Mammary carcinoma arising in an adenoma in a ewe

A large, firm, multi-cystic mammary gland mass grew slowly over 4 y in a 12-y-old, female Finn–Shetland cross sheep. A diagnosis of epithelial malignancy was suspected following fine-needle aspiration cytology at 30 mo after initial observation. The sheep was euthanized when the flock was downsized 18 mo later. A field postmortem examination revealed a large mammary mass, but an absence of metastases to internal organs. Imprint cytology of the mammary tissue supported a benign proliferative process. Histologically, mammary tissue was obliterated by cystic, tubular, and papillary adenomatous arrangements of mammary epithelium, with an anaplastic component, consistent with mammary carcinoma arising in an adenoma. IHC showed strong nuclear positivity to the antibody against progesterone receptor and minimal positivity to the antibody against estrogen receptor alpha expression. Intrinsic subtyping for basal or luminal epithelial origin was attempted through adaptation of companion animal IHC classification panels; high- and low-molecular-weight cytokeratins (CK5, CK8, CK18) failed to stain, but p63 expression for basal epithelium was positive.     

Threats to at-risk salmonids of the Canadian Rocky Mountain region

Trout and charr, members of the salmonid family, have high conservation value but are also susceptible to anthropogenic threats in part due to the specificity of their habitat requirements. Understanding historical and future threats facing these species is necessary to promote their recovery. Of freshwater trout and charr in the Canadian Rocky Mountain region, westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi), bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus; a charr species) and Athabasca rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) are of conservation concern. And indeed, range contractions and declining populations are evident throughout much of their ranges. Range contraction was most evident in the southern Alberta designatable unit (DU) of westslope cutthroat trout. Diminished populations were also evident in the downstream watersheds of the Alberta bull trout range, and throughout the Athabasca rainbow trout range. We assessed historical and future threats to evaluate the relative importance of individual threats to each DU and compare their impact among species. Individual threats fall into the broad categories of angling, non-native species and genes, habitat loss and alteration, and climate change. Severity of each threat varies by DU and reflects the interaction between species’ biology and the location of the DU. Severity of threats facing each DU has changed over time, reflecting extirpation of native populations, changes in management and industry best practices, expansion of non-native species and progressing climate change. The overall threat impact for each DU indicates a high probability of substantial and continuing declines and calls for immediate action.     

Impact of grassland contract policy on soil organic carbon losses from alpine grassland on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

Carbon storage in the soils on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau plays a very important role in the global carbon budget. In the 1990s, a policy of contracting collective grasslands to smaller units was implemented, resulting in a change from the traditional collective grassland management to two new management patterns: a multi‐household management pattern (MMP: grassland shared by several households without enclosures) and a single‐household management pattern (SMP: grassland enclosed and used by only one household). In 2016, 50 MMP and 54 SMP winter pastures on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau were sampled to assess the differences in soil organic carbon (SOC) between the two management patterns. Results showed that average SOC was significantly greater under MMP than under SMP, with an estimated 0.41 Mg C/ha/yr lost due to SMP following the new grassland contract. Based on the government's grassland policy, four grassland utilization scenarios were developed for both summer and winter pastures. We found that if the grassland were managed under SMP, likely C losses ranged between 0.31 × 10⁷ and 6.15 × 10⁷ Mg C/yr across the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau relative to MMP, which more closely resembles pre‐1990s grassland management. Previous estimates of C losses have only considered land use change (with cover change) and ignored the impacts driven by land management pattern changes (without cover change). The new data suggest that C losses from the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau are greater than previously estimated, and therefore that the grassland contract policy should be reviewed and SMP households should be encouraged to reunite into the MMP. These findings have potential implications for land management strategies not only on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau but also other grazing regions globally where such practices may exist.     

Beaver dams,streamflow complexity,and the distribution of a rare minnow,Lepidomeda copei

Freshwater fishes are threatened globally, and often too little is known about threatened species to effectively guide their conservation. Habitat complexity is linked to fish species diversity and persistence, and degraded streams often lack habitat complexity. Beaver Castor spp., in turn, have been used to restore streams and increase habitat complexity. The northern leatherside chub Lepidomeda copei is a rare, small‐bodied, drift‐feeding minnow that has anecdotally been observed to use complex habitats associated with beaver dams in the western United States. To investigate this anecdote, we conducted fish and habitat surveys, the latter focusing on quantifying habitat complexity, in a sub‐basin of the Upper Snake River Basin in the USA. Complementary generalised linear model and path analyses revealed that northern leatherside chub occurred more often at sites with complex streamflows, and streamflows were more complex when beaver dams were present and pools were deeper. Northern leatherside chubs were also more likely to occur when temperatures were warmer, aquatic macrophytes were abundant and stream channels were narrow and deep. The linkage between chubs, complex streamflows and beaver dams needs to be evaluated more broadly to completely understand its role in the rangewide status of the species. However, it does suggests that increased use of beaver reintroductions and dam analogues for stream restoration could be a boon for the northern leatherside chub, but such efforts should be monitored to determine their effectiveness to help adapt beaver‐based restoration approaches to best benefit the species.     

Cryptococcal osteomyelitis in a dog

Osteomyelitis caused by Cryptococcus neoformans was diagnosed in a three-year-old male Irish wolfhound. The case details and radiological findings of radiolucency and periosteal reaction of the left third metatarsal bone had lead to an initial diagnosis of a malignant bone tumour. Biopsy revealed a fungal granuloma and culture identified the causal organism. A four month course of ketaconazole was instigated and the lameness resolved. Twelve months after the end of treatment there was no recurrence of the problem.     

Evaluation of abomasal outflow diversion as an experimental model of hypochloremic, hypokalemic metabolic alkalosis in lactating cows.

Four adult, lactating dairy cows were subjected to diversion (loss) of gastric contents through a T-shaped cannula placed in the cranial part of the duodenum just distal to the pylorus. Diversion was continued for 10 to 12 hours, at which point the cows were very weak and depressed. The volume of effluent during this period ranged from 37.3 to 46.8 L, with the largest volume being produced during the first four hours. All cows became dehydrated, with mean packed cell volume and total plasma protein concentration increasing 30% and 19.6%, respectively, but with only a slight increase in plasma creatinine concentration. Plasma Cl- concentrations decreased from a mean of 97.3 mEq/L at the beginning of diversion to a mean of 87.2 mEq/L at eight hours. This was followed by a plateau or slight increase in concentrations over the final hours of diversion. Plasma K+ concentration followed a similar pattern, decreasing from a mean of 3.9 mEq/L to a mean of 2.94 mEq/L at six hours, followed by increasing values until termination of diversion. No changes in plasma Na+ concentration were noted, except for a mild decrease in one cow. Plasma calcium concentrations decreased significantly, reaching 6.6 +/- 0.6 mEq/L at the end of diversion. Venous pH, plasma HCO3- concentration, and plasma base excess concentration increased during the first four to eight hours of diversion, followed by a gradual decline. Although a mild hypochloremic metabolic alkalosis resulted from diversion of abomasal outflow in all cows, substantiated by a mild increase in plasma strong ion difference, the changes observed were not as great as expected.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Antibody response to crustacean ectoparasites in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), immunized with Argulus foliaceus L. antigen extract

Abstract. A humoral antibody response was demonstrated by ELISA in rainbow trout immunized intraperitoneally with extracts from the branchiuran ectoparasite Argulus foliaceus. A similar immunization protocol produced a higher titre response in a rabbit. Both trout and rabbit identified several antigenic components on immunoblots. ELISA and immunoblotting indicated that rainbow trout and rabbit anti-A. foliaceus sera identified components from the parasitic copepods Lepeophtheirus salmonis and Caligus elongatus.     

Effects of dietary molybdenum on nematode and host during Haemonchus contortus infection in lambs.

The addition of molybdenum (0.05 mmol kg-1 dry-matter) to the diet of lambs given a trickle infection of Haemonchus contortus larvae (500 third stage larvae d-1 over six weeks) reduced mean faecal egg counts (epg) from 3952 to 2312 +/- 402 by 32 days (P less than 0.02) and greatly reduced the mean number of worms recovered from the abomasum 14 days after infection ceased (907 compared with 4167: P less than 0.01). Infection reduced haemoglobin concentrations less in lambs given molybdenum although the difference was small relative to the reduction in worm burden. Lambs not given molybdenum had low intraepithelial mast cell counts in the abomasal mucosa and less abomasal hypertrophy than expected from abomasal parasitism. Molybdenum did not consistently reduce the copper status of the host or the parasite. Previous exposure to molybdenum greatly reduced protein but not proteinase activity in, or secreted by, adult worms cultured for eight hours. It is suggested that molybdenum either increased the inflammatory response which preceded worm rejection or that it indirectly enhanced that reaction by reducing the effectiveness of copper-dependent, anti-inflammatory enzymes in the gastrointestinal mucosa.     

Evaluation of a monoclonal blocking ELISA and IHA for antibodies to Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae in SPF-pig herds.

A monoclonal blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and an indirect haemagglutination assay (IHA) were applied to serum samples from 124 specific pathogen-free (SPF) breeding and multiplying herds, which participate in the routine serological surveillance of the Danish SPF programme. Clinical and pathological observations of the herds and microbiological culturing of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae were used to calculate herd sensitivity, herd specificity and herd predictive values for the two serological assays. The ELISA was superior to the IHA in herd sensitivity and herd specificity, with values of 93 per cent and 96 per cent, respectively, for the ELISA, and 61 per cent and 92 per cent for the IHA. During the six month period of evaluation 2.5 per cent of the herds were infected with M hyopneumoniae each month. At this level the IHA was found to have a positive herd predictive value of 16 per cent, compared with 39 per cent for the ELISA. The negative herd-predictive value on the same level was 99.8 per cent for the ELISA and 98.9 per cent for the IHA. If the assays were applied to a group of herds with a herd prevalence of M hyopneumoniae infection of 30 per cent (as is the case with the production herds in the Danish SPF programme) the predictive value of a positive herd diagnosis would be 91 per cent for the ELISA and 76 per cent for the IHA, and the predictive value of a negative herd diagnosis would be 97 per cent with the ELISA and 85 per cent with the IHA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)