Spontaneous regression of bovine cutaneous leukosis

Biopsies of skin from a 2-year-old heifer with spontaneously regressing dermal leukosis were examined. The heifer was not infected with bovine leukemia virus and was negative for tumor-associated antigens of enzootic bovine lymphosarcoma. By hematological standards for bovine leukemia, the heifer was positive at about 60 days post-occurrence of the disease (POD). At 53 days POD, lymphoblastic neoplastic cells in the dermis reacted with anti-T lymphocyte monoclonal antibody by the avidin biotin peroxidase complex method. The cells had intracytoplasmic clustered dense bodies under electron microscopy. From 53 to 83 days POD, figures of the transepithelial elimination (TE) against neoplastic cells and perivascular infiltration of small lymphocytes were in the dermis. Small lymphocytes reacted with anti-T lymphocyte monoclonal antibody. At necropsy there were no neoplastic lesions; there were flat lymph node-like tissues in the subcutis. Many germinal centers were seen in the lymphatic organs. Blood lymphocytes at 46 days POD were stimulated by phytohemagglutinin-P and concanavalin A. Sera, taken until 75 days POD and at necropsy, showed an inhibitory effect on mitogen-induced blastogenesis of normal bovine lymphocytes. These results suggested the existence of a spontaneous regressive mechanism against neoplastic lesions by TE and tumor immunity.     

Sparing effect of tramadol,lidocaine, dexmedetomidine and their combination on the minimum alveolar concentration of sevoflurane in dogs

BackgroundProblems associated with using inhalational anaesthesia are numerous in veterinary anaesthesia practice. Decreasing the amount of used inhalational anaesthetic agents and minimising of cardiorespiratory disorders are the standard goals of anaesthetists.ObjectiveThis experimental study was carried out to investigate the sparing effect of intravenous tramadol, lidocaine, dexmedetomidine and their combinations on the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) of sevoflurane in healthy Beagle dogs.MethodsThis study was conducted on six beagle dogs. Sevoflurane MAC was determined by the tail clamp method on five separate occasions. The dogs received no treatment (control; CONT), tramadol (TRM: 1.5 mg kg^-1 intravenously followed by 1.3 mg kg^-1 h^-1), lidocaine (LID: 2 mg kg^-1 intravenously followed by 3 mg kg^-1 h^-1), dexmedetomidine (DEX: 2 μg kg^-1 intravenously followed by 2 μg kg^-1 h^-1), and their combination (COMB), respectively. Cardiorespiratory variables were recorded every five minutes and immediately before the application of a noxious stimulus.ResultsThe COMB treatment had the greatest sevoflurane MAC-sparing effect (67.4 ± 13.9%) compared with the other treatments (5.1 ± 25.3, 12.7 ± 14.3, and 40.3 ± 15.1% for TRM, LID, and DEX treatment, respectively). The cardiopulmonary variables remained within the clinically acceptable range following COMB treatment, although the mean arterial pressure was higher and accompanied by bradycardia.ConclusionsTramadol-lidocaine-dexmedetomidine co-infusion produced a remarkable sevoflurane MAC-sparing effect in clinically healthy beagle dogs and could result in the alleviation of cardiorespiratory depression caused by sevoflurane. Cardiorespiratory variables should be monitored carefully to avoid undesirable side effects induced by dexmedetomidine.     

Abstracts of nippon Dozyohiryogaku Zasshi

Aluminum toxicity and boron deficiency are the major factors that limit plant growth and development in acid soils and in B-deficient soils. Root growth inhibition is an early symptom of AI toxicity and B deficiency. Effects of AI and B supply and their interaction on the growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings were investigated using hydroponics. Fifteen wheat cultivars commonly grown in Bangladesh were used and found to differ considerably in their tolerance to AI toxicity and B deficiency. The relative root length of all the wheat cultivars at 50 µM AI (pH 4.5) ranged from 27 to 71% relative to the control (0 µM AI). Among the cultivars, Inia66 and Kalyansona were found to be the most Al-tolerant and sensitive cultivars, respectively, based on the data of relative root length, malate exudation and AI content of roots. Malate was detected in all the cultivars in the presence of 100 µM AI (pH 4.3). Inia66 exuded a 6-fold larger amount of malate and the AI content of roots was 4 times lower than that in Kalyansona. The vigorous seedling growth was observed at 40 µM B among the series of B treatments. Considerable cultivar differences in response to 40 µM B were observed among the 15 cultivars. Kalyansona was considered to be the most sensitive and Kheri the most tolerant to B deficiency. The interaction effects of B ( 40 and 200 µM) and AI (50 µM) on seedling growth were also examined in Inia66 and Kalyansona. Root growth was inhibited in the presence of Al but B supply especially at 200 µM B in the Kalyansona cultivar caused a slight improvement.     

Inhibitors of methane production in paddy soils

Global warming is now attracting the world attention. Methane is an important greenhouse gas next to CO₂. Prather et al. (1995) estimated that rice paddy fields account for 14% of all biogenic atmospheric methane. It is considered that methane production from rice paddy fields is increasing along with the increase of the population. Therefore, the development of rice cultivation techniques for reducing methane production is essential, in order to preserve the global environment.     

Combination of lipids and emulsifiers enhances the absorption of orally administered quercetin in rats

The effects of lipids, emulsifiers, and ethanol on the absorption of orally administered quercetin in rats were investigated for its efficient intestinal absorption. Rats were administered 150 micromol/kg quercetin in water supplemented with lipids and/or emulsifiers, or ethanol, and blood was collected from the tail for 6 h after administration. Co-administration of lipids such as lecithin and soybean oil or emulsifiers including sucrose fatty acid ester, polyglycerol fatty acid ester, and sodium taurocholate had no statistically significant effects on quercetin absorption, although these constituents rather increased the accumulation of conjugated forms of quercetin and those of isorhamnetin in rat plasma. However, the combination of lipids and emulsifiers enhanced the absorption of quercetin significantly. Thirty and fifty percent (v/v) of the ethanol in the vehicle raised the efficiency of quercetin absorption in a concentration-dependent manner. Quercetin absorption-enhancing effects of these constituents seemed to be affected by quercetin's solubility in respective vehicles used for the administration. Ethanol is not helpful for the effective absorption of quercetin, as a high concentration is required. In conclusion, a combination of lipids and emulsifiers is necessary for enhancing quercetin absorption.     

Efficacy of thiabendazole, mebendazole, levamisole and ivermectin against gullet worm, Gongylonema pulchrum: in vitro and in vivo studies

In vitro and in vivo studies were conducted to evaluate the effects of thiabendazole, mebendazole, levamisole and ivermectin against Gongylonema pulchrum. For in vitro assays, third-stage larvae (L3) incubated with the drugs were administered orally to mice and the ability of larvae to invade the gastric mucosa of the animals was examined. After incubation, only those larvae treated with high concentrations of levamisole (1 and 10 microg/ml) were tightly coiled with intestines exhibiting morphological abnormalities. Good dose-response data for the drugs tested was observed at the time of worm recovery from mice, with no worms recovered at the two highest concentrations of levamisole. In vivo efficacy of the drugs against adult worms was evaluated in six groups of three rabbits, each of which was infected with 30 L3 of G. pulchrum and treated with thiabendazole at 100 mg/kg for 3 days, mebendazole at 70 mg/kg for 3 days, levamisole as a single dose of 8 mg/kg, and subcutaneously injected ivermectin as a single dose of 0.2 mg/kg or vehicles of the drugs (control) at 4 months post-infection. Necropsy 14 days after treatment revealed that levamisole, mebendazole and ivermectin reduced worm burdens by 63.2%, 22.8% and 25.8%, respectively, with no reductions in worms observed with thiabendazole. The surviving worms were principally found in the esophagus with the remainder distributed among the buccal mucosa, the tongue, and/or pharyngeal mucosa in all groups. A number of morphologically abnormal eggs were observed within the uterus and ovijector in female worms recovered from the thiabendazole-treated group. These findings suggest that levamisole exhibits in vivo efficacy against G. pulchrum infection and that the larval invasion tests using mice could be used to screen for anthelmintic susceptibility of nematodes.     

Antibody-mediated bacteriorhodopsin orientation for molecular device architectures

A rational method for constructing highly oriented films of purple membrane (PM) has been established by using two kinds of bispecific antibodies with different antigen-binding sites, one binding to a specific side of bacteriorhodopsin and the other to a phospholipid hapten. A hapten monolayer deposited on a metal electrode was treated with a bispecific antibody solution and incubated with a PM suspension to produce a highly oriented PM film, as confirmed by electron microscopy in which an immunogold labeling technique was used. This antibody-mediated PM monolayer was then used in the construction of a light-sensing photoelectric device. A comparison of the two incorporated PM monolayers showed that highly efficient photocurrents were produced by the PM monolayer whose unidirectionally oriented cytoplasmic surface faces the electrode.     

Quantum conversion and image detection by a bacteriorhodopsin-based artificial photoreceptor

A thin film (50 to 500 angstroms thick) comprising fragments of bacteriorhodopsin (bR)-containing purple membrane was formed on an SnO(2) conductive electrode by the Langmuir-Blodgett method. The film was put into contact with a thin, aqueous electrolyte gel to construct an electrochemical sandwich-type photocell with a junction structure SnO(2)/bR/electrolyte/Au electrode. Under visible light irradiation, the bR-based photocell produced an efficient rectified photocurrent that proved to have unique differential responsivity to light intensity, which is characteristic of in vivo biological photoreceptors. An artificial photoreceptor comprising a pixel network of the bR photocell was fabricated in an attempt to study image-detecting and processing abilities of bR.     

Impact of nutrient enrichment in a waterchestnut ecosystem at Takahama-iri Bay of Lake Kasumigaura,Japan

Waterchestnut was shown to be one of the most efficient agents to yield photosynthetic products among aquatic plants in littoral vegetation. Though the plant can be an agent to remove nutrient in agricultural and domestic wastes directly through its waterroots to some extent, waterchestnut plays a great role in removing nutrients through its roots from lake sediments to watercolumn of the lake. Waterchestnut can be choked to death when its leaves are covered completely by the heavy blue-green algal bloom typical in hypereutophic lakes.