Capromorelin oral solution (ENTYCE®) increases food consumption and body weight when administered for 4 consecutive days to healthy adult Beagle dogs in a randomized, masked, placebo controlled study.

Background: Dogs can suffer from inappetence caused by a variety of medical conditions. This may present as anorexia (complete loss of appetite), hyporexia (decreased appetite) or dysrexia (change in food preferences). A drug with a new mechanism of action, capromorelin, has potential to stimulate appetite in dogs.

Implementation of a vaccine screening program at an independent community pharmacy.

Objectives: To implement a comprehensive vaccine screening program and to identify best practices in workflow for a vaccine screening program.

Setting: Five independent community pharmacy locations with a common owner.

Practice Description: Moose Pharmacy is an independent family owned and operated pharmacy in rural North Carolina.

Measuring Mean Cup Depth in the Optic Nerve Head.

Since the deformation of structures in the optic nerve head (ONH) is associated with glaucoma and other diseases of the optic nerve, measurement of this deformation is of current research interest. This paper considers the computation of cup depth, a measurement of the depth of the internal limiting membrane (ILM). The computation of cup depth requires a reference structure against which to measure the ILM, and the construction of two reference structures is discussed, one based on Bruch's membrane opening (BMO) and the other based on the anterior surface of the peripapillary sclera (AS).

New approaches to non-surgical sterilization for dogs and cats: Opportunities and challenges.

Over the last 40 years, researchers have explored methods to non-surgically suppress fertility in animals. Immunocontraception has been used to control wildlife populations but does not confer long-term immunity. The gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist deslorelin, formulated as an implant to provide 6-month to 1-year suppression of fertility in male dogs, is available commercially in some countries.

Stable isotope-based trophic structure of pelagic fish and jellyfish across natural and anthropogenic landscape gradients in a fjord estuary.

Identifying causes of structural ecosystem shifts often requires understanding trophic structure, an important determinant of energy flow in ecological communities. In coastal pelagic ecosystems worldwide, increasing jellyfish (Cnidaria and Ctenophora) at the expense of small fish has been linked to anthropogenic alteration of basal trophic pathways. However, this hypothesis remains untested in part because baseline description of fish-jellyfish trophic dynamics, and the environmental features that influence them are lacking.

A Prospective, Randomized, Masked, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Study of Capromorelin in Dogs with Reduced Appetite.

Background: Reduced appetite is a common clinical sign in dogs. This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of capromorelin oral solution, (ENTYCE , Aratana Therapeutics, Leawood, KS) a new drug that is a ghrelin receptor agonist, for stimulation of appetite in dogs with reduced appetite.

Hypothesis/objectives: Capromorelin will increase appetite, as measured by the owner's evaluation, over 4 days.

Comparison of Bruch's Membrane Opening Minimum Rim Width Among Those With Normal Ocular Health by Race.

Purpose: To examine if racial differences in Bruch's membrane opening minimum rim width (BMO-MRW) in spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SDOCT) exist, specifically between people of African descent (AD) and European descent (ED) in normal ocular health.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Methods: Patients presenting for a comprehensive eye examination at retail-based primary eye clinics were enrolled based on ≥1 of the following at-risk criteria for glaucoma: AD aged ≥40 years, ED aged ≥50 years, diabetes, family history of glaucoma, and/or pre-existing diagnosis of glaucoma.

Pharmacokinetic comparison of oral tablet and suspension formulations of grapiprant, a novel therapeutic for the pain and inflammation of osteoarthritis in dogs.

A new anti-inflammatory drug for pain (grapiprant) was recently shown to have minimal side effects following chronic (9-month) daily oral dose of 6 or 50 mg/kg suspension. The current study compares the pharmacokinetics of the formulation used in the chronic safety study to those of the tablet formulation that will be marketed upon FDA approval. Sixteen Beagle dogs were randomized to receive single doses of either 6 or 50 mg/kg grapiprant as both suspension and table formulations within a cross-over design with a 15-day washout.

Evaluation of the safety in dogs of long-term, daily oral administration of capromorelin, a novel drug for stimulation of appetite.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the safety of capromorelin, a ghrelin agonist that stimulates appetite and causes increased body weight and the release of growth hormone (GH). Beagle dogs (n = 32) received either oral placebo or 0.3, 7, or 40 mg/kg capromorelin once daily for 12 consecutive months.

Argonaute 2 Expression Correlates with a Luminal B Breast Cancer Subtype and Induces Estrogen Receptor Alpha Isoform Variation.

Estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) signaling pathways are frequently disrupted in breast cancer and contribute to disease progression. ERα signaling is multifaceted and many ERα regulators have been identified including transcription factors and growth factor pathways. More recently, microRNAs (miRNAs) are shown to deregulate ERα activity in breast carcinomas, with alterations in both ERα and miRNA expression correlating to cancer progression.

Capromorelin increases food consumption, body weight, growth hormone, and sustained insulin-like growth factor 1 concentrations when administered to healthy adult Beagle dogs.

This study's objective was to determine the effects in dogs of oral capromorelin, a ghrelin agonist, at different doses for 7 days on food consumption, body weight and serum concentrations of growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), and cortisol. Adult Beagles (n = 6) were dosed with placebo BID, capromorelin at 3.0 mg/kg SID, 4.

Evaluation of Weight Loss Over Time in Cats with Chronic Kidney Disease.

Background: Thin body condition and weight loss are common in cats with chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, the time course and progression of weight loss before and after diagnosis have not been thoroughly evaluated.

Hypothesis/objectives: To describe weight loss in cats with CKD before and after diagnosis and its relationship to survival.

Concurrent beneficial (vitamin D production) and hazardous (cutaneous DNA damage) impact of repeated low-level summer sunlight exposures.

Background: The concurrent impact of repeated low-level summer sunlight exposures on vitamin D production and cutaneous DNA damage, potentially leading to mutagenesis and skin cancer, is unknown.

Objectives: This is an experimental study (i) to determine the dual impact of repeated low-level sunlight exposures on vitamin D status and DNA damage/repair (via both skin and urinary biomarkers) in light-skinned adults; and (ii) to compare outcomes following the same exposures in brown-skinned adults.

Methods: Ten white (phototype II) and six South Asian volunteers (phototype V), aged 23-59 years, received 6 weeks' simulated summer sunlight exposures (95% ultraviolet A/5% ultraviolet B, 1·3 standard erythemal doses three times weekly) wearing summer clothing exposing ~35% body surface area.

Decreasing IV Potassium in Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care: Quality Improvement Project.

Objectives: IV potassium supplementation is commonly used in the pediatric cardiovascular ICU. However, concentrated IV potassium chloride doses can lead to life-threatening complications. We report results of a quality improvement project aimed at decreasing concentrated IV potassium chloride exposure.

Comparison of Intraoperative Aminophylline Versus Furosemide in Treatment of Oliguria During Pediatric Cardiac Surgery.

Objectives: To determine if intraoperative aminophylline was superior to furosemide to prevent or attenuate postoperative cardiac surgery-associated acute kidney injury.

Design: Single-center, historical control, retrospective cohort study.

Setting: PICU, university-affiliated children's hospital.

Safety and toxicokinetic profiles associated with daily oral administration of grapiprant, a selective antagonist of the prostaglandin E2 EP4 receptor, to cats.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate safety and toxicokinetic profiles associated with daily oral administration of grapiprant, a new analgesic that selectively blocks the prostaglandin E2 EP4 receptor, to cats. ANIMALS 24 healthy domestic shorthair cats (12 males and 12 females). PROCEDURES Cats were randomly assigned (3 of each sex/group) to receive a placebo capsule or grapiprant at 3, 9, or 15 mg/kg, administered PO once daily for 28 days, beginning on day 0.

Eye Care Quality and Accessibility Improvement in the Community (EQUALITY): impact of an eye health education program on patient knowledge about glaucoma and attitudes about eye care.

Purpose: To assess the impact of the education program of the Eye Care Quality and Accessibility Improvement in the Community (EQUALITY) telemedicine program on at-risk patients' knowledge about glaucoma and attitudes about eye care as well as to assess patient satisfaction with EQUALITY.

Patients And Methods: New or existing patients presenting for a comprehensive eye exam (CEE) at one of two retail-based primary eye clinics were enrolled based on ≥1 of the following at-risk criteria for glaucoma: African Americans ≥40 years of age, Whites ≥50 years of age, diabetes, family history of glaucoma, and/or preexisting diagnosis of glaucoma. A total of 651 patients were enrolled.

Sun Exposure Behavior, Seasonal Vitamin D Deficiency, and Relationship to Bone Health in Adolescents.

Context: Vitamin D is essential for bone health in adolescence, when there is rapid bone mineral content accrual. Because cutaneous sun exposure provides vitamin D, there is no recommended oral intake for UK adolescents.

Objective: Our objective was to assess seasonal vitamin D status and its contributors in white Caucasian adolescents and examine bone health in those found deficient.

'Our only resource': Perspectives and Recommendations of Rural African American Youth on Adapting Sexual Health and Risk Reduction Interventions.

Recent studies have documented disproportionately high rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV, and births among adolescents in rural areas of the United States. Despite this, the majority of sexual health education programs and interventions were developed for adolescents in metropolitan areas, and may not be appropriate or relevant for rural youth. The present study investigates the perspectives of 73 African American youth in rural Georgia who participated in a cognitive-behavioral intervention to reduce sexual risk behaviors, in an effort to understand how the intervention and ones similar to it may be tailored to better meet the needs of rural adolescents.

Von Hippel-Lindau Disease: Genetics and Role of Genetic Counseling in a Multiple Neoplasia Syndrome.

Von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHL) is one of the most common inherited neoplasia syndromes and is characterized by highly vascular tumors of the eyes, brain, and spine, as well as benign and malignant tumors and/or cysts of the kidneys, adrenal medullae and sympathetic paraganglia, endolymphatic sac, epididymis, and broad ligament. Since the discovery of the VHL gene in 1993, more than 900 families with VHL have been identified and examined. Genetic testing for VHL is widely available and will detect a disease-causing mutation in rate 95% to 100% of individuals who have a clinical diagnosis of VHL, making it the standard of care for diagnosis of VHL.

A Prospective, Randomized, Masked, Placebo-Controlled Multisite Clinical Study of Grapiprant, an EP4 Prostaglandin Receptor Antagonist (PRA), in Dogs with Osteoarthritis.

Background: This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of grapiprant for treatment of pain in dogs with osteoarthritis (OA).

Hypothesis/objectives: Grapiprant will relieve pain as measured by the owner's and veterinarian's evaluation of pain in dogs with OA. Another objective was evaluation of the safety of grapiprant.

Vitamin D production in UK Caucasian and South Asian women following UVR exposure.

Background: It is known that skin pigmentation reduces the penetration of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and thus photosynthesis of 25-hydroxvitamin D (25(OH)D). However ethnic differences in 25(OH)D production remain to be elucidated.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate differences in vitamin D production between UK South Asian and Caucasian postmenopausal women, in response to a defined and controlled exposure to UVR.

N-Acyl ethanolamide and eicosanoid involvement in irritant dermatitis.

Background: Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and ultraviolet radiation (UVR) are two commonly encountered cutaneous inflammatory stimuli. Differing histopathological and clinical features implicate involvement of alternative inflammatory pathways; bioactive lipid mediators (eicosanoids, endocannabinoids and sphingolipids) are likely candidates for regulation of the divergent inflammatory responses.

Objectives: To assess comprehensively bioactive lipid involvement in SLS- and UVR-induced inflammatory responses, to provide a better understanding of bioactive lipid mediator pathways in irritant inflammation.