Healing of excisional wound in alloxan induced diabetic sheep: A planimetric and histopathologic study

Healing of skin wound is a multi-factorial and complex process. Proper treatment of diabetic wounds is still a major clinical challenge. Although diabetes mellitus can occur in ruminants, healing of wounds in diabetic ruminants has not yet been investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate healing of ovine excisional diabetic wound model. Eight 4-month-old Iranian Makoui wethers were equally divided to diabetic and nondiabetic groups. Alloxan monohydrate (60 mg kg-1, IV) was used for diabetes induction. In each wether, an excisional wound was created on the dorsum of the animal. Photographs were taken in distinct times for planimetric evaluation. Wound samples were taken on day 21 post-wounding for histopathologic evaluations of epidermal thickness, number of fibroblasts and number of new blood vessels. The planimetric study showed slightly delay in wound closure of diabetic animals, however, it was not significantly different from nondiabetic wounds (p ≥ 0.05). Furthermore, epidermal thickness, number of fibroblasts and number of blood vessels were significantly lower in diabetic group (p < 0.05). We concluded that healing of excisional diabetic wounds in sheep may be compromised, as seen in other species. However, contraction rate of these wounds may not be delayed due to metabolic features of ruminants and these animals might go under surgeries without any serious concern. However, healing quality of these wounds may be lower than normal wounds

Editorial

It is a pleasure to write an editorial for the 6th issue of Veterinary Research Forum (VRF). Since its publication in June 2010, the journal has received a huge amount of welcome among the different walks of scientists and clinicians. On time publication, meticulous referring and quick processing of manuscripts are the attributes, which we pride on them all. Of course, all these would not have been achievable if we did not have your sincere co-operation. Thus, I will take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt gratitude, in equal measure, to the authors, reviewers, the editorial board, the editorial office and our readers. I am also extremely delighted to announce since the publication of previous issue, VRF has been added to the list of ISI (Institute of Scientific Information) by Thomson Reuters Corporation. The same corporation which is also responsible for publishing Journal Citation Reports which lists an impact factor (IF) for each of the journals that it tracks. This is a really big step forward for our new journal and we hope to obtain a deserved IF of our own in not very distant future.We have also recently teamed up with CABI, so at the moment full text content indexing of VRF have been started on CABI data bank, meaning more availability for a larger audience.In the current issue, we have included a review article titled “Nutrigenomics & Its Applications in Animal Science”. This review article may fall a little bit short from the strict standards, which are in place for a review article within our journal. However, due to rather new and burgeoning content of the paper we thought our readers might find it quite interesting, so we went ahead with its publication.Finally, we are thinking of designing a new more user-friendly, more reliable website for VRF which can include easy-to-use options for submission, review and tracking manuscripts for everyone. Thus, your suggestions and ideas will be very welcome in this regard.We are always looking forward to hearing from you

Effects of flunixin meglumine on experimental tendon wound healing: A histopathological and mechanical study in rabbits

Tendons are frequently targets of injury in sports and work. Whether nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have beneficial effects on tendon healing is still a matter of debate. This study was conducted to evaluate effects of flunixin meglumine (FM) on tendon healing after experimentally induced acute trauma. Twenty eight adult male New Zealand White rabbits were subjected to complete transection of deep digital flexor tendons followed by suture placement. Treatment group received intramuscular injection of FM for three days, and controls received placebo. Subsequently, cast immobilization was continued for two weeks. Animals were sacrificed four weeks after surgery and tissue samples were taken. The histological evaluations revealed improved structural characteristics of neotendon formation including fibrillar linearity, fibrillar continuity and neovascularization in treatment group compared to those of controls (p 0.05). Mechanical evaluation revealed significant increase in load-related material properties including ultimate load, yield load, energy absorption and ultimate stress in treatment group compared to those of control group (p 0.05). The present study showed that intramuscular injection of FM resulted in improved structural and mechanical properties of tendon repairs and it could be an effective treatment for acute tendon injuries like severance and laceration

Comparative Study on Functional Effects of Allotransplantation of Bone Marrow Stromal Cells and Adipose Derived Stromal Vascular Fraction on Tendon Repair: A Biomechanical Study in Rabbits

Objective: Tendon never returns to its complete biological and mechanical properties after repair. Bone marrow and, recently, adipose tissue have been used as sources of mesenchymal stem cells which have been proven to enhance tendon healing. In the present study, we compared the effects of allotransplantation of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stromal cells (BMSCs) and adipose derived stromal vascular fraction (SVF) on tendon mechanical properties after experimentally induced flexor tendon transection. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, we used 48 adult male New Zealand white rabbits. Twelve of rabbits were used as donors of bone marrow and adipose tissue, the rest were divided into control and treatment groups. The injury model was a unilateral complete transection of the deep digital flexor tendon. Immediately after suture repair, 4×106 cells of either fresh SVF from enzymatic digestion of adipose tissue or cultured BMSCs were intratendinously injected into tendon stumps in the treatment groups. Controls received phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). Immobilization with a cast was continued for two weeks after surgery. Animals were sacrificed three and eight weeks after surgery and tendons underwent mechanical evaluations. The differences among the groups were analyzed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) test followed by Tukey’s multiple comparisons test. Results: Stromal cell transplantation resulted in a significant increase in ultimate and yield loads, energy absorption, and stress of repairs compared to the controls. However, there were no statistically significant changes detected in terms of stiffness. In comparison, we observed no significant differences at the third week between SVF and BMSCs treated tendons in terms of all load related properties. However, at the eighth week SVF transplantation resulted in significantly increased energy absorption, stress and stiffness compared to BMSCs. Conclusion: The enhanced biomechanical properties of repairs in this study advocates the application of adipose derived SVF as an excellent source of multipotent cells instead of traditional BMSCs and may seem more encouraging in cell-based therapy for tendon injuries

Allogenous skin fibroblast transplantation enhances excisional wound healing following alloxan diabetes in sheep, a randomized controlled trial

AbstractBackgroundHealing of skin wound is a multi-factorial and complex process. Treatment of diabetic wounds is still a major clinical challenge. Recently, stem cell transplantation to chronic wounds is favored. The objective of this study was to evaluate effects of pre-labeled allogenous skin fibroblasts on healing of ovine diabetic wound model.MethodsEight 4-month-old Iranian Makoui wethers were used in this study. Alloxan monohydrate was used for induction of diabetes. In each wether two excisional wound were created on dorsum of the animal. Wounds of one side were randomly chosen as treatment group (n = 8), and wounds of the other side were considered as control group (n = 8). Pre-labeled skin fibroblasts with bromodeoxyuridine were used in wounds of one side as treatment. Photographs were taken in distinct times for planimetric evaluation. Wound samples were taken for BrdU detection and histopathologic evaluations on day 21 post-wounding.ResultsThe planimetric study showed closure of fibroblast treated wounds is significantly faster than control group (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemical staining with anti-bromodeoxyuridine antibody indicated presence of transplanted cells in the wounds. Histopathologic evaluations of H&E stained sections disclosed significantly increasing of re-epithelialization, number of fibroblasts, and number of blood vessels in treatment group in comparison to control group (P < 0.05).ConclutionThe results of this study indicated that allogenous skin fibroblast transplantation can positively affect wound healing in diabetic sheep

Evaluation of clinical and paraclinical effects of intraosseous vs intravenous administration of propofol on general anesthesia in rabbits

This prospective study aimed to compare the intraosseous (IO) and intravenous (IV) effects of propofol on selected blood parameters and physiological variables during general anesthesia in rabbits. Thirty New Zealand White rabbits were studied. Six rabbits received IV propofol (group 1) and another 6 rabbits, were injected propofol intraosseously (Group 2) for 30 minutes (experimental groups). Rabbits of the third and fourth groups received IV and IO normal saline at the same volume given to the experimental groups, respectively. In the fifth group IO cannulation was performed but neither propofol nor normal saline were administered. Blood profiles were assayed before induction and after recovery of anesthesia. Heart and respiratory rates, rectal temperature, saturation of peripheral oxygen and mean arterial blood pressure were recorded. Heart rate increased significantly 1 to 5 minutes after induction of anesthesia in experimental groups (P < 0.05). Although mean arterial blood pressure decreased significantly from baseline, values remained above 60 mm Hg (P < 0.05). Respiratory rate decreased significantly in experimental groups, but remained higher in group 2 (P < 0.05). The lymphocyte count decreased significantly in group 1 (P < 0.05). The concentration of alkaline phosphatase in all rabbits, aspartate aminotransferase and gamma- glutamyl transferase in the first group and gamma-glutamyl transferase in the third group increased significantly (P < 0.05). Total bilirubin decreased significantly in group 2 (P < 0.05). All measured values remained within normal limits. Based on the least significant physiological, hematological and biochemical effects, the IO injection of propofol appears to be safe and suitable method of anesthesia in rabbits with limited vascular access

Testicular biohistochemical alterations following experimental varicocele in rats

Background: The exact pathophysiology of testicular degeneration, following varicocele has not been completely understood yet.Objective: The current study was designed to determine the effect of varicocele on germinal epithelium (GE) cytoplasmic biohistochmical alterations.Materials and Methods: To follow-up this study, left varicocele was induced in test groups. Non-varicocelized rats were served as control-sham (n=6). Following 4, 6 and 8 months, right and left testes were dissected out and the blood serum sample was taken. The GE cytoplasmic carbohydrate, lipid accumulation, lipase and alkaline-phosphates (ALP) ratios were analyzed. Serum levels of LH, FSH and testosterone were measured.Results: Observations demonstrated that in varicocele-induced rats, the spermatogenesis cell lineage exhibited lower number of cells with periodic acid shift positive cytoplasm, higher number of cells with lipid and ALP positive stained cytoplasm in comparison to control animals. Lipase enzyme decreased by the time in the test animals. In varicocelized groups the number of Leydig cells decreased in to 2.25±0.41 and 1.16±0.75 per one mm2 in left and right testicles respectively after 8 months, and these cells demonstrated an ALP positive feature. In test groups, the serum levels of LH and FSH reduced into 1.12±0.01 and 2.03±0.05 ng/ml respectively after 8 months. Although testosterone level diminished by the time in the test animals, and this decreasing was significant (p=0.031) after 8 months (3.08±0.10 ng/ml).Conclusion: Our results suggest that following varicocele induction major alterations occur in GE, which may lead to loss of GE cells physiological function and ultimately result in fertility problems

Histological Impact of Long Term Varicocele-Induction on Right and Left Testes in Rat (Evidence for the Reduction of Sperm Quality and Mating Abilities)

AbstractThis study was designed to clarify bilaterally effect of long-time varicocele on left and right testes and to identify the effect of varicocele on maturation divisions during spermatogenesis. Moreover, the percentage of seminiferous tubules (STs) with I-VIII and IX-XIV stages of spermatogenesis and sperm parameters such as sperm motility and abnormality types were evaluated. The left varicocele was induced in test group (n=18) and control-sham animals (n=6) were gone under simple laparatomy. The test group further sub-divided into three subgroups based on the duration of varicocele (4, 6 and 8 months after varicocele induction). The histological alterations, spermiogenesis index (SPI), Sertoli cells (SCs), cytoplasmic lipid and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), germinal cells first and second maturation divisions, spermatogenesis stages, natural mating and sperm characteristics (count, motility and abnormality) were evaluated. Histological results showed that the varicocele-induced damage affected both stages of I-VIII and IX-XIV and up to 20% of the STs exhibited negative SPI and SCs degeneration. After 8 months, majority of STs demonstrated a remarkable reduction in the first and second maturation division in both of the testes. Nevertheless, the right testicles were manifested with significantly (P < 0.05) lower detrimental features in comparison with the left ones. Following varicocele induction the sperm count, viability and motility reduced time-dependently. Our data suggested that monolateral varicocele-induction affected both right and left testicles simultaneously albeit with differences. The varicocele-induced injuries were manifested as negative SPI and SCs degeneration, which may have led to poor sperm quantity and quality