Seasonal abundance,diet, and energy consumption of round gobies (Neogobius melanostomus) in Lake Erie tributary streams

Pennuto CM, Krakowiak PJ, Janik CE. Seasonal abundance, diet, and energy consumption of round gobies (Neogobius melanostomus) in Lake Erie tributary streams.
Ecology of Freshwater Fish 2010: 19: 206–215. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S Abstract – The invasive round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) is a benthic invertivore that has become established in many lake and river systems of Europe and the United States, especially within the Great Lakes basin. Multiple reports document its negative impact on benthic macroinvertebrates and fishes in lakes and recent studies show fish and invertebrate communities in streams are equally at risk. We assessed the seasonal abundance of round gobies and their summer diet composition in tributary streams to Lake Erie. Populations of round gobies in the lower reaches of two tributary streams peaked in abundance in early fall, were absent in late winter, and reappeared in early spring, suggesting a possible out‐migration to the lake in winter. Population size distributions show a peak recruitment of young round gobies in July and low‐level recruitment through October. In this study, round gobies obtained most of their energy from amphipods, chironomids, and caddisflies compared to other invertebrates, and midges were consumed in greater proportion than their availability suggesting a preference for these prey. As the stream lacked molluscs, large round gobies remained generalist invertivores without a diet shift to molluscivory as has been reported in lake studies. The observations on recruitment and abundance, and possible out‐migration suggest the lower reaches of tributary streams may act as source populations for lake‐bound round gobies. It may be possible to take advantage of this out‐migration behaviour as a control strategy to capture large numbers of round gobies each winter.     

Plasma cell stomatitis-pharyngitis in cats: 40 cases (1973-1991).

Clinical signs, laboratory findings, and treatment results of 40 cats with the histologic diagnosis of plasma cell stomatitis-pharyngitis are discussed. Median age was 7.1 years, with no discernable sex predilection. Anorexia and difficulty prehending food were the most common clinical signs. Hyperproteinemia with associated hyperglobulinemia was the most common laboratory finding. Of various treatments, administration of corticosteroids or injectable gold (aurothioglucose) proved most effective in controlling the clinical signs.     

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modelling of intravenous,intramuscular and subcutaneous buprenorphine in conscious cats

ObjectiveTo describe simultaneous pharmacokinetics (PK) and thermal antinociception after intravenous (IV), intramuscular (IM) and subcutaneous (SC) buprenorphine in cats.Study designRandomized, prospective, blinded, three period crossover experiment.AnimalsSix healthy adult cats weighing 4.1 ± 0.5 kg.MethodsBuprenorphine (0.02 mg kg^?1) was administered IV, IM or SC. Thermal threshold (TT) testing and blood collection were conducted simultaneously at baseline and at predetermined time points up to 24 hours after administration. Buprenorphine plasma concentrations were determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. TT was analyzed using anova (p < 0.05). A pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) model of the IV data was described using a model combining biophase equilibration and receptor association-dissociation kinetics.ResultsTT increased above baseline from 15 to 480 minutes and at 30 and 60 minutes after IV and IM administration, respectively (p < 0.05). Maximum increase in TT (mean ± SD) was 9.3 ± 4.9 °C at 60 minutes (IV), 4.6 ± 2.8 °C at 45 minutes (IM) and 1.9 ± 1.9 °C at 60 minutes (SC). TT was significantly higher at 15, 60, 120 and 180 minutes, and at 15, 30, 45, 60 and 120 minutes after IV administration compared to IM and SC, respectively. IV and IM buprenorphine concentration-time data decreased curvilinearly. SC PK could not be modeled due to erratic absorption and disposition. IV buprenorphine disposition was similar to published data. The PK-PD model showed an onset delay mainly attributable to slow biophase equilibration (t_1/2k_e0 = 47.4 minutes) and receptor binding (k_on = 0.011 mL ng^?1 minute^?1). Persistence of thermal antinociception was due to slow receptor dissociation (t_1/2k_off = 18.2 minutes).Conclusions and clinical relevanceIV and IM data followed classical disposition and elimination in most cats. Plasma concentrations after IV administration were associated with antinociceptive effect in a PK-PD model including negative hysteresis. At the doses administered, the IV route should be preferred over the IM and SC routes when buprenorphine is administered to cats.     

Propionibacterium acnes Immunotherapy in Chronic Recurrent Canine Pyoderma

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, dogs with chronic recurrent pyoderma were treated with antibiotics plus intravenous injections of either Propionibacterium acnes or placebo. Responses (an increase, decrease, or clearing of lesions) were measured and evaluated statistically. Eighty percent (12 of 15) of the dogs treated with antibiotics and P acnes compared with 38% (five of 13) of the dogs treated with antibiotics and placebo responded with significant improvement or complete remission of lesions at the end of the 12-week treatment schedule (P less than 0.05).     

Soil properties prediction of western Mediterranean islands with similar climatic environments by means of mid‐infrared diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

This study investigated the suitability of mid‐infrared diffuse reflectance Fourier transform (MIR‐DRIFT) spectroscopy, with partial least squares (PLS) regression, for the determination of variations in soil properties typical of Italian Mediterranean off‐shore environments. Pianosa, Elba and Sardinia are typical of islands from this environment, but developed on different geological substrates. Principal components analysis (PCA) showed that spectra could be grouped according to the soil composition of the islands. PLS full cross‐validation of soil property predictions was assessed by the coefficient of determination (R²), the root mean square error of cross‐validation and prediction (RMSECV and RMSEP), the standard error (SECV for cross‐validation and SEP for prediction), and the residual predictive deviation (RPD). Although full cross‐validation appeared to be the most accurate (R² = 0.95 for organic carbon (OC), 0.96 for inorganic carbon (IC), 0.87 for CEC, 0.72 for pH and 0.74 for clay; RPD = 4.4, 6.0, 2.7, 1.9 and 2.0, respectively), the prediction errors were considered to be optimistic and so alternative calibrations considered to be more similar to ‘true’ predictions were tested. Predictions using individual calibrations from each island were the least efficient, while predictions using calibration selection based on a Euclidian distance ranking method, using as few as 10 samples selected from each island, were almost as accurate as full cross‐validation for OC and IC (R² = 0.93 for OC and 0.96 for IC; RPD = 3.9 and 4.7, respectively). Prediction accuracy for CEC, pH and clay was less accurate than expected, especially for clay (R² = 0.73 for CEC, 0.50 for pH and 0.41 for clay; RPD = 1.8, 1.5 and 1.4, respectively). This study confirmed that the DRIFT PLS method was suitable for characterizing important properties for soils typical of islands in a Mediterranean environment and capable of discriminating between the variations in soil properties from different parent materials.     

The persistence of foot-and-mouth disease virus on wool

SUMMARY Five Suffolk sheep, held in a high-security isolation room, were exposed for 2 hours to the aerosol of 3 mature pigs that had been infected with foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), strain O₁-BFS. The fleeces of 3 of the sheep were contaminated with FMDV at 2 days post exposure (dpe), while at 5 dpe the fleeces of all 5 sheep were more extensively, and more heavily, contaminated. The persistence of FMDV on contaminated wool was examined in vitro using multiple 0.5 g samples of Merino wool that were each contaminated with one of 3 strains of FMDV in tissue-culture medium: O₁-BFS, O-Morocco (O-MOR 9/91) or an Asia 1 strain (TAI 1/90). Wool samples were held at either 4°C, 18°C or 37°C, and decay curves were established for each virus at each temperature. These curves predicted that O₁-BFS, O-MOR 9/91 and TAI 1/90 would fall below detect-able levels at 72, 70 and 48 days post contamination (pc), respectively, for wool stored at 4°C; at 11, 12 and 12 days pc, respectively, for wool stored at 18°C; and at 57, 68 and 33 hours pc, respectively, for wool stored at 37°C. For wool contaminated with O₁-BFS-infected sheep faeces, urine or blood, or with O₁-BFS-infected cattle saliva, decay curves predicted virus to persist for 5 to 11 days pc at 18°C. We demonstrated that the simulated scouring of FMDV-contaminated wool at 60° to 70°C would usually reduce virus to below detectable levels. The detergent component of the scouring process had little, if any, antiviral activity, and scouring at 20°C or 50°C had limited impact on FMDV titres . We recommend that either (1) simple storage of FMDV-contaminated wool for 4 weeks at temperatures of 18°C or higher, or (2) scouring of contaminated wool at 60° to 70°C would be sufficient to remove the threat of FMDV-contaminated wool being infectious to other animals .