Uptake of metronidazole in Artemia at different developmental life stages

The purpose of this study was to examine the capacity of live brine shrimp Artemia spp. to accumulate metronidazole at different developmental life stages. Metronidazole is used in fish as an antiparasitic medication. An effective drug delivery method is to enrich the Artemia with metronidazole and offer them as live feed to the infected fish, usually ornamental species and other small fishes. Artemia cysts were hatched and then soaked in a metronidazole solution (0.05%) at instars 1-3 of larval development. Our findings indicated that Artemia were able to accumulate metronidazole at levels considered therapeutic to other animals and humans (25-100 mg/kg). However, the levels varied depending on the stage of larval development. Artemia accumulated the highest levels of metronidazole (137-143 mg/kg) when they started filter feeding (instar 2), whereas newly hatched Artemia (instar 1) contained the lowest level (85 mg/kg). Based on this study and a review of the literature, a new protocol recommended for enriching Artemia with metronidazole consists of soaking the Artemia in a 0.05% metronidazole solution for 3 h at room temperature. Because metronidazole is relatively insoluble in water, it must first be dissolved in warm water with continuous stirring.     

Single Layer Centrifugation of Stallion Spermatozoa through Androcoll™‐E does not Adversely Affect their Capacitation‐Like Status,as Measured by CTC Staining

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of single layer centrifugation (SLC) and subsequent cold storage on stallion sperm capacitation‐like status and acrosome reaction. Three stallions were included in the study, with three ejaculates per stallion. The samples were examined 4, 24 and 72 h after collection, extension and SLC, with storage at 6°C. Sperm capacitation‐like status was investigated using the fluorescent dye chlortetracycline (CTC). There was no difference in capacitation‐like status between colloid‐selected and non‐selected spermatozoa. Sperm motility decreased significantly during cold storage, whereas the proportion of apparently capacitated spermatozoa increased. There was no change in the proportion of acrosome‐reacted spermatozoa. In conclusion, SLC through Androcoll?‐E does not adversely affect the capacitation‐like status of stallion spermatozoa, although it did increase with time during cold storage.     

Immunohistochemical and histomorphometric evaluation of vascular distribution in intact canine cranial cruciate ligament

Objectives: To (1) describe vascular distribution in the grossly intact canine cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) using immunohistochemical techniques specific to 2 components of blood vessels (factor VIII for endothelial cells, laminin for basement membrane); and (2) compare the vascularity in different areas of interest (craniomedial versus caudolateral bands; core versus epiligamentous regions; and proximal versus middle versus distal portions) in the intact normal canine CCL. Study Design: In vitro study. Animals: Large, mature dogs (n=7) of breeds prone to CCL disease that were euthanatized for nonorthopedic conditions. Methods: Intact CCL were collected from fresh canine cadavers free from stifle pathology. CCL tissue was processed for immunohistochemistry and stained for factor VIII and laminin. Vascular density was determined by histomorphometric analysis. Results: Specific vascular staining was sparsely identified throughout the CCL; however, the proximal portion of the CCL appears to have a greater number of vessels than the middle or distal portion of the ligament. Conclusions: The CCL is a hypovascular tissue and its vascular distribution is not homogeneous.     

Use of partition and redistribution indexes for heavy metal soil distribution after contamination with a multi-element solution

Purpose  

Tessier's sequential extraction method is usually used to study metal parting among different phases in soils. The main objective of this study was to determine the redistribution of trace metals which were added simultaneously to a sandy loam soil by use of the fractional distribution and reduced partition indexes and the risk of assessment code (RAC).     

Development of an algorithm identifying maximally diverse core collections

The development of a core collection, one which represents the genetic diversity of a crop with minimal redundancy and increases utility of the collection as a whole, is especially important as the funding for germplasm collections decreases. With limited resources, it is difficult to manage large germplasm collections and disperse genetically diverse germplasm to plant breeders. An algorithm was developed to assist in selection of core collections based on estimates of genetic distance. The criteria for selection of the maximum genetically diverse set were based on rankings of genetic distance between an accession with respect to all other accessions. Depending on the size core which a user wished, a zone around each selected accession was determined and no other accession within these limits was selected. The premise for the algorithm was that the genetic variability represented in the core must be representative of the distribution of genetic distances within the population of interest. In the present study, the algorithm was used with RAPD-marker-based estimates of genetic distance for 270 Theobroma cacao L. accessions and 134 Capsicum accessions that chose a set representing 18.5% of the population and representing the breadth of RAPD-based variation.     

Hepatitis E virus in Cuba: A cross-sectional serological and virological study in pigs and people occupationally exposed to pigs

Surveillance of hepatitis E virus (HEV) in risk groups is an important strategy to monitor its circulation pattern and to timely detect changes thereof. The aims of this cross-sectional study were to estimate the prevalence of HEV infections in pigs and humans from different regions of the country, to identify risk factors for increasing anti-HEV IgG prevalence and to characterize HEV strains. The presence of anti-HEV antibodies was assessed by commercial ELISA in serum samples from the general population, farm and slaughterhouse employees, as well as pigs sampled in the three regions of Cuba from February to September 2016. Overall, individuals with occupational exposure to swine or swine products (70/248, 28.2%) were 4 times more likely to be seropositive compared to the general population (25/285, 8.7%; OR: 4.18; p < .001). Within the risk group, risk factors included age, number of years working in a professional activity with direct exposure to swine, geographic region and distance between residence and closest professional swine setting, while wearing gloves had a protective effect. Prevalence of total anti-HEV antibodies in swine was 88.2% (165/187) and HEV RNA was detected by real-time RT-PCR in 9.2% (16/173) swine stools. All HEV strains sequenced clustered within genotype 3. Some strains clearly belonged to subtype 3a, while another group of strains was related with subtypes 3b and 3 k but partial HEV sequences did not allow unequivocal subtype assignment. These findings suggest that the high HEV exposure in Cuban individuals with swine-related occupations could be due to enzootic HEV in certain regions, direct contact with infectious animals or their products as well as environmental contamination.