Comparison of sevoflurane and isoflurane in domestic ferrets (Mustela putorius furo)

Isoflurane anesthesia is commonly used in ferrets for routine examinations and diagnostics. Sevoflurane is now being used as well, but there have been no studies to date directly comparing these agents in domestic ferrets. A prospective study was designed to evaluate the quality and speed of anesthetic induction and recovery using isoflurane and sevoflurane in ferrets. In addition effects on heart rate, blood pressure and packed cell volume were also recorded. No significant differences were noted between anesthetic agents.     

Haematological, biochemical and selected acute phase protein reference intervals for weaned female Merino lambs

Background   Merino lambs are currently the subject of much research into the welfare aspects of mulesing and mulesing alternatives.
Objective   Obtain haematology, biochemistry and acute phase protein reference intervals using modern methodologies for female Merino lambs.
Method   Blood was collected from 50, weaned, 9- to 16-week-old, female Merino lambs. Haematology and biochemistry panels were performed using routine automated methods. The acute phase proteins, fibrinogen, serum amyloid A and haptoglobin, were also measured using commercially available techniques. The reference intervals were determined to be the central 95% of results.
Results   Differences in the concentrations for some analytes were seen when compared with reported studies in sheep, but may be explained by the use of sheep of a different signalment, as well as different methodologies for analyte measurement. Overall, most analytes gave similar values to those previously reported in other studies. Notable exceptions were alkaline phosphatase, phosphate and globulins, for which the different results were often attributed to the younger age of the sheep in the present study, and platelets and creatine kinase, for which the elevated levels may have been a result of stress and muscle exertion associated with blood collection and husbandry practices.
Conclusion   Established haematological, biochemical and acute phase protein reference intervals are necessary for the investigation of the systemic impact of mulesing and mulesing alternatives and for the investigation of systemic diseases affecting weaned, 9- to 16-week-old, female Merino lambs in general.     

Activated coagulation times in normal cats and dogs using MAX-ACTTM tubes

Objective  To establish reference values for activated coagulation time (ACT) in normal cats and dogs, by visual assessment of clot formation using the MAX-ACT^TM tube.
Subjects  We recruited 43 cats and 50 dogs for the study; 11 cats and 4 dogs were excluded from the statistical analysis because of abnormalities on clinical examination or laboratory testing including anaemia, prolonged prothrombin time (PT) or activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), or insufficient plasma volume for comprehensive laboratory coagulation testing.
Procedure  Blood samples were collected via direct venipuncture for MAX-ACT, packed cell volume/total solids, manual platelet estimation and PT/APTT measurement. Blood (0.5 mL) was mixed gently in the MAX-ACT tube at 37°C for 30 s, then assessed for clot formation every 5 to 10 s by tipping the tube gently on its side and monitoring for magnet movement. The endpoint was defined as the magnet lodging in the clot. The technique was tested with 10 dogs by collecting two blood samples from the same needle insertion and running a MAX-ACT on each simultaneously.
Results  In normal cats the mean MAX-ACT was 66 s (range 55–85 s). In normal dogs the mean was 71 s (range 55–80 s). There was no statistical difference between the first and second samples collected from the same needle insertion.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance  In both cats and dogs, a MAX-ACT result >85 s should be considered abnormal and further coagulation testing should be performed. Additionally, failure to discard the first few drops of the sample does not appear to significantly affect results.     

Binding,fractionation, and distribution of Cs,Co, and Sr in a US coastal soil under saturated and field capacity moisture regimes

Purpose

The concerns of the public on safe handling of nuclear energy power facilities have increased due to the recent nuclear plant accidents in Japan and others. Cesium, cobalt, and strontium are a few of the major radionuclides released from nuclear power plant accidents. The objectives of this study are to investigate binding, distribution, fractionation, and transformation of cesium (Cs), cobalt (Co), and strontium (Sr) in a US coastal soil under saturated paste (SP) and field capacity (FC) moisture regimes.

Materials and methods

There are four major nuclear power plants in the coast region around the northern Gulf of Mexico where coastal soil often undergoes soil moisture change. A coastal soil was taken from the middle region of these major nuclear power plants and spiked with different concentrations of cesium, cobalt, and strontium salts. The sequential selective dissolution technique was used to investigate the transformation and fractionations of these metals in the coastal soils affected by moisture regime, a key factor in the coastal environment.

Results and discussion

The adsorption kinetics showed that both Co and Sr reached the adsorption plateau even after 5 h of adsorption, indicating a fast initial adsorption process in the coastal soil. Cesium, cobalt, and strontium were dominantly presented in the soluble and exchangeable form (EXC) (Cs?>?Co and Sr), which linearly increased with the addition levels, possessing the high bioavailability, mobility, and ecotoxicity. Saturated regime significantly reduced the soluble and exchangeable form compared to field capacity moisture regime.

Conclusions

The current study provides the fundamental understanding for designing the cost-effective remediation technology to remediate these metals in coastal soil by targeting on the soluble and exchangeable forms and better prepare the USA for future potentially nuclear power plant accidents.

     

Comparison of aerosol sulfur and crustal element concentrations in particle size fractions from continental U.S. locations

A comparison of element concentrations in aerosols is made for S, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Fe, and Zn as a function of particle size during April 1976 in nonurban New Mexico, Colorado, and New Hampshire and urban and nearby rural St Louis, Missouri. In the submicrometer diameter range at all sites, S greatly exceeds Si, K, Ca, Ti, and Fe, which occur predominantly in the coarse particle (>1 μm) fraction. Particle size distributions of each of these elements are similar among the five sites, but prominent concentration anomalies and secondary size distribution differences are measureable and suggest differences in aerosol production processes and relative pollution source strengths. The results are potentially useful in evaluating causes of atmospheric visibility differences between the western and eastern U.S.A.     

The isotopic composition of soil organic carbon on a north–south transect in western Canada

The minor isotopes of carbon (¹³C and ¹⁴C) are widely used as tracers in studies of the global carbon cycle. We present carbon‐isotope data for the 0–5 cm layer of soil on a transect from 49.6°N to 68°N, from mature forest and tundra ecosystems in the boreal‐arctic zone of interior western Canada. Soil organic carbon in the < 2000 μm fraction of the soil decreases from 3.14 kg m^?2 in the south to 1.31 kg m^?2 in the north. The ¹⁴C activity of the organic carbon decreases as latitude increases from 118.9 to 100.7 per cent modern carbon (pMC). In addition, the ¹⁴C activities of organic carbon in the particle‐size fractions of each sample decrease as particle size decreases. These results suggest that organic carbon in the 0–5 cm layer of these soils transfers from standing biomass into the coarsest size fractions of the soil and is then degraded over time, with the residue progressively transferred into the more resistant finer particle sizes. We calculate residence times for the coarsest size fractions of 21 years in the south to 71 years in the north. Residence times for the fine size fractions (< 63 μm) are considerably longer, ranging from 90 years in the south to 960 years in the north. The δ¹³C of the organic carbon decreases from ?26.8 ± 0.3‰ in soil under forest in the south to ?26.2 ± 0.1‰ for tundra sites in the north. At all sites there is an increase in δ¹³C with decreasing particle size of 0.7–1.6‰. These changes in δ¹³C are due to the presence of ‘old’ carbon in equilibrium with an atmosphere richer in ¹³C, and to the effects of microbial degradation.     

Sialomucin Complex (Muc4) Expression in Porcine Endometrium During the Oestrous Cycle and Early Pregnancy

The non‐invasive type of implantation in the pig is characterized by the maintenance of a thick glycocalyx coating on the uterine epithelial surface microvilli. Present study investigated the alteration in the sialomucin complex (Muc4) expression during the oestrous cycle and early pregnancy in the pig. Endometrial tissue samples were immunostained with the primary antibody to the Muc4 transmembrane subunit ASGP‐2. Muc4 immunostaining increased in the surface and glandular epithelia between days 5 and 10 of oestrous cycle. Immunostaining continued to increase on day 12 with the greatest intensity of uterine Muc4 immunostaining detected on day 15 of the oestrous cycle and early pregnancy. Endometrial Muc4 expression in cyclic gilts decreased dramatically during early proestrous but continued to remain abundant in the surface and glandular epithelium of pregnant gilts during the period of conceptus attachment to the uterine surface.