Clinical,pathologic, and toxicologic characterization of Salvia reflexa (lance-leaf sage) poisoning in cattle fed contaminated hay

Salvia reflexa (lance-leaf sage)-contaminated alfalfa hay was fed to ~500 mixed-breed beef cattle. Within hours of exposure, nearly half of the cattle developed lethargy, anorexia, depression, and recumbency, followed by bellowing, colic, and death. Even though the uneaten contaminated hay was removed the first day, nearly 100 animals died within the first 48 h. Three of these cattle were examined postmortem, and tissues and hay samples were collected for microscopic and chemical analysis. Several days later, a smaller number of the clinically poisoned cattle developed neurologic disease with aberrant behavior, aggression, icterus, blindness, exhaustion, and death. A total of 165 cattle were fatally poisoned. Poisoned cattle had swollen, dark, mottled livers that had a prominent nutmeg-like lobular pattern on cut section. Histologically, there was severe centrilobular-to-panlobular hepatic necrosis with marked hepatocellular swelling, degeneration, and necrosis. The surviving cattle developed liver disease characterized by altered serum biochemical analyses and microscopic hepatocellular degeneration and necrosis. In subsequent biopsies and analysis, these lesions resolved within 6–7 mo. After confirming toxicity of the hay in cattle, goats, and mice, followed by a mouse bioassay–guided chemical fractionation process, Salvia reflexa was identified as the contaminant in the hay responsible for the hepatotoxicity. S. reflexa has not been reported previously to cause fatal hepatotoxicity in livestock in North America, to our knowledge.     

Randomly primed,strand-switching,MinION-based sequencing for the detection and characterization of cultured RNA viruses

RNA viruses rapidly mutate, which can result in increased virulence, increased escape from vaccine protection, and false-negative detection results. Targeted detection methods have a limited ability to detect unknown viruses and often provide insufficient data to detect coinfections or identify antigenic variants. Random, deep sequencing is a method that can more fully detect and characterize RNA viruses and is often coupled with molecular techniques or culture methods for viral enrichment. We tested viral culture coupled with third-generation sequencing for the ability to detect and characterize RNA viruses. Cultures of bovine viral diarrhea virus, canine distemper virus (CDV), epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus, infectious bronchitis virus, 2 influenza A viruses, and porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus were sequenced on the MinION platform using a random, reverse primer in a strand-switching reaction, coupled with PCR-based barcoding. Reads were taxonomically classified and used for reference-based sequence building using a stock personal computer. This method accurately detected and identified complete coding sequence genomes with a minimum of 20× coverage depth for all 7 viruses, including a sample containing 2 viruses. Each lineage-typing region had at least 26× coverage depth for all viruses. Furthermore, analyzing the CDV sample through a pipeline devoid of CDV reference sequences modeled the ability of this protocol to detect unknown viruses. Our results show the ability of this technique to detect and characterize dsRNA, negative- and positive-sense ssRNA, and nonsegmented and segmented RNA viruses.     

Effects of perioperative saphenous and sciatic nerve blocks,lumbosacral epidural or morphine–lidocaine–ketamine infusion on postoperative pain and sedation in dogs undergoing tibial plateau leveling osteotomy

ObjectiveTo compare the quality of postoperative analgesia and sedation after preoperative saphenous and sciatic nerve blockade, preoperative lumbosacral epidural injection and perioperative intravenous (IV) morphine, lidocaine and ketamine infusions in dogs undergoing stifle arthroscopy and tibial plateau leveling osteotomy (TPLO) under general anesthesia.Study designProspective, blinded, randomized, clinical comparison study.AnimalsA total of 45 dogs weighing 33.9 (15.9–56.7) kg and aged 5.2 (1.0–12.0) years, mean (range), undergoing elective unilateral TPLO for spontaneous cranial cruciate ligament rupture.MethodsClient-owned dogs were enrolled. Dogs were randomly assigned to one of three groups: group MLK, perioperative IV morphine, lidocaine and ketamine infusion; group EPID, lumbosacral epidural with ropivacaine and morphine; or group SSNB, saphenous and sciatic nerve blockade with ropivacaine. Routine stifle arthroscopy followed by TPLO surgery was performed. Sedation and pain scores were assessed at 0, 2, 4, 8 and 24 hours following extubation. Rescue analgesia was administered as prescribed by Glasgow composite pain score–short form score >5.ResultsSedation scores for MLK were higher than EPID and SSNB. Pain scores for SSNB were lower than those for EPID and MLK. No significant differences were found in anesthesia duration or surgery duration among groups. No dogs required rescue analgesia.Conclusions and clinical relevanceAlthough analgesia was adequate in all groups, the best combination of analgesia without increased sedation was recorded for SSNB.     

Questionnaire on the process of recovering horses from general anesthesia and associated personnel injury in equine practice

ObjectiveTo collect data about the current practice of recovering horses from general anesthesia and recovery personnel safety.Study designOnline survey.MethodsAn online questionnaire, including questions on general demographic data, recovery drugs, modality and characteristics of equine recovery and morbidity and mortality, was designed and distributed via e-mail to equine practitioners worldwide.ResultsPractitioners from 22 countries completed 373 questionnaires; 53% of the participants were board-certified equine surgeons, and the remainder were board-certified anesthesiologists (18%), large animal residents (8%), general practitioners (7%), large animal interns (6%), anesthesia residents (4.5%) and veterinary technicians (1.6%). Respondents were employed by academia (58%) or private practice (42%). Of the respondents employed at a university, 93% had a board-certified anesthesiologist on staff compared with 7% of respondents employed at a private practice. Most of the respondents assist horses during recovery, with 23% assisting every recovery and 44% assisting recovery in the majority of cases. Reasons for choosing to assist horses during recovery were: orthopedic procedures (57%), neurological deficits (49%), bad health (47%), history of poor recovery (44%), foals (42%), draft breeds (30%), magnetic resonance imaging (17%) and computed tomography (16%). Unacceptable recoveries were reported by 77% of participants. Commonly reported complications during recovery with any method were: orthopedic injury (66%), myopathy (54%), skin abrasion (53%) and airway obstruction (37%). The incidences of unacceptable quality of recovery (p = 0.09) or personnel injury (p = 0.56) were not different between assisted and nonassisted recoveries; however, more equine fatalities were reported for assisted recoveries (p < 0.006). Practitioners in academia reported more unacceptable recoveries (p < 0.0007) and personnel injuries (p < 0.002) compared with those in private practice.ConclusionsThe method of recovery differs among hospitals. Recovery personnel injuries associated with assisting horses during recovery are an important and previously unreported finding.     

Functional and Nutritional Characteristics of Soft Wheat Grown in No‐Till and Conventional Cropping Systems

The effects of no‐till versus conventional farming practices were evaluated on soft wheat functional and nutritional characteristics, including kernel physical properties, whole wheat composition, antioxidant activity, and end‐product quality. Soft white winter wheat cultivar ORCF 102 was evaluated over a two‐year period from three long‐term replicated no‐till versus conventional tillage studies in Oregon. Wheat from the no‐till cropping systems generally had greater test weight, kernel diameter, and kernel weight and had softer kernels compared with wheat from the conventional tillage systems. Compared with the conventional systems, no‐till whole wheat flour had lower protein and SDS sedimentation volume. Ash content as well as most minerals measured (calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, and zinc), except for manganese and phosphorus, were generally slightly lower in no‐till than in conventional wheat. Whole wheat flour from the no‐till cropping systems generally had slightly lower total phenolic content and total antioxidant capacity. Milling properties, including flour yield, break flour yield, and mill score, were not affected by tillage systems. Refined flour from no‐till systems had lower protein, SDS sedimentation volume, and lactic acid and sucrose solvent retention capacities compared with flour from conventional tillage. No‐till wheat generally had greater sugar‐snap cookie diameter than conventionally tilled wheat. In conclusion, no‐till soft white winter wheat generally had slightly reduced nutritional properties (protein, ash, most minerals, and total antioxidant content) compared with wheat from conventionally tilled systems, and it had equivalent or sometimes superior functional properties for baking cookie‐type products.     

INVITED REVIEW—IMAGE REGISTRATION IN VETERINARY RADIATION ONCOLOGY: INDICATIONS,IMPLICATIONS, AND FUTURE ADVANCES

The field of veterinary radiation therapy (RT) has gained substantial momentum in recent decades with significant advances in conformal treatment planning, image‐guided radiation therapy (IGRT), and intensity‐modulated (IMRT) techniques. At the root of these advancements lie improvements in tumor imaging, image alignment (registration), target volume delineation, and identification of critical structures. Image registration has been widely used to combine information from multimodality images such as computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and positron emission tomography (PET) to improve the accuracy of radiation delivery and reliably identify tumor‐bearing areas. Many different techniques have been applied in image registration. This review provides an overview of medical image registration in RT and its applications in veterinary oncology. A summary of the most commonly used approaches in human and veterinary medicine is presented along with their current use in IGRT and adaptive radiation therapy (ART). It is important to realize that registration does not guarantee that target volumes, such as the gross tumor volume (GTV), are correctly identified on the image being registered, as limitations unique to registration algorithms exist. Research involving novel registration frameworks for automatic segmentation of tumor volumes is ongoing and comparative oncology programs offer a unique opportunity to test the efficacy of proposed algorithms.     

A new galago species for South Africa (Primates: Strepsirhini: Galagidae)

The primate fauna of South Africa has historically been viewed as comprising three diurnal cercopithecoid taxa – chacma baboons (Papio ursinus), vervet (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) and samango monkeys (Cercopithecus albogularis) – and two nocturnal lorisoid species – the thick-tailed greater galago (Otolemur crassicaudatus) and the southern lesser galago (Galago moholi). Here we report the positive identification of a third galago species within South Africa’s borders: the Mozambique dwarf galago or Grant’s galago, Galagoides granti (Thomas and Wroughton, 1907). The taxon was previously held to be restricted to Mozambique, eastern Zimbabwe, Malawi and Tanzania, but we have also observed it in the sand forest of Tembe Elephant Park and the Tshanini Community Reserve, near the Mozambique border. The species was formerly mistaken for Galago moholi, erroneously (we believe) extending the range of the latter species into northern KwaZulu-Natal. In South Africa the two small galagos are unlikely to have overlapping ranges: Galago moholi prefers dry savanna woodlands, whereas Galagoides granti is apparently confined to dry sand forest. However, both species may coexist with the larger and more widespread Otolemur crassicaudatus, an inhabitant of moist savanna, forest edge and thicket. The true South African ranges of both small galago species need to be ascertained.