Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) is one of the high-risk agents for contamination in fetal bovine serum (FBS). In this study, we examined 41 FBS samples collected between 2017 and 2021 for BVDV contamination. Thirty-four of 41 samples (82.9%) were positive to pestivirus-specific RT-PCR, and 17 (41.5%) and 1 (2.4%) of 41 samples were seropositive using the neutralization test for BVDV1 and 2, respectively. Ten of the 41 samples that were RT-PCR-positive with a high ELISA titer were subjected to virus isolation; however, no infectious virus was detected. Our results showed that only 5 of the 41 FBS samples (12.2%) were both PCR-negative and BVDV-specific antibody-free. It is important to note that FBS potentially poses some risks associated with BVDV.

In Japan, the tube agglutination test and the complement fixation test have been adopted as serological diagnosis for swine brucellosis since April 2022. However, there is little information on nonspecific reactions and anti-complement activity, which may hinder judgment in both the tests. In this study, therefore, both tests were conducted using serum collected for the inspection of breeding male stock based on the Act on Improvement and Increased Production of Livestock. In the tube agglutination test, nonspecific agglutinations in 32 out of 109 sera (29.4%) were observed, and two serum samples were determined to be suspicious (specificity: 98.2%). In the complement fixation test, eight out of 92 sera (8.7%) showed inhibition of hemolysis that were considered to be the anti-complement activity, of which five sera were determined as not-negative (specificity: 94.6%). These results would be helpful in conducting both the tests in diagnosis of swine brucellosis.

Allergic dermatitis in dogs is a chronic disease requiring continuous treatment, and owner participation in treatment is essential. In this study, we conducted a internet-based treatment-satisfaction questionnaire for owners of dogs with allergic dermatitis to examine factors associated with owner treatment satisfaction. We analyzed 544 valid responses and 17 items significantly related to high treatment satisfaction. Answers related to clinical improvement, reduced treatment-related time burdens on the owners, and higher household incomes of the owners were related to treatment satisfaction. These results suggest that careful informed consent is necessary when treatments that require a lot of time, such as desensitization therapy, are options. In addition, since an association was found between household income and treatment satisfaction, it would be necessary to conduct a questionnaire survey of various types of owners to examine the relationship between treatment satisfaction and various owner-related factors, including the owner's social position.

Five broiler chickens with proventricular duplication cysts, 46 to 67 days of age, were subjected to pathological investigation. Macroscopically, a single cyst was closely attached to the proventriculus of each chicken. The cysts were 35 to 72 mm in diameter, unilocular, non-communicating and their lumina was filled with mucus. Histologically, each cystic wall consisted of lining epithelia, lamina propria, three layers of smooth muscular tissue and capsules. Compound tubular glands were sporadically present in the deeper lamina propria of two of the chickens. The lining epithelia were simple columnar or cuboidal and often formed villous projections. The columnar epithelia covering the projections were filled with mucous granules, positive with both periodic acid-Schiff and Alcian blue pH 2.5 stains and blue with Azan stain. The results suggest that three and two cysts are lined with mucosa similar to the intestinal and proventricular ones, respectively. This is the first report of proventricular duplication cysts in chickens.