Risk factors associated with the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among students at the veterinary school of Zaragoza University

The prevalence and risk factors associated with leptospirosis were studied in veterinary students in Zaragoza. Sera were collected at the beginning and end of the academic year 1994 to 1995 and were tested by ELISA against a pool of Leptospira interrogans serovars bratislava, canicola, grippotyphosa, hardjo, icterohaemorrhagiae and pomona antigens. At the beginning of the study the prevalence was 8.14 per cent and at the end it was 11.4 per cent. The incidence of the disease during the study was 0.0394. Risk factors associated with leptospirosis included: taking the course specialising in food inspection and technology, on-farm work, contact with pets in general, and particularly carnivores, and contact with animal traders. The symptoms associated with the disease were myalgia and fever, and the treatment of the symptoms provided some protection.     

The effects of cyclophosphamide and its uroprotective agents, mesna and hyperbaric oxygen, on urinary bladder motility in guinea pigs

The aim of this research was to observe the effects of cyclophosphamide and its uroprotective agents, mesna and hyperbaric oxygen (HBO), on the motility of urinary bladder muscle in guinea pigs. In the experimental groups, mesna and cyclophosphamide were intraperitoneally injected at a dose of 21.5 mg/kg and 68.1 mg/kg, respectively. For the combination of mesna and cyclophosphamide, one dose of mesna was injected 20 min before cyclophosphamide administration and three additional injections of mesna were repeated every three hours. A total of 8 HBO exposures were performed at 2.8 ATA for 90 min twice daily for another experimental group. In the HBO and cyclophosphamide combined group 5 HBO exposures were given prophylactically before cyclophosphamide. The combination of mesna, HBO and cyclophosphamide was administered by the same procedure. The contractions obtained in response to acetylcholine (ACh, 10(-4) M) in the control group were reduced using cyclophosphamide and HBO individually, but not by mesna. However, the contractions belonging to the various combinations of these three agents were not different from those seen in the control group. On the other hand, the combinations of cyclophosphamide, mesna and HBO showed higher responses to ACh than the groups in which cyclophosphamide and HBO were used individually, while the responses elicited by the cyclophosphamide and HBO combination were greater than those seen in the group treated with HBO only.     

Intravaginal prostaglandin F2 alpha for the treatment of metritis and pyometra in the bitch

The purpose of this study was to determine whether intravaginal prostaglandin F2 alpha (PGF2 alpha) would be effective for the treatment of metritis or pyometra in the bitch. Seventeen bitches with metritis or pyometra were treated with PGF2 alpha. Prostaglandin F2 alpha (150 micrograms/kg body weight) was administered once or twice daily by infusing 0.3 ml per 10 kg body wt into the vaginal lumen. Bitches were also treated with amoxicillin (15 mg/kg body wt/48 h) and/or gentamicin (4 mg/kg body wt/day) administered as intramuscular (i.m.) injections. Fifteen bitches were treated successfully with intravaginally administered PGF2 alpha for 3 to 12 days and with intramuscularly administered antibiotics for 4 to 12 days. Success of treatment was judged by cessation of vaginal discharge, the absence of fluid in the uterus as determined by ultrasonography, and the overall health status of the animal. As two bitches with pyometra showed clinical deterioration in spite of medical treatment, ovariohysterectomy was performed after the first and the second treatment, respectively. No side effects (salivation, vomiting, diarrhoea, hyperpnoea, ataxia, urination, anxiety, pupillary dilatation followed by contraction) were observed after PGF2 alpha treatment. The disease did not recur during the subsequent oestrous cycles within 12 months after the initial treatment. The results demonstrate that intravaginal administration of PGF2 alpha was effective in 13 dogs (86.6%) with metritis or pyometra, and caused no side effects. Although the study was based on a relatively small number of cases, it is concluded that prostaglandin F2 alpha can be a useful means of treating bitches with metritis or pyometra. However, in severe cases of pyometra ovariohysterectomy is needed.     

青海玉树地区藏羊血清氟含量测定

采用氟离子选择电极法。对５０只藏羊血清氟含量进行测定。结果表明，玉树地区藏羊血清氟含量为０．１８１－０．５９４μｇ／ｍｌ，证明该方法适用于藏羊血清氟含量的测定。     

不同产区赤桉根系的发育

赤桉(Eucalyptus camaldulensis)分布于沃大利亚干旱炎热的地区,该树种具有特别高的根茎比率,Jacobs(1955)认为这种特性有助于赤桉能在干旱环境下成功地定植。选取六种不同产区的赤桉以及柳桉(E.saligna)和弹丸桉(E.pilularis)设置在与自然环境相类似的条件下作试验,把种子播种在水份饱和的土壤上发芽,随后持续干旱,逐渐使土壤剖面干透,在剖面上研究其根系增长情况。试验结果表明,赤桉能够在迅速干旱的土壤剖面上成功定植,主要是由于具有迅速产生大量根系的能力。试验还显示出,来自维多利亚默里河流域阿尔巴库湖和纳萨利亚湖的赤桉,在干旱环境下比其他地区的生长得更快。     

锰的浓度对番茄生长和产量的影响

开始利用营养膜进行商品生产栽培的人认真思考了微量营养在这种栽培方式中最佳施用水平问题。由于对营养膜栽培中锰营养的疑问,我们做了番茄在锰的四种营养浓度(0.2、0.5、1.25和3.13mg Mn/L)中生长比较试验。研究结果发现锰的浓度超过浓度范围对作物的产量和产值没有重大影响,同样地,产     

Comparison of selected diagnostic methods for identification of Cryptosporidium parvum and Cryptosporidium andersoni in routine examination of faeces

This study involved the comparison of suitability of different methods for routine diagnostics of Cryptosporidium spp. Two staining methods, one concentration-sedimentation method, seven concentration-floatation methods and one combined floatation-sedimentation method were compared. The methods were tested with two concentrations (1 x 10(5) and 1 x 10(6)/g) of C. parvum and C. andersoni. The methods were evaluated using light microscope, magnification 400x for concentration methods and 1000x for stained samples respectively. Specificity of both staining methods was 95-100%. Ziehl-Neelsen with P < 0.01 is more suitable for identification of C. andersoni and modified Milácek-Vítovec with P < 0.01 for identification of C. parvum. Concerning specificity and sensitivity, the floatation-concentration method by Sheather was found to provide the best results of all selected methods. The merthiolate iodine formaldehyde concentration (MIFC) method was the least specific one. The least suitable method concerning sensitivity and costs was the floatation method with caesium chloride (CsCl) with a specificity of 29%.     

Cellular and humoral local immune responses in sheep experimentally infected with Oestrus ovis (Diptera: Oestridae)

Cellular and humoral local responses were investigated following repetitive artificial Oestrus ovis infections in lambs. The presence of larvae induced a huge local recruitment of either leucocytes (T and B lymphocytes, macrophages) or granulocytes (eosinophils, mast cells and globule leucocytes). This cellular response was more pronounced in the ethmoid and sinus (development sites of second and third instar larvae) than in the septum or turbinates where first instar larvae migrate. Infected lambs produced Oestrus ovis specific IgG and IgA antibodies in their mucus. This local humoral response was mainly directed against larval salivary gland antigens and not against larval digestive tract antigens. Compared to the control animals, the sinusal mucosa of infected animals was extremely thickened and the epithelium exhibited hyperplasia, metaplasia and eosinophilic exocytosis. The possible roles of these local immune responses in the regulation of O. ovis larvae populations in sheep are discussed.     

Metastatic gastric adenocarcinoma and diffuse hyperplastic gastritis resembling human Menétrier's disease in a camel (Camelus ferus bactrianus)

A captive 16-year-old male camel (Camelus ferus bactrianus) was euthanized after a prolonged period of inappetence leading to cachexia. At necropsy, there was a 7 cm large, tan, firm, well-demarcated nodule in the tunica muscularis and serosa of the distal region of C3. Histologically, a gastric adenocarcinoma was diagnosed. Numerous metastases were found in the liver and the hepatic lymph nodes, in the wall of the portal vein and the aorta, in the lung, heart, and pleura parietalis. Osseous metaplasia was found within the pleural and aortic metastases. In the mucosa of the glandular region of the C3 compartment a diffuse marked hypertrophy of rugae resembling cerebral convolutions was observed. The lesion was characterized by glandular hyperplasia and stromal inflammation and oedema. These changes closely resembled Menétrier's disease described in humans. To our knowledge, this is the first report of concomitant metastatic gastric adenocarcinoma and gastric hyperplasia in a camel.     

Effects of 6-hydroxydopamine on the development of the immune system in chickens

It has been suggested that the sympathetic nervous system communicates with lymphocytes expressing cell surface receptors for neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine (NE), on the basis of the finding that neurotransmitters modify immune responses in mammalian species. We confirmed that chicken lymphocytes in the brusa of Fabricius, thymus and spleen expressed beta-adrenergic receptor (beta-AR) mRNA from embryonic day (E) 10 and that intracellular cAMP level was elevated by NE, suggesting that lymphocytes express functional beta-AR on their surface at an early embryonal stage. To clarify whether the nervous system is involved in the development of the immune system, the effects of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), one of sympathectomizing agents, on chicken lymphocytes was investigated. A single injection of 6-OHDA at a dose of 400 microg into a chicken embryo was carried out at E7 or 14 (as referred to E7 group and E14 group, respectively). NE level and the relative proportion of Bu-1a(+), CD4(+) and CD8(+) cells in the spleen of 3-week-old chickens were not altered by 6-OHDA treatment. However, the proliferative responses and expression of IL-2 mRNA in spleen cells cultured with pokeweed mitogen were reduced in E7 group compared with those of control. Furthermore, in CD8(+) spleen cells of E14 group of 3-week-old chickens, the expression of beta-AR mRNA and the relative increase of intracellular cAMP stimulated with NE were significantly decreased. These results suggest that the sympathetic nervous system affects the development of the immune system.