Environmental DNA Reveals Habitat Variables Driving Platypus () Distribution Across an Urbanised Landscape.

Freshwater waterways, and species that depend on them, are threatened by urbanisation and the consequences of the urban stream syndrome. In south-east Queensland, Australia, little is known about the impacts of the urban stream syndrome on the platypus (), meaning that populations cannot be adequately managed by conservation practitioners. The aim of this study was to determine how habitat and environmental variables, related to the urban stream syndrome, influenced platypus distribution across this region.

Prevalence of feline upper respiratory tract pathogens and risk factors for clinical disease and final outcomes in an RSPCA shelter in Queensland, Australia.

Introduction: Feline respiratory tract infection poses a serious challenge in animal shelters. Potential risk factors include pathogens introduced through animals entering the shelter. We aimed to determine the proportion of animals shedding feline upper respiratory tract (URT) pathogens at the time of entry and to assess how this contributed to the burden of clinical disease and final outcomes.

excretory/secretory products: an untapped library of tolerogenic immunotherapeutics against food allergy.

Food allergy (FA) is considered the 'second wave' of the allergy epidemic in developed countries after asthma and allergic rhinitis with a steadily growing burden of 40%. The absence of early childhood pathogen stimulation embodied by the hygiene hypothesis is one explanation, and in particular, the eradication of parasitic helminths could be at play. Infections with parasites spp.

Assessment of a Teaching Module for Cardiac Auscultation of Horses by Veterinary Students.

Auscultation of heart sounds is an important veterinary skill requiring an understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology and pattern recognition. This cross-sectional study was developed to evaluate a targeted, audio-visual training resource for veterinary students to improve their understanding and auscultation of common heart conditions in horses. Fourth- and fifth-year 2021 and 2022 Bachelor of Veterinary Science students at the University of Queensland (UQ) were provided the learning resource and surveyed via online pre- and post-intervention surveys.

Trouble in paradise: When two species of conservation and cultural value clash, causing a management conundrum.

Threatened species throughout the world are in decline due to various causes. In some cases, predators of conservation or cultural value are causing the decline of threatened prey, presenting a conservation conundrum for managers. We surveyed marine turtle nests on K'gari (formally known as Fraser Island), Australia, to investigate dingo predation of green and loggerhead turtle nests, where each of these species is of conservation value.

Insect Bite Hypersensitivity in Horses: Causes, Diagnosis, Scoring and New Therapies.

Insect Bite Hypersensitivity (IBH, Queensland itch, sweet itch, equine summer eczema) is the most common pruritic disease of horses. It is most often caused by sensitivity to the saliva of spp. of biting midges; however, it can also be caused by hypersensitivity to other insect species.

Equine Crofton Weed ( spp.) Pneumotoxicity: What Do We Know and What Do We Need to Know?

Crofton weed () is a global and highly invasive weed, with ingestion causing severe respiratory disease in horses, leading to irreversible and untreatable pulmonary fibrosis and oedema. While reports of equine pneumotoxicity remain common in Australia and New Zealand, equine pneumotoxicity may be underdiagnosed in other countries where Crofton weed is endemic but poorly differentiated. The pathogenesis of Crofton weed toxicity following ingestion has been well described in a number of different animal models, including rodents, rabbits, and goats.

Comparison of Nutritive Values of Tropical Pasture Species Grown in Different Environments, and Implications for Livestock Methane Production: A Meta-Analysis.

The demand for dairy products is ever increasing across the world. The livestock sector is a significant source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally. The availability of high-quality pasture is a key requirement to increase the productivity of dairy cows as well as manage enteric methane emissions.

Wheat yield potential can be maximized by increasing red to far-red light conditions at critical developmental stages.

Sensing of neighbours via the Red to Far-Red light ratio (R:FR) may exert a cap to yield potential in wheat. The effects of an increased R:FR inside the canopy were studied in dense wheat mini canopies grown in controlled environments by lowering FR. To distinguish between effects exerted by light sensing and assimilate supply, the treatments were complemented with elevated CO , applied between different developmental timepoints to specifically impact tillering, spike growth, floret fertility and grain filling, in different combinations.

Multi-modality imaging of aggressive submural neoplasia of the hoof in two horses.

This case series presents a 20-year-old Quarter horse gelding and a 10-year-old Thoroughbred gelding with a histologic diagnosis of aggressive submural neoplasia, including an anaplastic sarcoma and a squamous cell carcinoma respectively. The current case series describes these neoplasias with radiography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and histopathology with immunohistochemistry. The purpose of this case series is to identify the clinical pattern of chronic reoccurring lameness in these cases and highlight the appearance of expansile osteolytic pathology of the distal phalanx with adjacent hoof wall abnormalities.

Impact of roadside burning on genetic diversity in a high-biomass invasive grass.

The invasive grass-fire cycle is a widely documented feedback phenomenon in which invasive grasses increase vegetation flammability and fire frequency, resulting in further invasion and compounded effects on fire regimes. Few studies have examined the role of short-term adaptation in driving the invasive grass-fire cycle, despite invasive species often thriving after introduction to new environments. We used a replicated (nine locations), paired sampling design (burn vs unburnt sites) to test the hypothesis that roadside burning increases genetic diversity and thus adaptive potential in the invasive, high-biomass grass .

Multi-donor × elite-based populations reveal QTL for low-lodging wheat.

Low-lodging high-yielding wheat germplasm and SNP-tagged novel alleles for lodging were identified in a process that involved selecting donors through functional phenotyping for underlying traits with a designed phenotypic screen, and a crossing strategy involving multiple-donor × elite populations. Lodging is a barrier to achieving high yield in wheat. As part of a study investigating the potential to breed low-lodging high-yielding wheat, populations were developed crossing four low-lodging high-yielding donors selected based on lodging related traits, with three cultivars.

Humpback whale adult females and calves balance acoustic contact with vocal crypsis during periods of increased separation.

Acoustic communication is important for animals with dependent young, particularly when they are spatially separated. Maternal humpback whales () use acoustic calling to help minimize the risk of separation from their young calves during migration. These pairs also use acoustic crypsis to minimize detection by males.

Polycystic Kidney Disease in 3 Juvenile Rainbow Lorikeets ().

This case series describes polycystic kidney disease in 3 (2 male, 1 female) 2-month-old, juvenile rainbow lorikeets (). The lorikeets diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease were the progeny of full sibling parents that were being intentionally line bred for the purpose of establishing a rainbow lorikeet with the blue color mutation. Clinically the juvenile lorikeets were presented with clinical signs of lethargy, dehydration, regurgitation, anorexia, polyuria, and pelvic limb paresis.

Evaluation of the Effect of Fungatol and Gamma-T-ol on the Emergence and Adult Parasitoid Survival of Mummies of Cotton Aphids Parasitized by .

Beneficial insects play a major role in controlling pest populations. In sustainable agricultural production systems, control methods compatible with integrated pest management (IPM) are preferred over broad-spectrum pesticides. EOs from aromatic plants may provide a new and safe alternative to synthetic chemicals.

Larvicidal Activity of Methyl Benzoate, a Volatile Organic Compound, Against the Mosquitoes Aedes albopictus and Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae).

Methyl benzoate (MBe) is a volatile organic molecule found in various plants; it is used as an insect semiochemical. MBe also has a biorational insecticidal effect against various agricultural and urban arthropod pests. The present study was the first to assess the larvicidal potential of MBe against fourth-instar larvae of the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus (Skuse) and Culex pipiens (L.

Development of molecular clamp stabilized hemagglutinin vaccines for Influenza A viruses.

Influenza viruses cause a significant number of infections and deaths annually. In addition to seasonal infections, the risk of an influenza virus pandemic emerging is extremely high owing to the large reservoir of diverse influenza viruses found in animals and the co-circulation of many influenza subtypes which can reassort into novel strains. Development of a universal influenza vaccine has proven extremely challenging.

Complete protection by a single-dose skin patch-delivered SARS-CoV-2 spike vaccine.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has infected more than 160 million people and resulted in more than 3.3 million deaths, and despite the availability of multiple vaccines, the world still faces many challenges with their rollout. Here, we use the high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) to deliver a SARS-CoV-2 spike subunit vaccine directly to the skin.

Estimating koala density from incidental koala sightings in South-East Queensland, Australia (1997-2013), using a self-exciting spatio-temporal point process model.

The koala, , is an iconic Australian wildlife species facing a rapid decline in South-East Queensland (SEQLD). For conservation planning, the ability to estimate the size of koala populations is crucial. Systematic surveys are the most common approach to estimate koala populations but because of their cost they are often restricted to small geographic areas and are conducted infrequently.

Induction of General Anesthesia With Alfaxalone in the Domestic Chicken.

Alfaxalone is a safe and effective anesthetic drug for the induction of general anesthesia in many nonavian companion animal species; however, its efficacy has not been fully evaluated in birds. In premedicated trials, the chickens were sedated with butorphanol 2 mg/kg intramuscularly and midazolam 0.5 mg/kg intramuscularly, 15 minutes before intravenous administration of alfaxalone.

Expression and prognostic significance of vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) and its receptor in canine prostate cancer.

Background: Vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) and its receptor, VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR-2), represent a complex family of angiogenic molecules consisting of different ligands and receptors. Due to the importance of VEGF-A/VEGFR-2 signaling in tumor proliferation and angiogenesis, this study aimed to evaluate the protein and gene expression levels of VEGF-A and VEGFR-2 in canine prostate cancer (PC).

Methods: We analyzed VEGF-A and VEGFR-2 expression in 87 PC samples by immunohistochemistry and quantitative-polymerase chain reaction.