Three newborn Japanese Black cattle which presented weak calf syndrome from June to August 2002 in breeding farms within the jurisdiction were examined for clinical symptoms, blood chemistry, ultrasound tomography, histopathology and family history (Case 1: 13-day-old male with 12kg bodyweight, Case 2: 51-day-old male; 30 kg, Case 3: 2-day-old male; 10 kg). Clinical symptoms included loss of vigor, inability to nurse, poor growth and rough haircoat in all calves. Blood chemistry showed elevated creatinine in all three and elevated BUN in Cases 1 and2. Ultrasound tomographic examinations revealed that in Case 1 the left kidney was underdeveloped and unlobed, and the right kidney was not found. In Cases 2 and 3, both kidneys were small and unlobed. Gross examination at the autopsy also showed unlobed kidneys with discolored surfaces. Histopathologically, underdeveloped small nephrons and primitive collecting tubules were found in all cases, while there was no sign of scarring or inflammation. Their family trees were all tracked back to a Shigekane breeding bull A. This indicated that abnormal kidneys in these cases were hereditary, although kidney malformation may be caused by various factors. Further, our study suggested that ultrasonography may help diagnosis of kidney malformation when abnormalities in the renal function are indicated by blood chemistry.

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Morphological and quantitative changes in round cells in different areas of the equine epididymis were examined. Their correlation with the number of round cells ejaculated into semen was also analyzed. In the present study, 23 semen samples collected from 21 horses (5-28 years old) and epididymal perfusate collected from various sections of the epididymis of four other horses (3-17 years old) were analyzed. For each sample, round cells were classified into less than 7.0um in diameter (SC), between 7.0 and 12.5um (MC) or greater than 12.5um (LC), and the number and their morphology were examined. The average number of round cells per 1, 000 sperms decreased from the head to the tail of the epididymis: 45.01 in the epididymal head; 2.07-4.87 in the epididymal body; and 8.19 in the epididymal tail. In addition, 69.2% of the round cells in the epididymal tail were alive. MC was most prevalent in the efferent duct and the epididymal duct, accounting for 54.9 - 71.4%. On the other hand, the ratio of SC increased from 14.7% in the efferent duct to 26.2 - 42.2% in the epididymal duct. The rate of LC was 16.8% in the efferent duct and decreased to 2.2 - 4.7% toward the epididymal duct. The average number of round cells in ejaculated semen was low (0.20), and their sizes had the following distribution: SC 4.8%; MC 90.1% and LC 5.1%, showing remarkably higher percentage of MC compared to the epididymal duct. The above findings showed that a majority of round cells disappear while passing through the epididymis. It also indicated that the round cells ejaculated into semen are less than 1% of those seen in the head of the epididymis.

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Data from 160 multiparous Holstein cows during the close-up period were collected for the evaluation of the clinical parameters (the volume and nature of the ruminal ingesta, urine pH and keton body) to predict periparturient diseases. Blood chemistry was also analyzed to assess feasibility of practical application of these parameters. 64 of the 160 cows experienced periprturient diseases such as ketosis (n=27), abomasum displacement (n=17), puerperal uterus diseases (n=12) and milk fever (n=8). The scores for the volume of the ruminal ingesta and urinary pH significantly decreased from 2-week to 1-week prepartum in the cows having periparturient diseases. The blood chemistry profile revealed high concentration of FFA and low levels of BUN, T-Cho, Glu, iP and Mg in the cows with periparturient diseases, suggesting disrupted energy balance during the close-up period. Our data suggested that these clinical parameters in cows during the close-up period were useful to predict the periparturient diseases, if examined routinely.

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Use of antibiotics for white diarrhea was evaluated in neonatal Japanese Black cattle. 89 calves under three-week of age which presented white diarrhea were examined for clinical symptoms, blood chemistry, microbiological profiling and drug sensitibility of isolated microbes. There was no significant correlation between stool conditions at the initial examination, the number of E. coli, antibiotic sensitibility of isolated E. coli, body temperatures and the duration of treatment. The cattle which did not receive vaccines against white diarrhea and which presented atony of the abomasum at the initial examination required significantly longer treatment. Rotavirus was isolated periodically from feces, but its isolation did not show a significant correlation with the duration of treatment. E. coli O157 was not isolated throughout the study period. Drug susceptibility of E. coli isolated from diarrheal stool was slightly variable depending on attending veterinarians and regions. Moreover, there was no difference in the duration of treatment between the groups treated and untreated with antimicrobials. This study showed no positive indication as to whether or not to use antibiotics for treatment of white diarrhea in calves.

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