Contributions of cloud processes to precipitation chemistry in mixed phase clouds

The role clouds play as processors of atmospheric aerosols and trace gases was studied along the slope of Mt. Rigi in central Switzerland. Upon cloud formation many aerosols and trace gases are efficiently scavenged by cloud drops. The cloud drops can enhance removal of pollutants from the atmosphere by transferring them to snow or rain which falls rapidly to the ground. This often occurs through a process known as riming, where falling ice crystals capture cloud drops. When ice crystals are grown primarily via water vapor deposition, without significant capture of cloud drops, however, the cloud drops isolate atmospheric pollutants from the precipitation process, thereby inhibiting their deposition. Increased riming results in increased precipitation ion concentrations. The extent of ice crystal riming at times exhibits spatial inhomogeneities with greater riming apparent near the mountain summit. Variations in cloud chemistry with drop size indicate that bulk cloudwater composition is not an accurate predictor for the composition of cloud drops captured by the ice crystals.     

Spirometra erinacei / S. erinaceieuropaei in a feral cat in Manawatu with chronic intermittent diarrhoea

CASE HISTORY: A feral cat captured in the Manawatu region of New Zealand was treated for worms and fleas, and kept confined in a metabolic cage. It showed good appetite and weight gain but had intermittent watery, yellow diarrhoea. CLINICAL FINDINGS: Clinical examination under sedation was unremarkable and routine blood tests showed no significant abnormalities. The cat was negative for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukaemia virus (FeLV). Different canned cat foods did not alter the course of the diarrhoea, and the cat was euthanised 6 months after capture. At necropsy, two sections of adult Spirometra tapeworms were found in the jejunum and typical Spirometra eggs were found in colonic contents. Molecular identification of the parasite was undertaken, using the cytochrome-c oxidase subunit-1 gene (cox1) sequence. DIAGNOSIS: Chronic intermittent diarrhoea associated with Spirometra erinacei / S. erinaceieuropaei infection. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Spirometra has not been reported in New Zealand before but has been associated with gastrointestinal disease in cats in other parts of the world. It requires species targeted treatment to be eliminated effectively, and is zoonotic. Diagnosis could be difficult for clinicians who are not familiar with the parasite and its life cycle.     

Metastatic melanomas in young broiler chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus)

Four young broiler chickens affected by multiple melanotic tumors are described. Grossly, there were multiple tumors composed of melanocytes within the skin, skeletal muscle, and multiple visceral organs. Tumors ranged from flattened macules to masses that extensively replaced viscera. Microscopically, melanocytes were often well pigmented, and while there was moderate nuclear anisokaryosis, mitotic rates were low. Immunohistochemical staining of some melanomas with antibodies to S100 proteins, Melan-A, vimentin, or neuron-specific enolase after bleaching of tumor cells with potassium permanganate revealed lack of immunostaining of tumor cells with antibodies to S100, strong positive staining of tumor cells for neuron-specific enolase, moderate staining with antibodies to vimentin, and faint staining for Melan-A. Only neuron-specific enolase staining was evident in unbleached tumor cells. Attempts to identify exogenous avian leukosis viruses in these tumors were unsuccessful.     

Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA (Sanfilippo syndrome) in a New Zealand Huntaway dog with ataxia

Aim: To investigate the nature of a progressive ataxia in a New Zealand Huntaway dog.

Methods: The affected dog was examined clinically before being humanely killed and necropsied. Selected tissues were submitted to light and electron microscopy and to biochemical analyses.

Results: The histological lesions were interpreted as indicative of one of the forms of mucopolysaccharidosis type-III (dMPS-III), a lysosomal storage disease. Biochemically there was a deficiency of heparan sulphamidase. All the heparan sulphate chains had non-reducing-end glucosamine-N-sulphate residues.

Conclusion: The disease is dMPS-IIIA (Sanfilippo syndrome). An autosomal recessive mode of inheritance can be provisionally assumed from the nature of this disease in other species.     

Pancreatic cyst in a cat

CASE HISTORY: A 5-year-old neutered male Cornish Rex cat was presented for evaluation with a history of vomiting over the previous 5 days.

CLINICAL FINDINGS: An abdominal mass was palpated, which was shown to be cystic by ultrasound examination. Exploratory surgery revealed this to be associated with the pancreas and it was duly resected. Histopathology was performed on the cystic mass.

DIAGNOSIS: Pancreatic cyst with associated chronic active infl ammation.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This is the first report of a true pancreatic cyst in a cat.     

Effects of fire retardant application on heathland surface-dwelling ant species (Order Hymenoptera; Family Formicidae) in Victoria,Australia

The effects of fire retardant application at varying rates on surface-dwelling ants in heathland communities were assessed over a 1-year period from March 2001 to March 2002. The study was conducted at two sites, one in East Gippsland at Marlo and the other in the Grampians region of south-west Victoria where a total across both sites of 6407 specimens representing 18 ant species contained in 5400 pitfall trap samples were collected. It was concluded that despite retardant application, no significant effect was observed within the major ant species Rhytidoponera metallica (Smith) and Pheidole sp. at both sites. These species appear to form a stable component of the heathland ant community. However, significant decreases in activity were observed for Camponotus terebrans (Lowne) at the Grampians site and Paratrechina sp. at the Marlo site. Evidence suggests that retardant application when combined with prevailing suitable climatic conditions, leads to foliage mortality, litter accumulation and weed invasion, leading to potential creation of habitat less suitable for activity of these species. When assessed in terms of taxon richness and community evenness, ant species were unaffected at the Grampians, while at Marlo, community evenness was affected due to the smaller number of individuals collected in the medium retardant treatment. When assessed by their functional groupings, the Subordinate Camponotini showed significantly reduced activity on the retardant treated sites at the Grampians directly as a result of C. terebrans activity. Further study is required to determine the combined effects of fire and retardant on ant species, as well as any longer-term effects past 1 year.