Topical vapocoolant spray reduces nociceptive response to ear notching in neonatal piglets

Objective

To evaluate the efficacy of a vapocoolant spray (VS) to provide local anaesthesia for piglets during ear notching.

Effect of Climoedaphic Heterogeneity on Woody Plant Dominance in the Argentine Caldenal Region

Woody plant encroachment is widespread throughout drylands of the world, but rates and patterns of encroachment at the regional scale can be mediated by soil and climate. Climoedaphic properties may therefore help to explain patterns of woody plant dominance. In the Caldenal region of central Argentina, which is experiencing widespread woody plant encroachment, we used stratified and targeted inventory of vegetation and soils alongside climate data to classify vegetation states and then identify factors indicating resistance to woody plant encroachment. We found that three climoedaphic contexts differed in the degree of woody plant dominance. Sandsheet landforms had the lowest likelihood of a shrub thicket state. Within loamy soils, sites with deep soil carbonates in warmer and wetter climates were less likely to feature a shrub thicket state than sites with shallow carbonates in cooler and drier climates. These contexts serve as a basis for recognizing different ecological sites to assist mapping and prioritization of management interventions in the Caldenal region. Simple inventory-based approaches can be helpful for designing land management recommendations in other ecosystems.     

Thermal inactivation of ricin using infant formula as a food matrix

Ricin is a potent protein toxin found in the seeds of the castor bean plant, Ricinus communis. Ricin specifically and irreversibly inactivates ribosomes, promoting cell death by inhibiting protein synthesis. It is composed of a ribosome-inactivating enzyme (A-chain) linked to a lectin (B-chain) by a single disulfide bond. Several reports indicate that ricin can be detoxified by thermal treatment; however, the conditions required for inactivation are not well characterized. In addition, little information exists on the thermal stability of ricin added to foods. The objective of this work was to determine the effects of heat treatments on the detection and toxicity of ricin added to milk- and soy-based infant formulas. Reconstituted infant formula powders containing 100 mug of ricin/mL were heated at 60-90 degrees C for up to 5 h. The heat-treated formulas were analyzed by ELISA to determine levels of ricin. The residual cytotoxicity of ricin-containing infant formula after heat treatments was determined using RAW264.7 mouse macrophage cells. The ELISA and the cytotoxicity assay indicated that ricin detection and toxicity decreased with increasing heating times and temperatures. Minimal losses in detection and toxicity were found for ricin heated at 60 degrees C for 2 h. The half-lives of ricin cytoxic activity in a milk-based infant formula at 60, 70, 75, 80, 85, and 90 degrees C were >100, 9.8 +/- 0.5, 5.8 +/- 0.9, 5.1 +/- 0.7, 3.1 +/- 0.4, and 1.8 +/- 0.2 min, respectively; the comparable values for a soy-based infant formula were >100, 16 +/- 1.6, 8.7 +/- 1.2, 6.9 +/- 1.1, 3.0 +/- 0.4, and 2.0 +/- 0.3 min. ELISA detection was a good indicator of the cytotoxicity of heat-treated ricin. The results indicate that ricin is a relatively heat stable protein and may remain toxic under some food processing conditions.     

Acute pancreatitis following granulosa cell tumor removal in a mare

Acute pancreatitis is a rare disease in horses and is often associated with gastrointestinal disorders. Accurate diagnosis is challenging due to the presence of nonspecific clinical signs. This case represents the first documentation of acute pancreatitis in a horse following surgery of the reproductive tract.     

Implications of hypoxia tolerance for wetland refugia use in Lake Nabugabo,Uganda

Aquatic hypoxia can affect predator‐prey interactions by altering the success rate of the predator and/or the vulnerability of prey. For example, in the Lake Victoria basin of East Africa, native prey exploit hypoxic wetlands as refugia from predation by introduced Nile perch (Lates niloticus). Here, it is predicted that species exploitation of wetlands depends on their hypoxia tolerance relative to the heterogeneity of wetland hypoxia. In this study, we compared the hypoxia tolerance of four fish taxa that differ in their use of hypoxic wetlands in Lake Nabugabo, Uganda: the cichlid Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor victoriae that inhabits the dense swamp interior; and three taxa that inhabit wetland ecotones including Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), L. niloticus and juvenile endemic haplochromine cichlids. We characterised hypoxia tolerance by exposing fish to progressive hypoxia and quantifying variation in aquatic surface respiration (ASR). The effect of body size on tolerance was explored in L. niloticus by quantifying ASR behaviour across a range of size classes. ASR behaviour was also compared between O. niloticus groups from wetland versus open‐water habitats to detect habitat‐associated intraspecific variation. The most tolerant taxon was the swamp specialist P. multicolor, indicated by its low ASR thresholds and small percentage of fish using ASR during the final sample interval. The other three taxa did not differ in ASR behaviour, and no differences were detected between O. niloticus groups. Body size effects were present for L. niloticus suggesting a lower tolerance to hypoxia in larger‐bodied individuals, thus limiting their ability to penetrate wetlands.     

Sensory Evaluation of Barley Chocolate Chip Cookies by Consumers with Different Demographic Background and Eating Patterns

Health organizations have recommended an increase in consumption of whole grains, total dietary fiber, and soluble fiber to help reduce the potential risk factor for the development of type‐2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease, among others. The purpose of this project was to determine the sensory characteristics of chocolate chip (CC) cookies containing a high‐soluble fiber whole barley flour (HSFWB). Cookies with 0, 30, 50, and 70% HSFWB were evaluated for appearance, color, flavor, texture, and overall acceptability using a 9‐point hedonic scale. Forty‐nine students, faculty, and staff tested the cookies on three different days. Demographic and behavioral data on age, gender, ethnicity, frequency of eating CC cookies, daily effort to consume fiber (FD), consumption of reduced‐fat (RF) cookies, and texture preference (TP) of CC cookies were collected. The 50% HSFWB cookie could be potentially marketed among older consumers (22+), males, Hispanics, individuals who consume CC cookies at least once a week, those making a FD in their diet, persons who consume RF cookies, as well as those who have no TP for CC cookies. A response surface relating flavor and texture to overall acceptability produced almost equivalent results to the multivariate PLS results in terms of predicting overall acceptability, which facilitates analysis and interpretation.     

Effect of gentamicin on CD3+ T-lymphocyte proliferation for treatment of equine recurrent uveitis: An in vitro study

Objective

The objective of the study was to determine the effect of gentamicin on CD3+ T-lymphocyte proliferation and cell viability using an in vitro cell culture model as a means of investigating the mechanism of action of low-dose intravitreal gentamicin injection.

Animals Studied

Three adult horses with no evidence of ophthalmic or systemic disease.

Procedure

Peripheral blood lymphocytes were treated with gentamicin at concentrations 37.5 μg/mL, 112.5 μg/mL, 187 μg/mL, 375 μg/mL, or 750 μg/mL then stimulated to proliferate with concanavalin A (ConA). 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) and carboxyfluoroscein succinimidyl ester (CSFE) were used as markers of cell viability and cell proliferation, respectively. Following 5-day culture, live cell counts and CSFE fluorescent intensity data were collected via automated cell count and flow cytometry. The experimental design was duplicated using preservative-free gentamicin and a proprietary brand formulation. Statistical analysis was performed using two-way ANOVA with Tukey's multiple comparison test.

Results

No statistically significant comparisons in CD3+ T-lymphocyte live cell counts and geometric mean fluorescent intensity of CSFE were identified between gentamicin concentrations or formulations.

Conclusions

Gentamicin had no effect on equine peripheral blood CD3+ T-lymphocyte cell viability and proliferation in concentrations ranging from “safe” to “retinotoxic” in relation to intravitreal injection volumes. Low-dose intravitreal gentamicin may not suppress the Th1- and Th17-mediated immune response.     

Alterations to the synovial invaginations of the navicular bone are associated with pathology of both the navicular apparatus and distal interphalangeal joint when evaluated using high field MRI

Limited information exists regarding associations between distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ) abnormalities and synovial invagination changes in the distal sesamoid (navicular) bone. This retrospective, analytical study aimed to measure specific characteristics of the synovial invaginations of the navicular bone to determine whether any single characteristic was associated with abnormalities in the DIPJ or navicular apparatus (NA) using high field MRI and a sample of 200 horses’ feet. The DIPJ and NA were graded independently by three scorers. The grades were averaged, creating a global pathology score for the DIPJ, NA, and synovial invaginations. Higher global scores represented more severe pathology. The number of invaginations, depth of penetration, invagination shape, and cross-sectional area (CSA) of the largest invagination were recorded. Interobserver agreement was measured using Cohen's Kappa. Associations of global scores of the DIPJ and NA with individual invagination characteristics were assessed using linear mixed modeling. A significant relationship was found between the number of invaginations and global DIPJ score, with higher invagination numbers associated with higher DIPJ scores. For invagination depth and CSA, a significant relationship was noted with global scores of both the DIPJ and NA. Reliable relationships between the shape of synovial invaginations and global scores of DIPJ and NA were not found, likely due to poor interobserver scoring (0.305). These findings suggest that primary DIPJ disease and NA pathology should be considered when noticing alterations to navicular synovial invaginations on MRI. This contrasts traditional views that synovial invagination abnormalities are indicative solely of NA pathology.