Influence of a Liquid Nutritional Supplement on Water Intake in Experimental Beagle Dogs

Abstract The objectives were to evaluate the effects of a liquid nutritional supplement formulated for dogs on water intakes and urine output. A liquid nutritional supplement was tested by way of a crossover design in 8 experimental healthy Beagle dogs (4 males and 4 females, aged 9.3 years). The supplement (87 percent water, 2.7 percent protein, 2.6 percent fat, 0.4 percent crude fiber) was added to water and tested at 2 incorporation rates (50 or 70 ml/day/dog-D50 or D70) versus the control placebo (CO-water only). The dogs were kept in a controlled environment; water intakes and urine output were measured. Individual water intakes were characterised by large variations. Mean water intake increased significantly by 28 percent in dogs receiving the liquid nutritional supplement, in both genders, irrespectively of the dosage. Urine output was also increased, by 55 percent. Faeces scores remained unchanged. It was concluded that the liquid supplement increased water intake and urine output in a safe way, without increasing dramatically the daily dietary sodium chloride intake. The recommended dosage of the manufacturer-50 ml/day for dogs weighing 10 -20 kg BW is efficient. Increasing the dosage had no advantage, nor adverse effects. Increased water intake and urine output is of interest for dogs suffering from urolithiasis

The extent and effects of patient involvement in pictogram design for written drug information : a short systematic review

This short review provides insight into the extent and effectiveness of patient involvement in the design and evaluation of pictograms to support patient drug information. Pubmed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Embase, PsycINFO, Academic Search Premier and Web of Science were searched systematically; the 73 included articles were evaluated with the MMAT. We see that, usually, non-patient end-users are involved in the design of pharmaceutical pictograms - patients are more commonly involved in the final evaluation of pictogram success. Repeated involvement of (non-)patients aids the design of effective pharmaceutical pictograms, although there is limited evidence for such effects on patient perception of drug information or health behaviour.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Dissecting T cell lineage relationships by cellular barcoding

T cells, as well as other cell types, are composed of phenotypically and functionally distinct subsets. However, for many of these populations it is unclear whether they develop from common or separate progenitors. To address such issues, we developed a novel approach, termed cellular barcoding, that allows the dissection of lineage relationships. We demonstrate that the labeling of cells with unique identifiers coupled to a microarray-based detection system can be used to analyze family relationships between the progeny of such cells. To exemplify the potential of this technique, we studied migration patterns of families of antigen-specific CD8+ T cells in vivo. We demonstrate that progeny of individual T cells rapidly seed independent lymph nodes and that antigen-specific CD8+ T cells present at different effector sites are largely derived from a common pool of precursors. These data show how locally primed T cells disperse and provide a technology for kinship analysis with wider utility

Reducing discomfort while measuring crown Á heel length in neonates

Abstract Aim: To assess the degree of discomfort caused by length measurement in neonates, performed with one or both lower limbs extended, on the first and second day after birth, with either one or both lower limbs extended. Methods: Healthy full-term neonates were systematically sampled during the months of February and March 2004. Crown Áheel length was measured, using a 1-mm precision neonatometer, at approximately 8 h and 32 h after birth, with one and both lower limbs extended. The Neonatal Facial Coding System was used to assess discomfort during measurements. Data were analysed by parametric and non-parametric tests as appropriate. Results: Whatever the measurement technique, discomfort scores are significantly higher during the length measurement than at baseline. Whenever length measurements are performed, discomfort scores are significantly higher when extending both lower limbs rather than one lower limb (p B/0.006). The measured length is greater with one lower limb extended; however, the difference decreases over time, being 0.19 cm (95% CI 0.1 Á0.3; p B/0.001) at approximately 32 h of age. No significant differences in length were found between measurements at approximately 8 or 32 h, regardless of the technique used. The best correlation between length measurements with one or both lower limbs extended was observed at approximately 32 h after birth (r 0/0.98). Conclusion: Measuring crown Áheel length is a distressful procedure for the neonate. Measurements with one lower limb extended result in less discomfort than when both lower limbs are extended, without decreasing the accuracy

CD26-negative and CD26-positive tissue-resident fibroblasts contribute to functionally distinct CAF subpopulations in breast cancer

The origin of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in cancer remains to be identified. Here, single-cell transcriptomics, in vivo and in vitro studies suggest that CD26+ and CD26- normal fibroblasts transform into distinct CAF subpopulations in mouse models of breast cancer

The T7-Primer Is a Source of Experimental Bias and Introduces Variability between Microarray Platforms

Eberwine(-like) amplification of mRNA adds distinct 6–10 bp nucleotide stretches to the 5′ end of amplified RNA transcripts. Analysis of over six thousand microarrays reveals that probes containing motifs complementary to these stretches are associated with aberrantly high signals up to a hundred fold the signal observed in unaffected probes. This is not observed when total RNA is used as target source. Different T7 primer sequences are used in different laboratories and platforms and consequently different T7 primer bias is observed in different datasets. This will hamper efforts to compare data sets across platforms

One naive T cell, multiple fates in CD8+ T cell differentiation

The mechanism by which the immune system produces effector and memory T cells is largely unclear. To allow a large-scale assessment of the development of single naive T cells into different subsets, we have developed a technology that introduces unique genetic tags (barcodes) into naive T cells. By comparing the barcodes present in antigen-specific effector and memory T cell populations in systemic and local infection models, at different anatomical sites, and for TCR–pMHC interactions of different avidities, we demonstrate that under all conditions tested, individual naive T cells yield both effector and memory CD8+ T cell progeny. This indicates that effector and memory fate decisions are not determined by the nature of the priming antigen-presenting cell or the time of T cell priming. Instead, for both low and high avidity T cells, individual naive T cells have multiple fates and can differentiate into effector and memory T cell subsets