OBJECTIVE To evaluate the use of rebound and applanation tonometry for the measurement of intraocular pressure (IOP) and to assess diurnal variations in and the effect of topical anesthesia on the IOP of healthy inland bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps). ANIMALS 56 bearded dragons from 4 months to 11 years old. PROCEDURES For each animal following an initial ophthalmic examination, 3 IOP measurements were obtained on each eye between 9 AM and 10 AM, 1 PM and 2 PM, and 5 PM and 7 PM by use of rebound and applanation tonometry. An additional measurement was obtained by rebound tonometry for each eye in the evening following the application of a topical anesthetic to evaluate changes in the tolerance of the animals to the tonometer. Descriptive data were generated, and the effects of sex, time of day, and topical anesthesia on IOP were evaluated. RESULTS Bearded dragons did not tolerate applanation tonometry even following topical anesthesia. Median daily IOP as determined by rebound tonometry was 6.16 mm Hg (95% confidence interval, 5.61 to 6.44 mm Hg). The IOP did not differ significantly between the right and left eyes. The IOP was highest in the morning, which indicated that the IOP in this species undergoes diurnal variations. Topical anesthesia did not significantly affect IOP, but it did improve the compliance for all subjects. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results indicated that rebound tonometry, but not applanation tonometry, was appropriate for measurement of IOP in bearded dragons. These findings provided preliminary guidelines for IOP measurement and ophthalmic evaluation in bearded dragons.

OBJECTIVE To determine the cardiopulmonary effects of progressively increasing infusion rates of dopamine hydrochloride and phenylephrine hydrochloride in healthy adult New Zealand White rabbits anesthetized with isoflurane. ANIMALS 6 New Zealand White rabbits. (Oryctolagus cuniculus). PROCEDURES Each rabbit was anesthetized on 2 occasions (≥ 2 weeks apart) with isoflurane in oxygen at 1.5 times the published isoflurane minimum alveolar concentration of 2.07%. Carotid artery and pulmonary artery catheters were placed. During each anesthetic episode, each rabbit received 5 progressively increasing doses of either dopamine (5, 10, 15, 20, or 30 μg/kg/min) or phenylephrine (0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 μg/kg/min). Blood gas and cardiopulmonary measurements were obtained after a 20-minute equilibration period prior to administration of the first drug dose (baseline) and after each subsequent dose administration. RESULTS Dopamine increased stroke index at the highest infusion rate of 30 μg/kg/min; however, cardiac output and mean arterial blood pressure remained unchanged from baseline values. Administration of phenylephrine at a rate of 2 μg/kg/min increased mean arterial blood pressure to 62 mm Hg from the baseline value of 45 mm Hg. This was a result of an increase in systemic vascular resistance with a concomitant decrease in heart rate and no change in cardiac output. Blood lactate concentration increased with time when rabbits received either treatment. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Within the dose range of 5 to 30 μg/kg/min, dopamine was not an effective treatment for isoflurane-induced hypotension in rabbits and phenylephrine was only minimally effective at a dose of 2 μg/kg/min.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether a low-dosage regimen of prednisolone induces bone loss and whether administration of alendronate sodium prevents glucocorticoid-induced osteopenia in dogs by measuring trabecular bone mineral density (BMD) with quantitative CT. ANIMALS 8 healthy Beagles. PROCEDURES In 4 dogs, prednisolone was administered PO at a dosage of 2 mg/kg once daily for 2 weeks, 1 mg/kg once daily for 4 weeks, and 0.5 mg/kg once daily for 3 weeks. In the other 4 dogs, alendronate sodium (2 mg/kg, PO, q 24 h) was whether administered for 9 weeks in addition to the same dosage of prednisolone used in the prednisolone-treated dogs. Before (day 0 [baseline]) and 21, 42, 63, and 150 days after the start of treatment, BMD of the lumbar vertebrae was measured by quantitative CT. RESULTS BMD in the prednisolone treatment group decreased to 84.7% of the baseline value on day 42, increased to 87.9% on day 63, and recovered to 91.6% on day 150. In the prednisolone-alendronate treatment group, BMD decreased to 91% of the baseline value on day 21, increased to 93.8% on day 63, and then recovered to 96.7% on day 150. Bone mineral density in the prednisolone treatment group was generally lower, albeit not significantly, than that of the prednisolone-alendronate treatment group on each examination day. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE BMD temporarily decreased after low-dosage prednisolone administration; however, it gradually improved during tapering of the prednisolone dosage. These results have suggested that a low dosage of prednisolone can be used with little concern for development of osteopenia in dogs.

OBJECTIVE To characterize the postprandial nutrient profiles of exercise-conditioned dogs fed a supplemental carbohydrate and protein bar with or without astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis immediately after exercise. ANIMALS 34 exercise-conditioned adult Husky-Pointer dogs. PROCEDURES The study had 2 phases. During phase 1, postprandial plasma glucose concentration was determined for dogs fed a bar containing 25% protein and 18.5% or 37.4% maltodextrin plus dextrin (rapidly digestible carbohydrate; RDC), or dry kibble (30% protein and 0% RDC) immediately after exercise. During phase 2, dogs were exercised for 3 days and fed a bar (25% protein and 37.4% RDC) with (CPA; n = 8) or without (CP; 8) astaxanthin or no bar (control; 8) immediately after exercise. Pre- and postexercise concentrations of plasma biochemical analytes and serum amino acids were determined on days 1 and 3. RESULTS Phase 1 postexercise glucose concentration was increased when dogs were provided the 37.4% RDC bar, but not 0% or 18.5% RDC. On day 3 of phase 2, the CPA group had the highest pre-exercise triglyceride concentration and significantly less decline in postexercise glucose concentration than did the CP and control groups. Mean glucose concentration for the CP and CPA groups was significantly higher than that for the control group between 15 and 60 minutes after bar consumption. Compared to immediately after exercise, branched-chain amino acid, tryptophan, leucine, and threonine concentrations 15 minutes after exercise were significantly higher for the CP and CPA groups, but were lower for the control group. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Dogs fed a bar with 37.4% RDCs and 25% protein immediately after exercise had increased blood nutrient concentrations for glycogen and protein synthesis, compared with control dogs.

OBJECTIVE To establish the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) of desflurane and evaluate the effects of 2 opioids on MAC in sheep. ANIMALS 8 adult nulliparous mixed-breed sheep. PROCEDURES A randomized crossover design was used. Each sheep was evaluated individually on 2 occasions (to allow assessment of the effects of each of 2 opioids), separated by a minimum of 10 days. On each occasion, sheep were anesthetized with desflurane in 100% oxygen, MAC of desflurane was determined, oxymorphone (0.05 mg/kg) or hydromorphone (0.10 mg/kg) was administered IV, and MAC was redetermined. Physiologic variables and arterial blood gas and electrolyte concentrations were measured at baseline (before MAC determination, with end-tidal desflurane concentration maintained at 10%) and each time MAC was determined. Timing of various stages of anesthesia was recorded for both occasions. RESULTS Mean ± SEM MAC of desflurane was 8.6 ± 0.2%. Oxymorphone or hydromorphone administration resulted in significantly lower MAC (7.6 ± 0.4% and 7.9 ± 0.2%, respectively). Cardiac output at MAC determination for desflurane alone and for desflurane with opioid administration was higher than that at baseline. No difference was identified among hematologic values at any point. Effects of oxymorphone and hydromorphone on durations of various stages of anesthesia did not differ significantly. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE MAC of desflurane in nulliparous adult sheep was established. Intravenous administration of oxymorphone or hydromorphone led to a decrease in MAC; however, the clinical importance of that decrease was minor relative to the effect in other species.

Interferon (IFN)-γ has been shown to be associated with immunity to Marek’s disease virus (MDV). The overall objective of this study was to investigate the causal relationship between IFN-g and vaccine-conferred immunity against MDV in chickens. To this end, 3 small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) targeting chicken IFN-g, which had previously been shown to reduce IFN-γ expression in vitro, and a control siRNA were selected to generate recombinant avian adeno-associated virus (rAAAV) expressing short-hairpin small interfering RNAs (shRNAs). An MDV challenge trial was then conducted: chickens were vaccinated with herpesvirus of turkey (HVT), administered the rAAAV expressing shRNA, and then challenged with MDV. Tumors were observed in 4 out of 10 birds that were vaccinated with HVT and challenged but did not receive any rAAAV, 5 out of 9 birds that were administered the rAAAV containing IFN-γ shRNA, and 2 out of 10 birds that were administered a control enhanced green fluorescent protein siRNA. There was no significant difference in MDV genome load in the feather follicle epithelium of the birds that were cotreated with the vaccine and the rAAAV compared with the vaccinated MDV-infected birds. These results suggest that AAAV-based vectors can be used for the delivery of shRNA into chicken cells. However, administration of the rAAAV expressing shRNA targeting chicken IFN-γ did not seem to fully abrogate vaccine-induced protection.

The DNA repair protein O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) causes resistance to nitrosoureas in various human cancers. In this study, we analyzed the correlation between canine lymphomas and MGMT in vitro. Two of five canine lymphoma cell lines required higher concentrations of lomustine to inhibit cell growth by 50%, but their sensitivity to the drug increased when they were cultured with an MGMT inhibitor. Fluorometric oligonucleotide assay and real-time polymerase chain reaction of these cell lines revealed MGMT activity and high MGMT mRNA expression, respectively. We analyzed the methylation status of the CpG islands of the canine MGMT gene by the bisulfite-sequencing method. Unlike human cells, the canine lymphoma cell lines did not show significant correlation between methylation status and MGMT suppression levels. Our results suggest that in canine lymphoma MGMT activity may influence sensitivity to nitrosoureas; thus, inhibition of MGMT activity would benefit nitrosourea-resistant patients. Additional studies are necessary to elucidate the mechanism of regulation of MGMT expression.

OBJECTIVE To analytically validate a gas concentration of chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method for measurement of 6 amino acids in canine serum samples and to assess the stability of each amino acid after sample storage. SAMPLES Surplus serum from 80 canine samples submitted to the Gastrointestinal Laboratory at Texas A&M University and serum samples from 12 healthy dogs. PROCEDURES GC-MS was validated to determine precision, reproducibility, limit of detection, and percentage recovery of known added concentrations of 6 amino acids in surplus serum samples. Amino acid concentrations in serum samples from healthy dogs were measured before (baseline) and after storage in various conditions. RESULTS Intra- and interassay coefficients of variation (10 replicates involving 12 pooled serum samples) were 13.4% and 16.6% for glycine, 9.3% and 12.4% for glutamic acid, 5.1% and 6.3% for methionine, 14.0% and 15.1% for tryptophan, 6.2% and 11.0% for tyrosine, and 7.4% and 12.4% for lysine, respectively. Observed-to-expected concentration ratios in dilutional parallelism tests (6 replicates involving 6 pooled serum samples) were 79.5% to 111.5% for glycine, 80.9% to 123.0% for glutamic acid, 77.8% to 111.0% for methionine, 85.2% to 98.0% for tryptophan, 79.4% to 115.0% for tyrosine, and 79.4% to 110.0% for lysine. No amino acid concentration changed significantly from baseline after serum sample storage at −80°C for ≤ 7 days. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE GC-MS measurement of concentration of 6 amino acids in canine serum samples yielded precise, accurate, and reproducible results. Sample storage at −80°C for 1 week had no effect on GC-MS results.

Three canine parainfluenza viruses type 5 (CPIV-5) were isolated from lung tissues of 3 Korean dogs with mild pneumonia between 2008 and 2009. The isolates were fully sequenced and compared with published reference sequences. The size of the genome was 15 246 nucleotides long and no remarkable differences were found when compared with previously published reference sequences. In phylogenetic analysis based on the F and P genes, parainfluenza virus 5 (PIV-5) strains were divided into at least 3 subgroups. Three CPIV-5 strains were clustered with CPIV-5 T1, H22 and 78524 strains. All PIV-5 strains were independent of the host species, geographical distribution, and the isolated period.

OBJECTIVE To determine changes in dimensions of feline skin samples as a result of histologic processing and to identify factors that contributed to changes in dimensions of skin samples after sample collection. SAMPLE Cadavers of 12 clinically normal cats. PROCEDURES Skin samples were obtained bilaterally from 3 locations (neck, thorax, and tibia) of each cadaver; half of the thoracic samples included underlying muscle. Length, width, and depth were measured at 5 time points (before excision, after excision, after application of ink to mark tissue margins, after fixation in neutral-buffered 10% formalin for 36 hours, and after completion of histologic processing and staining with H&E stain). Measurements obtained after sample collection were compared with measurements obtained before excision. RESULTS At the final time point, tissue samples had decreased in length (mean decrease, 32.40%) and width (mean decrease, 34.21%) and increased in depth (mean increase, 54.95%). Tissue from the tibia had the most shrinkage in length and width and that from the neck had the least shrinkage. Inclusion of underlying muscle on thoracic skin samples did not affect the degree of change in dimensions. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE In this study, each step during processing from excision to formalin fixation and histologic processing induced changes in tissue dimensions, which were manifested principally as shrinkage in length and width and increase in depth. Most of the changes occured during histologic processing. Inclusion of muscle did not affect thoracic skin shrinkage. Shrinkage should be a consideration when interpreting surgical margins in clinical cases.