Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of butorphanol in llamas after intravenous and intramuscular administration.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate disposition of butorphanol after i.v. and i.m. administration, effects on physiologic variables, and analgesic efficacy after i.m. administration in llamas. DESIGN: Nonrandomized crossover study. ANIMALS: 6 healthy adult male llamas. PROCEDURE: Butorphanol (0.1 mg/kg [0.045 mg/lb] of body weight) was administered i.m. first and i.v. 1 month later. Blood samples were collected intermittently for 24 hours after administration. Plasma butorphanol versus time curves were subjected to pharmacokinetic analysis. Two months later, butorphanol (0.1 mg/kg) was administered i.m., and physiologic variables and analgesia were assessed. RESULTS: Extrapolated peak plasma concentrations after i.v. and i.m. administration were 94.8 +/- 53.1 and 34.3 +/- 11.6 ng/ml, respectively. Volume of distribution at steady state after i.v. administration was 0.822 +/- 0.329 L/kg per minute and systemic clearance was 0.050 +/- 0.014 L/kg per minute. Slope of the elimination phase was significantly different, and elimination half-life was significantly shorter after i.v. (15.9 +/- 9.1 minutes) versus i.m. (66.8 +/- 13.5 minutes) administration. Bioavailability was 110 +/- 49% after i.m. administration. Heart rate decreased and rectal temperature increased. Somatic analgesia was increased for various periods. Two llamas became transiently sedated, and 2 became transiently excited after butorphanol administration. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Although i.v. administration of butorphanol results in a short half-life that may limit its analgesic usefulness, the elimination half-life of butorphanol administered i.m. is likely to be clinically useful. The relationship among plasma butorphanol concentration, time, and analgesia differed with the somatic analgesia model; clinically useful analgesia may occur at lower plasma concentrations than those reported here.     

Pilot Production of Hatchery-Reared Summer Flounder Paralichthys dentatus in a Marine Recirculating Aquaculture System: The Effects of Ration Level on Growth, Feed Conversion, and Survival

Pilot‐scale trials were conducted to evaluate growout performance of hatchery‐reared summer flounder fingerlings in a state‐of‐the‐art recirculating aquaculture system (RAS). The outdoor RAS consisted of four 4.57‐m dia × 0.69‐m deep (vol. =11.3 m³) covered, insulated tanks and associated water treatment components. Fingerlings (85.1 g mean initial weight) supplied by a commercial hatchery were stocked into two tanks at a density of 1,014 fish/tank (7.63 kg/m³). Fish were fed an extruded dry floating diet consisting of 50% protein and 12% lipid. The temperature was maintained between 20 C and 23 C and the salinity was 34 ppt. Under these conditions, growth, growth variation (CV_wt), feed utilization, and survival of fish fed to 100% and 82% of a satiation rate were compared. Due to clear changes in growth patterns during the study, data was analyzed in three phases. During phase 1 (d 1–d 196), fish showed rapid growth, reaching a mean weight of 288 g ± 105 and 316 g ± 102, with a CV_wt of 0.36 and 0.32 and FCR's of 1.38 and 1.36 in the subsatiation and satiation groups, respectively. During phase 2 (d 196–d 454), fish displayed slower growth reaching mean weights of 392 g ± 144 and 436 g ± 121, with a CV_wt of 0.37 and 0.28, and increasing FCR's of 3.45 and 3.12 in the subsatiation and satiation groups, respectively. During phase 3 (d 454–d 614), fish showed little growth reaching mean weights of 399 g ± 153 and 440 g ± 129, with a CV_wt of 0.38 and 0.29 in the subsatiation and satiation groups, respectively. Over the entire growout period (d 1–d 614), feed conversion ratios were 2.39 and 2.37 and survival was 75% and 81 % in the subsatiation and satiation treatments, respectively. The maximum biomass density reached during the study was 32.3 kg/m³. The satiation feed rate was superior to the 82% satiation rate, since it maximized growth rates, with no effect on FCR. The higher CV_wt in the subsatiation group suggests increased competition for a restricted ration led to a slower growth with more growth variation. The decrease in growth in phases 2 and 3 was probably related to a high percentage of slower growing male fish in the population and the onset of sexual maturity. This study demonstrated that under commercial scale conditions, summer flounder can be successfully grown to a marketable size in a recirculating aquaculture system. Based on these results, it is recommended that a farmer feed at a satiation rate to minimize growout time. More research is needed to maintain high growth rates through marketable sizes through all‐female production and/or inhibition of sexual maturity.     

A framework for evaluation of on-farm mastitis diagnostics in Australia

Numerous culture-based diagnostics are available on the Australian and international markets for on-farm detection of bacterial pathogens in milk. Use of such diagnostics may provide an opportunity to improve the prudent use of antimicrobials in udder health management. Farms are low-resource settings in terms of diagnostic microbiology capacity. The World Health Organisation has identified criteria for the evaluation of diagnostic tests in low resource settings based on Accuracy, Sensitivity, Specificity, User-friendliness, being Rapid or Robust, Equipment-free and being Deliverable (ASSURED). Here, we review how those criteria can be interpreted in the context of microbiological diagnosis of mastitis pathogens, and how on-farm diagnostics that are currently available in Australia perform relative to ASSURED criteria. This evaluation identifies multiple trade-offs, both with regard to scientific criteria and with regards to convenience criteria. More importantly, the purpose of testing may differ between farms, and test performance should be evaluated relative to its intended use. The ability of on-farm mastitis diagnostics to inform mastitis treatment decision-making in a timely and cost-effective manner depends not just on test characteristics but also on farm-specific pathogen prevalence, and on the farm enterprise's priorities and the farm manager's potential courses of action. With most assay evaluations to date conducted in professional laboratories, there is a surprising dearth of information on how well any of the diagnostic tests perform on-farm and, indeed, of the on-farm decision-making processes that they aim to inform.     

The Creative Economies of Texas Metropolitan Regions: A Comparative Analysis Before,During, and After the Recession

With the exception of Austin, metropolitan regions in Texas are not commonly included in research and analysis concerning creative economies—attention is largely focused on either the traditional capitals of creative production, New York and Los Angeles, or emerging, secondary regions such as Austin and Seattle, Washington. This article utilizes an industrial approach to examine the creative economies of the four most populous metropolitan regions of Texas—Austin, Dallas‐Ft. Worth, Houston, and San Antonio—and detail their scale, scope, and change between 2005 and 2015. Results help establish the creative economies of the Dallas‐Ft. Worth, Houston, and San Antonio metropolitan regions in the existing stream of creative research and discussion, offer further perspective on the dynamics and strength of the Austin region's creative economy, and provide insight into how regional creative economies emerge in rapidly urbanizing regions during the digital era. Additionally, special attention is paid to how these four creative economies transformed during the recessionary period from 2007 to 2009. Results of that attention build on prior research which points to the recession having a varied influence on creative economies depending on trends in the broader regional economies that house them.     

Efficacy of Netminder® silicone release coating for biofouling reduction in bay scallop grow‐out and comparative effects on scallop survival,growth and reproduction

Netminder^®, a water‐based silicone barrier release coating, was highly effective in reducing biofouling of lantern nets during grow‐out/overwintering of bay scallops, Argopecten irradians irradians, in a large‐scale restoration programme in New York, USA. Compared with untreated nets, scallops held in Netminder^®‐coated nets experienced reduced survival after 8 months, probably due to higher loads of epibionts on their shells. However, this was countered by higher reproductive and overall condition of scallops in treated vs. untreated nets; there were no consistent differences in shell growth in different net treatments. Although further testing is recommended under a wider range of conditions, we conclude that for the purposes of our scallop restoration work, coating nets with Netminder^® would eliminate the need for a gear change in spring, thus reducing labour costs; the coating process should be refined so that Velcro closures of nets do not become sealed shut.     

Plants as de-worming agents of livestock in the Nordic countries: historical perspective, popular beliefs and prospects for the future.

Preparations derived from plants were the original therapeutic interventions used by man to control diseases (including parasites), both within humans and livestock. Development of herbal products depended upon local botanical flora with the result that different remedies tended to develop in different parts of the world. Nevertheless, in some instances, the same or related plants were used over wide geographic regions, which also was the result of communication and/or the importation of plant material of high repute. Thus, the Nordic countries have an ancient, rich and diverse history of plant derived anthelmintic medications for human and animal use. Although some of the more commonly used herbal de-wormers were derived from imported plants, or their products, many are from endemic plants or those that thrive in the Scandinavian environment. With the advent of the modern chemotherapeutic era, and the discovery, development and marketing of a seemingly unlimited variety of highly efficacious, safe synthetic chemicals with very wide spectra of activities, herbal remedies virtually disappeared from the consciousness--at least in the Western world. This attitude is now rapidly changing. There is a widespread resurgence in natural product medication, driven by major threats posed by multi-resistant pest, or disease, organisms and the diminishing public perceptions that synthetic chemicals are the panacea to health and disease control. This review attempts to provide a comprehensive account of the depth of historical Nordic information available on herbal de-wormers, with emphasis on livestock and to provide some insights on potentially rewarding areas of "re-discovery" and scientific evaluation in this field.     

A multisite case report on the clinical use of sevoflurane in dogs

The purpose of this report was to evaluate the clinical safety and efficacy of sevoflurane as an inhalant anesthetic in dogs. Subjective and objective data from 196 clinical cases utilizing sevoflurane as the maintenance anesthetic was collected at three sites. After preanesthetic evaluation, the attending anesthesiologist assigned the dogs to one of the following six anesthetic protocols: protocol 1, oxymorphone premedication and thiopental induction; protocol 2, oxymorphone/acetylpromazine premedication and thiopental induction; protocol 3, xylazine/butorphanol premedication and thiopental induction; protocol 4, opioid premedication and propofol induction; protocol 5, optional premedication and mask induction with sevoflurane in oxygen; and protocol 6, optional premedication and optional induction. The average quality of induction, maintenance, and recovery was good to excellent in all protocols. The three most common side effects during maintenance and recovery were hypotension, tachypnea, and apnea. Sevoflurane produces anesthesia in dogs comparable to the other inhalation anesthetics currently used (i.e., halothane and isoflurane) for diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.