Transmissible gastroenteritis in neonatal dogs: experimental intestinal infection with transmissible gastroenteritis virus.

Fourteen neonatal dogs (4 through 11 days of age) were exposed orally to the Purdue strain of transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE) virus, and six dogs of similar age were noninoculated controls. Clinical signs of enteric disease did not develop. Both exposed and control dogs had normal fecal passages and appetite throughout the experiment. Jejunal epithelium from dogs euthanatized at 12, 24, 48, and 96 hours and at 10 days after exposure did not exhibit morphologic alterations detectable by light microscopy. Electron microscopic examination indicated that jejunal epithelial cells contained TGE viral particles as early as 12 hours after dogs were exposed. There were no apparent morphologic alterations or signs of desquamation of virus-infected cells, however. Results of pig transmission studies indicated that viable TGE virus was in jejunal tissue of the dogs as early as 12 hours and as late as 10 days after exposure to the virus.     

Stir bar sorptive extraction combined with GC-MS analysis and chemometric methods for the classification of South African Wines according to the volatile composition

A simple method for the analysis of major wine volatiles and semivolatiles by stir bar sorptive extraction in combination with thermal desorption and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SBSE-TD-GC-MS) was developed. Significant experimental parameters such as extraction time, temperature, salt addition, pH, and thermal desorption parameters were optimized to provide a sensitive and robust analytical method. The method provided good repeatability (%RSD < 10%) for 38 major wine volatile compounds, including alcohols, acids, esters, phenols, aldehydes, ketones, and lactones. Quantitative data for 62 South African red and white wines were used to study the suitability of major volatile data for the differentiation of wine samples according to grape variety or cultivar. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) showed that most of the variation in volatile composition between wine samples could be ascribed to differences in wine age, wood contact, and fermentation practices. Despite the contribution of these factors, discriminant analysis (DA) was successfully applied to the classification of red and white wine samples according to cultivar.     

Tall fescue forage mass in a grass-legume mixture: predicted efficiency of indirect selection

High fertilizer prices and improved environmental stewardship have increased interest in grass-legume mixed pastures. It has been hypothesized, but not validated, that the ecological combining ability between grasses and legumes can be improved by breeding specifically for mixture performance. This experiment examined the predicted efficiency of selection in a grass monoculture environment to indirectly improve tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbysh.) forage mass in a grass-legume mixture. Heritability, genetic and rank correlations, and selection efficiencies were estimated for forage mass in a tall fescue half-sib population grown as spaced-plants overseeded with either turf-type tall fescue (monoculture) or alfalfa (mixture). Heritability for tall fescue forage mass in monoculture ranged from 0.32 to 0.70 and were always similar or greater than those in mixture (range 0.27–0.55) for four successive harvests and annual total. Genetic correlations between monoculture and mixture tall fescue forage mass varied with values of 0.48, 0.92, ?0.31, 0.70, and 0.25 in June, July, August, October, and annual total, respectively. Indirect selection efficiencies exceeded or approached direct selection for mixtures only in July and October (1.29, and 0.73, respectively). Whereas, indirect selection efficiencies were low in June, August, and annual forage mass (0.58, ?0.31, and 0.28, respectively). Moreover, low Spearman’s rank correlations (?0.03 to 0.35) indicated differing half-sib family performance between the monoculture and mixture environments. Results indicate that direct selection should be used to improve tall fescue forage mass in a grass-legume mixture, and support the hypothesis of increasing ecological combining ability by breeding for mixtures per se.     

副猪嗜血杆菌的分离培养和血清型鉴定

从全国十多个省市送检的疑似患多发浆膜炎与关节炎猪的病料中分离到32株细菌,进行了细菌形态观察、培养特性和生化特性鉴定;根据副猪嗜血杆菌16S rRNA序列设计引物进行PCR扩增,将822bp扩增片段连入T-载体后测序,再与GenBank(M75065)中的序列进行比对,表明其与国外副猪嗜血杆菌菌株16S rRNA序列的同源性为97％以上,确定为副猪嗜血杆菌(Haemophilus parasuis,Hps)。将其中的15株按Kieletein-Rapp-Gabriedson(KRG)琼脂扩散血清分型方法进行血清型鉴定,结果为血清5型3株、血清4型4株、血清13型2株、血清12型2株,另外有4株不能进行分型。该结果表明副猪嗜血杆菌在我国广泛存在。     

Mannheimia granulomatis PCR检测方法的建立

Mannheimia granulomatis是导致牛、羊呼吸道传染病的一种病原菌.为快速、准确诊断由该菌导致的疫病,从基因库中获得M.granulomdtis的基因序列,再从M.granulomatis的基因序列中获得与其他细菌包括溶血性曼氏杆菌和多杀性巴氏杆菌等不同的基因片段,设计引物,建立了特异性好、敏感性较高的M.granulomatis的PCR诊断方法.结果表明,其特异性为100%,最小检出量为5×104cfu/mL～5×103cfu/mL M.granulomatis或1/10个单个菌落.     

Clinical Sarcocystis neurona encephalomyelitis in a domestic cat following routine surgery

Sarcocystis neurona is an important cause of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) in horses in the Americas. An EPM-like neurological disease also has been reported from other mammals but it is difficult to induce this disease in the laboratory. A 4-month-old male domestic cat developed neurological signs 3 days following castration. The cat was euthanized 12 days later because of paralysis. Encephalomyelitis was the only lesion and was associated with numerous Sarcocystis schizonts and merozoites in the brain and spinal cord. The protozoa reacted positively with S. neurona-specific polyclonal rabbit antibody. Two unidentified sarcocysts were present in the cerebellum. It may be possible that stress of surgery triggered relapse of S. neurona infection in this cat.