硫酸亚铁诱导根表铁膜形成对水稻吸收和转运铜锌的影响

通过水培条件下添加硫酸亚铁诱导水稻根表铁膜的形成,利用连二亚硫酸钠-柠檬酸钠-碳酸氢钠(DCB)溶液对根表铁膜进行提取后测定,采用扫描电镜-能谱仪(SEM-EDS)和X射线衍射仪(XRD)等手段对硫酸亚铁诱导产生的根表铁膜进行表征,并分析根表铁膜对水稻吸收铜锌的影响。结果表明,添加硫酸亚铁可以诱导根表铁膜在水稻根系表面产生,未处理的水稻根表Fe含量为731 mg·kg~(-1),80 mg·kg~(-1) Fe~(2+)处理下水稻根表Fe含量为53 562 mg·kg~(-1);SEM-EDS和XRD分析发现大量颗粒状含铁化合物附着于水稻根表。与未经硫酸亚铁处理相比,有根表铁膜水稻的铁膜中,其Cu含量最高增加73.16%,Zn含量最高增加112.10%;水稻根系Cu含量最高降低31.15%,Zn含量最高降低13.02%;水稻茎叶Cu含量最高降低19.50%,Zn含量最高降低25.56%。土壤添加硫酸亚铁可以显著降低水稻对Cu和Zn的吸收与积累。     

水稻根表铁膜对磷的富集作用及其与水稻磷吸收的关系

采用溶液培养方法,使铁毒耐性不同的两个基因型水稻根表分别形成有铁膜和无铁膜的根系,研究水稻根表铁膜对磷的富集作用及其与水稻磷吸收的关系。不同基因型水稻根表形成的铁膜厚度存在显著差异,对介质中磷的富集能力也有显著差异。根表形成的铁膜越厚,对介质中磷的富集作用也越大,即根表铁膜数量与铁膜对磷的富集量呈显著正相关。铁膜对磷的富集作用是一个化学过程,吸附可在0.5~1.0 h内达到饱和。根表铁膜明显促进水稻对磷的吸收,表明在淹水降低土壤磷有效性时,水稻根表铁膜富集的磷可作为磷库,保证水稻能正常吸收利用磷。     

栽培稻和普通野生稻居群根表铁膜形成能力的比较研究

根表铁膜形成能力反映了水稻根系氧化力的强弱。为了了解普通野生稻根系氧化力,采用水培铁胁迫试验对5个水稻品种和2个普通野生稻居群根表铁膜形成能力进行评价。结果表明:同亚洲栽培稻相比,普通野生稻拥有较高的根孔隙度,但其根表铁膜含量较低;供试植株的根孔隙度与根表铁膜含量之间没有相关性,这很可能与侧根的数量有关。     

A retrospective study of 30 cases of frozen lamellar corneal graft in dogs and cats

Frozen lamellar corneal grafts and nictitating membrane flaps were used in 18 dogs and 12 cats to repair deep corneal defects. In all dogs either melting corneal ulcers or descemetoceles were present. In the 12 cats, nine had either a melting corneal ulcer or descemetocele, two animals had acute bullous keratopathy, and one cat had corneal sequestrum. Initial vascularization with gradual clearing of the graft occurred during the first 45 days postoperatively. At 60 days postoperatively, all eyes were visual. Frequent postoperative complications included: focal dehiscence of the wound ( n  = 9); melting of part of the graft ( n  = 7); and pigmentation of the graft ( n  = 4). The frozen lamellar corneal graft was a very safe technique, and restored the tectonic and the optical function of the cornea. It provided the best results in corneas with nonperforating corneal defects. This technique provides poorer results when the cornea was perforated prior to surgery or during the surgical procedure.     

Intraocular melanoma in an alpaca

A case of primary intraocular melanoma in an alpaca is reported. This patient also presented with a mild normocytic, normochromic anemia and hypoproteinemia. These can be markers of an immunodeficiency syndrome associated with llamas. Although this patient did not appear to have clinical signs of this syndrome, its presence needed to be ruled out as animals affected with this syndrome are subject to recurrent severe debilitating diseases and death. To our knowledge, intraocular melanoma has not been previously reported in an alpaca.     

Effects of growth factors (EGF,PDGF-BB and TGF-beta 1) on cultured equine epithelial cells and keratocytes: implications for wound healing

Objective The physiologic mechanisms involving growth factors, including PDGF‐BB, EGF, and TGF‐β1, as potent mediators of fibroblasts and epithelial cells in corneal wound healing remain unknown. The goal of this study was to determine culture methods for equine epithelial cells and keratocytes and to investigate how exogenous growth factors influence proliferation of both cell types. Procedures Cell cultures were established from healthy corneas harvested from horses immediately following euthanasia and maintained using standard tissue culture protocols. To determine the effects of PDGF‐BB, EGF, TGF‐β1, keratocytes (1 × 10⁵/well) and epithelial cells (2 × 10⁵/well) were each cultured in 12 well plates and exposed separately to the growth factors. The cells were exposed to concentrations of EGF between 0 and 50 ng/mL; PDGF‐BB between 0 and 75 ng/mL; and TGF‐β1 between 0 and 10 ng/mL. Cell proliferation was measured using ³H‐thymidine assay and differences in growth determined using anova and Tukey's HSD test (P < 0.05). Results Epithelial cell and keratocyte cultures were successfully established. EGF maximally stimulated keratocyte and epithelial cells at 25 ng/mL and 5 ng/mL, respectively. PDGF‐BB maximally stimulated keratocytes and epithelial cells at 50 ng/mL and 5 ng/mL, respectively. TGF‐β1 inhibited keratocytes at 5 ng/mL and 10 ng/mL, and epithelial cells at 1 ng/mL and 2 ng/mL. Conclusions Methods were established to maintain epithelial cells and keratocytes in vitro. PDGF‐BB and EGF stimulate, while TGF‐β1 inhibits the proliferation of epithelial cells and keratocytes. These growth factors may play a role in maintenance and repair of the equine cornea.     

Effects of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound on wound healing in corneas of dogs following keratoplasty

The effects of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound on wound healing were evaluated at the graft-cornea transition in dogs following lamellar keratoplasty using tunica vaginalis preserved in 98% glycerin. Twenty-one dogs were subdivided into three groups of seven animals. The first group (W/US) received daily treatment of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (20 mW/cm2) for 15 min for the first 10 days post surgery. The second group (N/US) was submitted to the same procedure but with the ultrasound apparatus turned off. The third group, the control (CO), underwent the surgical procedure only. The animals were clinically evaluated during the initial (1-15 days), intermediate (16-30 days) and late (31-120 days) postoperative period. The corneas were evaluated by light microscopy at 1, 3, 7, 15, 30, 60 and 120 days after surgery. Clinically, there were no differences which would promote an advantage to any of the treatments. Light microscopy, however, revealed more extensive vascularization and more advanced wound healing in the W/US group, as well as a tendency towards early graft incorporation. Based on the present results, low-intensity pulsed ultrasound shows advantages, especially in situations where trophic support is a mandatory condition, facilitating better graft incorporation and rapid recovery of stromal organization.     

Cataract phacofragmentation in horses

Cataract surgeries were carried out in fifty-one eyes of 36 horses over a 15-year period. Cataracts were removed using phacofragmentation and aspiration. Useful vision was restored after surgery in 30 horses. One year after surgery 16 of the 19 horses for which follow up information was available were still visual with several still being used as working horses. At 5-6 years after surgery three horses were still visual. The most frequent intraoperative complication was tearing of the posterior lens capsule. The most frequent postoperative problem was superficial corneal ulceration. Four eyes in three horses developed postoperative infectious endophthalmitis resulting in blindness.     

In vitro analysis of antiangiogenic activity of fungi isolated from clinical cases of equine keratomycosis

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this project was to explore the possibility that fungal organisms produce metabolites that inhibit angiogenesis. Procedures Fungal cultures were obtained from cases of keratomycosis, grown in Sabouraud's dextrose broth, and sterile filtered for use in experiments. The Matrigel assay was used to screen the filtrate samples for antiangiogenic activity. Matrigel is a basement membrane matrix that supports the differentiation of human umbilical vein endothelial (HUVE) cells into a capillary-like network of tubules. HUVE cells were cultured using standard techniques and passaged at confluence, with all cells being used at passage 3-6. HUVE cells (40 000 cells) were pipetted into each well of a 24-well tissue-culture plate coated with Matrigel. An aliquot of fungal media filtrate was added to each well and the plates allowed to incubate for 18 h, at which time they were evaluated for tubule formation. RESULTS: Two fungal isolates showed inhibition of tubule formation. The addition of 100, 200 and 400 &mgr;L of the fungal media filtrate from the first isolate (Fusarium sp. 99A34574) produced a consistent and dose-dependent inhibition of tubule formation. The second isolate (Aspergillus sp. 271599) did not show inhibition of tubule formation with 100 or 200 &mgr;L added to the wells, however, it did show inhibition at 400 &mgr;L/well. The remaining three isolates did not cause inhibition at any concentration. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that certain fungal organisms produce metabolites that inhibit tubule formation in vitro, and that these metabolites may play a significant role in altering the host vascular response to fungal infections of the cornea.     

Practical usefulness of a therapeutic soft contact lens for a corneal ulcer in a racehorse

Therapeutic soft contact lenses (TSCL) were applied to a thoroughbred racehorse with corneal ulcer refractory to topical medication. The insertion of the TSCL was conducted on day 36 using a nose twitch under sedation, auriculopalpebral nerve block, and topical anesthesia. The lens was retained, with the duration of wear lasting 114 days. Ocular pain improved immediately and fluorescein tests were negative 17 days after insertion. The horse was able to undergo training and ran in two races while wearing the TSCL. Thus a TSCL was found to be clinically useful for treating corneal ulcers in racehorses.