Myoclonus and urinary retention following subarachnoid morphine injection in a dog

A 5-year-old German Shepherd dog which presented for total hip replacement developed myoclonus and urinary retention after the subarachnoid injection of preservative-free morphine. Myoclonus was resistant to treatment, except pentobarbital anesthesia. Urinary retention was treated with bethanechol and subsided within a few days. Involuntary muscular activity can result from the epidural, subarachnoid or systemic injection of various opioid drugs, or as a result of the toxic or irritant effect of preservatives or autologous blood. The latter were not causative factors in this case. Opioid agonist inhibition of central inhibitory neurotransmitter action may have explained the myoclonus. Postoperative urinary retention was attributed to the spinal action of morphine inhibiting efferent parasympathetic nervous activity.     

Storage of soil carbon is not sequestration: Straightforward graphical visualization of their basic differences

Over the last few years, in the literature on the incorporation of crop residues in agricultural fields to mitigate climate change, there has been a growing tendency to no longer distinguish between the storage and the sequestration of organic carbon in soils. Applying, apparently for the first time, a simple “back-of-the-envelope” calculation to available mineralization kinetics data, we show graphically that there are fundamental differences, both quantitatively and qualitatively, between the two concepts of storage and sequestration. To avoid confusion, they should therefore never be used interchangeably, especially when addressing farmers and policymakers. Several simplifying assumptions made in the calculations, and about which a considerable lack of understanding persists, mean that at this stage, the graphical visualization we obtained is likely to still be optimistic in terms of the already low (10%) efficacy of sequestering carbon in soils. Several research avenues are outlined to deepen our grasp of the processes involved.     

Comparison of quantitative immunoturbidimetric and semiquantitative latex‐agglutination assays for D‐dimer measurement in canine plasma

Background: D‐dimer measurement in dogs is considered the most reliable test for detecting disseminated intravascular coagulation or thromboembolism. Objectives: The purposes of this study were to compare 2 D‐dimer assays, a quantitative immunoturbidimetric and a semiquantitative latex agglutination assay, and to assess the effect of hemolysis and storage conditions on D‐dimer concentration using the quantitative assay. Methods: The immunoturbidimetric assay was validated using canine citrated plasma samples containing different concentrations of D‐dimer. The effect of storage at various temperatures and times was assessed. Hemolysis was produced by adding lysed RBCs to the samples for a final hemoglobin concentration of 0.35 g/dL. Results: For clinically relevant values (>250 μg/L), intra‐assay and interassay coefficients of variation were 6.8% and 7.2%. The assay was linear (r²=1.00), and the tests had good agreement (κ=0.685, P<.001). Storage at 4 °C and ?20 °C and hemolysis had no significant effect on D‐dimer concentrations. In hemolyzed samples stored at room temperature for ≥48 hours, fine clots were noted and often resulted in falsely increased D‐dimer concentrations. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the immunoturbidimetric assay validated in this study is reliable and accurate for the measurement of D‐dimer in canine plasma. Samples can be stored for up to 1 month at ?20 °C and moderate hemolysis does not significantly affect the D‐dimer concentration in frozen or refrigerated samples.     

我罗斯：计划2012年产猪肉350万吨

据俄罗斯生猪生产者协会主席Vladimir Schamin介绍,俄罗斯的猪肉生产量2008年同比增长75％。Scharnin表达了他对俄罗斯生猪生产前景非常美好的观点。他说,在未来的4～5年,俄罗斯农业中生猪生产预计将会异常增长。     

Model studies on the release of aroma compounds from structured and nonstructured oil systems using proton-transfer reaction mass spectrometry

Relative retention, volatility, and temporal release of volatile compounds taken from aldehyde, ester, and alcohol chemical classes were studied at 70 degrees C in model systems using equilibrium static headspace analysis and real time dynamic headspace analysis. These systems were medium-chain triglycerides (MCT), sunflower oil, and two structured systems, i.e., water-in-oil emulsion and L2 phase (water-in-oil microemulsion). Hydrophilic domains of the emulsion type media retained specifically the hydrophilic compounds and alcohols. Four kinetic parameters characterizing the concentration- and time-dependent releases were extracted from the aroma release curves. Most of the kinetic parameter values were higher in structured systems than in oils particularly when using MCT. The oil nature was found to better control the dynamic release profiles than the system structures. The release parameters were well-related (i) to the volatile hydrophobicity as a function of the oil used and (ii) to the retention data in the specific case of the L2 phase due to a specific release behavior of alcohols.     

Evaluation of floating cages as an experimental tool for marine shrimp culture studies under practical earthen pond conditions

The New Caledonia blue shrimp Litopenaeus stylirostris is commercially produced under semi-intensive rearing conditions. The size of the farming earthen ponds (5–10 ha) and the subsequent production constraints make it difficult to use them as experimental units for random experiments. Moreover, since every pond has its own characteristics, ponds' effects cannot be ruled out, thus making it hard to define true replicates.In order to design future experiments under conditions resembling those used in production, we evaluated the possible use of floating cages as experimental units with the aim of assessing treatment effects with a reasonable statistical power. To this end, two sets of floating cages were placed respectively in two different ponds in a commercial farm. In both cases the zootechnical conditions in the cages were similar in post-larvae origin, management, and diet and feeding regime.The aim of the study was to evaluate on a technical basis the possibility of rearing shrimps in floating cages set up in earthen ponds and to assess this method from a statistical standpoint. Shrimps reared in and outside the cages showed comparable growth and survival rates. The variability in the zootechnical parameters between cages, expressed as the estimated coefficient of variation (CV) for survival rate, total final biomass (g), final body weight (g), daily increment in body weight (g day^− 1) and FCR were 11.0, 13.7, 4.4, 5.4, and 7.0%, respectively. On the basis of these figures, we calculated for a given statistical power (80%) the number of replicates (cages) that would be required to reveal significant differences between two treatments, at a 5% level of significance. We found that for expected differences of 20% from the control mean, 3 and 6 floating cages per treatment would be reasonable to determine statistical differences for growth parameters and survival rate, respectively. Moreover, we showed a significant pond effect in regard to survival and growth between the two sets of cages. These results illustrated the within-farm variability among the ponds, and confirmed that the specific characteristics of each pond from the same farm make it difficult to use the ponds themselves as experimental units.The study demonstrates that rearing in floating cages is an economical, powerful and sensitive experimental tool for shrimp culture studies specifically carried out under conditions close to semi-intensive production.     

Larval rearing of African carp,Labeo parvus Boulenger, 1902 (Pisces: Cyprinidae), using live food and artificial diet under controlled conditions

This study aimed at (1) evaluating the efficacy of live food organisms (Artemia and natural zooplankton) and an artificial diet in the larval rearing of African carp Labeo parvus and (2) determining appropriate rearing conditions. After yolk sac resorption, the larvae were separated into five different feeding trials with two replicates. At the end of the larval rearing period (28 days post‐hatching), the highest (94.6%) and the lowest (53.7%) cumulative survival rates were found when larvae were fed with natural zooplankton for 7 days followed by Nippai food for 21 days, and when larvae were fed from the beginning of exogenous feeding with Nippai food only respectively. The significant highest body weight (351.6 mg), total length (34.4 mm) and specific growth rates (15.5%day^?1) were recorded when the larvae were fed with Artemia nauplii for 14 days followed by Nippai food for 14 days. The lowest growth performance (body weight and specific growth rates) were obtained when larvae were fed exclusively Nippai food. These results indicate that L. parvus can be successfully cultured in indoor nursery systems from hatching to the early juvenile stage.     

Enhancement of Stress Resistance of the Guppy Poecilia reticulata through Feeding with Vitamin C Supplement

This study investigated the use of vitamin C supplement in formulated diets and live Artemia juveniles to enhance the stress resistance of the guppy Poecilia reticulata . To evaluate the stress resistance, fish were subjected to osmotic shock in pre-aerated water containing 35 ppt sodium chloride. Ascorbyl acid-polyphosphate and ascorbyl palmitate were used as vitamin C sources for formulated diets and live Artemia juveniles, respectively. Results showed that guppies fed moist formulated diets supplemented with ascorbic acid at 1,000 mg/kg or 2,000 mg/kg diet displayed significantly higher levels of stress resistance than fish fed control formulated diet for 13 d. The stress resistance of fish fed a lower dose (200 mg/kg diet), however, did not differ significantly from that of the control. On the other hand, the stress resistance of guppies fed Artemia juveniles bio-encapsulated with 10% or 20% ascorbyl palmitate did not show significant difference from that of fish fed control Artemia after 20 d. The stress resistance of these three groups of Artemia- fed fish, however, was significantly higher than that of fish fed the control formulated diet. Biochemical analyses showed that raising the ascorbic acid level in feeds resulted in a concomitant increase in the incorporated ascorbic acid level in the whole-body tissue of the guppy. The increased stress resistance of the guppy fed a vitamin C supplemented diet has also been demonstrated in four commercial farms. The potential application of the improved stress resistance in the ornamental fish industry was discussed.     

Comparative Study on the Performance of Three Detection Methods for the Quantification of Pacific Ciguatoxins in French Polynesian Strains of Gambierdiscus polynesiensis

Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa dinoflagellates produce a suite of secondary metabolites, including ciguatoxins (CTXs), which bioaccumulate and are further biotransformed in fish and marine invertebrates, causing ciguatera poisoning when consumed by humans. This study is the first to compare the performance of the fluorescent receptor binding assay (fRBA), neuroblastoma cell-based assay (CBA-N2a), and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the quantitative estimation of CTX contents in 30 samples, obtained from four French Polynesian strains of Gambierdiscus polynesiensis. fRBA was applied to Gambierdiscus matrix for the first time, and several parameters of the fRBA protocol were refined. Following liquid/liquid partitioning to separate CTXs from other algal compounds, the variability of CTX contents was estimated using these three methods in three independent experiments. All three assays were significantly correlated with each other, with the highest correlation coefficient (r² = 0.841) found between fRBA and LC-MS/MS. The CBA-N2a was more sensitive than LC-MS/MS and fRBA, with all assays showing good repeatability. The combined use of fRBA and/or CBA-N2a for screening purposes and LC-MS/MS for confirmation purposes allows for efficient CTX evaluation in Gambierdiscus. These findings, which support future collaborative studies for the inter-laboratory validation of CTX detection methods, will help improve ciguatera risk assessment and management.