Cardiac myocytes in the left ventricle and atrium of the greater bandicoot rat (Bandicota indica) were examined by transmission electron microscopy. The fine structure showed typical features of mammalian cardiac myocytes. In atrial myocytes, however, the areas occupied by mitochondria were much smaller than that filled with myofibrils. The decrease in mitochondria and the abundance of myofibrils are thought to be an ultrastructural adaptation to the large body size of this species. Many conducting myocytes were observed in both atrium and ventricle. The atrial conducting myocytes were ultrastructurally different from the Purkinje fibers of the ventricle. We suggest that the abundance and the ultrastructural variation of conducting myocytes are related to the physiological aspects, such as body size, of this animal.

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Chlormadinone acetate (GS implant, CMA) pellet, a synthetic luteal hormone preparation, was subcutaneously implanted at 5, 10 and 20 mg/kg in four normal male dogs ranging in age from 3 to 10 years to determine the changes in the prostatic volume, peripheral plasma levels of sex hormones and semen quality. The plasma levels of CMA, LH, testosterone (T) and 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) were measured by radioimmunoassay. The prostatic volume was measured by computed tomography. The semen was collected by digital manipulation. The pellet was removed 26 weeks after implantation. The effects of CMA pellet implantation were examined during implantation and until 22 weeks after removal. The prostatic volume was reduced to 61±3 (mean ±S.E., n=4), 52±5 (n=4) and 53±9 (n=4)% of the preimplantation volumesin the 5, 10 and 20 mg/kg groups, respectively. The plasma CMA levels in the 10 mg/kg and 20 mg/kg groups peaked at 2 weeks, but were gradually decreased. At 22 weeks after removal of the pellet, the prostatic volume returned to 74-85 % of the preimplantation volumes. The plasma LH levels tended to increase after implantation in all groups. The plasma T and DHT levels were slightly decreased in all groups. In the 10 and 20 mg/kg groups, the number of sperm and motility sperm was reduced, and the rate of abnormal sperm increased. These findings indicated that implantation of a CMA-pellet at a dose of 10 mg/kg or more decreases the prostatic volume to 1/2 the original size and retains its effect for a long time, although it depresses gonadal function. The present study suggested that CMA implantation is useful in treating benign prostatic hyperplasia.

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To determine cardiac output using a non-invasive manner, we examined correlations between cardiac output values determined by ten different kinds of echocardiography and those determined by the thermodilution method. With respect to the M-mode method, one of the rotary ellipsoid approximation methods using a short axial section at the papillary muscular level, namely the GIBSON method, showed the highest correlation with the thermodilution method (r=0.84; p<0.01). Among the Doppler mode method, the highest correlation (r=0.93; p<0.01) was exhibited by the method in which the area of the luminal section of the outflow tract was accurately measured using a trace method on a short axial cross section of the tract flowing out of the left ventricle. These findings suggest that it is possible to determine cardiac output by echocardiography in the same was as with the thermodilution method. Moreover, non-invasive determination methods using echocardiography have been confirmed to be highly beneficial in clinical settings.

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A total of 350 thoroughbred racehorses found clinically as having coughs or abnormal breath sounds underwent endoscopic examination of the upper respiratory tract at rest. As a result, abnormal endoscopic findings were obtained in all horses, demonstrating that thoroughbred racehorses with a clinical abnormality in the respiratory system necessarily had disorders in the upper respiratory tract. Whereas 11 types of disorder were observed, a combination of three different types of disorder were found in the highest frequencies in 3-, 4- and 5-year-old horses (27.8%, 29.2% and 29.7%, respectively). Among 6-year-olds or older horses, those having only one type of disorder accounted for the greatest proportion (47.6%). The prevalence of pharyngeal lymphoid hyperplasia or abnormalities of the epiglottis decreased with age.

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Effects of maternal uninephrectomy in rats, which was performed on day 5 of gestation, on development of proximal renal tubule of the pups were morphometrically investigated. One day after birth, both the proximal tubular length per unit volume (1 mm³) of whole kidney and total proximal tubular volume in the neonates from uninephrectomized mothers were significantly larger than those in the neonates from sham-operated mothers. Six weeks after birth, no significant differences in parameters of the kidney were observed between thc pups from uninephrectomized and sham-operated mothers. These results suggest that maternal uninephrectomy in the rat accelerates the development of proximal renal tubule in the fetus and that the renotropic activity is not lasting during postnatal development of the kidney.

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Two proteins were isolated from rainbow trout sera by affinity chromatography using C-polysaccharide-Sepharose 4B column. One was appropriate to the trout C-reactive protein (CRP) that was reported previously (Murai et al. 1990. Dev. Comp. Immunol. 14: 49-58). The other was a newly found protein that had apparent molecular weight of 135, 000 on native gradient polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and isoelectric points of 5.2-5.8. The N-terminal sequence (twenty amino acids) of the newly found protein was similar to CRPs from other species (e.g. 44% homology with plaice CRP). On electron microscope, the newly found protein was observed as pentagonal symmetry structure.

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Monoclonal antibodies were produced against the oviductal secretory substances in 'Shiba' goats and their nature was characterized. In the ampullary region, very strong immunoreactivity with one clone (EE-1) was localized within the cytoplasm of non-ciliated cells ("secretory cells"), whereas very little or no immunoreactivity was observed in the isthmus region. This reactivity pattern was observed in both estrous and luteal phases. Immunohistochemical analysis showed the antigen to be either absent or minimally present in other organs including the alimentary canal, liver, pancreas, lung, kidney, uterus, thyroid gland, heart, spleen and spinal cord, and in oviducts of other species such as hamster, sheep and cow. The immunoglobulin isotype of EE-1 was determined as IgM with a κ light chain. The positive reactions were eliminated by treating deparaffinized sections with periodic acid or testicular hyaluronidase. Results obtained in this study suggest that ampullary secretory cells in 'Shiba' goat oviduct contain a species- and tissue-specific antigen containing hyaluronic acid or hyaluronidase-sensitive carbohydrates.

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Metastasis of a malignant mixed tumor occurring in the abdominal wall was found in the liver of a 15-year-old dog male. The vascular system of the metastatic lesion was examined by scanning electron microscopy using the resin cast technique. The existence of arterio-portal shunts was confirmed. The shunts arose from branches of the hepatic artery in retrograde or vertical direction and merged into the capillary plexus replacing the branches of the portal vein, forming the so-called thread and streaks vessel in the field of hepatic angiography. Vessels with the thread and streaks appearance histologically represented tumor emboli growing in the lumen of a large branch of the portal Vein. There were capillaries running inside along the portal vein and forming a longitudinal dense network in the vein. Branches of the hepatic artery feeding the metastatic lesion were well developed and formed a coarse arterial network in their course. Tributaries of the hepatic vein from the lesion were also well developed.

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For a rapid diagnosis of canine distemper virus (CDV) infection, the reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) was carried out to detect CDV nucleoprotein (NP) gene from canine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Two sets of primers were targeted to two regions of NP gene of CDV Onderstepoort strain. The NP gene fragments were well amplified by the RT-PCR in each of the RNA extracts from Vero cells infected with 6 laboratory strains of CDV including Onderstepoort strain, and from PBMCs of a dog experimentally infected with CDV. The amplified NP gene was detected in 17 of 32 samples from dogs which were clinically suspected for CDV infection at veterinary hospitals. No RT-PCR product was found in 52 samples from healthy dogs including 40 specific pathogen free beagles vaccinated with an attenuated live virus-vaccine for CDV and 12 stray dogs. The RT-PCR provides a fast, sensitive, and supplementary method for the diagnosis of CDV infection in dogs.

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Mammary glands and teats were examined to estimate the reproductive history of Japanese serows. The presence of milk was an indicator of reproduction in the previous year. The thickness of the mammary glands is indicative of their function. The females whose mammary glands are more than 10 mm thick may be regarded as having delivered half a year before. The distance between teats is not always indicative of the function of the mammary glands. Animals with teats 10 mm or less in length and those with teats longer than 10 mm may be judged to be nulliparous and multiparous, respectively.

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This paper describes a new stereotaxic coordinate system for the goat brain based on cranial landmarks. An osseous triangle (a-b-c) formed by the point of junction of the crista galli with the caudal ventral part of the frontal sinus septum (a), the external occipital protuberance (b), and the midsagittal projection of the external acoustic meatus (c), was measured using lateral radiographs and ventriculographs and showed a constant mathematical relation. The rostral angle was 20.3±1.0 (mean ±SD) degree in 23 goats studied regardless of their cranial size which varied considerably from one animal to another. The hypotenuse length (a-b distance) was found to be a good predictor of the rostral nuchal position of the anterior commissure (AC) and the infundibular recess of the third ventricle (INF), by which the individual variance of the stereotaxic coordinates for a given hypothalamic structure could be compensated. The anterior-posterior distances from the external acoustic meatus was highly correlated with the a-b distance for AC (r=0.88) and INF (r=0.90). Using these cranial landmarks and the method outlined in this paper, uncertainty in coordinate values for AC and INF in the goat brain was reduced considerably in comparison to deviation observed when the ordinary Horsley-Clarke axis (Reid's plane) was employed.

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Serial brain sections of 50 μm thickness were made from celloidin embedded brains taken from adult male goats. They were stained by means of cresyl violet either with or without luxol fast blue, and the cellular and fiber patterns were examined both macro- and microscopically. Brain sections were transferred on to scanner and their images were recorded by computer. The brain maps were made with the aid of appropriate software and presented as a series of coronal graphics of the hypothalamus that cover the area from the mammillary tubercles to the level of the optic chiasm. The thalamus and the amygdala were also included. Reduction of the brain tissue during the histological procedure was analyzed by means of coronal and sagittal scanning by computer tomography (CT) imaging. It was related to the proportion of the gray and white matters in the encephalic area. The hypothalamus showed an 11% shrinkage. The stereotaxic location of the hypothalamic nuclei was estimated by compensating for the reduction rate of the area. The stereotaxic coordinates developed for goat brain were easy to apply and transfer to the computer coordinate system.

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cDNAs encoding equine inhibin/activin βA subunit were isolated from an equine follicle cDNA library and characterized. Using primers based on the rat inhibin/activin βA subunit cDNA sequence, a RT-PCR was performed to generate the probe for screening. Four positive clones were isolated. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence of these clones revealed that two pairs of identical clones were present, Eq-βA-1 (0.9 kb) and Eq-βA-2 (1.5 kb). Eq-βA-2 clone contained a complete open reading frame encoding 426amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence of equine inhibin/activin βA subunit showed high similarity (>90%) to those of five other mammalian species. Northern blot analysis revealed that placenta from mare on day 180 of pregnancy contained a 1.5 kb inhibin/activin βA subunit mRNA.

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A porcine antibody was used to clarify the localization of desmin filaments in the swine longissimus muscle by post-embedding immuno-electron microscopy. The major site of desmin localization was the bundle of filaments connecting Z-discs of adjacent myofibrils. These desmin filaments were localized not only between but also within myofibrils. This indicates that there exist more complicated networks rather than simple bundles of desmin filaments running parallel to the Z-discs. Clarification of desmin distribution within the myofibrils surrounding Z-discs provides a basic concept for consideration of the combination and transformation of vimentin to desmin in developing human embryonic muscles.

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The relationship between extravascular lung water volume (ELWV) and chest radiographical findings was studied in general-anesthetized beagles. The dogs were experimentally injected with oleic acid to increase pulmonary vascular permeability. When the ELWV value in the dogs increased more than approximately 37% from the control value, their chest radiographs began to show signs of pulmonary edema. At this time, the chest X-ray density increased to 10% above the control level. PaO₂ decreased, and PaCO₂ increased after the administration of oleic acid. This clearly showed that the pulmonary gas exchange function was reduced following increasing ELWV. This comparison showed that probably the thermal-sodium double indicator dilution measurement of ELWV can detect slight hyperpermeability pulmonary edema that does not show on chest radiographs. The chest radiograph was therefore not suitable for the detection of slight pulmonary edema, because it did not show any changes in the early stages in hyperpermeability pulmonary edema.

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The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was applied for measurement of the proviral DNA copy number of feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of cats experimentally and naturally infected with FIV. In experimentally infected cats except one cat infected with the Petaluma strain, FIV-specific DNAs were efficiently amplified with the PCR method under the conditions used in this study. In the naturally FIV-infected cats, the specific DNAs were also amplified. We established a quantitative method for measurement of proviral DNA copy number in PBMC from cats infected with TM2-type of FIV strains, and found that the number was variable among the six cats examined, ranging from 10^4.0 to 10^5.7 copies per 10⁵ PBMCs. This method can be applicable to cats naturally infected with FIV of TM2-type. Proviral DNA quantitation developed here could be useful as an additional parameter to evaluate the relationships among the proviral load, immune response and development of the clinical symptoms, and to monitor efficacy of antiviral therapy in vivo.

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Vitamin B₂ was intramuscularly administered to Holstein cattle and the ensuing changes in peripheral blood neutrophil function were investigated. The neutrophil count displayed a significant increase at 1-2 days after administration, while nitroblue tetrazolium reducing activity and phagocytic bactericidal activity were enhanced at 1-4 days after administration in calves and at 1-6 days after administration in adult cows. The increases in the neutrophil count and the activation of neutrophil functions were observed, being manifested at dosages of 10 mg/kg or greater for calves and 5 mg/kg or greater for adult cows.

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Pregnant rats on day 21 of gestation received a subcutaneous injection of paraquat (25 mg/kg). Two hr later, some fetuses of these rats received a subcutaneous injection of prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂). The caliber of the ductus arteriosus (DA) of fetuses was measured 1 hr later. The DA of fetuses of paraquat-treated pregnant rats was significantly constricted compared with that of fetuses of control pregnant rats given physiological saline. However, the DA of PGE₂-treated fetuses of paraquat-treated pregnant rats had a caliber comparable to that of control rats. The maternal plasma PGE₂ level decreased following paraquat treatment. These results suggest that the decrease of maternal PGE₂ level results in a constriction of the DA of fetuses.

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165 (18.1%) out of 910 rats captured at restaurants in 14 buildings in downtown Tokyo were positive for Staphylococcus aureus. The 165 S. aureus strains isolated were biotyped into A, B, C, D, G, and untypable groups (UT1 and UT2). The UT1 was the most frequent (72 strains, 43.6%), followed by biotype G (33 strains, 20.0%). The strains were classified into coagulase types I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, and an untypable group. Coagulase type V was the most frequent (92 strains, 55.8%), followed by coagulase type VII (25 strains, 15.2%). Enterotoxins A, B, C, or D were produced by 35 strains. Enterotoxins A and B were the most frequent (13strains each). Toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 was produced by 3 strains. 65 strains were resistant to ampicillin, 2 to oxytetracycline, and 1 to erythromycin.

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The effects of splenectomy on luteolysis in pseudopregnant rabbits were observed. Pseudopregnancy was induced in the rabbits by mating with vasoligated mature males and injection of human chorionic gonadotrophin (D0). In these rabbits, the concentration of serum progesterone increased for 7 days after the induction of pseudopregnancy. In the control group (sham-operation), the concentration of serum progesterone returned to the level of the pre-ovulatory levels by 14 days of pseudopregnancy. On the other hand, in the splenectomized group, in which splenectomy was performed at D7, the serum progesterone concentration was maintained at the level of the functional luteal phase (D7) at least until 21 days of pseudopregnancy. These findings indicate that the spleen is concerned with luteolysis of the rabbit.

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The present study was carried out to assessing the sedative effect of medetomidine and determining its optimal dose in thoroughbred horses. Excessive ataxia after sedative treatment is dangerous for horses. Therefore three doses which may cause sufficient sedation with only mild ataxia were examined. Response to stimulation and the severity of ataxia suggested that 7.5 μg/kg BW, i.v., is optimal.

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Soluble polypeptides extracted from adult Fasciola sp. were analysed by SDS-PAGE, and their antigenicity was characterized by enzyme-linked immunotransfer blot (EITB) using sera from experimentally and naturally infected cattle. Polypeptides of adult Fasciola sp. with estimated molecular mass of 64-52 kDa, 38-28 kDa, 17 kDa, 15 kDa, 13 kDa and 12 kDa, were recognized by sera obtained in both early and late stages of infection. Furthermore, two polypeptides of more than 160 kDa were detected by sera only in the early stage of infection. The results of EITB using sera of dairy cows naturally infected with Fasciola sp. suggest that polypeptides of 64-52 kDa may be candidates as serodiagnostic antigen of bovine fascioliasis.

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Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to assign four isolates of spontaneous urinary calculus in young laboratory rats. The phylogenetic relationships among the rat isolates and selected species of corynebacteria were also inferred. Based on the homology and evolutionary distance analysis, the 16S rRNA genes of the rat isolates were almost identical with that of Corynebacterium renale ATCC 19412^T. Also the results of the phylogenetic analysis showed a close relationship among the isolates and C. renale, but they were clearly different from C. pilosum, C. cystitidis, C. kutscheri and Rhodococcus equi. The results of the present study and previously published biochemical data demonstrate that the organism involving urinary infections in young rats is identified to be C. renale.

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Hardly any or only a weak immunological cross-reaction was found between native lactoferrin (Lf) and transferrin (Tf). However, when these iron-binding proteins were denatured with sodium dodecyl sulfate and dithiothreitol, a definite immunological cross-reaction was detected between them. These results indicate that although Lf and Tf are immunologically quite different from each other in their native forms, they have the common antigenic determinant(s) in their unfolded forms.

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Usefulness of a human melanoma cell line A375 was evaluated for detecting bovine interleukin-1 (IL-1). The A375 cell growth was inhibited by culture supernatant of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (LPSsup) in a dose dependent manner. A mixture of anti-human IL-1α and β antibodies suppressed 60% of this inhibitory activity and was confirmed to bind to about 23 k dalton peptides in the LPSsup by Western blotting. Although serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from a healthy cow showed a low inhibitory activity, those from pneumonic cows showed the higher activities. These activities were also suppressed by anti- human IL-1 antibodies. These findings show the A375 cell growth inhibition assay can be a useful bioassay for bovine IL-1 (like) activity.

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Long-Evans Cinnamon (LEC) rats bear a congenital deficiency in CD4⁺8^- thymocytes and consequently a deficiency in helper T cell function. This mutation is caused by a single recessive gene referred to as thid (T helper immunodeficiency). It has been reported that rat immunoglobulin(Ig) G2a subclass is a counterpart of the mouse IgG1. Serum IgG2a levels in LEC rats were ten-fold lower than those of normal rats. To identify a cause of low IgG2a levels in LEC rats, we made backcross rats, (F344×LEC)F₁×LEC, and examined linkage to the thid mutation. The serum IgG2a levels of rats showing thid/thid phenotype were much lower than those of rats showing +/thid phenotype. This indicates that the thid mutation correlates with low level of IgG2a subclass. Furthermore, LEC rat B cells were shown to secret IgG2a normally when these were stimulated with LPS and IL-4, suggesting that a cause of low level of IgG2a was due to defect of T cell function but not due to B cell disfunction in LEC rats. These results confirm the idea that T-helper (Th) function is necessary for the class switch to IgG2a subclass in rats.

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Attaching and effacing Escherichia coli (AEEC) and adenovirus infections in a 6-month old pigeon were found by retrospective histologic examinations. Histologically, numerous gram-negative bacilli covered the surface of the enterocytes of the ileum. Brush borders were not sharply defined on the apical enterocytes at the sites of bacterial attachment. Scanning electron microscope showed that much of the mucosal surface was heavily colonized by bacilli and that the microvilli were lost. Many intranuclear inclusions were seen in enterocytes from the duodenum to the cecum. On transmission electron microscopy, adenovirus-like particles were observed in the nuclei of enterocytes.

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The growth of canine parvovirus (CPV) in Crandell feline kidney cells was suppressed when canine distemper virus (CDV) was simultaneously inoculated. The both virus antigens were found in the same cells. The synthesis of capsid protein antigen of CPV decreased in the co-inoculated cells. The growth of CDV was not affected by co-inoculation with CPV. These results suggest that the CDV showed suppressive effects on the CPV growth in cells when they are inoculated simultaneously.

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Since thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) producing cells are thought to play an essential role during metamorphosis, their development was immunohistochemically examined to reveal the appearance and topographical changes in the distribution in the hypophysis of Xenopus laevis tadpole from hatching to the end of metamorphosis. TSH-immunoreactive cells initially appeared at stage 49 (just the beginning of development of the pars nervosa in the hypophysis) as small clusters in the middle part of the pars distalis. They showed conspicuous changes in number during late premetamorphosis: their number reached a peak at stage 51, suddenly decreased at stage 52 (just before completion of the hypophysial histogenesis) followed by gradual increase until the end of metamorphosis. At later stages, they were restricted to the Posterior half of the pars distalis.

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Superovulation induction in laboratory animals is an important technique as a means of Providing eggs for embryonic research. Superovulation induction by human menopausal gonadotrophin (HMG) has not been fully established in rabbits. In the present study, the relationship between the dosage of injected HMG and the superovulatory response including fertilization rate was studied. The most satisfactory result was obtained in the group in which 30 iu of HMG was injected subcutaneously three times at 24-hr intervals. The superovulatory response by this method was considerably better than that by conventional six injections of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) having been widely accepted.

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We successfully produced offspring of old male BDF₁ mice using in vitro fertilization. Although 7 old male mice (33 months of age) were infertile and revealed frequent degeneration in the seminiferous epithelia, 4 of them had spermatozoa in the caudae epididymides. The IVF rate of their sperm with eggs from young ICR mice was very high (82.0%). The production rate of offspring was also satisfactory (61.6%). The present study indicates that the IVF method is useful for producing offspring of aged male mice.

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Two cases of protoporphyrin (PP) disorder detected in a 60- and 65-day old female chicken were described. The gross lesions were restricted to the livers which were enlarged and dark green to black in color. Histologically, dark brown granules were found in hepatocytes, Kupffer cells, macrophages, sinusoids, bile canaliculi, and bile ducts. These granules, as seen in smears and sections of livers, were red under a fluorescence microscope and exhibited bright birefringence with a centrally located dark Maltese-cross by polarized light. Ultrastructurally, these granules consisted of aggregates of needle-like crystals in a radial arrangement. Fluorometrically, extracted level of PP in the affected liver was determined to be 390.6 μg per gram of wet tissue. Spectrofluorometric scans of liver extract and PP standard were almost identical.

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To examine effects of IGF-II on establishment of pluripotential diploid cells from rat embryos, we cultured blastocysts in medium containing mouse LIF with or without IGF-II. Combination of mouse LIF (5, 000 units/ml) and rat IGF-II (100 ng/ml) promoted growth of inner cell mass (ICM) and was effective for establishment of pluripotential cell lines derived from the ICM. The cell lines indicated colony forms different from the rat ES cell lines. However, they showed morphological alteration to adult-like tissue cells, formed embryoid body in suspension culture, and thus, seemed to retain a pluripotent characteristics. The rat IGF-II is useful for establishing of Pluripotential cells efficiently.

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We have isolated a novel repetitive DNA element from Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae strain VPP11, the entire structure of which is distinct from those of prokaryotic transposons, insertion sequences or eukaryotic retroposons reported. Southern blot hybridization experiments indicate that at least eight copies of this element locate on the M. hyopneumoniae genome. The size of this repetitive sequence is 4, 193 bp which includes 270- and 272-bp direct long terminal repeats at each terminus. The internal domain of this element defines three open reading frames.

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Biochemical and antigenical characteristics of tannin-protein complex degrading enterobacteria (T-PCDE) isolated from Koalas, Phascolarctos cinereus, were investigated. T-PCDE had a specitic profile of characteristics, and T-PCDE was distinguished from those of 12 type strains of Enterobacteriaceac used.

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Recently, we showed that the antisense RNA containing a hammerhead ribozyme sequence against the polymerase gene of mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) inhibited viral multiplication in acute infection [10]. In the present study, we examined the inhibitory effects of an antisense RNA on viral multiplication in chronic MHV infection. In cell line LR-2, in which the 926-nucleotide (nt) antisense RNA containing a ribozyme sequence against the polymerase gene was expressed constitutively at a high level, chronic MHV infection was established through the maintenance of infection over 100 days postinfection (d.p.i.). After 200 d.p.i., no infectious progeny virus was observed in the culture medium of chronically MHV infected LR-2 cells. Our present results showed that the antisense RNA could also inhibit viral multiplication in chronic MHV infection.

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Twenty two adult dogs suffered from tick infestation at a kennel in Okayama Prefecture in the summer of 1994. Four of them had been introduced from U.S.A. Some dogs showed pyoderma, anemia, neutrophilia or eosinophilia. Neither Babesia gibsoni nor Hepatozoon canis was detected on the smear samples of peripheral blood. The ticks detected were morphologically identified as Rhipicephalus sanguineus. This case was a rare incidence of the tick in the other areas of Japan than Okinawa.

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The growth of group A human, bovine, equine and porcine rotaviruses were enhanced by pretreatment of virus with pancreatin, trypsin, protease, alkaline phosphatase or pepsin and incorporation of these enzymes in maintenance medium. In contrast, α-amylase or lipase inhibited the growth of equine and porcine rotaviruses. The other enzymes, adenosin deaminase, lactase, lysozyme, ribonuclease or triose-phosphate isomcrase gave little or no change in the growth of all four rotaviruses.

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In 4 spinalized cats, the effects of afferent inputs from hindlimb cutaneous nerves (sural cutaneous nerve: Sur) on mono- and poly-synaptic reflex recorded from tail muscle motoneurons were studied before and after spinal lesioning at S2-3 level. Monosynaptic reflex was enhanced by ipsilateral Sur stimulation at short conditioning-test stimulus interval and this effect was not observed after spinal lesion of ipsilateral side of spinal cord. Polysynaptic reflex was inhibited by stimulation of Sur in both sides and this inhibitory effect was depressed by contralateral spinal lesioning.

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A 7-month-old male Pomeranian had severe dyspnea for 2 weeks. The lateral bronchogram showed a stenosis of the trachea. Inspite of supportive therapy including supplemental oxygen, the dog died 5 days later. Six pedunculated nodules were recognized in the mucosal surface of the trachea at necropsy. The tracheal nodules were histopathologically granuloma characterized by many coiled parasites containing a little collagen fibers, lymphocytes, plasma cells and macrophages. Female parasites had a lot of embryonated eggs in the uterus. Immature worms were observed in the dilated lymph vessels of bronchial and bronchiolar wall in the lungs. The worms were identified as Filaroides osleri based on the parasitological examinations.

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Meningo-encephalitis in feedlot cattle sporadically occurred in the Tokachi area in northern Japan. The calves had been vaccinated intranasally with a mixed live-vaccine (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus, bovine viral diarrhea-mucosal disease virus, and parainfluenza 3 virus) for which intramuscular inoculation was indicated. Two additional live vaccines, bovine adenovirus type 7 and bovine respiratory syncytical vilus, had been inoculated simultaneously. Eleven isolates of bovine herpesvirus type 1 were plaque-purified from two brains with fatal encephalitis; their viral DNAs were examined by restriction endonuclease analysis (REA) using PstI and HindIII. The REA patterns of the virus clones were almost identical to those of the vaccine strain 758-43, suggesting that the isolates from this outbreak of fatal encephalitis originated in the abnormally administrated vaccine.

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The presence and quantity of protein A in Staphylococcus aureus 147 isolates from the tonsils of healthy pigs were examined by three methods. Cell-bound protein A was detected in 71 (48%), 104 (71%) and 123 (84%) of 147 isolates by the slide hemagglutination test, microplate hemagglutination test and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), respectively. Extracellular protein A was not detected in any isolates by the microplate hemagglutination test. When the quantity of cell-bound protein A in the isolates was determined by the ELISA, most of the isolates contained about 0.8 to 2.2 μg of protein A/ml in bacterial cell suspensions of a concentration of MacFarland No. 3.

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The antitumor activity of the DNA fraction extracted from Mycobacteriurn bovis BCG (MY-1) for glioblastoma was investigated in the experimentally produced brain tumor in rats. The tumor-bearing rats were given intralesional injection of 1 mg of MY-1 twice a week for three weeks, and were sacrificed for comparison with those of control rats. The main macroscopic features of the tumors treated with serial injections of MY-1 were cystic and destructive structures, which were histologically characterized by multiple microcysts containing macrophages. Furthermore, infiltration of leukocytes as well as the perivascular cuffing in the marginal area was observed. These findings suggested that the serial injections of MY-1 into the brain tumor have the therapeutic potential for glioblastoma.

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In Japanese quail eggs experimentally immersed in a suspension of Campylobacter jejuni from human patients (Y6817, Y6878), strain Y6817 was recovered from 15 (18.8%) eggs among 80 between 0.5 hr and 72 hr after immersion. Invasion of the eggs by strain Y6878 was also seen in 10 (12.5%) of 80 eggs between 0.5 hr and 24 hr after immersion. When egg yolk was inoculated with both strains and held at 4°C, the organisms were detectable for a longer time than the ones kept at 20°C. On the other hand, when albumen was inoculated with both strains, the organisms died within 96 hr at 4°C and within 24 hr at 20°C.

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