Autofluorescence as a diagnostic tool for the infection of alders by Frankia

The early stages in the infection process between Frankia and the roots of its host plants are poorly understood. At present, there is relatively little known about the infection process in plants after the initial stage of root hair curling, but before a nodule may be visualised by eye. This paper presents a novel method of screening plant-microbe interactions, which is non-lethal to the plant, on the basis of a change in the autofluorescent pattern in the plants root system when viewed using fluorescent microscopy with an excitation wavelength of 490 nm.     

The clinical diagnosis of renal disease in the dog

A review has been made of the presenting clinical signs and of the laboratory analyses and investigative procedures which aid in the diagnosis of renal disease in the dog. Résumé. On passe en revue les signes cliniques qui se présentent, les analyses de laboratoire et les sondages et recherches qui facilitent le diagnostic des maladies rénales chez le chien. Zusammenfassung. Es wird eine Übersicht uber die sich darbietenden klinischen Zeichen, die Laboratoriumsanalysen und die Untersuchgsverfahren gegeben, welche zur Diagnose von Nierenerkrankungen des Hundes beitragen.     

Analysis of murmur intensity, duration and frequency components in dogs with aortic stenosis

A study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between murmur intensity, murmur duration, duration to peak intensity and frequency components with degree of aortic stenosis in boxers. Measurements were made from phonocardiograms obtained from 35 boxers with ejection-type murmurs, and values were compared with those obtained for aortic flow velocity measured by Doppler echocardiography. Murmur intensity graded by auscultation was significantly correlated with aortic flow velocity (P<0·001), and murmur duration, expressed as a percentage of systole, was significantly correlated with aortic flow velocity (P<0·001), independent of heart rate. Dogs with early systolic murmurs not exceeding 50 per cent of systole had aortic flow velocities of less than 1·5 m/second and no echocardiographic abnormalities, in contrast with dogs with murmurs of longer duration. Dogs with only high frequency components had lower aortic velocities than those that also had components in the medium frequency range (P<0·01).     

Equine sweating and anhidrosis Part 1--equine sweating

Sweating has a variety of functions in mammals including pheromone action, excretion of waste products and maintenance of the skin surface ecosystem. In a small number of mammalian species, which includes humans and the Equidae, it also has an important role in thermoregulation. This review is focused specifically on the thermoregulatory role of sweat in Equidae and the causes of sweating failure (anhidrosis). The first part describes the glandular appearance, sweat composition, and output rates; and considers the latest theories on the glandular control and secretory mechanisms. It is concluded that the glands are not directly innervated but are controlled by the interplay of neural, humoral and paracrine factors. The secretory mechanism is not as simple as previously thought and is mediated by the dynamic interaction of activating pathways, including autocrine control not only of the secretory process but probably also of secretory cell reproduction, growth, and death.     

Reference genes for canine skin when using quantitative real-time PCR

Quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) facilitates the quantification of mRNA expression. Accurate qPCR analysis of gene expression requires the normalisation of data using a reference or housekeeping gene which is expressed at a similar level in all tissues tested. GAPDH is the most well known and most widely used reference gene but many papers have demonstrated that it is not stably expressed in different tissues. The aim of this study was to measure reference gene stability in canine skin using real-time qPCR. Skin samples from healthy control dogs (n=7) and dogs with atopic dermatitis (lesional skin n=7 and non-lesional skin n=7) were used to quantify seven reference genes (IMP, CG14980, S7, HIRA, GAPDH, RPL13A and SDHA) in canine whole skin. Three different statistical programs (Bestkeeper, GeNorm and Normfinder) were used to assess the stability of the reference genes. The results confirmed that GAPDH is not a stably expressed reference gene in canine skin; this finding may influence interpretation of previous qPCR studies on canine skin using this as a reference gene. RPL13A and CG14980 were found to be the most stably expressed genes in canine whole skin and would be more suitable as reference genes in future studies.