The effect of feeding monensin, with or without dry hay plus wilted forage, on ruminal formation of 3-methylindole (3MI) was investigated in pastured cattle. Eighty-two cows were allotted to 3 groups. Cows of group-1 served as controls and were given a daily energy supplement (1 kg/head) without monensin for 1 day before and for 7 days after being allowed access to lush pasture. Cows of groups 2 and 3 were given the same daily energy supplement, which also contained monensin (200 mg/kg of supplement). Cows of group 3 also were fed dry hay for 5 days before the start of the study and continued to be given supplemental hay for 4 days after being allowed access to lush pasture containing a layer of wilted forage. Ruminal 3MI and indole concentrations increased on day 1 after all groups were allowed access to lush pasture. By day 7, 3MI concentration in all cows had decreased to pregrazing concentration. Indole concentration did not reach pregrazing concentration until day 10 for cows of groups 1 and 2. Group-3 cows had pregrazing indole concentration on day 7. Ruminal indole concentration did not differ (P > 0.05) between groups 1 and 2. Ruminal indole concentration was lower (P < 0.01) in group-3 cows on all sample collection days, except day 10, compared with that in the other groups. Monensin reduced (P < 0.01) 3MI formation on days 1 and 7 in group-2 cows, compared with group-1 cows. Group-3 cows had lower 3MI concentration than did group-1 cows (P < 0.01) on days -1, 1, 4, and 7. Monensin, when fed with dry hay and wilted forage, reduced (P < 0.01) 3MI formation on days 4 and 7 in group-3 cows, compared with cows that were only given monensin (group 2). Group-3 cows also had lower (P < 0.05) 3MI concentration, compared with group-2 cows on day 1. Results indicated that monensin reduced ruminal formation of 3MI. Feeding dry hay and wilted forage to cattle during the change to lush pasture resulted in further reduction in the amount of 3MI formed by ruminal microorganisms. To maximize the effectiveness of monensin in reducing 3MI formation, dry hay plus wilted forage should be fed to pastured cattle for at least 4 days after they are allowed access to lush pasture.

Tularaemia is a zoonotic disease caused by the gram-negative bacterium Francisella tularensis, which is endemic to Ukraine. The aim of this work was to provide screening of different field samples (rodent tails, ticks, pellets, water, and hay) to obtain an actual picture of the tularaemia epizootic situation in the Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Mykolaiv oblasts. Samples were collected using the flag method (for ticks) and break-back traps (for rodents). Also, hay, water and owl pellets were collected for study. The F. tularensis genetic material in samples was detected using a 16S qPCR. It was found that in Kharkiv oblast, 23% of collected samples were positive for F. tularensis, in Dnipropetrovsk oblast 1.9%, and in Mykolaiv oblast 0.4%. Among the sample types, 34.7% of ticks, 1.8% of rodents, and 36.4% of pellets were positive for F. tularensis. The most frequent carriers of F. tularensis were the D. reticulatus and I. ricinus ticks (74.2% and 29.3%, respectively, of positive results).

Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Shreb) hay from a source known to cause "fescue foot" in grazing cattle was extracted with 80% ethanol. The ethanolic extract was further refined and fractionated into cation,nion, and neutral f fractions by ion-exchange chromatography. The cation fraction was partitioned with alkaline-chloroform to give chloroform-extractable cation and residual cation fractions. All fractions plus the crude ethanolic extract were assayed for toxic activity by intraperitoneal injection into 12 calves (weighting 152.4 to 241.3 kg each) over a 14-day period. Clinical signs of fescue foot were observed on the 5th day in calves given the anion and crude ethanolic extracts. Lameness, swelling, and reddening of the rear coronary bands, discoloration of the tip of the tail, and other signs of fescue foot were seen. Microscopically, coronary bands and tail tips of affected calves had blood vessels with thick walls and small lumens.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the lipidomic profile of surfactant obtained from horses with asthma at various clinical stages and to compare results with findings for healthy horses exposed to the same conditions. SAMPLE Surfactant samples obtained from 6 horses with severe asthma and 7 healthy horses. PROCEDURES Clinical evaluation of horses and surfactant analysis were performed. Samples obtained from horses with severe asthma and healthy horses before (baseline), during, and after exposure to hay were analyzed. Crude surfactant pellets were dried prior to dissolution in a solution of isopropanol:methanol:chloroform (4:2:1) containing 7.5mM ammonium acetate. Shotgun lipidomics were performed by use of high-resolution data acquisition on an ion-trap mass spectrometer. Findings were analyzed by use of an ANOVA with a Tukey-Kramer post hoc test. RESULTS Results of lipidomic analysis were evaluated to detect significant differences between groups of horses and among exposure statuses within groups of horses. Significantly increased amounts of cyclic phosphatidic acid (cPA) and diacylglycerol (DAG) were detected in surfactant from severely asthmatic horses during exposure to hay, compared with baseline and postexposure concentrations. Concentrations of cPA and DAG did not change significantly in healthy horses regardless of exposure status. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE cPA 16:0 and DAG 36:2 were 2 novel lipid mediators identified in surfactant obtained from asthmatic horses with clinical disease. These molecules were likely biomarkers of sustained inflammation. Further studies are needed to evaluate a possible correlation with disease severity and potential alterations in the plasma lipidomic profile of horses with asthma.

Objective: To determine the effect of transportation during periods of high ambient temperature on physiologic and behavioral indices of beef heifers. Animals: 20 heifers (mean body weight, 217.8 kg). Procedures: Ten heifers were transported 518 km when the maximum ambient temperature was ≥ 32.2°C while the other 10 heifers served as untransported controls. Blood samples were collected from transported heifers at predetermined intervals during the transportation period. For all heifers, body weights, nasal and rectal temperatures, and behavioral indices were measured at predetermined intervals for 3 days after transportation. A week later, the entire process was repeated such that each group was transported twice and served as the control twice. Results: Transported heifers spent more time near the hay feeder on the day of transportation, had lower nasal and rectal temperatures for 24 hours after transportation, and spent more time lying down for 2 days after transportation, compared with those indices for control heifers. Eight hours after transportation, the weight of transported heifers decreased 6%, whereas that of control heifers increased 0.6%. At 48 hours after initiation of transportation, weight, rectal temperature, and time spent at various pen locations did not differ between transported and control heifers. Cortisol concentrations were higher 4 hours after initiation of transportation, compared with those determined just prior to transportation. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Results indicated transportation during periods of high ambient temperatures caused transient changes in physiologic and behavioral indices of beef heifers.

Objective: To examine the effects of in vitro exposure to solutions of autologous horse blood (AHB) and autologous horse serum (AHS) on expressions of selected cytokine genes in equine primary bronchial epithelial cell (BEC) cultures and to contrast these responses to those induced in BEC cultures by endotoxin and hay dust. Sample: BEC cultures established from bronchi of 6 healthy horses. Procedures: 5-day-old BEC cultures were treated with PBS solution, AHB (2 concentrations), AHS, hay dust solution, and lipopolysaccharide solution for 24 hours. Gene expressions of interleukin (IL)-8, IL-1β, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 2 (CXCL2), and glyceralde-hyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase were subsequently measured with a kinetic PCR assay. Results: With the exception of AHS, all treatments of the BECs resulted in upregulation of each target gene expression relative to its expression in cultures exposed to PBS solution. Treatment with AHB induced a dose-dependent increase of each target gene, with IL-1β expression increasing the most (> 1,200-fold increase). Lipopolysaccharide and hay dust solution treatments each resulted in 20-fold increases in IL-8 and IL-1β gene expressions. Lipopolysaccharide and hay dust solution treatments also resulted in a 7- and 8-fold increase in CXCL2 gene expression, respectively. The increases in IL-8 and CXCL2 gene expressions following treatment with the higher concentration of blood were equivalent to those associated with hay dust solution or lipopolysaccharide. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Results suggested that chemokine expression by cultured equine BECs following exposure to pulmonary hemorrhage conditions may contribute to the development of inflammatory airway disease in horses.

Objective-To evaluate time-dependent alterations in gene expression of chemokines in bronchial epithelium of recurrent airway obstruction (RAO)-affected horses and whether alterations resulted from increases in gene expression of interleukin (IL)-17 in cells isolated from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Animals-8 RAO-susceptible horses and 9 control horses. Procedure-In 2 experiments, both groups of horses were evaluated after being maintained on pasture and after being stabled and fed dusty hay for 1, 14, 35, and 49 days (experiment 1) or 14 and 28 days (experiment 2). In experiment 1, gene expression of IL-8, chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 1 (CXCL1), granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in epithelium and IL-8, IL-17, and TLR4 in BALF cells was measured. In experiment 2, bronchial biopsy specimens were evaluated for IL-8 immunoreactivity. Results-In RAO-susceptible horses after 14 days of challenge exposure, there was a 3- and 10-fold increase in gene expression of IL-8 for epithelial and BALF cells and an increase in IL-8 immunoreactivity in epithelial cells. Challenge exposure failed to alter gene expression of CXCL1, GM-CSF, G-CSF, and TLR4 in epithelial cells of any horses at any time point. During challenge exposure, gene expression of BALF cell IL-17 was downregulated in control horses (day 1) and upregulated in RAO-affected horses (day 35). Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Epithelial-derived IL-8 may promote airway neutrophilia, but the inciting stimulus is unlikely to be IL-17 because upregulation of this gene is subsequent to that of IL-8 in epithelial cells.

Indices of renal function and damage were measured in 12 healthy male adult llamas fed a diet of mixed alfalfa/grass hay (mixed hay) and water ad libitum. Using a collection bag fitted over the preputial area, urine samples were collected at 6, 12, and 24 hours. Serum samples were obtained concurrently to determine endogenous creatinine clearance (CL), total (TE) and fractional excretion (FE) of electrolytes (Na, K, Cl, P), electrolyte CL, urine and serum osmolality, urine enzyme activities (gamma-glutamyltransferase and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase), and urine protein concentration. Urine production was quantified. Three months later, 10 of the 12 llamas were fed a grass hay diet and water ad libitum. Similar samples were obtained, and similar measurements were made. Urine production was higher when the llamas were fed the mixed hay diet. Total urine volume for llamas fed mixed hay ranged from 628 to 1,760 ml/24 h, with a median of 1,307.5 ml/24 h, compared with a range of 620 to 1,380 ml/24 h and a median of 927.50 ml/24 h for llamas fed grass hay. Median urine osmolality was higher in llamas fed mixed hay (1,906 mOsm/kg of body weight, with a range of 1,237 to 2,529 mOsm/kg), compared with llamas fed grass hay (1,666 mOsm/kg with a range of 1,163 to 2,044 mOsm/kg). Creatinine CL did not vary significantly over time for either diet. Median creatinine CL was higher for llamas fed mixed hay, compared with llamas fed grass hay--0.78 ml/min/kg with a range of 0.20 to 1.83 ml/min/kg vs 0.45 ml/min/kg with a range of 0.13 to 3.17 ml/min/kg. Clearances for K and Cl varied significantly among the periods. However, median CL for Na and P did not vary over time for either diet. Overall values for these electrolytes in llamas fed mixed hay and grass hay diets were: CL(Na), 0.001 and 0.002 ml/min/kg and CL(P), 0.0006 and 0.0004 ml/min/kg respectively. The FE rates of K, Cl, and P did not vary significantly over time for either diet. Median respective FE for these electrolytes in the llamas fed mixed hay and grass hay diets include: FE(K), 84.90 and 63.10%; FE(Cl), 0.85 and 1.30%; and FE(P), 0.10 and 0.10%. Fractional excretion of Na varied over time for both diets and could not be expressed accurately as an overall median. Median respective TE of electrolytes for llamas fed the mixed hay and grass hay diets were: TE(Na), 0.007 and 0.03 mEq/kg/h; TE(Cl), 0.04 and 0.06 mEq/kg/h; and TE(P), 0.0002 and 0.00 mg/kg/h; TE(K) varied significantly (P < 0.05) over time for both diets. Urine gamma-glutamyltransferase activity changed significantly (P < 0.05) over time. Urine N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase activity was influenced by an interaction between diet and time. Median urine protein concentration was 26.0 mg/dl, with a range of 11.0 to 73.0 mg/dl for llamas fed mixed hay, and was 28.0 mg/dl, with a range of 16.0 to 124.0 mg/dl for llamas fed grass hay.