Further investigation of lead exposure as a potential threatening process for a scavenging marsupial species     

DJ Hutchinson  EM Jones  JM Pay  JR Clarke  MT Lohr  JO Hampton 《Australian veterinary journal》2023,101(8):313-319

There is a growing recognition of the harmful effects of lead exposure on avian and mammalian scavengers. This can lead to both lethal and non-lethal effects which may negatively impact wildlife populations. Our objective was to assess medium-term lead exposure in wild Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii). Frozen liver samples (n = 41), opportunistically collected in 2017–2022, were analysed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to determine liver lead concentrations. These results were then used to calculate the proportion of animals with elevated lead levels (>5 mg/kg dry weight) and examine the role of explanatory variables that may have influenced the results. The majority of samples analysed were from the south-east corner of Tasmania, within 50 km of Hobart. No Tasmanian devil samples were found to have elevated lead levels. The median liver lead concentration was 0.17 mg/kg (range 0.05–1.32 mg/kg). Female devils were found to have significantly higher liver lead concentrations than males (P = 0.013), which was likely related to lactation, but other variables (age, location, body mass) were not significant. These results suggest that wild Tasmanian devil populations currently show minimal medium-term evidence of exposure to lead pollution, although samples were concentrated in peri-urban areas. The results provide a baseline level which can be used to assess the impact of any future changes in lead use in Tasmania. Furthermore, these data can be used as a comparison for lead exposure studies in other mammalian scavengers, including other carnivorous marsupial species.  相似文献   

Meningoencephalomyelitis in a foal due to Salmonella agona infection     

JC Patterson-Kane  FT Bain  JM Donahue  LR Harrison 《New Zealand veterinary journal》2013,61(4):159-161

CASE HISTORY: A neonatal Thoroughbred foal was presented with rib fractures and left forelimb lameness secondary to dystocia.

CLINICAL FINDINGS: The foal developed a head tilt, seizures and watery diarrhoea during hospitalisation and died at 7 days of age. Histological examination of the brain and spinal cord revealed a suppurative meningoencephalomyelitis with vasculitis, and numerous intralesional, gram-negative bacilli. Similar microscopic lesions were noted in the lungs, renal medullary interstitium, and umbilicus. Bacilli in the brain, spinal cord and umbilicus were identified immunohistochemically as Salmonella group B. Salmonella agona was isolated in pure culture from the brain, lung, liver, kidney, and intestine.

CONCLUSION: This is the first report of meningoencephalomyelitis and septicaemia due to Salmonella infection in an equine neonate.  相似文献   

Listeria monocytogenes gastroenteritis in sheep     

RG Clark  JM Gill  S Swanney 《New Zealand veterinary journal》2013,61(1):46-47

Extract

Listeria monocytogenes is widely distributed in the environment of farm animals. It is found in soil, faeces and nasal secretions of healthy animals, water troughs and animal feeds. Under certain conditions it becomes pathogenic, causing serious disease in cattle and sheep. Most commonly it causes meningoencephalitis but, on occasion, septicaemic listeriosis results in abortion, and more recently it has been associated with gastroenteritis.  相似文献   

Cat admissions to RSPCA shelters in Queensland,Australia: description of cats and risk factors for euthanasia after entry     

C Alberthsen  JS Rand  PC Bennett  M Paterson  M Lawrie  JM Morton 《Australian veterinary journal》2013,91(1-2):35-42

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Testosterone serum profile,semen characteristics and testicular biometry of Mangalarga Marchador stallions in a tropical environment          下载免费PDF全文

B Waddington  JM Penitente‐Filho  JGS Neves  RO Pinho  AY Chaya  PP Maitan  CO Silveira  MG Neves  SEF Guimarães  GR de Carvalho  JD Guimarães 《Reproduction in domestic animals》2017,52(2):335-343

This study was conducted to characterize the daily profile of testosterone secretion and its mean concentrations in the four seasons as well as to evaluate the semen characteristics and testicular biometry of Mangalarga Marchador stallions throughout the year in a tropical region. Three stallions were submitted to semen collections and evaluation of testicular biometry every 14 days along a year. Blood samples were collected once at the middle of each season, in a 20‐min interval during 24 hr in order to evaluate the testosterone secretion profiles among seasons. Testosterone concentrations along the day were higher at the beginning of the afternoon (from 12:00 to 15:00 hr), but a circadian secretion was not clearly observed. Mean testosterone concentrations did not differ among seasons (p > .05), but a pattern of secretion along the day showed variations with higher concentrations in the afternoon during the winter. Ejaculate volume was higher during summer; however, sperm motility decreased in summer and spring. Total sperm in ejaculate, sperm morphology and testicular biometry kept constant along the year showing no differences among the seasons. The results demonstrated that in a tropical region, reproductive aspects of stallions did not show a clearly defined seasonal variation, and months of autumn and winter were not unsuitable for reproduction of the males.  相似文献   

Biogeochemical evidence for dinoflagellate ancestors in the early cambrian     

JM Moldowan  NM Talyzina 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1998,281(5380):1168-1170

Dinoflagellates are single-celled organisms that reflect the ecological conditions in modern oceans and lakes. Ultrastructural data and molecular phylogeny suggest that they originated in the Neoproterozoic, yet dinoflagellate ancestors are classified only to the Middle Triassic ( approximately 240 million years ago). Examination of dinoflagellate-specific biological markers (dinosteranes and 4alpha-methyl-24-ethylcholestane) in concentrated microfossils with known morphology identified ancient dinoflagellate ancestors from the Early Cambrian ( approximately 520 million years ago).  相似文献   

Modulation of diversity by grazing and mowing in native tallgrass prairie   总被引：4，自引：0，他引：4  

SL Collins  AK Knapp  JMB riggs  JM Blair  EM Steinauer 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1998,280(5364):745-747

Species diversity has declined in ecosystems worldwide as a result of habitat fragmentation, eutrophication, and land-use change. If such decline is to be halted ecological mechanisms that restore or maintain biodiversity are needed. Two long-term field experiments were performed in native grassland to assess the effects of fire, nitrogen addition, and grazing or mowing on plant species diversity. In one experiment, richness declined on burned and fertilized treatments, whereas mowing maintained diversity under these conditions. In the second experiment, loss of species diversity due to frequent burning was reversed by bison, a keystone herbivore in North American grasslands. Thus, mowing or the reestablishment of grazing in anthropogenically stressed grasslands enhanced biodiversity.  相似文献   

Neptune's eccentricity and the nature of the kuiper belt     

WR Ward  JM Hahn 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1998,280(5372):2104-2106

The small eccentricity of Neptune may be a direct consequence of apsidal wave interaction with the trans-Neptune population of debris called the Kuiper belt. The Kuiper belt is subject to resonant perturbations from Neptune, so that the transport of angular momentum by density waves can result in orbital evolution of Neptune as well as changes in the structure of the Kuiper belt. In particular, for a belt eroded out to the vicinity of Neptune's 2:1 resonance at about 48 astronomical units, Neptune's eccentricity can damp to its current value over the age of the solar system if the belt contains slightly more than an earth mass of material out to about 75 astronomical units.  相似文献   

Post-cambrian trilobite diversity and evolutionary faunas     

JM Adrain  RA Fortey  SR Westrop 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1998,280(5371):1922-1925

A cluster analysis of the stratigraphic distribution of all Ordovician trilobite families, based on a comprehensive taxonomic database, identified two major faunas with disjunct temporal diversity trends. The Ibex Fauna behaved as a cohort, declining through the Ordovician and disappearing at the end-Ordovician mass extinction. In contrast, the Whiterock Fauna radiated rapidly during the Middle Ordovician and gave rise to all post-Ordovician trilobite diversity. Its pattern of diversification matches that of the Paleozoic Evolutionary Fauna; hence, trilobites were active participants in the great Ordovician radiations. Extinction patterns at the end of the Ordovician are related to clade size: Surviving trilobite families show higher genus diversity than extinguished families.  相似文献   

Measuring the spin polarization of a metal with a superconducting point contact     

Soulen Jr RJ  JM Byers  MS Osofsky  B Nadgorny  T Ambrose  SF Cheng  Broussard C T Tanaka PR  J Nowak  JS Moodera  A Barry  JMD Coey 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1998,282(5386):85-88

A superconducting point contact is used to determine the spin polarization at the Fermi energy of several metals. Because the process of supercurrent conversion at a superconductor-metal interface (Andreev reflection) is limited by the minority spin population near the Fermi surface, the differential conductance of the point contact can reveal the spin polarization of the metal. This technique has been applied to a variety of metals where the spin polarization ranges from 35 to 90 percent: Ni0.8Fe0.2, Ni, Co, Fe, NiMnSb, La0.7Sr0.3MnO3, and CrO2.  相似文献