The effect of geographical variation of planting rate on the uptake of carbon by new forests of Great Britain

The planting rates from 1921 to 1996 of new coniferous and broadleavedforests for 11 regions of Great Britain were assembled for thestate and private sectors. Over that period new planting totalled231 kha of conifers and 132 kha of broadleaves in England, 141kha of conifers and 16 kha of broadleaves in Wales and 881 khaof conifers and 52 kha of broadleaves in Scotland. These time series and regional values of Yield Class were usedas input data for an accounting model of carbon in the trees,litter, soils and products to produce estimates of their netuptake of carbon by the forests from the atmosphere (i.e. increasein the carbon pools). On the assumption that conifer and broadleafplanting could be represented by Sitka spruce and beech treesrespectively, litter and forest soil in Great Britain were accumulatingcarbon at 2.42 Mt a^–1 in 1995–96. Coniferous forestaccounted for 89 per cent of this uptake. Scottish conifer andbroadleaf forests took up 68 per cent and mapping the uptakeshowed that the greatest rate occurred in western Scotland.The pool of carbon in wood products increased in 1995–96by 0.31 Mt a_–1. The estimated uptake rates were sensitive to the relative amountsof conifer and broadleaf forest planted (particularly in relationto increases in the pool of carbon in wood products) but notto regional differences in Yield Class. Use of any single YieldClass in the range 10–16 m³ ha^–1 a^–1 for allSitka spruce planting produced estimates of uptake rate in GreatBritain to trees, litter and soil within ±10 per centof that, assuming yield varied across the country. Lack of preciseknowledge on the parameters of the model was estimated to introducean uncertainty of ±30–70 per cent into estimatesof carbon uptake.     

Cardiac changes in experimental hyperthyroidism in dogs

Injection of triiodothyronine (T3) (1 mg/kg per day subcutaneously for 14 days) to 10 healthy dogs produced a hyperthyroid state characterised by high serum T3 concentrations, hypokalaemia, hyperactivity, loss of weight, diarrhoea and thirst. Electrocardiographic measurements showed that these dogs had an increase in heart rate of 63 +/- 11 beats/min with a significantly increased T wave amplitude without changes in R wave amplitude. Echocardiographic measurements showed no changes in fractional shortening and no evidence of ventricular hypertrophy, in contrast to reports in humans, cats and rats. However, the smooth muscle of the coronary arteries was markedly hypertrophied, which may cause a decrease in myocardial perfusion.     

Ceftiofur hydrochloride: plasma and tissue distribution in swine following intramuscular administration at various doses

Twelve mixed-breed swine (26.5-42.5 kg) received three daily intramuscular (i.m.) doses of ¹⁴C-ceftiofur hydrochloride. Three males and three females, received 6.76 ± 0.83 mg of ¹⁴C-ceftiofur free acid equivalents (CFAE)/kg body weight (b.w.)/day, while the other group received 4.41 ± 0.97 mg-CFAE/kg b.w./day. The swine were slaughtered 12 h following the last dose. Total dose accountability for the 6.76 mg dose was 91.44 ± 16.11% (72.51% in urine; 12.63% in faeces). For the 4.41 mg dose, accountability was 100.35 ± 20.45% (82.48% in urine; 12.85% in faeces). Within the tissues used for residue monitoring, the highest concentrations were observed in the kidneys (10.68 and 6.33 μg-CFAE/g for the 6.76 and 4.41 mg doses, respectively), followed by the injection sites, lungs, liver and muscle. In a separate study, twelve mixbreed swine (23.1-39.7 kg) received ¹⁴C-ceftiofur hydrochloride at 3.08 mg-CFAE/kg b.w. once daily for 3 days. Two males and two females were slaughtered at either 12, 72 or 120 h after the last dose. Total dose accountability for the 3.08 mg dose was > 83% (> 68% in urine; > 13% in faeces). In swine slaughtered 12 h after the last dose, residue concentrations closest to the safe concentrations were observed in the kidneys (3.62 μg-CFAE/ g), followed by the injection sites, lungs, liver and muscle.     

The effects of experimentally induced bronchopneumonia on the pharmacokinetics and tissue depletion of gentamicin in healthy and pneumonic calves

The effects of a bovine bronchopneumonia model on the pharmacokinetics and tissue residue depletion profiles of gentamicin in calves weighing 90-140 kg was explored. Two groups of heifer calves were used. The first was a normal group, while the second group had bronchopneumonia induced. A scoring system was developed to evaluate the extent of disease in the groups. A bimodal distribution of the serum pharmacokinetic parameters in the pneumonic group was caused by the effects of dehydration. When the severely dehydrated calves were omitted from the analysis, serum clearance of gentamicin was significantly higher in the pneumonic group than in the normal group (P less than 0.05). The pharmacokinetic equations used to fit the tissue concentrations varied from tissue to tissue and between groups. Because the best equation of a particular tissue's concentrations varied between groups, withdrawal periods, which are normally determined in healthy animals, may be inappropriate in diseased animals. Addition of several parameters (serum creatinine, serum urea nitrogen, albumin, fibrinogen, and total protein concentrations, white blood cell counts, central fluid volume, volume of distribution at steady state, area under the serum concentration vs time curve, serum clearance, and elimination rate constant) to these tissue-depletion models using multiple regression improved the prediction of a concentration in a given tissue.     

The radiological features of primary lung tumours in the dog: a review of thirty-six cases

Thirty dogs with primary lung tumours and six dogs with lymphomatoid granulomatosis were referred to the University of Bristol Veterinary School between 1970 and 1985. Clinical, radiographic and pathological findings were recorded in each case. Analysis of these findings allowed assessment of those features most helpful in reaching a definitive diagnosis and prognosis in such cases.     

Characterization of exotoxin produced by a shellfish-pathogenic Vibrio sp.

Abstract. Broth filtrate of a Vibrio species, isolated from spontaneously occurring epizootics among cultured oyster larvae, Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin), was shown to contain an exotoxin. Bioassays demonstrated that LC₅₀ value was less than 46.6 μg of toxin/l culture of oyster embryos. This quantity was produced by 2.9 × 10⁹ colony-forming units. Purified toxin showed neither proteolytic nor amylase activity; it did, however, demonstrate bacteriostatic capability. Studies showed that the toxin was heat-labile and that exposure to heat-produced toxoid had a beneficial effect on oyster embryonic development. Data revealed that although toxin was inactivated by heating, the bacteriostatic capability of the metabolite was not lost. Molecular weight of the toxin was estimated to be 68000.     

Pharmacokinetics of intravenous ceftiofur sodium and concentration in body fluids of foals

The objectives of this study were to determine pharmacokinetics of intravenous (i.v.) ceftiofur in foals, to compare ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectometry (UPLC-MS/MS) and microbiologic assay for the measurement of ceftiofur concentrations, and to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration ( MIC ) of ceftiofur against common equine bacterial pathogens. In a cross-over design, ceftiofur sodium was administered i.v. to six foals (1–2 days-of-age and 4–5 weeks-of-age) at dosages of 5 and 10 mg/kg. Subsequently, five doses of ceftiofur were administered i.v. to six additional foals between 1 and 5 days of age at a dose of 5 mg/kg q 12 h. Concentrations of desfuroylceftiofur acetamide (DCA), the acetamide derivative of ceftiofur and desfuroylceftiofur-related metabolites were measured in plasma, synovial fluid, urine, and CSF by use of UPLC-MS/MS. A microbiologic assay was used to measure ceftiofur activity for a subset of plasma samples. Following i.v. administration of ceftiofur at a dose of 5 mg/kg to 1–2 day-old foals, DCA had a t _½ of 7.8 ± 0.1 h, a body clearance of 74.4 ± 8.4 mL/h/kg, and an apparent volume of distribution of 0.83 ± 0.09 L/kg. After multiple i.v. doses at 5 mg/kg, DCA concentrations in CSF were significantly lower than concurrent plasma concentrations. Ceftiofur activity using a microbiologic assay significantly underestimated plasma concentrations of DCA. The MIC of ceftiofur required to inhibit growth of 90% of isolates of Escherichia coli , Pasteurella spp, Klebsiella spp, and β-hemolytic streptococci was <0.5 μg/mL. Intravenous administration of ceftiofur sodium at the rate of 5 mg/kg every 12 h would provide sufficient coverage for the treatment of susceptible bacterial isolates.