Evaluation of the testosterone response to hCG and the identification of a presumed anorchid dog

A two-year-old dog was presented with no scrotal testes. There was no history of castration but at laparotomy no testes were found. To confirm that the dog was truly anorchid a human chorionic gonadotrophin stimulation test was performed. This was then validated in normal entire and castrated dogs.     

Lupus-Type "Anticoagulant" in a Dog With Hemolysis and Thrombosis

A circulating anticoagulant was detected in a 2-year-old Chesapeake Bay Retriever with hemolytic anemia, nephrotic syndrome, thrombocytopenia, polyarthropathy, and pulmonary thromboembolism. A persistent prolongation of the activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) was detected, and it did not correct with repeated administration of fresh frozen plasma. The aPTT was still prolonged, with a 1:1 mixture of patient's plasma and normal dog plasma in vitro, suggesting the presence of a circulating inhibitor. Results of assays to characterize the inhibitor were compatible with those described for the lupus anticoagulant in human patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Paradoxically, patients having the lupus anticoagulant are at increased risk for thrombosis. Pulmonary thromboembolism has been described as a frequent complication of immune-mediated hemolytic anemia in the dog, and the presence of a circulating anticoagulant should be considered as a potential mechanism.     

A streak disease of pearl millet caused by a leafhopper-transmitted geminivirus

The cause of a streak disease of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), originating from Nigeria, has been attributed to a geminivirus belonging to the African streak virus cluster. A full-length, infectious clone of the virus was obtained which was transmissible by the vectorCicadulina mbila (Naudé). Analysis of the complete nucleotide sequence of the coat protein gene of this virus shows it to be most closely related to sugarcane streak virus. The possible evolutionary implications of this finding are discussed.     

Intestinal defence of the neonatal pig: interrelationship of gut and mammary function providing surface immunity against colibacillosis.

The neonatal requirements for maternal passive immunity and the lactation immunobiology with regard to sow immunisation for neonatal protection are reviewed. A vaccination protocol which combines oral and parenteral antigen administration to produce antibody activity mediated mainly by IgM is described. Its efficacy in affording protection to neonatal piglets was tested against a lethal oral infection with a virulent strain of Escherichia coli "Abbottstown". Piglets suckled on vaccinated or non-vaccinated sows were exposed to an infective challenge in the gastrointestinal tract and the relative pathology in test and control groups observed over the neonatal period. Death ensued in 76 per cent of piglets suckled on control sows and 26 per cent of piglets suckled on sows vaccinated by two intramuscular injections. Litters suckled on orally vaccinated sows were able to resist a similar infective challenge, there being only one fatality out of 42 piglets.