Long-term survival of a dog with Alexander disease

A 1-year- and 11-month-old spayed female toy poodle had showed progressive ataxia and paresis in the hindlimbs since 11 months old. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed high signal intensity on T2-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images at the thoracic and lumbar spinal cord. The dog’s neurological condition slowly deteriorated and flaccid tetraparesis was exhibited. At 4 years and 11 months old, the dog died of respiratory failure. On postmortem examination, eosinophilic corkscrew bundles (Rosenthal fibers) were observed mainly in the thoracic and lumbar spinal cord. Histological features were comparable to previously reported cases with Alexander disease. This is a first case report to describe the clinical course and long-term prognosis of a dog with Alexander disease.     

Day–night change in fish community structure in a seagrass bed in subarctic waters

The day–night change in fish community structure over a year was examined in a seagrass bed in Lake Notoro, Hokkaido, northern Japan, to examine nocturnal increases in predation risk. This seagrass bed has previously been considered a predation refuge for juvenile and small-sized fishes. Species richness, abundance and biomass of piscivorous fishes during nighttime were higher than those during daytime on all sample dates surveyed (May, August and November 2013), indicating an increase in predation risk for juvenile and small-sized fishes during nighttime. The mean biomass-weighted trophic level of fish communities in the seagrass bed was also higher at night than in the day. The piscivorous fishes collected in the seagrass bed during the night included important fishery species. These may obtain energy through nocturnal feeding in the seagrass bed. Therefore, the function of seagrass beds as fish habitats should be re-evaluated by considering two possible characteristics contributing to fishery production: as a daytime predation refuge for juvenile and small-sized fishes, and as a nighttime foraging ground for piscivorous fishes.     

Effects of astaxanthin‐rich dried cell powder from Paracoccus carotinifaciens on carotenoid composition and lipid peroxidation in skeletal muscle of broiler chickens under thermo‐neutral or realistic high temperature conditions

Thirty‐two 15‐day old broiler chicks (Chunky strain ROSS 308) were randomly divided into four treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial design. The main factors were diet (basal diet or basal diet supplemented with 0.15% astaxanthin‐rich dried cell powder (Panaferd‐P [astaxanthin 30 ppm]) and ambient temperature (thermo‐neutral [25 ± 1°C] or high [35 ± 1°C for 6 hr]). Dietary supplementation with Panaferd‐P did not affect growth performance, though high ambient temperature decreased feed intake and the weight of breast tender muscle, liver, and heart. High ambient temperature also decreased redness in both breast and leg muscles of chickens, while Panaferd‐P increased redness and yellowness of breast and leg muscles of chickens. Panaferd‐P increased Paracoccus carotinifaciens‐derived pigments (i.e., adonixanthin, astaxanthin, adonirubin, and cantaxanthin) as well as corn‐derived pigments such as zeaxanthin and lutein in breast and leg muscles. High ambient temperature increased the malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in breast muscle, while Panaferd‐P decreased the MDA concentration in breast muscle under both temperature conditions. Our results suggest that dietary supplementation with Panaferd‐P increases muscle carotenoid content, the redness and yellowness of meat and decreases the muscle MDA concentration in broiler chickens kept under thermo‐neutral or high ambient temperature conditions.     

Choroid plexus papilloma in a dog surviving for 15 months after diagnosis with symptomatic therapy

A 4-year-old female French bulldog presented with a 6-month history ofright-sided head tilt and acute onset ataxia. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed alarge mass lesion at the cerebellomedullary pontine angle. The dog was able to stand andwalk after beginning symptomatic therapy with prednisolone, acetazolamide and glycerin.Magnetic resonance imaging 10 months after the first examination indicated slightexpansion of the tumor. The dog was able to walk with continuous symptomatic therapy for15 months until death, although the head tilt persisted. On postmortem examination, thegross tumor was slightly larger than when seen on the second MRI scan and washistopathologically diagnosed as a choroid plexus papilloma.     

Influence of replacing brewers' grains with green tea grounds on feed intake, digestibility and ruminal fermentation characteristics of wethers

An experiment was conducted to examine feed intake, apparent digestibility, nitrogen balance, ruminal fermentation and blood components of wethers fed diets containing increasing levels of wet green tea grounds (WGTG). The experimental design was a 4 × 4 Latin square with four wethers in four 15‐day periods. Wethers were allowed access to diets ad libitum, and allotted to one of four treatments in which WGTG replaced 0% (no WGTG added, CTG), 5% (low level, LBG), 10% (medium level, MTG), and 15% (high level, HTG) of total mixed ration (TMR) dry matter (DM) as wet brewers grains (WBG). All TMR silages were ensiled for 120 days and, irrespective of the WGTG addition, they were well preserved with a high lactic acid content, low pH and ammonia‐N contents. There were no differences among treatments in feed intake, with the exception of ether extract intake (P = 0.032). Digestibilities for LTG and MTG treatments were not different from CTG. However, the organic matter, crude protein, acid detergent fiber and energy digestibilities for HTG treatment were lower than the CTG (P < 0.05). As the level of WGTG increased, nitrogen intake did not differ, but fecal nitrogen increased (P = 0.002), while urinary nitrogen decreased (P < 0.001). No differences among treatments were found in pH level and volatile fatty acids concentrations. However, the ruminal ammonia‐N of the HTG silage was lower than for the CTG silage at all times (P < 0.05). Increasing concentrations of WGTG in the TMR silage decreased (P = 0.019) plasma urea nitrogen content. Therefore, the possible mixing proportion of WGTG for TMR silages can be 10% of the diet DM.     

Health and mineral nutrition status of yaks in southern Mustang,Nepal

Biochemical values and mineral concentrations in blood plasma were investigated to evaluate the statuses of health and mineral nutrition among yaks in Mustang District, Nepal. In total, 118 plasma samples of female yaks collected in April and September/October of 2013–2015 were offered. Seventy‐four percent of yaks showed lower plasma total‐cholesterol concentrations than the lowest limit of reference range (100 mg/dL) and the values in spring (83.41 mg/dL) were lower (P < 0.05) than those in autumn (95.05 mg/dL). All the yaks had lower plasma albumin concentrations than the lowest limit of reference range (3.0 g/dL) and 66% of yaks showed lower plasma inorganic phosphorus concentrations than the critical level of phosphorus deficiency (4.5 mg/dL). Thirty‐five percent of yaks showed lower plasma calcium concentrations than the lowest limit of normal range (8 mg/dL) and the concentrations were lower in spring than in autumn (P < 0.01). Seventy‐five percent of yaks presented lower copper concentrations than the critical level (0.65 mg/L) and the concentrations were lower in spring than in autumn (P < 0.01). Since the low plasma total‐cholesterol might have indicated shortage of dry matter and energy intake, attention should be paid to the nutritional statuses of energy, phosphorus, calcium and copper in winter and early spring.     

Changes in the Expression Patterns of the Genes Involved in the Segregation and Function of Inner Cell Mass and Trophectoderm Lineages During Porcine Preimplantation Development

In mouse embryos, segregation of the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm (TE) lineages is regulated by genes, such as OCT-4, CDX2 and TEAD4. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate the segregation of the ICM and TE lineages in porcine embryos remain unknown. To obtain insights regarding the segregation of the ICM and TE lineages in porcine embryos, we examined the mRNA expression patterns of candidate genes, OCT-4, CDX2, TEAD4, GATA3, NANOG, FGF4, FGFR1-IIIc and FGFR2-IIIc, in blastocyst and elongated stage embryos. In blastocyst embryos, the expression levels of OCT-4, FGF4 and FGFR1-IIIc were significantly higher in the ICM than in the TE, while the CDX2, TEAD4 and GATA3 levels did not differ between the ICM and TE. The expression ratio of CDX2 to OCT-4 (CDX2/OCT-4) also did not differ between the ICM and TE at the blastocyst stage. In elongated embryos, OCT-4, NANOG, FGF4 and FGFR1-IIIc were abundantly expressed in the embryo disc (ED; ICM lineage), but their expression levels were very low in the TE. In contrast, the CDX2, TEAD4 and GATA3 levels were significantly higher in the TE than in the ED. In addition, the CDX2/OCT-4 ratio was markedly higher in the TE than in the ED. We demonstrated that differences in the expression levels of OCT-4, CDX2, TEAD4, GATA3, NANOG, FGF4, FGFR1-IIIc and FGFR2-IIIc genes between ICM and TE lineages cells become more clear during development from porcine blastocyst to elongated embryos, which indicates the possibility that in porcine embryos, functions of ICM and TE lineage cells depend on these gene expressions proceed as transition from blastocyst to elongated stage.     

The repeatability,reproducibility, and influencing factors of intrarenal Doppler ultrasonography in dogs without heart disease

Renal impairment is concurrent with adverse outcomes such as heart disease in humans and dogs. Intrarenal Doppler ultrasonography (IRD) is used to assess intrarenal hemodynamics, and resistance index (RI) and venous impedance index (VII) are used to evaluate intrarenal hemodynamics in humans with heart failure. However, only a few studies have assessed the efficacy of IRD, especially VII, in dogs, and the methods differ between studies. Additionally, repeatability, reproducibility, and factors influencing IRD values have not been validated in dogs. This prospective, analytical study aimed to assess repeatability and reproducibility of IRD, and to clarify influencing factors of IRD in dogs without heart disease. We enrolled 78 dogs without heart disease. The RI and VII were highly reproducible, and the reference intervals for VII were 0.13–0.37. Differences in transducer (sector and convex) and posture (right lateral and supine decubitus position) had no effect on the IRD values. In contrast, RI and VII were higher in the renal vessels than in interlobar vessels. Age affected RI values (r = 0.39, P < 0.001), but there was no correlation between age, body weight, and VII. In conclusion, IRD is a repeatable and reproducible method to assess intrarenal hemodynamics in dogs. The findings also suggest that age should be considered while interpreting RI.