Absence of Typical Haversian System from the Compact Bone of Some Reptile and Bird Species

Background and Objective: Mammalian compact bone is composed mostly of Haversian system. Although there are many studies describing the typical Haversian system in mammals, there are few studies conducted on bones from non-mammalian species. The objective of the current study was to investigate the existence of the typical Haversian system in compact bones from reptiles and birds. Materials and Methods: Femora were collected from geckos, Nile monitors, sparrows, ducks and geese. Samples were then, fixed in 10% paraformaldehyde and embedded in paraffin. Paraffin sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin or Von Kossa and then examined using light microscopy. Results: The current study showed different histological structures of compact bones from studied species and an absence of the typical Haversian system seen in mammals. The compact bone of geckos was mostly avascular, while Nile monitor bone was highly vascular. Sparrow bone showed one side vascular and the other side avascular. The vascularity was represented by primary vascular canals surrounded by a few irregularly arranged osteocytes inside their lacunae forming primary osteons. Bone tissue from ducks and geese were similar and were composed mostly of dense Haversian tissue, while some areas had primary osteons. Conclusion: The compact bone microstructure in some reptile and bird species lack the typical Haversian system described in mammals. This will be of a great importance in developing a better understanding of long bone anatomy and physiology in different species

Morphological and Biochemical Adaptive Changes Associated With A Short-period Starvation of Adult Male Japanese Quail (Coturnix japonica)

Objective: The morphological and biochemical impact of a short-period of starvation on Japanese quail was investigated. Materials and Methods: Ten adult male Japanese quail were divided into two groups; control fed and starved. The control-fed group was offered food and water ad libitum and the starved group was subjected to a short-period of food deprivation. After 2.5 days, the serum was obtained and different parameters including the total protein, AST, ALT, triglyceride, HDL, LDL, creatinine and urea were assessed. Gastrointestinal tract, stomach and liver were excised and their masses were estimated. Paraffin and resin embedded sections from the proventriculus, gizzard, liver, duodenum, kidney and pancreas were examined with a light microscopy. Results: Significant decreases in the masses of body, gastrointestinal tract, stomach and liver of the starved group were recorded. The liver and duodenum were the most affected organs. The liver showed depletion of glycogen, vacuolation, hyperemia and cellular infiltrations. Duodenal villi showed degenerative changes in lamina epithelialis and cellular infiltrations in the lamina propria. Biochemical analysis revealed a decreased level of total protein, AST and ALT, increased cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL and unchanged HDL, urea and creatinine by starvation. Conclusion: The current study described in details the effect of short time starvation on quail organs. Time-point adaptive responses of male quail to starvation and refeeding will be investigated in future studies

Median sternotomy in penetrating cardiac trauma , does it make a difference ?

Background: Studies comparing the outcomes of left lateral thoracotomy and median sternotomy in the management of penetrating cardiac trauma in the Egyptian setting are lacking, which motivated us to conduct the current study. This study aimed to compare the perioperative and short-term outcomes between median sternotomy and left anterior thoracotomy in the management of patients with penetrating cardiac injuries. Methods: A total of 40 patients with penetrating cardiac trauma were included: 34 were males (85%), and 6 were females (15%). The mean age was 35.00 ± 10.83 years. Patients were allocated into two groups: Group A (n= 20) was managed with median sternotomy, and Group B (n= 20) was managed with left lateral thoracotomy. The study outcomes included operative time, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative pain score, duration of mechanical ventilation, length of ICU stay, postoperative complications and mortality. Results: The right ventricle was the most common injury site (60% vs. 50%, p= 0.619 in Groups A and B, respectively). Left lateral thoracotomy was associated with longer operation times [3750 (1500 – 6000) vs. 185 (70 - 260) mins, p= 0.002]. Left lateral thoracotomy patients had longer ICU stays [5 (2 – 7) vs. 3 (2 – 5) days, p= 0.004] and hospital stays [7 (4 – 12) vs. 5 (4 – 7) days, p= 0.001]. There were no differences in wound infection, pericardial effusion, or mortality between the groups. The pain score was lower in the median sternotomy group postoperatively from day 2 to day 7. Conclusion: Median sternotomy was associated with a significant decrease in operation time, blood loss, pain score, duration of ICU stay, and hospitalization period. The median sternotomy approach could be preferred over the thoracotomy approach in patients with penetrating cardiac injury

Comparative infectivity and transmissibility studies of wild-bird and chicken-origin highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses H5N8 in chickens

Despite the recent advances in avian influenza viruses surveillance and genomic data, fundamental questions concerning the ecology and evolution of these viruses remain elusive. In Egypt, H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses (HPAIVs) are co-circulating simultaneously with HPAIVs of subtypes H5N1 and low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses (LPAIVs) of subtype H9N2 in both commercial and backyard poultry. In order to isolate AIVs from wild birds and to assess their potential in causing infection in commercial poultry, a total of thirty-four cloacal swab samples were collected from apparently healthy migratory wild birds (Anas acuta, Anas crecca, Rallus aquaticus, and Bubulcus ibis) from four Egyptian Governorates (Giza, Menoufia, Gharbia, and Dakahlia). Based on matrix (M) gene-targeting real-time reverse transcriptase PCR and subsequent genetic characterization, our results revealed two positive isolates (2/34) for H5N8 whereas no H5N1 and H9N2 subtypes were detected. Genetic characterization of the full-length haemagglutinin (HA) genes revealed the clustering of two reported isolates within genotype 5 of clade 2.3.4.4b. The potential of a wild bird-origin H5N8 virus isolated from a cattle egret for its transmission capability within and between chickens was investigated in compare to chicken origin H5N8 AIV. Chickens inoculated with cattle egret isolate showed varying clinical signs and detection of virus shedding. In contrast, the contact chickens showed less levels of virus secretion indicating efficient virus inter/intra-species transmission. These results demonstrated the possibility for spreading of wild bird origin H5N8 viruses between chicken. In conclusion, our study highlights the need for continuous and frequent monitoring of the genetic diversity of H5N8 AIVs in wild birds as well as commercial poultry sectors for better understanding and determining the genetic nature of these viruses, which is fundamental to predict any future threat through virus reassortment with the potential to threaten human and animal health. Likewise, an assessment of coverage and efficacy of different vaccines and or vaccination regimes in the field conditions should be reconsidered along with strict biosecurity measures

Insights into the genetic evolution of duck hepatitis a virus in Egypt

Duck hepatitis virus (DHV) is one of the commercially important diseases of ducklings worldwide. It is an acute and highly infectious disease of ducklings caused by three different sero-types (1–3) of duck hepatitis A virus (DHAV), and serotype 1 is the most common in poultry. To date, little is known about the prevalence and genetic characterisation of DHAV-1 in Egypt. In the current study, isolation and complete genomic analyses of DHAVs circulating in commercial duck farms in different Egyptian governorates were conducted. A total of eighteen samples were collected from six Egyptian governorates of 3–11 days old ducklings (Pekin and Mullard) with a his-tory of nervous signs and high mortality rates. Five out of eighteen (5/18) samples were screened positive for the DHAV-1 based on the VP1 gene. These samples were individually used for virus isolation in embryonated duck embryos (EDE), followed by complete genome sequencing. Phylo-genomic analyses showed that DHAV serotype I; genotype I were diversified into four different groups (1, 2, 3 and 4). Most of the recent circulating Egyptian DHAV strains are clustered within group 4, while isolates characterised within this study were clustered within group 1. Recombination analyses revealed that the emergence of a new recombinant virus—DHAV-1 strain Egypt-10/2019—through recombination. Likewise, the selective pressure analyses showed the existence, inside or near areas of the viral attachment or related functions, of positive scores highlighting the importance of natural selection and viral evolution mechanism at different protein domains. The findings of this study provide updated information on the epidemiological and genetic features of DHAV-1 strains and underscore the importance of DHAV surveillance as well as re-evaluation for currently used vaccines

MicroRNA-208a: a Good Diagnostic Marker and a Predictor of no-Reflow in STEMI Patients Undergoing Primary Percutaneuos Coronary Intervention

MicroRNA-208a is a cardiac specific oligo-nucleotide. We aimed at investigating the ability of microRNA-208a to diagnose myocardial infarction and predict the outcome of primary percutaneuos coronary angiography (PCI). Patients (n = 75) presented by chest pain were recruited into two groups. Group 1 (n = 40) had ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and underwent primary PCI: 21 patients had sufficient reperfusion and 19 had no-reflow. Group 2 (n = 35) had negative cardiac troponins (cTns). Plasma microRNA-208a expression was assessed using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and patients were followed for occurrence of in-hospital major adverse cardiac events (MACE). MicroRNA-208a could diagnose of MI (AUC of 0.926). After primary PCI, it was superior to cTnT in prediction of no-reflow (AUC difference of 0.231, P = 0.0233) and MACE (AUC difference of 0.367, P = 0.0053). Accordingly, circulating levels of miR-208a can be used as a diagnostic marker of MI and a predictor of no-reflow and in-hospital MACE

Transgenic chicks expressing interferon-inducible transmembrane protein 1 (Ifitm1) restrict highly pathogenic h5n1 influenza viruses

Mammalian cells utilize a wide spectrum of pathways to antagonize the viral replication. These pathways are typically regulated by antiviral proteins and can be constitutively expressed but also exacerbated by interferon induction. A myriad of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) have been identified in mounting broad-spectrum antiviral responses. Members of the interferon-induced transmembrane (IFITM) family of proteins are unique among these ISGs due to their ability to prevent virus entry through the lipid bilayer into the cell. In the current study, we generated transgenic chickens that constitutively and stably expressed chicken IFITM1 (chIFITM1) using the avian sarcomaleukosis virus (RCAS)-based gene transfer system. The challenged transgenic chicks with clinical dose 104 egg infective dose 50 (EID50 ) of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) subtype H5N1 (clade 2.2.1.2) showed 100% protection and significant infection tolerance. Although challenged transgenic chicks displayed 60% protection against challenge with the sub-lethal dose (EID50 105 ), the transgenic chicks showed delayed clinical symptoms, reduced virus shedding, and reduced histopathologic alterations compared to non-transgenic challenged control chickens. These finding indicate that the sterile defense against H5N1 HPAIV offered by the stable expression of chIFITM1 is inadequate; however, the clinical outcome can be substantially ameliorated. In conclusion, chIFITM proteins can inhibit influenza virus replication that can infect various host species and could be a crucial barrier against zoonotic infections. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Evolutionary Trajectories of Avian Avulaviruses and Vaccines Compatibilities in Poultry.

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) causes one of the highly infectious avian diseases in poultry leading to genuine financial misfortunes around the world. Recently, there has been an increasing trend in the number of ND-associated outbreaks in commercial Jordanian poultry flocks indicating a possible complex evolutionary dynamic of NDV infections in the country. To underpin the dynamics of circulating NDV strains and to assess the vaccine-escape potential, a total of 130 samples were collected from different poultry flocks in six Jordanian Governorates during 2019-2021. Twenty positive isolates, based on real-time reverse transcriptase PCR, were used for further genetic characterization and evolutionary analysis. Our results showed that there is a high evolutionary distance between the newly identified NDV strains (genotype VII.1.1) in this study and the commercially used vaccines (genotypes I and II), suggesting that circulating NDV field strains are under constant evolutionary pressure. These mutations may significantly affect flocks that have received vaccinations as well as flocks with insufficient immunity in terms of viral immunity and disease dynamics. To assess this further, we investigated the efficacy of the heterologous inactivated LaSota or homologous genotype VII.1.1 vaccine for their protection against virulent NDV in chicken. Vaccine-induced immunity was evaluated based on the serology, and protection efficacy was assessed based on clinical signs, survival rates, histopathology, and viral shedding. Chickens vaccinated with the inactivated genotype VII.1.1 based vaccine showed 100% protection with a significant reduction in virus shedding, and ameliorated histopathology lesions compared to LaSota vaccinated chicks that showed 60% protection. These results revealed that the usage of NDV inactivated vaccine from the circulating field strains can successfully ameliorate the clinical outcome and virus pathobiology in vaccinated chicks and will serve as an effective vaccine against the threat posed by commonly circulating NDV strains in the poultry industry