Objective: To evaluate the use of high-resolution MRI for hippocampal volumetry in dogs and to define a lower reference limit for hippocampal formation (HF) volume. Animals: 20 dogs (with no history of seizures and no underlying structural brain disease) that underwent MRI of the brain. Procedures: The MRI protocol included a high-resolution T1-weighted 3-D ultrafast gradient-echo sequence aligned in a dorsal plane perpendicular to the long axis of the HF. Images obtained with MRI were retrospectively analyzed by 2 observers (A and B). Intraobserver and interobserver agreement were calculated with the Lin concordance correlation coefficient. Volume measurements of the HF were adjusted for intracranial volume, and a lower 95% reference limit for adjusted HF volume was calculated. Results: There was substantial intraobserver agreement (Lin concordance correlation coefficient, 0.97 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 0.94 to 0.99]) but poor interobserver agreement (Lin concordance correlation coefficient, 0.63 [95% CI, 0.37 to 0.79]). The lower 95% reference limit for adjusted HF volume was 0.56 cm3 (90% CI, 0.52 to 0.60 cm3) for the right HF and 0.55 cm3 (90% CI, 0.52 to 0.58 cm3) for the left HF. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: HF volumes should be adjusted for intracranial volume to account for the large variation in canine skull size. The amount of time required to perform HF volumetry and low interobserver agreement may restrict this technique to research applications, such as the investigation of epileptic patients for hippocampal sclerosis or other cognitive disorders.

Objective: To characterize equine muscle tissue– and periosteal tissue–derived cells as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and assess their proliferation capacity and osteogenic potential in comparison with bone marrow– and adipose tissue–derived MSCs. Sample: Tissues from 10 equine cadavers. Procedures: Cells were isolated from left semitendinosus muscle tissue, periosteal tissue from the distomedial aspect of the right tibia, bone marrow aspirates from the fourth and fifth sternebrae, and adipose tissue from the left subcutaneous region. Mesenchymal stem cells were characterized on the basis of morphology, adherence to plastic, trilineage differentiation, and detection of stem cell surface markers via immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. Mesenchymal stem cells were tested for osteogenic potential with osteocalcin gene expression via real-time PCR assay. Mesenchymal stem cell cultures were counted at 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours to determine tissue-specific MSC proliferative capacity. Results: Equine muscle tissue– and periosteal tissue–derived cells were characterized as MSCs on the basis of spindle-shaped morphology, adherence to plastic, trilineage differentiation, presence of CD44 and CD90 cell surface markers, and nearly complete absence of CD45 and CD34 cell surface markers. Muscle tissue–, periosteal tissue–, and adipose tissue–derived MSCs proliferated significantly faster than did bone marrow–derived MSCs at 72 and 96 hours. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Equine muscle and periosteum are sources of MSCs. Equine muscle- and periosteal-derived MSCs have osteogenic potential comparable to that of equine adipose- and bone marrow–derived MSCs, which could make them useful for tissue engineering applications in equine medicine.

Objective-To characterize and quantitatively assess the typical pulmonary anatomy of healthy adult alpacas with multidetector row CT. Animals-10 clinically normal adult female alpacas. Procedures-CT examination of the thorax was performed before and after IV administration of iodinated contrast medium in sedated alpacas in sternal recumbency. Measurements of the trachea, bronchi and related blood vessels, and selected vertebrae as well as the extent and density of lung parenchyma were performed with a Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) viewer. Morphometric and quantitative data were summarized. Results-Separation of individual lung lobes could not be identified, except for the accessory lung lobe. In all alpacas, both lungs extended farther caudally at the medial aspect than at the lateral aspect. The right lung extended farther in both cranial and caudal directions than did the left lung. The branching pattern of the bronchial tree varied only slightly among alpacas and consisted of 1 cranial bronchus and 3 caudal bronchi bilaterally, with a right accessory bronchus. Luminal diameters of first-generation bronchi ranged from 3 to 9 mm. Mean +/- SD parenchymal lung density was −869 +/- 40 Hounsfield units (HU) before contrast injection and −825 +/- 51 HU after contrast injection. Mean difference in diameter between bronchi and associated arteries or veins was 0.8 +/- 0.9 mm. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Knowledge of the typical anatomy of the lungs and bronchial tree in healthy alpacas as determined via CT will aid veterinarians in clinical assessment and bronchoscopic evaluation of alpacas.

Objective—To determine the pharmacokinetics and hemodynamic effects of trazodone after IV and oral administration in dogs and bioavailability after oral administration. Animals—6 adult Beagles. Procedures—Dogs received trazodone HCl (8 mg/kg) orally and IV in a randomized controlled crossover design. Blood samples were collected at various times after administration. Heart rates and indirectly measured blood pressures of dogs and plasma concentrations and pharmacokinetics of trazodone were determined. Results—Following IV administration, the mean ± SD elimination half-life, apparent volume of distribution, and plasma total body clearance were 169 ± 53 minutes, 2.53 ± 0.47 L/kg, and 11.15 ± 3.56 mL/min/kg, respectively. Following oral administration, the mean ± SD elimination half-life and absolute bioavailability were 166 ± 47 minutes and 84.6 ± 13.2%, respectively. Maximum plasma concentration following oral administration was 1.3 ± 0.5 μ/mL, and time to maximum plasma concentration was 445 ± 271 minutes. After IV administration, all dogs immediately developed transient tachycardia (184.3 ± 8.0 beats/min), and 3 of 6 dogs developed aggression. Increase in heart rate was significantly associated with increase in plasma drug concentration following IV administration. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Results of this study indicated oral administration of trazodone resulted in acceptable absolute bioavailability, with substantial variability in time to maximum plasma concentration. Individualized approaches in dosing intervals may be necessary for dogs receiving oral trazodone. An orally administered dose of 8 mg/kg was well tolerated in dogs; IV administration of a dose of 8 mg/kg caused substantial adverse effects, including tachycardia and behavior disinhibition.

A solar dryer was designed and constructed to dry fodder for livestock. The objectives of this project were to design and construct solar dryer systems for fodder drying and to evaluate the performance of the systems developed so that farmers can compare and choose an appropriate drying system to dry fodder. Two types of solar driers were designed in this study named as a) prototype solar dryer and b)greenhouse solar dryer. The performances of both systems were evaluated by observing their ability to achieve and maintain an optimum temperature of 60oC for a perfect drying process. In 2011, the prototype solar dryer was constructed at the Malaysia Veterinary Institute; however the results obtained were not as expected as the highest temperature achieved with the system was 44.9oC. Therefore, in 2012, the greenhouse solar dryer was constructed to replace the prototype model and the system has the ability to achieve the temperature up to 72.7oC.

A study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Newcastle disease (ND) and Avian Influenza (AI) from backyard chickens and ducks in Sabah. A total of 2,117 samples consisting of 1,498 swabs and 619 serum samples were taken from all districts in the state.
All samples tested were negative to Avian Influenza virus. 23.59% of the 619 serum samples collected were sero-positive for Newcastle Disease with the highest HI titre being 1/256. Only one pool of 4
trachael swabs or 0.27% of the total 1,498 swabs was positive on virus isolation for Newcastle Disease. No Avian influenza virus was isolated from all the samples collected.

A total of 3430 serum samples from various animal species and humans were tested using microscopic agglutination test (MAT) to determine
the frequency of the important leptospiral serovars involved in animals and humans. The sera were screened against 14 serovars of pathogenic Leptospira interogans and 1 serovar of non-pathogenic Leptospira biflexa. Altogether, 441 (12.86%) of the tested serum samples were found to be positive serologically. Tested sera reacted to all 15 serovars used in this study. The most predominant serovar in cattle and sheep is hardjo (39.60% and 66.67%). However, in goat, buffalo and horse, the most frequent serovar detected is hebdomadis (30.00%, 32.58% and 57.14%). In dog, the most predominant serovar is bataviae (19.23%). In humans, the most predominant serovar is cynopteri (3.26%). Among all the samples tested, there were no positive samples from pig and cat. Domestic animals, rodents and
pets can infect the environment or transmit the disease to human or other animals. This study showed that domestic animals could play a role in the epidemiology of leptospirosis and represents a threat to
public health.

A detailed post mortem was carried out on a male Bryde’s whale
Balaenoptera brydei, a cetacean of suborder Mysticetes, with a wide geographical distribution. The stranded whale, weighing approximately 3.5 metric tons was found beached along the Pekan Nenasi River, Pahang in East Coast of Malaysia facing South China Sea. Gross pathology showed severe hemorrhagic gastritis, probably
due to foreign material found compacted in the multichamber stomach, severe congestion in the various vital organs due to toxemia, and severe endoparasite burden in the intestine. Thousands of Digeneans
were found in both the caecum and colon. Morphological identification was carried out on these parasites which were identified as Ogmogaster species. As co parasites, the acathocephalan worms Falsifilicollis species was also detected in the large intestine. Histological examination indicated severe bronchointerstitial embolic pneumonia, chronic interstitial
hemorrhages, intra alveolar septa thickening in lung tissue; chronic hepatic interstitial hemorrhage, hepatocellular and centrilobular degeneration on the liver tissue; renal tubular and glomerular
necrosis in kidney tissue; splenic necrosis and hemorrhages; intestinal mucosal layer necrosis and severe intestinal villi necrosis. The continuing survival of Bryde’s species whale is precarious, because of disregard for appropriate measures for their
conservation and to conduct appropriate study for the cause of death.

Exercise-induced changes of pro-oxidant generating substances and muscle fibre damaging enzymes are the possible causes of reduced performance in endurance horses. Therefore, this study aims to investigate on the performance of different age and gender using biochemical profile of endurance horses during 120 km endurance race. One hundred and eighty four Arabian endurance horses were physically examined and blood samples were collected post-race.&#xD;After physical examination, the MD (F, n= 44; G, n = 86) and SC (F, n = 20; G, n = 34) were identified. T-test and pairwise correlation were used for the analysis. There were significant differences in&#xD;CK, uric acid, lactate and age (P<0.0001) respectively between the gender in the MD and SC. There were significant differences in AST (P<0.0029) and GGT (P<0.0039) respectively between the gender in the&#xD;MD and SC. In conclusion age and gender significantly affect performance of endurance horses in relation to biochemical profile during 120 km endurance race. Therefore, further studies are required to determine if age, gender and biochemical profile could be used to assess performance in endurance horses.

Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) are well-known ascendant nosocomial pathogens. The recent detection of epidemiologic strain&#xD;carrying vanA gene in the community of people working with animals and in chickens has brought to the forefront the potential public health danger posed by these organism. The farm environment is a major source of VRE persistence in poultry farms. We carried out survival test to test the survival of the VRE isolates on dry condition and surface test to evaluate the inactivation of the isolates by in-use concentration of commonly used disinfectants. In the survival test, all isolates survived for at least 4 weeks in&#xD;colony counts of (1.00 × 103 – 3.86 × 103 CFU/ml) under clean condition and (1.00 × 103 – 2.02 × 104) for soiled condition.&#xD;Those that were suspended in 5% BSA solution to mimic organic matter load as obtainable on farms survived for at least 8 weeks at (1.54 × 102 – 1.34 × 103 CFU/ ml). In the surface test, inactivation of VRE isolates by in-use concentration of Lindores®, Omnicide® and Ecos Timsen® was tested using the European surface test (EST). All the tested disinfectants were active against the VRE isolates on both the standard test surface (stainless steel) and our test surface (wooden). The results shows microbiocidal effects (ME) for test disinfectants, i.e. the log10 CFU of micro-organisms compared between test biocide and control treated with distilled water, after 7 min of exposure as follows; Lindores® active on both surfaces 5.24 and 3.17, Ecos Timsen® active significantly on steel 4.90 than wood 2.98 and Omnicide® significantly less active on stainless steel&#xD;2.40 than on wood 3.50.