Eosinophilic leukaemia in a cat

A 14-year-old female domestic shorthair cat was presented to Tehran University Veterinary Teaching Hospital for a persistent fever, anorexia, intermittent vomiting, weight loss and weakness. The main clinical signs were pale mucous membranes, dehydration and splenomegaly. The complete blood count and serum biochemistry tests revealed non-regenerative anaemia, thrombocytopenia and increased alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test for feline leukaemia virus was negative. Blood film and bone marrow examination revealed a large number of immature eosinophils with variable sizes and numbers of faintly azurophilic granules. Cytochemical staining of blood film demonstrated 70% positive cells for ALP activity. Four percent CD34 positive cells were detected by flow cytometry. As eosinophilic leukaemia is difficult to identify by light microscopy, well-defined diagnostic criteria and the use of flow cytometry and cytochemical staining can improve the ability to correctly diagnose this type of leukaemia in cats.     

Vaccination in Leishmaniasis: A Review Article

Leishmaniasis is caused by protozoan Leishmania parasites that are transmitted through female sandfly bites. The disease is predominantly endemic to the tropics and semi-tropics and has been reported in more than 98 countries. Due to the side effects of anti-Leishmania drugs and the emergence of drug-resistant isolates, there is currently no encouraging prospect of introducing an effective therapy for the disease. Hence, it seems that the key to disease control management is the introduction of an effective vaccine, particularly against its cutaneous form. Advances in understanding underlying immune mechanisms are feasibale using a variety of candidate antigens, including attenuated live parasites, crude antigens, pure or recombinant Leishmania proteins, Leishmania genes encoding protective proteins, as well as immune system activators from the saliva of parasite vectors. However, there is still no vaccine against different types of human leishmaniasis. In this study, we review the works conducted or being performed in this field. Key Words: Immune response, Leishmaniasis, Vaccination     

Characterizing Spatial Variability of Soil Textural Fractions and Fractal Parameters Derived from Particle Size Distributions

Soil particle size distribution (PSD) is a fundamental physical property affecting other soil properties. Characterizing spatial variability of soil texture is very important in environmental research. The objectives of this work were: 1) to partition PSD of 75 soil samples, collected from a flat field in the University of Guilan, Iran, into two scaling domains using a piecewise fractal model to evaluate the relationships between fractal dimensions of scaling domains and soil clay, silt, and sand fractions and 2) to assess the potential of fractal parameters as an index used in a geostatistical approach reflecting the spatial variability of soil texture. Features of PSD of soil samples were studied using fractal geometry, and geostatistical techniques were used to characterize the spatial variability of fractal and soil textural parameters. There were two scaling domains for the PSD of soil samples. The fractal dimensions of these two scaling domains (D₁ and D₂) were then used to characterize different ranges of soil particle sizes and their relationships to the soil textural parameters. There was a positive correlation between D₁ and clay content (R² = 0.924), a negative correlation between D₁ and silt content (R² = 0.801), and a negative correlation between D₂ and sand content (R² = 0.913). The geometric mean diameter of soil particles had a negative correlation with D₁ (R² = 0.569) and D₂ (R² = 0.682). Semivariograms of fractal dimensions and soil textural parameters were calculated and the maps of spatial variation of D₁ and D₂ and soil PSD parameters were provided using ordinary kriging. The results showed that there were also spatial correlations between D₁ and D₂ and particle size fractions. According to the semivariogram models and validation parameters, the fractal parameters had powerful spatial structure and could better describe the spatial variability of soil texture.     

Soil microbial biomass, activity and community composition in adjacent native and plantation forests of subtropical Australia

Purpose

Soil nitrogen (N) availability is a critical determinant of plantation productivity in subtropical Australia and is influenced by the soil microbial community. The size, structure and function of the soil microbial community can be impacted by land-use change and residue management. The objectives of this study were to examine the impact of land-use change from (1) native forest (NF) to first rotation (1R) hoop pine plantation and (2) 1R hoop pine plantation to second rotation (2R) hoop pine plantation on the soil microbial community. The impact of residue management on the soil microbial community was also investigated in the 2R forest, where soil microbial parameters were measured in tree rows (2R-T) and windrows (2R-W). In addition, relationships between soil microbial parameters and soil N parameters were investigated.

Materials and methods

Each of the four treatments (NF, 1R, 2R-T and 2R-W) had five 24-m² replicate plots from which 15 soil cores were collected and bulked at three depths (0–10, 10–20, 20–30 cm). Microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and N (MBN) and soil respiration were measured on field moist soils. In addition, carbon (C) source utilisation patterns were assessed using the whole soil MicroResp? technique (Campbell et al. 2003).

Results and discussion

Results indicate that the land-use change from NF to 1R hoop pine plantation significantly reduced MBC, respiration rate, soil total C and total N. Furthermore, the land-use change appeared to have a significant impact on the soil microbial community composition measured using MicroResp? profiles. Land-use change from 1R to 2R hoop pine plantation resulted in a decline in total C and MBN and a shift in microbial community composition. When compared to the 2R-T soils, the 2R-W soils tended to have a greater microbial biomass and respiration rate. Residue management also influenced the microbial community composition measured in the MicroResp? profiles.

Conclusions

Results indicate that land-use change had a significant impact on the soil microbial community, which was likely to be related to shifts in the quality and quantity of organic inputs associated with the change in land use. This may have significant implications for the long-term productivity of the soil resource. Further studies are required to confirm a difference in microbial community composition associated with residue management. In addition, long-term experiments in subtropical Australia are necessary to verify the results of this snapshot study and to improve our understanding of the impact of single-species plantation forestry and residue management on the soil microbial community, soil N dynamics and ultimately the long-term sustainability of the soil resource.     

Polyvinylidene fluoride nanofiber coated polypropylene nonwoven fabric as a membrane for lithium-ion batteries

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVdF) membranes in spite of having many critical properties necessary for lithium-ion batteries, do not have satisfying thermal and mechanical resistance. The goal of this study was to combine the good mechanical and thermal properties of PP nonwoven fabric with the excellent electrochemical properties of PVdF nanofibers to exploit a high-performance membrane for lithium-ion batteries. This work reports the preparation of PVdF nanofiber membranes using electrospinning on a polypropylene (PP) spunbonded nonwoven fabric and an aluminum foil followed by a hot-pressing treatment. The morphology and size of the membranes were studied by the scanning electron microscopy. The tensile strength of the membrane with the PP support was superior to the PVdF membrane. Thermal stability of the prepared membranes was determined using the TGA method and the dimensional stability was investigated by measuring the shrinkage ratio at 105 °C. The results have shown that the PVdF/PP membrane was thermally more stable than the PVdF and the commercial Celgard 2325 membranes. The batteries using PVdF/PP membrane exhibited higher electrochemical oxidation limit, better cycling performance and less discharge capacity fading during 100 cycles compared to PVdF and Celgard membranes. The results of this study showed that PVdF/PP membrane is a promising advanced membrane in lithium-ion batteries.     

Application of silver nanoparticles as an antibacterial mordant in wool natural dyeing: Synthesis,antibacterial activity,and color characteristics

Madder is a natural colorant which is commonly applied with metal salts as a mordant to improve its affinity to fibers and color fastness. Madder produces an insoluble complex or lake in the presence of metal ions on mordanted fabric. In this study, wool fabric was pretreated with AgNPs (silver nanoparticles) as a mordant, then dyed with madder. The wool fabric samples were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and their colorimetric characteristics were evaluated. The formation of spherical silver nanoparticle was confirmed using UV-Visible spectroscopy, SEM images, and elemental analysis. The average size of synthesized silver nanoparticles on the surface of wool fibers is around 73 nm. The dyed wool samples were pretreated with different concentration of Ag⁺ ions or AgNPs, which showed higher color strength value compared to untreated dyed wool fabric. This pretreatment also presented good antibacterial activity.     

Thecoma in a mare

A 4-year-old crossbred Thoroughbred mare was referred to the University of Tehran Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital for evaluation of a mass in the pelvic cavity. The mare had been partially anorectic and pyrexic. On clinical examination, the mare was thin and depressed, with body temperature of 38°C, a pulse rate of 38 beats/minute, and a respiratory rate of 10 breaths/minute. Palpation per rectum revealed a large, smooth and tense mass in the anterior part of the pelvic cavity. Ultrasound examination confirmed the presence of a soft tissue mass with a thick wall. The inner surface of the mass had a villous-like appearance. The stroma of the mass was mottled, with accumulation of speckled and hypoechoic to slightly hyperechoic fluid. Hormone assays revealed low serum concentration of testosterone. Serum progesterone concentration indicated that active luteal tissue and serum estradiol concentration was 24 pg/ml. On histological examination, the sections from the tumor were composed of oval- or spindle-shaped cells loosely arranged in diffuse sheets or irregularly interlacing fascicles. On the basis of these histological findings, the large tumor mass of the left ovary was considered to be a thecoma. To our knowledge, the details of the clinical, ultrasonographic, endocrinologic, and histologic findings of this tumor in the mare have not been described in the veterinary literature.