Determination of a safe sedative combination of dexmedetomidine, ketamine and butorphanol for minor procedures in dogs by use of a stepwise optimization method.

Background: In veterinary practice, most minor procedures such as radiographs, skin biopsies, and wound treatments require sedation. The combination of butorphanol, ketamine, and dexmedetomidine is commonly used, but the ideal dosages for this combination have not been defined. This randomized prospective clinical 3-phases trial initially tested eight clinically relevant combinations of intramuscular administration in 50 dogs (phase 1).

Vaccine-Linked Chemotherapy Approach: Additive Effects of Combining the -Based Vaccine Lm3Dx_NcSAG1 With the Bumped Kinase Inhibitor BKI-1748 Against Infection in Mice.

The apicomplexan parasite causes neosporosis in numerous host species. There is no marketed vaccine and no licensed drug for the prevention and/or treatment of neosporosis. Vaccine development against this parasite has encountered significant obstacles, probably due to pregnancy-induced immunomodulation hampering efficacy, which has stimulated the search for potential drug therapies that could be applied to limit the effects of neosporosis in dams as well as in offspring.

A -Based Vaccine Formulation Reduces Vertical Transmission and Leads to Enhanced Pup Survival in a Pregnant Neosporosis Mouse Model.

The apicomplexan parasite is the worldwide leading cause of abortion and stillbirth in cattle. An attenuated mutant strain (Lm3Dx) was engineered by deleting the virulence genes , , and in order to avoid systemic infection and to target the vector to antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Insertion of , coding for the major surface protein NcSAG1 of , yielded the vaccine strain Lm3Dx_NcSAG1.

Safety of a Novel -Based Vaccine Vector Expressing NcSAG1 ( Surface Antigen 1).

(LM) has been proposed as vaccine vector in various cancers and infectious diseases since LM induces a strong immune response. In this study, we developed a novel and safe LM-based vaccine vector platform, by engineering a triple attenuated mutant (Lm3Dx) (ΔactA, ΔinlA, ΔinlB) of the wild-type LM strain JF5203 (CC 1, phylogenetic lineage I). We demonstrated the strong attenuation of Lm3Dx while maintaining its capacity to selectively infect antigen-presenting cells (APCs) .