Evaluation of a Collagenase Generated Osteoarthritis Biomarker in Naturally Occurring Canine Cruciate Disease

Objective— To determine the clinical value of a novel osteoarthritis (OA) biomarker in detecting canine cruciate disease.
Study Design— Cross sectional clinical study.
Animals— Dogs (n=22) with cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture and 12 control dogs.
Methods— Concentrations of collagenase-generated cleavage epitope of type II collagen (Col2-3/4C_{long mono}, or C2C) in serum, urine, and joint fluid were compared between a group of dogs with CCL rupture and a control group. Correlation of C2C concentrations to the clinical stage of stifle OA was also evaluated.
Results— There were no significant differences in C2C concentrations in serum, urine, and joint fluid between groups ( P >.05). Subjective scores of lameness, joint effusion, osteophytosis were significantly more severe in the CCL rupture group compared with the control group ( P <.05). There was no significant correlation of C2C concentrations with clinical stage of stifle OA ( P >.05).
Conclusion— This OA biomarker did not detect pathology associated with CCL rupture. Our results suggest that collagenase-specific degradation of type II collagen in articular cartilage may not be involved in the early stage of naturally occurring canine cruciate disease, and that pathology associated with naturally occurring CCL rupture is different from that of experimental OA model.
Clinical Relevance— C2C is not clinically useful in detecting CCL rupture in dogs.     

Effect of Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy on Femorotibial Contact Mechanics and Stifle Kinematics

Objective— To evaluate the effects of tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO) on femorotibial contact mechanics and 3-dimensional (3D) kinematics in cranial cruciate ligament (CrCL)-deficient stifles of dogs.
Study Design— In vitro biomechanical study.
Animals— Unpaired pelvic limbs from 8 dogs, weighing 28–35 kg.
Methods— Digital pressure sensors placed subjacent to the menisci were used to measure femorotibial contact force, contact area, peak and mean contact pressure, and peak pressure location with the limb under an axial load of 30% body weight and a stifle angle of 135°. Three-dimensional static poses of the stifle were obtained using a Microscribe digitizing arm. Each specimen was tested under normal, CrCL-deficient, and TPLO-treated conditions. Repeated measures analysis of variance with a Tukey post hoc test ( P <.05) was used for statistical comparison.
Results— Significant disturbances to all measured contact mechanical variables were evident after CrCL transection, which corresponded to marked cranial tibial subluxation and increased internal tibial rotation in the CrCL-deficient stifle. No significant differences in 3D femorotibial alignment were observed between normal and TPLO-treated stifles; however, femorotibial contact area remained significantly smaller and peak contact pressures in both medial and lateral stifle compartments were positioned more caudally on the tibial plateau, when compared with normal.
Conclusion— Whereas TPLO eliminates craniocaudal stifle instability during simulated weight bearing, the procedure fails to concurrently restore femorotibial contact mechanics to normal.
Clinical Relevance— Progression of stifle osteoarthritis in dogs treated with TPLO may be partly the result of abnormal stifle contact mechanics induced by altering the orientation of the proximal tibial articulating surface.     

MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING OF THE CANINE BRAIN AT 7 T

The purpose of this study was to describe relevant canine brain structures as seen on T2-weighted images following magnetic resonance (MR) imaging at 7 T and to compare the results with imaging at 1.5 T. Imaging was performed on five healthy laboratory beagle dogs using 1.5 and 7 T clinical scanners. At 1.5 T, spin echo images were acquired, while gradient echo images were acquired at 3 T. Image quality and conspicuity of anatomic structures were evaluated qualitatively by direct comparison of the images obtained from the two different magnetic fields. The signal-to-nose ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were calculated and compared between 1.5 and 7 T. The T2-weighted images at 7 T provided good spatial and contrast resolution for the identification of clinically relevant brain anatomy; these images provided better delineation and conspicuity of the brain stem and cerebellar structures, which were difficult to unequivocally identify at 1.5 T. However, frontal and parietal lobe and the trigeminal nerve were difficult to identify at 7 T due to susceptibility artifact. The SNR and CNR of the images at 7 T were significantly increased up to 318% and 715% compared with the 1.5 T images. If some disadvantages of 7 T imaging, such as susceptibility artifacts, technical difficulties, and high cost, can be improved, 7 T clinical MR imaging could provide a good experimental and diagnostic tool for the evaluation of canine brain disorders.     

天然产物中木栓烷型三萜核磁共振波谱特征

对天然产物中发现的木栓烷型三萜化合物的¹³C-NMR、¹H-NMR谱学特征进行综述,以期减少天然产物特别是木栓烷型三萜结构鉴定工作的盲目性和重复性,为进一步研究分析木栓烷型三萜提供经验借鉴。     

不同海拔条件下耐冷性粳稻品种的稻米淀粉RVA谱特性

以4个强耐冷性粳稻品种和5个弱耐冷性粳稻品种为材料,比较分析了云南高原粳稻区不同海拔条件下不同耐冷性粳稻品种的稻米淀粉RVA谱变化特征。随种植海拔的升高,弱耐冷性品种的消减值明显增大,峰值黏度和崩解值显著减小,而强耐冷性品种的峰值黏度和崩解值呈先降后升趋势,消减值则表现先升后降趋势。强耐冷性品种的稻米淀粉RVA谱特性受海拔变化的影响较弱耐冷性品种小,蒸煮食味品质表现相对稳定,但弱耐冷性品种的蒸煮食味品质随海拔升高明显呈变劣趋势。     

明清时代中韩古典园林置石造景比较

中韩古典园林是传统文化的结晶,并且是东方园林的两枝奇葩。中国园林与韩国园林属于本源和分支的关系,韩国园林很多方面传承了中国园林的造园手法及艺术特征;然而不同的自然人文环境也使两种园林风格迥异,在园林中起着十分重要构景作用的置石也不例外。本文试从置石的形态与应用手法对中韩园林的不同作一些分析。     

IMAGING DIAGNOSIS—FDG‐PET/CT OF A CANINE SPLENIC PLASMA CELL TUMOR

An 8‐year‐old Shih Tzu developed abdominal pain and hyperglobulinemia. A round splenic mass was noted radiographically and sonographically. The patient was evaluated by fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography coupled with computed tomography (FDG‐PET/CT). There was no evidence of metastasis or bone marrow involvement on PET/CT images. The standardized uptake value (SUV) of the splenic mass was increased over the reference range (SUV=4.83). The patient was diagnosed as splenic extramedullary plasmacytoma through immunohistopathologic study. After the splenectomy, the globulin level normalized and the patient is alive without complications.     

Effects of Xijiao Dihuang and Yinqiao San decoction on ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 expression in mouse lung tissues and rat pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells infected with influenza virus

AIM：To investigate the effects of Xijiao Dihuang and Yinqiao San decoction (XDY) on the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) in mouse lung tissues and rat pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (RPMVECs) infected with influenza virus, and to explore its mechanism for treatment of viral pneumonia. METHODS：Fifty-four male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into normal group, model group and XDY group (n=18 in each group). The viral pneumonia model was established by intranasally dripping influenza A (H1N1) virus into the mice. The mice in XDY group were treated with XDY 1 h after dripping the virus. The expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in lung tissues was examined by immunohistochemical staining 2, 4 and 6 d after infection. On the other hand, RPMVECs were obtained from male Wistar rats and primarily cultured. The cells were randomly divided into control group, virus group, virus+XDY group, tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) group and TNF-α+XDY group. The mRNA and protein expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 was evaluated by real-time PCR and flow cytometry 24 h after infection. RESULTS：Virus exposure increased ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 expression in mouse lung tissues (P<0.01), and XDY treatment attenuated this effect (P<0.01). Virus and TNF-α both led to the increases in mRNA and protein expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in RPMVECs (P<0.01), which were also reduced by treatment with XDY (P<0.01). CONCLUSION：Treatment with XDY decreases virus-induced ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 expression, suggesting an important role of XDY in treatment of viral pneumonia.     

Effect of soil pH on the sorption capacity of soil organic matter for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in unsaturated soils

Sorption by soil organic matter (SOM) is considered the most important process affecting the bioavailability of hydrophobic organic chemicals (HOCs)in soil.The sorption capacity of SOM for HOCs is affected by many environmental factors.In this study,we investigated the effects of soil pH and water saturation level on HOC sorption capacity of SOM using batch sorption experiments.Values of soil organic carbon-water partition coefficient (K_OC) of six selected polycyclic aromatic hydrocar...     

PORK PRODUCTION SYSTEMS IN CHINA: A REVIEW OF THEIR DEVELOPMENT,CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS IN GREEN PRODUCTION

•Large-scale industrial pork production enterprises are preferred in China in the future.•Challenges to green pork production include emissions, feed shortage and residues.•Potential solutions to green production include precise feeding and manure recycling.This paper reviews the changes in pork production in China, the largest pork producing and consuming nation in the world. The pork sector in China has changed dramatically since the 1990s, with large-scale intensive pork production systems replacing the former, exclusively family-based pork production systems. Modern breeding, feeding, vaccinating, and management technologies are widely used now. However, smallholders still account for a large proportion of the total production. The intensification and specialization of the pork sector is expected to continue in the future, but there is increasing awareness and pressure to develop more environmentally-sustainable production systems. The relative shortage of domestically produced feed, the low utilization efficiency of feed ingredients, the large emissions of nitrogen and phosphorus to the environment, the high use of antibiotics, and the presence of residual metals in manures are very large challenges for the pork sector nowadays. To solve these problems, techniques including new feed resource utilization, precise feeding, low-protein diets, alternatives to antibiotics and increased manure recycling are all important topics and research directions today. With new techniques and management approaches, it is possible to build more sustainable pork production systems in China.