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Phys Med Biol 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, UNITED STATES.

Most solid tumors are characterized by highly dense, isotropic vessel networks. Characterization of such features has shown promise for early cancer diagnosis. Ultrasound diffusion has been used to characterize the micro-architecture of complex media, such as bone and the lungs. Read More

Environ Pollut 2019 Apr 8;250:166-174. Epub 2019 Apr 8.

Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology of Heilongjiang Province Science and Technology Department, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, 150030, China; College of Life Science, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, 150030, China. Electronic address:

Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) play critical roles in transferring antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) among different microorganisms in the environment. This study aimed to explore the fate of MGEs during chicken manure (CM) and bovine manure (BM) composting to assess horizontal transfer risks of ARGs. The results showed that the removal efficiency of MGEs during CM composting was significantly higher than that during BM composting, because the potential host bacteria of MGEs were eliminated largely during CM composting. Read More

Free Radic Biol Med 2019 Apr 14. Epub 2019 Apr 14.

Department of Pediatrics, UC Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, USA. Electronic address:

Effective ventilation of the lungs is essential in mediating pulmonary vasodilation at birth to allow effective gas exchange and an increase in systemic oxygenation. Unsuccessful transition prevents the increase in pulmonary blood flow after birth resulting in hypoxemia and persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN). Management of neonates with PPHN includes ventilation of the lungs with supplemental oxygen to correct hypoxemia. Read More

Immunity 2019 Apr;50(4):955-974

Boston Children's Hospital, F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address:

Neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system progressively rob patients of their memory, motor function, and ability to perform daily tasks. Advances in genetics and animal models are beginning to unearth an unexpected role of the immune system in disease onset and pathogenesis; however, the role of cytokines, growth factors, and other immune signaling pathways in disease pathogenesis is still being examined. Here we review recent genetic risk and genome-wide association studies and emerging mechanisms for three key immune pathways implicated in disease, the growth factor TGF-β, the complement cascade, and the extracellular receptor TREM2. Read More

Immunity 2019 Apr;50(4):851-870

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham St., Little Rock, AR 72205, USA. Electronic address:

The discovery of interleukin (IL)-6 and its receptor subunits provided a foundation to understand the biology of a group of related cytokines: IL-12, IL-23, and IL-27. These family members utilize shared receptors and cytokine subunits and influence the outcome of cancer, infection, and inflammatory diseases. Consequently, many facets of their biology are being therapeutically targeted. Read More

Dev Comp Immunol 2019 Apr 14. Epub 2019 Apr 14.

Laboratory of Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, 266235, China; Liaoning Key Laboratory of Marine Animal Immunology, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, China; Liaoning Key Laboratory of Marine Animal Immunology and Disease Control, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, China. Electronic address:

Phagocytosis constitutes a conserved cellular process for multicellular animals to ingest or engulf other cells or particles, which is facilitated by the use of opsonins to bind foreign particles and interact with cell surface receptors. The invertebrate secreted C1q domain-containing proteins (C1qDCs) have been reported to exhibit opsonic activity, while the detailed mechanisms of opsonization still remain unclear. In the present study, a C1qDC (designated as CgC1qDC-5) with opsonic activity was identified from the hemolymph of oyster Crassostrea gigas. Read More

Acta Trop 2019 Apr 14. Epub 2019 Apr 14.

Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), University of Porto, Oporto, Portugal; EpiUnit, Epidemiology Research Unit, Institute of Public Health of the University of Porto, Portugal; Institute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology of the University of Porto (IPATIMUP), Oporto, Portugal. Electronic address:

A total of 100 domestic cats from Luanda (Angola) were tested for the presence of antibodies against Bartonella henselae and spotted fever group of Rickettsia (SFGR) using indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA). Molecular screening targeting the riboflavin synthase (ribC) gene for Bartonella and outer membrane protein B (ompB) gene for Rickettsia, using conventional PCR and sequencing was also performed in cat´s blood samples. Sixty-six percent of the cats from Luanda had IgG antibodies against Bartonella species but none of them had antibodies against SFGR. Read More

Curr Protoc Stem Cell Biol 2019 Apr 17:e85. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.

The production of human organs inside human-animal interspecies chimeras might one day comprise a viable strategy for generating patient-specific organs, but such experiments will require human chimera-competent pluripotent stem (PS) cells. The stabilization of PS cell self-renewal in serum-free medium and ERK blockade might be critical for capturing primate chimera-competent pluripotency. It has recently been shown that shielding primate cells from the activation of ERK, WNT, and PKC signaling is crucial for deriving African green monkey ERK-independent PS cells. Read More

J Gastroenterol Hepatol 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Laboratory Animal Center, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing.

Background And Aim: The high mortality and poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have raised the public attention. Gene therapy is considered as a promising treatment option for cancer; thus, finding a new therapeutic target for hepatocellular carcinoma is urgently needed. GATA4 is a tumor suppressor gene in multiple cancers, but its role in HCC is unclear. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal Science, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba 80035-050, Brazil.

This experiment was conducted to study the effect of different feeding programs and pelleting on performance, nutrient digestibility, ileal digestible energy (IDE); and carcass yield of broilers from 21 to 35 d of age. In total, 768 male broilers were distributed according to a completely randomized design with 6 treatments and 8 replicates of 16 birds each. The treatments were mash and pelleted diets provided ad libitum, or pelleted and supplied at the same rate (100%) or restricted at 95, 90, and 85% (P100, P95, P90, and P85) of the amount consumed by the birds fed mash diet ad libitum. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N5A8, Canada.

High dietary protein and the use of poorly digested protein sources have been suggested to negatively impact broiler health, possibly because of protein fermentation in the distal intestinal tract. The effect of dietary protein levels with low or high indigestible protein fractions (LIP or HIP) on male and female broiler performance were evaluated. The trial was completely randomized with a 2 × 3 × 2 factorial arrangement, where gender, dietary protein levels (24, 26, and 28%), and dietary protein digestible fractions were the main factors. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal Medicine, College of Agriculture and Forestry, Linyi University, Linyi, Shandong 276000, P.R. China.

The worsening problem of antibiotic resistance prompts the need for alternative strategies that do not directly target bacteria. Virulent Salmonella pullorum strains can invade macrophages and lead to a systemic infection. Saikosaponin A (SSa), a bioactive saponin isolated from Radix bupleuri, has been demonstrated to exhibit anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and cholesterol regulatory activity. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal and Food Sciences, University of Delaware, 531 South College Ave, Newark, DE 19716.

This study was conducted to characterize metabolic differences between high feed efficiency (HFE) and low feed efficiency (LFE) chickens to investigate why feed efficient chickens are more susceptible to muscle abnormalities such as wooden breast disease. Gene expression profiles were generated by RNA sequencing of pectoralis major muscle samples from 10 HFE and 13 LFE broiler chickens selected from a modern broiler population. Metabolism-associated differentially expressed genes were identified and interpreted by Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and literature mining. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Research and Development, Sodour Ahrar Shargh Company, Tehran 14159-4-4341, Iran.

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of water supplementation of organic acid-chelated trace minerals (OTM) on production traits, carcass characteristics, intestinal histomorphology, and nutrient digestibility in African ostrich chicks from 8 to 12 mo of age. A total of 20 growing ostriches, with almost similar body weight (73.4 to 75. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, PR China.

The present study was conducted to determine the impact of dietary energy and protein concentrations and lipid sources on growth performance and carcass traits of Pekin ducks. In Exp. 1, 15-day-old ducks (6 replicate pens, 60 ducks/pen) were randomly assigned to 4 dietary treatments with different metabolizable energy (ME) and crude protein (CP) concentrations (2,850 kcal/kg and 16%, 2,950 kcal/kg and 16. Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0215070. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Malaria Research Unit, UMR 5246 CNRS, Claude-Bernard Lyon-1 University, Villeurbanne, France.

To study the anatomo-biochemical substrates of brain inflammatory processes, Wistar male rats were infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei. With this reproducible animal model of human African trypanosomiasis, brain cells (astrocytes, microglial cells, neurons) expressing the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) enzyme were revealed. Immunohistochemistry was achieved for each control and infected animal through eight coronal brain sections taken along the caudorostral axis of the brain (brainstem, cerebellum, diencephalon and telencephalon). Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0214500. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States of America.

Livestock industries are vulnerable to disease threats, which can cost billions of dollars and have substantial negative social ramifications. Losses are mitigated through increased use of disease-related biosecurity practices, making increased biosecurity an industry goal. Currently, there is no industry-wide standard for sharing information about disease incidence or on-site biosecurity strategies, resulting in uncertainty regarding disease prevalence and biosecurity strategies employed by industry stakeholders. Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0214516. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Graduate School of Animal and Food Hygiene, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Japan.

We have recently shown that sperm attachment to bovine endometrial epithelial cells (BEECs) triggers uterine local innate immunity with induction of a pro-inflammatory response in vitro, however details of the mechanism remain unknown. Here, we investigated the involvement of Toll-like receptor 2/4 (TLR2/4) pathway in mediating sperm-BEECs inflammatory process. Immunohistochemistry of the uterine tissue revealed that TLR2 and TLR4 proteins were present in the luminal and glandular epithelia of bovine endometrium. Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0215163. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America.

The vaccine elicitation of broadly neutralizing responses is a central goal of HIV research. Recently, we elicited cross-clade neutralizing responses against the N terminus of the fusion peptide (FP), a critical component of the HIV-entry machinery. While the consistency of the elicited cross-clade neutralizing responses was good in mice, it was poor in guinea pigs: after seven immunizations comprising either envelope (Env) trimer or FP coupled to a carrier, serum from only one of five animals could neutralize a majority of a cross-clade panel of 19 wild-type strains. Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0214070. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, Norway.

To evaluate the utility of transect sampling for assessing animal welfare in large chicken flocks, we quantified relationships between environmental inputs, welfare problems detected using transect sampling, and production outcomes. We hypothesised that environmental inputs including environmental complexity (i.e. Read More

PLoS One 2019 17;14(4):e0213667. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

One Health Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, United States of America.

The huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) is an endangered cervid endemic to southern Argentina and Chile. Here we report foot lesions in 24 huemul from Bernardo O'Higgins National Park, Chile, between 2005 and 2010. Affected deer displayed variably severe clinical signs, including lameness and soft tissue swelling of the limbs proximal to the hoof or in the interdigital space, ulceration of the swollen tissues, and some developed severe proliferative tissue changes that caused various types of abnormal wear, entrapment, and/or displacement of the hooves and/or dewclaws. Read More

J Parasitol 2019 Apr;105(2):313-320

1   Laboratory of Neurochemistry and Cell Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Institute of Health Sciences, Federal University of Bahia, Av. Reitor Miguel Calmon s/no. Vale do Canela, Salvador-BA, 40110-902, Brazil.

is a parasite that infects many animal species and has tropism for various tissues, particularly the nervous system, where it generally remains in cysts. Under infection, glial cells activate immune responses by a Th2 profile, suggesting an immunologically privileged environment that controls parasite proliferation, with neuronal preservation. In this study, we investigated the role of soluble neurotrophic factors released by glial cells on neuronal integrity during infection in vitro. Read More

J Vet Emerg Crit Care (San Antonio) 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

VCA Oso Creek Animal Hospital & Emergency Center, Corpus Christi, Texas.

Objective: To calculate a risk prediction model for hemangiosarcoma (HSA) diagnosis in dogs presenting with nontraumatic hemoabdomen.

Design: Retrospective multicenter observational cohort study enrolling dogs presented 2003-2016.

Setting: Five academic veterinary medical centers. Read More

An Acad Bras Cienc 2019 8;91(1):e20180381. Epub 2019 Apr 8.

Laboratório de Estudos de Pragas e Parasitas, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Outeiro de São João Batista, s/n Centro, 24020 140 Niterói, RJ, Brazil.

As a part of our continuing search for insect and arthropod development regulators from Brazilian restinga vegetation of the Rio de Janeiro State, crude extracts, purified fractions and essential oils were submitted to screening tests seeking for biological activities on the development of the insects Rhodnius prolixus, Dysdercus peruvianus, Oncopeltus fasciatus and Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus. Up to now, 102 secondary metabolites have been detected in the fractions, among them monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and two triterpenes which were obtained from the species, Eugenia sulcata, Pilocarpus spicatus, Manilkara subsericea, Myrciaria floribunda and Zanthoxylum caribaeum. These secondary plant metabolites are considered of interest for the use of studies related to arthropod endocrinology, vector-parasite interaction system, and population control of vector insect and agricultural pest. Read More

An Acad Bras Cienc 2019 8;91(1):e20190916. Epub 2019 Apr 8.

Department of Antibiotics, Biosciences Centre, Federal University of Pernambuco, Av. Prof. Artur de Sá, s/n, 50740-520 Recife, PE, Brazil.

Currently, the research of new natural compounds with biological potential demonstrates great ethnopharmacological importance. In this study, we evaluated the biological properties promoted by saline extract from Malpighia emarginata DC leaves, whose objective is to evaluate the antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxicity potential. Phytochemical characterization was performed by UPLC-MS chromatography to identify the chemical compounds. Read More

Regen Med 2019 Mar 27;14(3):165-177. Epub 2019 Feb 27.

Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.

To determine the efficiency of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) of different sources on airway epithelial cells regeneration and track where and to what extent transplanted MSCs home to injured tissues. We performed DiO-labeled human bone marrow-derived MSCs (hBMSCs) or human chorionic villi-derived MSCs transplantation studies using naphthalene-induced airway injury animal models. Compared with human chorionic villi-derived MSCs, hBMSCs facilitated airway epithelium regeneration faster and better from day 5 after transplantation; moreover, more transplanted hBMSCs distributed in injured lung tissues at the early stage of postinjury, which was mediated by C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12. Read More

J Feline Med Surg 2019 Apr 17:1098612X19841916. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

5 Mount Laurel Animal Hospital, Mount Laurel, NJ, USA.

Objectives: The aims of this study were to evaluate the safety of mustargen, vincristine, procarbazine and prednisone (MOPP) chemotherapy in the treatment of relapsed or refractory feline lymphoma, and to determine the overall response rate and median remission time with this protocol.

Methods: The medical records of 38 cats with relapsed or refractory lymphoma treated with MOPP chemotherapy at three institutions (University of Pennsylvania, the Animal Medical Center, and VCA Western Veterinary Specialist and Emergency Centre) were examined. Information evaluated included patient signalment, feline immunodeficiency virus/feline leukemia virus status, anatomic location(s) of lymphoma, prior protocols (type and number), MOPP doses, MOPP response, remission duration, hematologic and biochemical parameters, and owner-reported adverse effects. Read More

J Comput Biol 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute, Pusa, New Delhi, India.

Read More

J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr (Berl) 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Institute of Animal Nutrition, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, China.

This study examined the influence of adding different amounts of maternal dietary l-carnitine and two fat types on fatty acid (FA) composition and the expression of lipid metabolism-related genes in piglets. The experiment was designed as a 2 × 2 factorial with two fat types (3.5% soyabean oil, SO, and 3. Read More

J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr (Berl) 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Veterinary Medicine, National Chiayi University, Chiayi, Taiwan.

This study was conducted to examine the effects of weaning stress on gene expression of specific markers in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and neuronal activity in the newly weaned piglets. Twelve 28-days-old, newly weaned crossbred (Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc) male piglets from 6 l (2 piglets/l) were randomly categorized into two groups: (a) weaning stress: piglets were separated from their dams, relocated and mixed with the unacquainted domestic piglets for 2 hr (stress, n = 6); (b) no-stress: piglets stayed with their dams in the farrowing house (NS; n = 6). After weaning stress, all piglets were electrically euthanized and the blood samples/HPA tissues were collected for subsequent analysis, including plasma cortisol and mRNA expression of c-fos, c-jun, corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), CRH receptor 1 (CRHR-1) and adrenocorticotropin hormone receptor (MC2R). Read More

Anim Genet 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Key Laboratory of Animal (Poultry) Genetics Breeding and Reproduction, Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100193, China.

Plasma cholinesterase (PCHE) activity is an important auxiliary test in human clinical medicine. It can distinguish liver diseases from non-liver diseases and help detect organophosphorus poisoning. Animal experiments have confirmed that PCHE activity is associated with obesity and hypertension and changes with physiological changes in an animal's body. Read More

Anim Genet 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Animal Sciences, Center for Reproductive Biology, Washington State University, PO Box 646310, Pullman, WA, 99164-6310, USA.

Milk production traits, such as 305-day milk yield (305MY), have been under direct selection to improve production in dairy cows. Over the past 50 years, the average milk yield has nearly doubled, and over 56% of the increase is attributable to genetic improvement. As such, additional improvements in milk yield are still possible as new loci are identified. Read More

Endosc Int Open 2019 Apr 12;7(4):E576-E582. Epub 2019 Apr 12.

Endoscopy Unit, Gastroenterology Department, ICMDiM, IDIBAPS, CIBEREHD, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.

 Endoscopic resection requires use of submucosal injection. This study was conducted to assess efficacy and impact on early healing of hyaluronic acid combined with chondroitin sulfate and poloxamer 407 (Ziverel) when used as a solution for submucosal injection.  Prospective and comparative study of gastric endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) with three groups of two Yorkshire pigs. Read More

J Am Heart Assoc 2019 May;8(9):e011201

2 Hubrecht Institute (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW)) University Medical Center, Utrecht the Netherlands.

Background We previously showed that intracranial aneurysm ( IA )-associated single-nucleotide polymorphisms are enriched in promoters and putative enhancers identified in the human circle of Willis, on which IA s develop, suggesting a role for promoters and enhancers in IAs . We further investigated the role of putative enhancers in the pathogenesis of IA by identifying their potential target genes and validating their regulatory activity. Methods and Results Using our previously published circle of Willis chromatin immunoprecipitation and sequencing data, we selected 34 putative enhancers in IA -associated regions from genome-wide association studies. Read More

Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2019 Apr 17:1-13. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

a Department of Life Sciences, Animal Ecophysiology Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP 1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.

The inner bark of cinnamon () is widely used as a spice. Cinnamon plants are also a valuable source of essential oil used for medicinal purposes. The present study aimed to investigate the composition and in vitro antioxidant activity of essential oil of bark (CvEO) and its protective effects in vivo on CCl-induced hepatic and renal toxicity in rats. Read More

Adv Clin Exp Med 2019 Apr 15. Epub 2019 Apr 15.

Department of Biochemistry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Turkey.

Background: Apoptosis plays a major role in fatty liver disease. High-fat diets are related to the onset of fatty liver disease and hepatic oxidant-antioxidant imbalance. Curcumin and capsaicin are somewhat beneficial in reducing hepatic triglycerides; this is most likely because they are known to downregulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and apoptosis. Read More

Vet Med Sci 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Central Diagnostic Laboratory, National Veterinary Research Institute, Vom, Nigeria.

Peste-des-petits-ruminants (PPR) and Goat pox (GTP) are two devastating and economically important transboundary animal diseases of small ruminants in Africa and Asia that have been difficult to control. This study however, investigated an outbreak of PPR and GTP in a mixed flock of indigenous sheep and goats in Kanam, North Central Nigeria. A total of nine sera and seven tissues (lungs, spleen, scab and skin) samples were collected and analysed in the laboratory using competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) for PPR antibodies and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detection of PPR virus (PPRV) and GTP virus (GTPV). Read More

Wiley Interdiscip Rev Dev Biol 2019 Apr 16:e344. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Entomology, Cornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

From flies to humans, many components of the innate immune system have been conserved during metazoan evolution. This foundational observation has allowed us to develop Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, into a powerful model to study innate immunity in animals. Thanks to an ever-growing arsenal of genetic tools, an easily manipulated genome, and its winning disposition, Drosophila is now employed to study not only basic molecular mechanisms of pathogen recognition and immune signaling, but also the nature of physiological responses activated in the host by microbial challenge and how dysregulation of these processes contributes to disease. Read More

Microbiologyopen 2019 Apr 16:e846. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Veterinary Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Bioresources and Agriculture, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.

An important Salmonella serovar for both human and animals Salmonella Typhimurium possesses 13 gene clusters that have the potential to produce fimbrial structure, among which the type 1 fimbriae with the binding specificity to mannose residue is the most commonly found type. Six structural genes and five regulatory genes comprise the fim gene cluster that is responsible for the production of type 1 fimbriae in S. Typhimurium. Read More

Vet Radiol Ultrasound 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia.

Degenerative sacroiliac joint disease is a cause of lumbosacral pain in dogs; however, published information on cross-sectional imaging characteristics is limited. Objectives of this retrospective, secondary analysis, methods-comparison study were to test hypotheses that CT lesions reported in humans with degenerative sacroiliac joint disease are also present in dogs, and that CT is comparable to gross pathology for detecting these lesions. Matched CT and gross pathology slice images of 30 sacroiliac joints were retrieved from a previous prospective, canine cadaver study. Read More

Dev Dyn 2019 Apr 17. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.

Evolutionary conservation and experimental tractability have made animal model systems invaluable tools in our quest to understand human embryogenesis, both normal and abnormal. Standard genetic approaches, particularly useful in understanding monogenic diseases, are no longer sufficient as research attention shifts towards multifactorial outcomes. Here, we examine this progression through the lens of holoprosencephaly (HPE), a common human malformation involving incomplete forebrain division, and a classic example of an etiologically complex outcome. Read More

J Fish Biol 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China.

We assessed the expression stability of several messenger (m)RNAs and micro (mi)RNAs from liver and head kidney of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss using high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and miRNA-seq data. Additionally, four commonly used reference genes and one small non-coding RNA (u6) were also selected to identify ideal reference mRNAs and miRNAs for quantitative real-time (qrt)-PCR analysis of heat stress responses. GeNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and comparative ΔC were employed for analysis of qrt-PCR data to systematically assess the expression stability of candidate mRNAs and miRNAs and stability was ranked using geometric means. Read More

Clin Exp Immunol 2019 May;196(2):155-156

Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury, UK.

In this two-part series of reviews, we have invited experts in their fields to contribute articles on the status of vaccine research and development for emerging pathogens. This topic has been brought into sharp focus in recent years following significant outbreaks of viral diseases such as those causing severe acute respiratory syndrome and Middle East respiratory syndrome, as well as devastating outbreaks of diseases caused by the Ebola, Marburg, Zika and Lassa fever viruses, to name only a few examples. Additionally, bacterial infections leading to bubonic and pneumonic plague, most notably in Madagascar in 2018, as well as malaria in many tropical countries, melioidosis in south east Asia and tularaemia in northern Europe and North America, have incurred significant morbidity and mortality. Read More

J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, University of Illinois at Chicago, 833 S Wood St, MC 781, Room 539, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA.

Multispecies microbiome systems are known to be closely linked to human, animal, and plant life processes. The growing field of metabolomics presents the opportunity to detect changes in overall metabolomic profiles of microbial species interactions. These metabolomic changes provide insight into function of metabolites as they correlate to different species presence and the observed phenotypic changes, but detection of subtle changes is often difficult in samples with complex backgrounds. Read More

Ambio 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Institute of Animal Nutrition (ITE), Bundesallee 37, 38116, Braunschweig, Germany.

Lead poisoning of birds of prey from ingestion of ammunition lead has been well documented. Alternative, lead-free ammunition is widely available, but the toxicokinetics of other metals in birds are poorly understood. We tested the erosion of lead, copper, zinc, iron and brass by feeding domestic Pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos forma domestica) defined numbers of small metal pellets. Read More

Pediatr Cardiol 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Cardiology, Children's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, 72 Guangzhou Road, Nanjing, 210008, China.

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is characterized by left or bilateral ventricular dilation and systolic dysfunction without rational conditions, which can lead to progressive heart failure and sudden cardiac death. Most of the pathogenic genes have been reported in adult population by locus mapping in familial cases and animal model studies. However, it still remains challenging to decipher the role of genetics in the etiology of pediatric DCM. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

College of Animal Science and Technology, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, Shandong Province 271018, China.

Fowl adenovirus serotype 4 (FAdV-4) is the causative agent of hydropericardium syndrome. To clarify the effects of FAdV-4 on immune organs in birds, we conducted a detailed examination of dynamic morphology and damage mechanisms in chickens randomly divided into 4 groups (FAdV-4, vaccination, FAdV-4 plus vaccination, and control). FAdV-4 caused the depletion of lymphocytes and subsequent growth impairment in the thymus and bursa. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Department of Animal Biotechnology and Genetics, UTP University of Science and Technology, Mazowiecka 28 St., 85-084 Bydgoszcz, Poland.

The aim of this research was to study the factors affecting hatchability, percentage of egg weight loss during incubation, early embryonic mortality, and chick mortality in the first seven days of life in the field. This study was performed on 20,817,600 hatching eggs originating from 7 different breeder flocks. The factors responsible for variability of investigated traits were the following: genotype (ROSS 308, ROSS PM3), hen age (25 to 30, 31 to 45, 46 to 50, and 51 to 60 wk), egg storage time (0 to 13 d), and setter and hatcher type (Digital, Airstreamer, Vision, Focus, Biostreamer), which were determined using the classification tree technique. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Food Quality and Safety-State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base of Ministry of Science and Technology, Institute of Animal Science, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, China.

This study was designed to investigate the effects of fermented feed diets on the growth performance and cecal microbial community in geese, and to examine associations between the gut microbiota and growth performance. A total of 720 healthy, 1-day-old male SanHua geese were used for the 55-D experiment. Geese were randomly divided into 4 groups, each with 6 replicates of 30 geese. Read More

Poult Sci 2019 Apr 16. Epub 2019 Apr 16.

Poultry Production and Product Safety Research Unit, USDA-ARS, AR 72701, USA.

Campylobacter jejuni, a major cause of human gastroenteritis worldwide, is often associated with the consumption of contaminated poultry products. With increasing consumer preference to natural and minimally processed foods, interventions utilizing natural antimicrobials for controlling C. jejuni on poultry products are gaining popularity. Read More