Mammary stem cell research in veterinary science: an update.

The mammary gland is an organ with a remarkable regenerative capacity that can undergo multiple cycles of proliferation, lactation, and involution. Growing evidence suggests that these changes are driven by the coordinated division and differentiation of mammary stem cell populations (MaSC). Whereas information regarding MaSC and their role in comparative mammary gland physiology is readily available in human and mice, such information remains scarce in most veterinary mammal species such as cows, horses, sheep, goats, pigs, and dogs.

Proliferation capacity of T-lymphocytes is affected transiently after a long-term weight gain in Beagle dogs.

Across species obesity is associated with several disorders but in companion animals little information is available on the impact of chronic obesity on immune competence. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether weight gain and stable obese bodyweight affects the immune cell response. Obesity was induced in eight adult healthy beagle dogs (weight gain group; WGG) by a weight gain period (WGP) of 47 weeks, which was immediately followed by a period (stable period: SP) of stable obesity of 26 weeks.

Use of quantitative contrast-enhanced ultrasonography to detect diffuse renal changes in Beagles with iatrogenic hypercortisolism.

Objective: To determine the feasibility of quantitative contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) for detection of changes in renal blood flow in dogs before and after hydrocortisone administration.

Animals: 11 Beagles.

Procedure: Dogs were randomly assigned to 2 treatment groups: oral administration of hydrocortisone (9.

Mineral deficiency status of ranging zebu (Bos indicus) cattle around the Gilgel Gibe catchment, Ethiopia.

Mineral deficiencies in cattle, widespread in East Africa, impair optimal health and production and consequently place a great burden on the farmers' income. Therefore, detection of shortages and imbalances of specific minerals is essential. Our objective was to evaluate the mineral status of grazing cattle around the Gilgel Gibe catchment in Ethiopia and associated factors.

Routine health screening: findings in apparently healthy middle-aged and old cats.

Study Rationale: Veterinary practitioners often perform geriatric health screening in cats. Unfortunately, scientific information regarding clinical and laboratory abnormalities and normal blood pressure values in elderly cats is scarce. This prospective study evaluated routine health screening tests in apparently healthy middle-aged and old cats.

Automated assessment of footpad dermatitis in broiler chickens at the slaughter-line: evaluation and correspondence with human expert scores.

Footpad dermatitis is increasingly used as an indicator of decreased broiler welfare, and automation of dermatitis monitoring potentially reduces the effort needed to monitor commercial flocks. In this study we evaluated a prototype system for the automatic assessment of footpad dermatitis in broiler chickens by comparing the automatic assessment with a human expert assessment. The expert aimed at selecting 2 times (different period) 20 broilers per footpad dermatitis category (5 categories in total), from 2 different flocks of 38-d-old broilers on an experimental farm.

Comparison of clinical and computed tomographic features between medial and lateral trochlear ridge talar osteochondrosis in dogs.

Objective: To evaluate clinical and subchondral bone lesion differences between medial (MTRT-OC) and lateral trochlear ridge tarsocrural osteochondrosis (LTRT-OC).

Study Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: Dogs (n = 66) with MTRT-OC or LTRT-OC.

Ultrasonographic appearance of adrenal glands in healthy and sick cats.

The first part of the study aimed to describe prospectively the ultrasonographic features of the adrenal glands in 94 healthy cats and 51 chronically sick cats. It confirmed the feasibility of ultrasonography of adrenal glands in healthy and chronically sick cats, which were not statistically different. The typical hypoechoic appearance of the gland surrounded by hyperechoic fat made it recognisable.

Comparison of renal ultrasonographic measurements between healthy cats of three cat breeds: Ragdoll, British Shorthair and Sphynx.

Healthy cats of three cat breeds -- Sphynx (n = 11), British Shorthair (n = 15) and Ragdoll (n = 15) -- were included in this study. All cats underwent an ultrasonographic examination to assess renal length, cortical thickness, medullary thickness and corticomedullary ratio. Of all ultrasonographic measurements, renal length showed the highest variation.

Effect of recombinant human thyrotropin on the uptake of radioactive iodine (¹²³I) in dogs with thyroid tumors.

In humans, recombinant human thyrotropin (rhTSH) enhances radioactive iodine uptake (RAIU) in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. No studies have been performed in veterinary medicine to optimize radioiodine treatment of thyroid cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of rhTSH on the uptake of radioiodine-123 ((123)I) in dogs with thyroid tumors.

Assessment of the long-term effect of vaccination on transmission of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus in cattle herds hyperimmunized with glycoprotein E-deleted marker vaccine.

Objective: To assess long-term effects and risk factors for the efficacy of hyperimmunization protocols against infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) during a longitudinal field study of dairy and dairy-beef mixed farms.

Animals: Approximately 7,700 cows from 72 farms.

Procedures: Farms were assigned to 3 treatment groups (hyperimmunization groups [HIGs] 1 and 2, which were hyperimmunized with glycoprotein E [gE]-deleted marker vaccines, and a nonintervention group [NIG]).

The influence of morphine on cerebral 5-HT2A availability in dogs: a SPECT study.

Unlabelled: The opioid and serotonergic systems are closely involved in pain processing and mood disorders. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of systemic morphine on cerebral serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT(2A)) binding in dogs using SPECT with the 5-HT(2A) radioligand (123)I-5I-R91150.

Methods: 5-HT(2A) binding was estimated with and without morphine pretreatment in 8 dogs.

Integrating fasciolosis control in the dry cow management: the effect of closantel treatment on milk production.

The liver fluke Fasciola hepatica is a parasite of ruminants with a worldwide distribution and an apparent increasing incidence in EU member states. Effective control in dairy cattle is hampered by the lack of flukicides with a zero-withdrawal time for milk, leaving the dry period as the only time that preventive treatment can be applied. Here, we present the results of a blinded, randomized and placebo-controlled trial on 11 dairy herds (402 animals) exposed to F.

Scintigraphic thyroid volume calculation in hyperthyroid cats.

A successful, euthyroid outcome after radioiodine therapy in hyperthyroid cats ranges from 83% to 95%. Thyroid volume has been reported as one of the factors influencing radioiodine therapy outcome in man and cats. The goal of this study was to describe the most reliable and practically applicable formula to determine thyroid volume using scintigraphy.

Bio-efficacy of selected long-lasting insecticidal nets against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles arabiensis from South-Western Ethiopia.

Background: The emergence and spread of insecticide resistance in the major African malaria vectors Anopheles gambiae s.s. and Anopheles arabiensis may compromise control initiatives based on insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) or indoor residual spraying (IRS), and thus threaten the global malaria elimination strategy.

Intervertebral disk width in dogs with and without clinical signs of disk associated cervical spondylomyelopathy.

Background: Disk-associated cervical spondylomyelopathy (DA-CSM) is a multifactorial neurological disorder in which progressive caudal cervical spinal cord compression is mainly caused by one or more intervertebral disk protrusions. The Doberman pinscher breed seems predisposed for this condition. The underlying cause and pathophysiology of DA-CSM are currently unknown.

Morphology of distal border synovial invaginations of the equine distal sesamoid bone: comparison between computed tomography and a hoof-specific radiographic projection.

Objectives: To compare the difference and agreement of the morphology of distal border synovial invaginations on a dorsoproximal-palmarodistal oblique (DPr-PaDiO) projection with hoof-specific angle versus computed tomography.

Methods: Computed tomography (CT) images and a DPr-PaDiO radiographic projection with hoof-specific angle were obtained on 50 cadaveric forefeet from 25 Warmblood horses. Computed tomography was assumed to be the gold standard.

Comparison of analgesic efficacy of epidural methadone or ropivacaine/methadone with or without pre-operative oral tepoxalin in dogs undergoing tuberositas tibiae advancement surgery.

Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy of four analgesia protocols in dogs undergoing tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA).

Study Design: Prospective, randomized, blinded study.

Animals: Thirty-two client owned dogs undergoing TTA-surgery.

Ultrasonographic adrenal gland measurements in healthy Yorkshire Terriers and Labrador Retrievers.

An upper threshold of 7.4 mm for maximal adrenal gland diameter is commonly used to detect pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism ultrasonographically in dogs. There is a substantial overlap between adrenal gland diameter of healthy dogs and of those with pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism.

Epidemiology of Taenia solium in Nepal: is it influenced by the social characteristics of the population and the presence of Taenia asiatica?

The transmission of the zoonotic pork tapeworms Taenia solium and T. asiatica depends on a combination of specific risk factors, such as open defecation, backyard pig raising and the consumption of raw or undercooked pork and viscera. A community-based survey was conducted among 289 households in south-eastern Nepal to study the heterogeneity of these risk factor frequencies as a function of the social composition of the population.

Computed tomography findings in 32 joints affected with severe elbow incongruity and fragmented medial coronoid process.

Objective: To describe the computed tomography (CT) findings in dogs with severe elbow incongruity combined with a fragmented medial coronoid process (FCP) and compare these with normal joints and congruent joints affected by FCP.

Study Design: Clinical study.

Animals: Client-owned dogs with elbow lameness (n = 40) and purpose bred dogs (n = 5; controls).

Investigating clustering in interval-censored udder quarter infection times in dairy cows using a gamma frailty model.

Udder infections in dairy cows are observed at udder quarter level. Therefore, the best strategy to study infection dynamics of particular bacteria causing mastitis is to follow up and model individual udder quarter infection times. Udder quarter infection times, however, are not independent as they are clustered within a cow and herds.

Ghibe river basin in Ethiopia: present situation of trypanocidal drug resistance in Trypanosoma congolense using tests in mice and PCR-RFLP.

A cross-sectional study was carried out in the Ghibe valley from August to October 2010. 411 head of cattle were sampled in eight villages for buffy coat examination (BCE) and blood spots were collected from each animal for trypanosomose diagnosis by 18S-PCR-RFLP and diminazene aceturate (DA) resistance by Ade2-PCR-RFLP. Three villages were selected in a zone where trypanosomosis control operations are currently on-going whereas the other 5 villages were located outside these control operations.

Evolution of clinical signs and predictors of outcome after conservative medical treatment for disk-associated cervical spondylomyelopathy in dogs.

Objective: To evaluate the evolution of clinical signs and their correlation with results of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and to assess potential prognostic variables after conservative medical treatment for disk-associated cervical spondylomyelopathy (DA-CSM) in dogs.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Animals: 21 client-owned dogs with DA-CSM.

Risk Factors of Active Tuberculosis in People Living with HIV/AIDS in Southwest Ethiopia: A Case Control Study.

Background: Determinants of active tuberculosis among People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) are not well elucidated in countries with limited resources. The objective of this study was to assess distal and proximate determinants of active tuberculosis among people living with HIV/AIDS in southwest Ethiopia.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted from January to March, 2009 in South West Ethiopia.