Efficacy of a paste formulation of omeprazole for the treatment of naturally occurring gastric ulcers in training standardbred racehorses in Canada

The efficacy of a paste formulation of the H+, K+, -ATPase inhibitor omeprazole was evaluated in standardbred racehorses for the treatment and prevention of gastric ulcers. Twenty standardbred racehorses in training, aged 2 to 9 years, were enrolled from 2 training centres in this field trial. Endoscopic examinations confirmed the presence of gastric ulcers in all horses, prior to allocation and treatment and on day 0. Lesions were scored on a scale of 0 to 3 (intact epithelium to extensive ulceration). Replicates were formed, based on training level and location. Within replicates, 1 horse was assigned to group 1 and 3 horses were assigned to group 2, randomly. Horses in group 1 were sham-dosed controls. Horses in group 2 were given omeprazole paste orally at 4 mg/kg bodyweight (BW)/day from day 0 to day 27 and 2 mg/kg BW/day of omeprazole paste orally from day 28 to day 57. Follow-up endoscopies were conducted on post treatment days 28 and 58 or 59. Physical examinations, including BWs, were conducted on all horses prior to treatment and on days 13 or 14, 28, 42 or 43, and 58 or 59. Horses treated with omeprazole had significantly (P < 0.01) more improvement in gastric lesion scores than did controls at day 28 and at study termination on days 58 or 59. All of the omeprazole-treated horses were improved relative to baseline ulcer score at both examinations, and 73.3% were healed (lesion score of 0) at both examinations. None of the controls improved at any point during the study. When the dose was reduced to 2 mg/kg BW, 80% of the horses showed no recurrences or worsening in gastric ulcers. It was concluded that omeprazole paste at 4 mg/kg BW orally, once daily is highly effective in healing gastric ulcers in standardbred racehorses in training and that a dose of 2 mg/kg BW orally, once daily, effectively prevents the recurrence of gastric ulcers in most horses.     

Oral fractures in dogs of Brazil--a retrospective study

A retrospective study was performed in 100 dogs with 121 mandibular and 21 maxillary fractures. Dog fight (43.0%) and automobile (12.0%) trauma were the most common etiologies for fracture. The cause of fracture was unknown in 23.0% of the cases, while pathologic fractures occurred in 13.0% of cases. Young dogs (< 1-year-old) and dogs > 8-years of age were most affected. Mandibular fractures occurred in 90 dogs (90.0%), with two dogs (2.2%) having concurrent maxillary fractures. Maxillary fractures only were diagnosed in 10 dogs (10.0%). The molar region (47.1%) was the most commonly affected location for mandibular fracture, followed by fractures of the symphysis and parasymphysis (30.6%), premolar region (17.4%), angular process (4.1%) and vertical ramus (0.8%). In fractures of the mandibular region, the mandibular first molar tooth was often (85.9%) involved while the canine teeth were involved in 67.5% of symphyseal and parasymphyseal fractures. The most common fracture of the maxilla was the maxillary bone (52.4%), followed by the incisive (33.3%), palatine (9.5%), and nasal (4.8%) bones.     

Effect of mebendazole on hydatid cysts in pigs

Mebendazole given per os was found to be effective against larval Echinococcus granulosus infection in pigs. Twenty-four pigs were experimentally inoculated with adult E. granulosus tapeworms. Mebendazole (40 mg/kg) or placebo was injected into six pigs 2 months after infection. Seven other pigs were given mebendazole (25 mg/kg) in their feed for 10 days twice (2 and 5 months after infection). Post-mortem examination performed 8 months after infection revealed that two of the pigs treated with mebendazole per os had a single hydatid cyst each; the other five pigs were free of infection. All eleven control untreated pigs were infected with between two and 21 cysts of E. granulosus.Mebendazole given intraperitoneally was not effective as mebendazole given per os in preventing the development of hydatid cysts in pigs.     

Effect of intraperitoneal inoculation of mebendazole on Taenia saginata cysticercosis in calves

Mebendazole was injected intraperitoneally at a dose of 40 mg/kg into six calves that had been inoculated 6 weeks earlier with eggs of T. saginata. The lethal effect of the drug on cysticerci was not significant in the mebendazole treated animals in comparison with those treated with a placebo. This was evaluated by counting the total number of cysticerci in each calf and the relative numbers of viable and degenerated cysts, an in vitro test for viability of cysticerci, and histological examination of the infected muscle tissue.     

Iron(III) photo-induced degradation of isoproturon: correlation between degradation and toxicity

The degradation of isoproturon photoinduced by Fe(III) was investigated under both artificial and solar light. The monomeric species Fe(OH)2+ present under the experimental conditions ([Fe(III)] = 3 x 10(-4) M) is the main Fe(III) species responsible for the degradation of isoproturon. The process involves the attack on the pollutant by OH radicals generated by irradiation of Fe(OH)2+. The major primary photoproducts were identified; they accumulate in the solution medium before being degraded. The toxicity of the solution to marine bacterium Vibrio fisheri (Beijerinck) Lehmann & Neumann was monitored during the degradation process. It increased in the early stages of the reaction and, among the photoproducts, the N-formyl derivative appeared to be the major product responsible for the increase in toxicity.     

Automated tree detection and crown delineation using airborne laser scanner data in heterogeneous East-Central Europe forest with different species mix

Identifying tree locations is a basic step in the derivation of other tree parameters using remote sensing techniques, particularly when using airborne laser scanning. There are several techniques for identifying tree positions. In this paper, we present a raster-based method for determining tree position and delineating crown coverage. We collected data from nine research plots that supported different mixes of species. We applied a raster-based method to raster layers with six different spatial resolutions and used terrestrial measurement data as reference data. Tree identification at a spatial resolution of 1.5 m was demonstrated to be the most accurate, with an average identification ratio (IR) of 95% and average detection ratio of 68% being observed. At a higher spatial resolution of 0.5 m, IR was overestimated by more than 600%. At a lower spatial resolution of 3 m, IR was underestimated at less than 44% of terrestrial measurements. The inventory process was timed to enable evaluation of the time efficiency of automatic methods.     

Effects of a pilot training program on veterinary students' pain knowledge, attitude, and assessment skills

The prevention and management of pain is fundamental to the practice of both human and veterinary medicine. The recognition and treatment of pain represents an important indicator of the quality of care delivered in human hospitals and veterinary hospitals. Yet, both human and veterinary health care professionals have cited inadequate knowledge as a significant barrier to effective pain management. The aims of this pilot study were twofold: (1) to gauge veterinary medical students' current attitudes regarding their training in pain management and (2) to assess the impact of training and practice on the use of a canine acute pain assessment teaching tool. Participants, third-year professional veterinary medical students, completed a 16-item survey questionnaire before a 30-minute training session on pain assessment using the teaching tool and completed it again after training and a one-week practice period. Questions related to canine pain, assessment of canine pain, pain management education in the professional veterinary curriculum, and an example case presentation (video) were included in the survey. The analysis of survey results indicated that professional veterinary medicine students find value in didactic and clinical training in canine pain assessment. Additionally, use of the canine acute pain teaching tool in conjunction with a training program improved students' knowledge and skill in assessment while pointing out the importance of further training. Differences with regard to gender and tracking were found and warrant further exploration.     

Impact of Digestate Application on Chemical and Microbiological Properties of Two Different Textured Soils

Agricultural application of anaerobic digestates can play an important role in plant nutrition. The effects of digestate treatment were studied in pot experiments, using sandy and loamy textured soils with distinct characteristics. Three different treatments were studied and compared: control, digestate, and irrigation treatments. Nitrogen loading was calculated on the bases of the digestate analysis. The same amounts of digestate and irrigation water were applied in the different treatments before sowing and at the V4–V6 stages of maize. Besides the conventional soil chemical analysis, invertase, dehydrogenase, catalase, and the abundance of some cultivable microbes were measured in two consecutive years. According to our results, irrigation and digestate treatments had greater impact in the case of sandy soils than in loamy textured soils. Digestate provides more effective phosphorus and potassium sources than nitrogen. Based on the results of discriminant analysis, the digestate application had a greater influence on soil chemical properties, followed by microbiological parameters.     

Genetic diversity of Forest and Savannah chicken populations of Ghana as estimated by microsatellite markers

The characterization of indigenous animal genetic resources is a requisite step in providing needed information for the conservation of useful genotypes against future needs. Thus, in this study, 22 microsatellite markers were used to genotype 114 local chickens from the Forest (n = 59) and Savannah (n = 55) eco‐zones of Ghana and the results compared to those of the ancestral red junglefowl (n = 15) and two European commercial chicken populations – a broiler (n = 25) and white leghorn (n = 25). A total of 171 alleles were observed, with an average of 7.8 alleles per locus. The local Ghanaian chickens showed higher diversity in terms of the observed number of alleles per locus (6.6) and observed heterozygosity (0.568) compared with the combined control populations (6.0 and 0.458, respectively). However, Wright's F‐statistics revealed negligible genetic differentiation (F_ST) in local Ghanaian chicken populations. In addition, 65% of the Savannah chickens were inferred to be more likely from the Forest, suggesting a south‐north dispersal of chickens from their probable original location in the Forest zone to the Savannah areas. It is concluded that the Forest and Savannah chickens of Ghana are a single, randomly mating unselected population, characterized by high genetic diversity and constitute a valuable resource for conservation and improvement.     

The Influence of Depth on Soil Chemical Properties and Microbial Respiration in the Upper Soil Horizons

Eurasian Soil Science - Soil microbial respiration is a biological process that converts soil organic matter into atmospheric CO2 via soil microorganisms. It reflects the overall metabolic activity...