Evaluating the use of cytosine arabinoside for treatment for recurrent canine steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis

BackgroundRelapses in steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA) are frequently observed but specific treatment protocols to address this problem are sparsely reported. Standard treatment includes prolonged administration of glucocorticoids as monotherapy or in combination with immunosuppressive drugs. The aim of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of cytosine arabinoside (CA) in combination with glucocorticoids for treatment of SRMA relapses in 12 dogs on a retrospective basis.MethodsDogs with recurrent episodes of SRMA and treated with a combination of CA and prednisolone were included. Information about clinical course, treatment response and adverse events was collected from medical records. Ethical approval was not required for this study.ResultsTen dogs (10/12) responded well to the treatment with clinical signs being completely controlled. One dog is in clinical remission, but still under treatment. One dog (8%) showed further relapse. Mean treatment period was 51 weeks. Adverse events of variable severity (grade 1–4/5) were documented in all dogs during treatment according to the veterinary cooperative oncology group grading. Three dogs developed severe adverse events. Laboratory findings showed marked changes up to grade 4. Diarrhoea and anaemia were the most often observed adverse events (6), followed by dermatitis (4), alopecia (3) and pneumonia (3). Including blood chemistry changes (13), 50 adverse events were found in total.ConclusionTreatment with CA and glucocorticoids resulted in clinical remission in 10/12 dogs, but a high incidence of adverse events occurred requiring additional measures. All adverse events could be managed successfully in all cases.</jats:sec

Fez1/Lzts1 absence impairs Cdk1/Cdc25C interaction during mitosis and predisposes mice to cancer development

The FEZ1/LZTS1 (LZTS1) protein is frequently downregulated in human cancers of different histo-types. LZTS1 is expressed in normal tissues, and its introduction in cancer cells inhibits cell growth and suppresses tumorigenicity, owing to an accumulation of cells in G2/M. Here, we define its role in cell cycle regulation and tumor progression by generating Lzts1 knockout mice. In Lzts1(-/-) mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs), Cdc25C degradation was increased during M phase, resulting in decreased Cdk1 activity. As a consequence, Lzts1(-/-) MEFs showed accelerated mitotic progression, resistance to taxol- and nocodazole-induced M phase arrest, and improper chromosome segregation. Accordingly, Lzts1 deficiency was associated with an increased incidence of both spontaneous and carcinogen-induced cancers in mice

Safety of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in dogs and cats: 488 cases (2002-2011)

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of adverse events within 24 hours after contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) in dogs and cats and compare the risk of death within 24 hours after imaging for animals that underwent ultrasonography with and without injection of a contrast agent. DESIGN: Retrospective case-control study. ANIMALS: 750 animals (411 case dogs, 238 control dogs, 77 case cats, and 24 control cats). PROCEDURES: At 11 institutions, medical records were reviewed of dogs and cats that had CEUS performed (cases) as were medical records of dogs and cats with clinical signs similar to those of case animals that had ultrasonography performed without injection of a contrast agent (controls). Information regarding signalment; preexisting disease; type, dose, and administration route of contrast agent used; immediate (within 1 hour after CEUS) and delayed (> 1 and ≤ 24 hours after CEUS) adverse events; and occurrence and cause of death (when available) was extracted from each medical record. Risk of death within 24 hours after ultrasonography was compared between case and control animals. RESULTS: Of the 411 case dogs, 3 had immediate adverse events (vomiting or syncope) and 1 had a delayed adverse event (vomiting). No adverse events were recorded for case cats. Twenty-three of 357 (6.4%) clinically ill case animals and 14 of 262 (5.3%) clinically ill control animals died within 24 hours after ultrasonography; risk of death did not differ between cases and controls. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that CEUS was safe in dogs and cats

Derelict fishing line provides a useful proxy for estimating levels of non-compliance with no-take marine reserves

No-take marine reserves (NTMRs) are increasingly being established to conserve or restore biodiversity and to enhance the sustainability of fisheries. Although effectively designed and protected NTMR networks can yield conservation and fishery benefits, reserve effects often fail to manifest in systems where there are high levels of non-compliance by fishers (poaching). Obtaining reliable estimates of NTMR non-compliance can be expensive and logistically challenging, particularly in areas with limited or non-existent resources for conducting surveillance and enforcement. Here we assess the utility of density estimates and re-accumulation rates of derelict (lost and abandoned) fishing line as a proxy for fishing effort and NTMR non-compliance on fringing coral reefs in three island groups of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP), Australia. Densities of derelict fishing line were consistently lower on reefs within old (> 20 year) NTMRs than on non-NTMR reefs (significantly in the Palm and Whitsunday Islands), whereas line densities did not differ significantly between reefs in new NTMRs (5 years of protection) and non-NTMR reefs. A manipulative experiment in which derelict fishing lines were removed from a subset of the monitoring sites demonstrated that lines re-accumulated on NTMR reefs at approximately one third (32.4%) of the rate observed on non-NTMR reefs over a thirty-two month period. Although these inshore NTMRs have long been considered some of the best protected within the GBRMP, evidence presented here suggests that the level of non-compliance with NTMR regulations is higher than previously assumed