations assessed by 2D‐STE differed among clinical classes of MMVD. Myocardial torsional deformations by 2D‐STE may provide more detailed assessment of contractile function in dogs with MMVD.     

Lethal Mechanisms of Granulated Insecticides

A GROWING PROBLEM: PESTICIDES AND THE THIRD WORLD POOR. D. Bull. Oxfam, Oxford, 1981. ISBN 0 85598 064 8. Pp. 192. Price £4.95.

FUNDAMENTALS OF PESTICIDES ‐ A SELF‐INSTRUCTION GUIDE. G. W. Ware. Thomson Publications, Fresno, California, 1982. ISBN 0 913702 16 1. Pp. 257. Price US S9.50.

AN INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGICAL CONTROL. R. van den Bosch, P. S. Messenger and A. P. Gutierrez. Plenum Press, New York, 1982. ISBN 0 306 40706 X. Pp. 247.

PLANT GROWTH REGULATOR POTENTIAL AND PRACTICE. Edited by T. H. Thomas. BCPC Publications, Croydon, 1982. ISBN 0 901436 69 0. Pp.271. Price £15.00.

TROPICAL AGRICULTURE. THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRODUCTION. Fourth edition. G. Wrigley. Longman, London and New York, 1982. ISBN 0 582 46037 9. Pp.480. Price£24.00.

PATHOGENS, VECTORS AND PLANT DISEASES. APPROACHES TO CONTROL. Edited by K. F. Harris and K. Maramorosch. Academic Press, London, 1982. ISBN 0 12 326440 5. Pp. 310. Price £31.80, US $48.00.

RESIDUE ANALYSIS OF INSECTICIDES. Edited by D. S. Gupta. Indian Council for Agricultural Research and Haryana Agricultural University. Hissar, 1980. Pp. 374.

PESTICIDE RESIDUES IN FOOD: 1980 EVALUATIONS. FAO Plant Production and Protection Paper, 26 Sup. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 1981. ISBN 92 5 101148 6. Pp. 460.

PESTICIDE RESISTANCE AND WORLD FOOD PRODUCTION. Edited by G. Conway. Centre for Environmental Technology, Imperial College, London, 1982. ISBN 0 950 77441 3. Pp. 144. Price £3.60.

WEED CONTROL HANDBOOK: PRINCIPLES. Seventh Edition. Edited by H. A. Roberts. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, 1982. ISBN 0 632 01018 5. Pp. 533. Price about £20.00.

BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF HERBICIDE ACTIVITY. C. Fedtke. Springer‐Verlag, Berlin, 1982. ISBN 0 387 11231 6. Pp. 202.     

Effects of single caging and cage size on behavior and stress level of domestic neutered cats housed in an animal shelter

Cats need a minimum amount of space even in animal shelters. In this study the effects of single caging and cage size on the behavior and stress level of domestic cats were investigated. Six neutered cats (2–15 years old) that had been housed in a group for at least 7 months were moved to three kinds of single cages (small, medium and large) by rotation on a Latin square design. They experienced each cage size for 6 days. Cats could use vertical dimensions when housed in a group room and the large cage. Behavioral observation was conducted for 3 h in the evening, and stress levels were assessed by urine cortisol‐to‐creatinine ratios. The amounts (estimated proportions) of time spent in locomotion and social/solitary play were lower even in large cages than in group housing (both P < 0.05). Conversely, the amount of time spent resting tended to increase when housed singly (P = 0.104). The urine cortisol‐to‐creatinine ratios of singly housed cats tended to be higher than that of group‐housed cats (P = 0.086). The results indicate that cats become less active when they are housed singly in cages regardless of the cage size. Cats seem to feel no undue stress even in small cages if the stay is short.     

The Intravenous Xylitol Tolerance Test in Non-Lactating Cattle

Xylitol is a five-carbon sugar alcohol that is often used for treatment of ketosis in dairy cattle in Japan. An intravenous xylitol tolerance test (IVXTT, 0.1 g/kg, bolus injection through the jugular vein) was performed in 4 non-lactating cows (n = 4) and the results were compared with those of an intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) performed under equivalent conditions. The serum xylitol concentration reached a peak value (41.4±9.0 mg/dl) at 5 min, and then rapidly decreased and almost disappeared within 2 h. The C ₀ for xylitol was 56.9±16.6 mg/dl and the t _1/2was 8.5±0.9 min. The administration of xylitol appeared to cause similar secretion of insulin to that caused by glucose. There was also a reduction in the concentration of free fatty acids. It seems that xylitol has value for the treatment of ketosis. However, rapid administration of xylitol appeared to have an osmotic diuretic action and might be a cause of dehydration.     

Isolation of Cryptosporidium andersoni Kawatabi type in a slaughterhouse in the northern island of Japan

Fecal samples were collected from 325 adult cattle and 108 pigs in a slaughterhouse in Hokkaido, the northern island of Japan. Five adult cattle were found to be positive for oocysts of Cryptopsoridium (1.5%). The oocysts were morphologically similar to those of Cryptosporidium andersoni. The partial sequence of the 18S rRNA gene of the isolate was 100% identical with that of the C. andersoni Kawatabi strain. SCID mice were infected after oral administration. Based on the morphology of the oocysts, the sequence of the 18S rRNA gene and the infectivity to SCID mice, the isolate was concluded to be of the same type as the C. andersoni Kawatabi strain that has been isolated in Honshu, the main island of Japan.     

Therapeutic effect of modified oligopeptides from the beetle Allomyrina dichotoma on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection in mice

Anti-bacterial activity of two synthesized oligopeptides, RLYLRIGRR-NH2 (peptide A) and RLRLRIGRR-NH2 (peptide B), both which based on a putative active site of defensin, an anti-bacterial peptide from the beetle Allomyrina dichotoma, was examined by macroscopic and histopathologic assessment during the course of infection in mice inoculated with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in vivo. Both peptides A and B decreased the mortality of mice inoculated with MRSA. Peptides A and B decreased the macroscopical and histopathological lesions by MRSA infection in mice even seven days after the challenge. The anti-bacterial activity of peptides A and B has a therapeutic effect on MRSA infection in mice even seven days after being challenged.