Retrospective assessment of tolerability and efficacy of zoledronate in the palliative treatment of cancer-bearing dogs

Zoledronate is a bisphosphonate frequently used for the treatment of hypercalcaemia of malignancy and tumour-associated bone pain in dogs, however, there is a paucity of information regarding its use in veterinary medicine. The aim of this retrospective study was to report the tolerability of zoledronate in the palliative treatment of cancer-bearing dogs and secondarily to to assess the efficacy of zoledronate for the treatment of hypercalcaemia of malignancy. Thirty-seven dogs (22 with tumour-associated bone pain and 15 with hypercalcaemia of malignancy) that received 114 zoledronate infusions were included. Tolerability was assessed by the absence of post-zoledronate hypocalcaemia or other adverse events as defined by Veterinary Cooperative Oncology Group-Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events criteria. Efficacy was assessed by comparison of available ionized calcium levels before and after zoledronate administration in hypercalcaemic dogs. In 79% of zoledronate infusions, no adverse events were reported. The majority of adverse events which occurred in the other 21% of infusions could be attributed to concurrent chemotherapy or the underlying neoplastic disease. There was a small but significant increase in creatinine following treatment with zoledronate, however, none of the dogs developed clinically significant renal disease. In eight hypercalcaemic dogs with available ionized calcium following zoledronate administration, ionized calcium decreased rapidly within 7 days following treatment with zoledronate. Zoledronate is well-tolerated with few recorded adverse events, however, monitoring of serum creatinine is advised. Zoledronate seems to be effective in the treatment of hypercalcaemia of malignancy.     

Usefulness of aerobic microbial culture and cytologic evaluation of corneal specimens in the diagnosis of infectious ulcerative keratitis in animals

OBJECTIVE: To determine the diagnostic value of aerobic microbial culture and cytologic evaluation of corneal specimens in the diagnosis of infectious ulcerative keratitis (IUK). DESIGN: Prospective study. ANIMALS: 48 animals (26 dogs, 13 horses, 7 cats, 1 bird, and 1 llama) with corneal ulcers. PROCEDURE: Scrapings from corneal ulcers were examined cytologically. Corneal swab specimens were submitted for microbial culture. Animals were grouped according to whether they had been receiving antimicrobials at the time of admission. RESULTS: Of the 38 animals receiving antimicrobials, 19 had positive results for IUK on cytologic evaluation, 20 on microbial culture, and 26 on cytologic evaluation, microbial culture, or both. Of the 10 animals not receiving antimicrobials at the time of admission, 7 had positive results for IUK on cytologic evaluation, and 9 had positive results on microbial culture. In this group of 10 animals, additional animals with IUK were not identified on the basis of cytologic evaluation alone. When all 48 animals were considered irrespective of antimicrobial treatment, 26 and 29 had positive results for IUK on cytologic evaluation and microbial culture, respectively, whereas IUK was confirmed in 35 animals on the basis of cytologic evaluation, microbial culture results, or both. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Microbial culture and cytologic evaluation of corneal specimens maximizes identification of IUK, especially in animals receiving antimicrobial treatment. Because of serious consequences of untreated IUK, we recommend that both diagnostic tests be used to tailor treatment and reduce risk of vision impairment in animals.     

Artificial insemination in tench, Tinca tinca L.

Abstract. The sperm of tench, Tinca tinca L., is characterized by a milky colour and consistency, and is of very low density. After collecting the sperm, motion of spermatozoa was recorded even without water activation. A better motility value (value 4·36 on average) was observed in spermatozoa collected in immobilizing solution (collecting medium) and stored for 3h, when compared with spermatozoa without collecting medium. Average total and relative numbers of spermatozoa were 12·16 × 10⁹ per male and 18·50 × 10⁹ per kg of body weight, respectively. When testing the effect of activating solution in artificial propagation of tench, the highest fertilization rates (81·3 and 85% in two cases) were found for NaCl solution with an osmotic concentration of 34 or 69 mOsmol and for fresh water, respectively. The fertility rate was reduced significantly ( P < 0·01) by any increase above 105 mOsmol in NaCl concentration in the activating solution. In the tests of optimal method of artificial fertilization, the highest hatching rate of sac fry (71·35%) was found in sperm collected into immobilizing solution. The application of immobilizing solution significantly increased the number of sac fry at the levels P < 0·1 and P < 0·01, if compared with intact sperm stored for 3 h and fresh sperm, respectively.     

Surveillance of dairy production holdings supplying raw milk to the farmhouse cheese sector for Escherichia coli O157, O26 and O111

Clinically healthy domestic animals can harbour Escherichia coli O157 and other verocytotoxigenic E. coli (VTEC) strains in their faeces. Milk filters can be used to microbiologically monitor direct milk secretion and environmental contamination for these pathogens. The aim of this study was to establish baseline data on the prevalence and characteristics of VTEC organisms in lactating animals (bovine, ovine and caprine) supplying milk to the farmhouse cheese sector, with particular emphasis on serogroups O157, O111 and O26. Fifty-six bovine, 13 caprine and 5 ovine herds/flocks, the majority of which supplying milk for farmhouse cheese production, were surveyed from May 2004 to July 2005. Milk filters were analysed by immunomagnetic separation followed by PCR, on a serogroup-specific basis for E. coli O157, O26 and O111. Positive isolates were examined using a multiplex PCR protocol, for their potential to produce verocytotoxins (vt1/vt2), the haemolysin-encoding gene (hlyA) and the gene encoding attaching and effacement (eae). Five verocytotoxigenic and 22 non-virulent E. coli O157 isolates were detected. Seventeen E. coli O26 isolates were also detected, four of which were verocytotoxigenic, seven isolates contained the eae gene only and six isolates were devoid of any of the virulence factors. The VTEC O157 and O26 isolates contained the hlyA and eae genes along with the verocytotoxin genes. No E. coli O111 isolates were detected. Some of the herds were positive on more than one occasion and multiple E. coli serogroups were isolated from the same milk filter sample. Although all food products tested were VTEC negative, routine surveillance for such pathogens in raw milk/raw milk products is of public health importance. Herd-level surveillance along with subsequent risk management action may be a cost-effective component of risk reduction strategies for food production, drinking water supplies and the protection of public health.     

Metastatic immune infiltrates correlate with those of the primary tumour in canine osteosarcoma

Our lack of understanding of the immune microenvironment in canine osteosarcoma (cOSA) has limited the identification of potential immunotherapeutic targets. In particular, our ability to utilize readily available tissue from a dog's primary tumour to predict the type and extent of immune response in their pulmonary metastatic lesions is unknown. We, therefore, collected 21 matched pairs of primary tumours and pulmonary metastatic lesions from dogs with OSA and performed immunohistochemistry to quantify T‐lymphocyte (CD3), FOXP3+ cell, B‐lymphocyte (Pax‐5), and CD204+ macrophage infiltration. We found that T‐lymphocytes and FOXP3+ infiltrates in primary tumours positively correlated with that of metastatic lesions (ρ = 0.512, P = 0.038 and ρ = 0.698, P = 0.007, respectively), while a strong trend existed for CD204+ infiltrates (ρ = 0.404, P = 0.087). We also observed T‐ and B‐lymphocytes, and CD204+ macrophages to be significantly higher in a dog's pulmonary metastasis compared to their primary tumour (P = 0.018, P = 0.018, P = 0.016, respectively), while FOXP3+ cells were only significantly higher in metastases when all primary tumour and metastasis lesions were compared without pairing (P = 0.036). Together, these findings suggest that the metastatic immune microenvironment may be influenced by that of the primary cOSA, and that primary tumour immune biomarkers could potentially be applied to predict immunotherapeutic responses in gross metastatic disease. We, therefore, provide a rationale for the treatment of cOSA pulmonary metastases with immunotherapeutics that enhance the anti‐tumour activity of these immune cells, particularly in dogs with moderate to high immune cell infiltration in their primary tumours.     

Solitary extramedullary plasmacytoma of the canine larynx

An 11-year-old, female, spayed cocker spaniel was presented with dysphonia caused by a solitary laryngeal mass. Excisional biopsy was performed, and a diagnosis of plasmacytoma was made on the basis of histological examination. Further investigations showed no signs of systemic involvement. Coarse fractionated radiation therapy failed to control the tumour. Therapy was successfully instituted with a conventional combination chemotherapy protocol over a period of 14 months. The dog remains disease free 30 months after diagnosis. Most solitary, extramedullary plasmacytomas in dogs arise in the gastrointestinal tract, with fewer reports in other sites. The larynx is an uncommon sight of involvement in any species, and to the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of this tumour type in the canine larynx. In contrast to the therapeutic benefits reported in humans, the combination of surgery and radiation therapy was unsuccessful in this case, although sustained remission was gained following chemotherapy.