Comparison of Lateral and Dorsal Recumbency During Endoscope-Assisted Oophorectomy in Mature Pond Sliders (Trachemys Scripta)

Ovariectomy via the prefemoral fossa is a well-described technique for sterilization in chelonians. The choice between lateral and dorsal recumbency is generally left to the surgeon\u2019s preference, with no data supporting an objective superiority of one over the other. Twenty-four sexually mature female pond sliders (Trachemys scripta) were enrolled for elective prefemoral endoscope-assisted oophorectomy, and were randomly divided in two groups: 12 animals were placed in right lateral recumbency with a left fossa approach (Group A), and 12 in dorsal recumbency with a right fossa approach (Group B). Scoring systems were applied to assess the ease of access to the coelomic cavity, and the ease of identification of the ovary opposite to the surgical incision. A negative correlation was found between the body weight of the animals and the ease of access to the coelom (p = 0.013), making the access easier in smaller animals. No significant dierence was found between the two groups in terms of ease of access to the coelomic cavity, first ovary removal time, ease of identification of the second ovary, second ovary removal time, or total surgery time

The anatomy of the dog soft palate : III: histological evaluation of the caudal soft palate in brachycephalic neonates

A thickened and abnormally long soft palate is mostly involved in the pathogenesis of both nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal narrowing, affecting the respiratory activity in virtually all of the brachycephalic dogs suffering from Brachycephalic Airway Obstructive Syndrome (BAOS). The morphology of the soft palate in adult mesaticephalic and brachycephalic dogs has been previously described. In this article specimens from brachycephalic dog neonates (N\u2009=\u200910) dead from one to 3 hr after birth of unrelated conditions were collected and histologically evaluated at three transverse levels to describe the microscopic aspect of the caudal part of the soft palate. The soft palate of neonate brachycephalic dogs was histologically characterized by a musculo-connective axis containing salivary glands and coated by a mucosal layer on both the nasopharyngeal and the oral side. Quali-quantitative features, such as thickened superficial epithelium, broad oedema of the lamina propria, mucous gland hyperplasia and diverse muscular modifications described in adult brachycephalic dogs, were not observed in the soft palate of brachycephalic neonate dogs. The lack of tissue lesions in the soft palate of newborn brachycephalic dogs further supports the hypothesis that inspiratory depression during the inspiratory phase causes chronic vibration and microtrauma, which lead to soft palate alterations in adult brachycephalic dogs starting from the earliest grade of the respiratory syndrome. Overall, this study provides baseline information for the comprehension of the pathogenesis of BAOS

Data collection and advanced statistical analysis in phytotoxic activity of aerial parts exudates of Salvia spp

In order to define the phytotoxic potential of Salvia species a database was developed for fast and efficient data collection in screening studies of the inhibitory activity of Salvia exudates on the germination of Papaver rhoeas L. and Avena sativa L.. The structure of the database is associated with the use of algorithms for calculating the usual germination indices reported in the literature, plus the newly defined indices (Weighted Average Damage, Differential Weighted Average Damage, Germination Weighted Average Velocity) and other variables usually recorded in experiments of phytotoxicity (LC50, LC90). Furthermore, other algorithms were designed to calculate the one-way ANOVA followed by Duncan's multiple range test to highlight automatically significant differences between the species. The database model was designed in order to be suitable also for the development of further analysis based on the artificial neural network approach, using Self-Organising Maps (SOM)

Application of hyaluronic acid in the healing of non-experimental open wounds : A pilot study on 12 wounds in 10 client-owned dogs

Aim: Veterinarians have frequently to deal with wounds to the skin, subcutis, and underlying muscle. The aim was to explore the application of hyaluronic acid (HA)-containing dressing on open skin wounds in dogs. The progress of healing was assessed by wound area reduction and two scoring scales applied in human medicine. Materials and Methods: Ten client-owned dogs with 12 cutaneous open wounds healed by the second intention were included. All wounds were treated using available in commerce HA-containing wound dressing from admission to complete re-epithelialization. At every clinical examination, wound area and scale scoring assessments were performed. Results: After debridement, an increased wound size was obtained while an improvement was determined by both grading systems. The median numbers of return to the clinic for bandage change were 5 times. The median time to complete wound healing was 34.5 days. The mean wound area at day 7, 14, 21, and 28 were, respectively, 90.4%, 47.7%, 22.4%, and 14.8% of the original size (for linear measurement) and 95.5%, 54.4%, 23.10%, and 14.8% of the original size (for software measurement). Regarding wound healing assessment tools, the agreement between two operators was considered high for both scales. Conclusions: HA-containing dressing may be a possible wound treatment for cutaneous open wounds in dogs. The assessment of wound quality using scale scoring system could be useful especially in the 1st week and to direct clinical decision-making process

First evidence for an anxiolitic effect of a diterpenoid from Salvia cinnabarina

The potential anxiolytic and anti-depressive activity of CMP1 was studied in the elevated plus-maze test and in the forced swimming test. Furthermore, CMP1 sedative activity was evaluated in pentobarbital treated animals; the effect of CMP1 on spontaneous motor activity (total locomotion) was also evaluated. Our data show that CMP1, at doses that did not affect locomotion, was able to induce anxiolytic and sedative, but not anti-depressive effects. In conclusion, our results represent first evidence for an anxiolytic activity of this diterpenoid from Salvia cinnabarina

Retrospective investigation on the prevalence of pulmonary hypertension in dogs with bronchial and upper respiratory diseases

Bronchial and upper respiratory diseases have been associated with hypoxia and subsequent development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, there are no known studies assessing the prevalence of PAH in dogs with these conditions. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of PAH in dogs with bronchial and upper respiratory diseases. Medical records of dogs with confirmed diagnosis (by endoscopic examination) of bronchial and/or upper respiratory diseases referred for cardiovascular investigation (January 2009 - May 2013) were retrospectively reviewed. Diagnosis of PAH was made by echocardiography (tricuspid regurgitation >2.8 m/s and/or pulmonic regurgitation >2.2 m/s); possible PAH was diagnosed when two or more specific echocardiographic findings were present. 52 dogs (30 with upper respiratory diseases, 17 with bronchial disease and 5 with both) were included. Diagnosis of PAH was performed in 3 dogs (5.7%). Two dogs were considered as probably affected by PAH; a total of 5 dogs (9.4%) resulted in being affected or probably affected by PAH. Our study shows that the prevalence of PAH in dogs with bronchial and/or upper respiratory diseases is low; PAH seems to occur mostly in older dogs and/or with very advanced disease: echocardiography may therefore be a useful tool in this category of patients

Pretraživanje tradicionalnih europskih ljekovitih biljaka na inhibiciju acetilkolinesteraze i butirilkolinesteraze

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors are widely used for the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to enhance central cholinergic transmission. On the other hand, butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) inhibitors were reported to produce significant increases in brain extracellular AChE without triggering severe peripheral or central side-effects. In the present study, we selected twelve plants used in traditional European medicine to treat different central nervous system (CNS) disorders or to improve memory. Methanolic and hexane extracts of these plants were tested for the AChE and BuChE inhibitory activity using Ellman’s colorimetric method. The most potent AChE and BuChE inhibition was observed in the hexane extracts of the flowers of Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa and Ruta graveolens L. herb at a concentration of 400 μg mL1. However, methanolic extracts of the flowers of Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa and the Hypericum perforatum L. herb demonstrated at the same concentration, selective inhibition only against AChE but not against BuChE. The other extracts did not show any significant AChE or BuChE inhibitory activity. Our results show that further investigations of the extracts of arnica, rue and St. John’s Wort are needed to identify the compounds responsible for the AChE and BuChE inhibitory activityInhibitori acetilkolinesteraze (AChE) povećavaju kolinergičku transmisiju u mozgu, pa se koriste za simptomatsko liječenje Alzheimerove bolesti (AD). S druge strane, inhibitori butirilkolinesteraze (BuChE) značajno povećavaju ekstracelularnu količinu AChE u mozgu, a da pri tome ne uzrokuju snažne nuspojave ni u središnjem ni i perifernom živčanom sustavu. Galantamin, jedan od odobrenih AChE inhibitora, alkaloid iz lukovica narcisa, pokazuje da su biljke značajni izvor novih potencijalnih AChE- i BuChE- inhibitora. U ovom radu, ispitivali smo učinak dvanaest biljaka koje se koriste u tradicionalnoj europskoj medicini na različite poremećaje središnjeg živčanog sustava i na poboljšanje pamćenja. Pomoću Ellmanove kolorimetrijske metode praćen je inhibitorni učinak metanolnih i heksanskih ekstrakata tih biljaka na AChE i BuChE. Najjači inhibitorni učinak pokazali su heksanski ekstrakti cvjetova Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa i nadzemnih dijelova Ruta graveolens L. u koncentraciji od 400 μg mL1. Međutim, metanolni ekstrakti cvjetova Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa i nadzemnih dijelova Hypericum perforatum L. u istim koncentracijama pokazuju selektivnu inhibiciju samo na AChE. Ostali ekstrakti bili su nedjelotvorni. Rezultati ukazuju na potrebu daljnjih ispitivanja ekstrakata arnike, rute i gospine trave da se utvrdi koji su sastojci ekstrakata odgovorni za inhibiciju AChE i BuChE

Angiostrongylus vasorum infection in dogs from a cardiopulmonary dirofilariosis endemic area of Northwestern Italy : A case study and a retrospective data analysis

BACKGROUND: In Italy, Angiostrongylus vasorum, an emergent parasite, is being diagnosed in dogs from areas considered free of infection so far. As clinical signs are multiple and common to other diseases, its diagnosis can be challenging. In particular, in areas where angiostrongylosis and dirofilariosis overlap, a misleading diagnosis of cardiopulmonary dirofilariosis might occur even on the basis of possible misleading outcomes from diagnostic kits. CASE PRESENTATION: Two Cavalier King Charles spaniel dogs from an Italian breeding in the Northwest were referred to a private veterinary hospital with respiratory signs. A cardiopulmonary dirofilariosis was diagnosed and the dogs treated with ivermectin, but one of them died. At necropsy, pulmonary oedema, enlargement of tracheo-bronchial lymphnodes and of cardiac right side were detected. Within the right ventricle lumen, adults of A. vasorum were found. All dogs from the same kennel were subjected to faecal examination by FLOTAC and Baermann's techniques to detect A. vasorum first stage larvae; blood analysis by Knott's for Dirofilaria immitis microfilariae, and antigenic tests for both A. vasorum (Angio Detect\u2122) and D.immitis (DiroCHEK\uae Heartworm, Witness\uaeDirofilaria). The surviving dog with respiratory signs resulted positive for A. vasorum both at serum antigens and larval detection. Its Witness\uae test was low positive similarly to other four dogs from the same kennel, but false positive results due to cross reactions with A. vasorum were also considered. No dogs were found infected by A. vasorum. Eventually, the investigation was deepened by browsing the pathological database of Veterinary Pathology Laboratories at Veterinary School of Milan University through 1998-2016, where 11 cases of angiostrongylosis were described. Two out of 11 dogs had a mixed infection with Crenosoma vulpis. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrates the need for accurate surveys to acquire proper epidemiological data on A. vasorum infection in Northwestern Italy and for appropriate diagnostic methods. Veterinary clinicians should be warned about the occurrence of this canine parasite and the connected risk of a misleading diagnosis, particularly in areas endemic for cardiopulmonary dirofilariosis