Get puzzling with a crossword

7 1 2 3 4

8 5 6

9 10

PUZZLING WORDS

Here’s another crossword puzzle to test your knowledge. Designed by UK veterinarian Alan Holford. You can find the answers at www.nzva.org.nz/crossword.

11

15

7 8 9 11 13 15 17

20

22

19 17 14 13

21

23 18

Across

A large stork of South and Central America with a bulbous neck. (6)

Pertaining to the eye. (6)

Meaning ‘leader’ in Hungarian, this breed is also known as the Hungarian Water Dog. (4)

10 A bony process on the scapula. (8)

A British breed of horse used primarily for carriage driving. (7)

Ehmer or Velpeau ____. (5)

The auricle. (5)

12 16

Large marine mammal also known as a ‘sea cow’. (7)

20 One could forgive the receptionist in a noisy waiting room for misregistering this as a common crossbreed dog. (cryptic) (8) 21 Any anatomical part likened to a leg. (4)Across 3 A physical agent or chemical reagent that 22 The abnormal exiting of 7 A large Stork of South and Central causes genetic mutation to occur. ( tissue through the wall America with a bulbous neck. (6) 4 A venomous snake of the family of the cavity where it normally resides. (6) 23 The process of puking. (6) Down 1 A sublingual salivary mucocele. (6) 8 Pertaining to the eye. (6) 9 Meaning leader in Hungarian, this breed is also known as the Hungarian Water Dog. (4) 10 A boney process on the scapula. (8) 11 A british breed of horse bred primarily for 5 Pharmaceutical preparations of its neurotoxic venom have been used intralesionally to provide hypalgesia in acral lick dermatitis. ( A cat breed, like its name, produced from crossing the Chinchilla Persian with the Burmese. (8 2 5 A cat breed, like its name, Hair-like appendages found on the surface of many carriage driving. (7) 13 Ehmer or Velpeau _____. (5) 16 I’m all mixed up. How 6 Pick out the primate in the accompanying photograph. ( produced from crossing gram-negative bacteria. (4) 15 The auricle. (5) do I sex this arachnid? 12 A hairy, rotund pig breed with a Mãori 3 the Chinchilla Persian with the Burmese. (8)A physical agent or chemical reagent that causes genetic (cryptic) (6) 18 A benign tumour 17 Large marine mammal also known as the Sea Cow. (7) 14 name. (8) A Russian dog bred originally for mutation to occur. (7)20 6 Pick out the primate arising from periodontal One could forgive the receptionist in a Reindeer hunting and guarding. ( 4 A venomous snake of the family Elapidae. in the accompanying photograph. (6) squamous cell residues. (6) 19 C1. (5) noisy waiting room for misregistering this as a common crossbreed dog. (cryptic) (8) 16 I'm all mixed up. How do I sex this arachnid? (cryptic) ( 12 A hairy, rotund pig breed with a Māori name. (8) Pharmaceutical preparations of its neurotoxic venom have 21 Masticate. (4) 21 Any anatomical part likened to a leg. (4) 22 The abnormal exit of tissue through the 18 A benign tumour arising from periodontal squamous cell residues. ( 14 A Russian dog breed been used intralesionally wall of the cavity in which it resides. (6) 19 C1. (5)originally used for hunting reindeer. (7) to provide hypalgesia in acral lick dermatitis. (5) 23 The process of puking. (6) 21 Masticate. (

Down

1 A sublingual salivary mucocele. (6) 2 Hair like appendages found on the surface of many gram negative bacteria. (4)

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS

A study by University of California, Davis researchers determined the bioavailability of orally administered phenobarbital in healthy goats, and analysed the effects of phenobarbital on the animals’ brain activity using electroencephalogram (EEG). They found that the bioavailability was poor (24.9%) and the half-life was very short due to a high clearance (3.80 ± 0.826 hours for orally administered phenobarbital and 4.0 ± 0.619 hours for intravenously administered phenobarbital). The authors state that the research helps inform dosing rates in goats, as current rates are based on studies of dogs and horses.

www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/ fvets.2020.00086/full UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

Collaborative research between the UK’s University of Cambridge and the US National Animal Disease Center revealed that subunit vaccination with RlpB and VacJ proteins was not enough to protect pigs from challenge with Glaesserella parasuis (the pathogen responsible for Glӓsser’s disease). This was despite vaccinated animals developing high levels of antibodies and reactive peripheral blood mononuclear cells in response to the recombinant proteins. The authors note the importance of testing vaccine efficacy in the target species, in this case pigs, as results differed from those involving rodents.

https://bmcvetres.biomed central.com/articles/10.1186/ s12917-020-02377-5

GLOBAL LAB

Mirjam Guesgen showcases research being conducted at veterinary schools around the world.

VETSUISSE FACULTY BERN AND ZURICH

A study of the efficacy of an online antimicrobial stewardship tool found that overall proportions of antimicrobial prescription, unjustified antimicrobial therapy and the use of third-generation cephalosporins for cats decreased after the tool was introduced. Although usage was down for the feline diseases the researchers investigated, the overall compliance with Swiss prudent-use guidelines was still low. The authors argue that a greater promotion of prudent use and more first-line antimicrobials with convenient applications in cats are needed to combat antimicrobial resistance.

https://bmcvetres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12917-020-

02447-8 UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY

Veterinarians from Australia, Spain and Italy have detailed hand-rearing practices for three lesser flamingo chicks (Phoeniconaias minor). They describe dietary intake, feeding protocols and growth index from the first day to 60 days after hatching. They also describe a new diet composition that mimics the nutrient content of flamingo crop milk. The authors say this information is useful for the conservation of this species.

www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/10/8/1251/htm

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

A study published in the Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine evaluated the analytes involved in vitamin D metabolism, together with dietary intake and ultraviolet light exposure, in Asian elephants managed in a northern temperate climate. The study found that serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was undetectable despite the diets being supplemented with vitamin D3 and the elephants getting enough light exposure. The information is helpful for understanding vitamin D’s role in elephant health and formulating accurate diets for the animals.

https://bioone.org/journals/Journal-of-Zoo-and-Wildlife-Medicine/ volume-51/issue-1/2019-0097/THE-VITAMIN-D-STATUS-OF-ASIAN-

ELEPHANTS-ELEPHAS-MAXIMUS-MANAGED/10.1638/2019-0097.short

MASSEY UNIVERSITY RESEARCH UPDATE

FIGURE 1: The humerus of an affected heifer with a complete spiral fracture extending from beneath the humeral head to the distal condyle.

Solving a

shoulder mystery

Alvaro Wehrle Martinez, a PhD candidate at Massey University’s School of Veterinary Science, is studying a relatively new and untreatable problem in first-calving dairy heifers – and it’s unique to New Zealand.

BACKGROUND

For more than 10 years farmers and veterinarians have witnessed the occurrence of shoulder (humeral) fractures in first-calving dairy heifers throughout New Zealand (Weston, 2008). This year has been no different, with numerous instances across the country that include more than 60 first-calving heifers on a single farm. Reports of large numbers like these have only been described in New Zealand (Weston et al., 2012; Dittmer et al., 2016).

The first report of spontaneous humeral fracture was from a farm in the Manawatū region, where six out of 200 crossbreed heifers suffered humeral fractures within the first month of lactation. Copper deficiency was implicated as the potential cause (Weston, 2008).

The fractures are seen most commonly in first-lactation heifers from the end of pregnancy to five months after calving. The humerus may be predisposed to pathologic fracture due to a combination of the high proportion of bodyweight supported on the forelimbs and the wide range of motion in the shoulder joint, which puts the humerus under great strain compared with other bones.

CT scans have shown that affected heifers have a smaller humeral bone circumference and reduced cortex thickness than unaffected heifers. This results in a decreased stress-strain index (a calculated measure of bone strength based on bone structural parameters) that is consistent with the bone fragility seen in affected heifers.

A preliminary study suggested that the cause of the fractures was multifactorial – a combination of inadequate nutrition during important growth periods, increased bone resorption to supply calcium for lactation, and periods of copper deficiency (Dittmer et al., 2016). However, the study had a small sample size, so further investigation is required.

Cases have a sudden onset and are painful, and unfortunately for the animal there is no humane treatment available; slaughter is the only option.

This results in significant animal wastage, economic loss, and impacts on animal welfare and farmer emotional wellbeing.

AIMS OF THE CURRENT PROJECT

My PhD aims to determine the risk factors for humeral fractures in first-calving dairy heifers. It comprises a large-scale study of all levels of bone structure in animals with fractures compared with heifers without humeral fractures. The focus is on describing the macroscopic, microscopic and histomorphological findings in humeri, and quantifying collagen crosslinks using mass spectrometry and bone mineral profile using Raman spectroscopy.

RESULTS SO FAR

I have received more than 120 bone samples from heifers who have or have not suffered humeral fractures in the

FIGURE 2:

Bone powder is obtained using a cryogenic grinder and later analysed with mass spectrometry. 2019–20 season. Cases were collected by veterinarians and submitted from farms throughout New Zealand that had different management and nutritional conditions. The vast majority (83%) of the cases came from the South Island and 17% from the North Island.

There is a similar breed distribution of cases between Friesian and KiwiCross cows, with a few cases described in Jersey cows. This is consistent with the proportion of these breeds in the New Zealand dairy herd. In 99% of the cases the fractures spiral down the bone from the humeral head to just above the distal condyle (see Figure 1).

Classifying the cases according to the predominant winter feed shows that most animals (40%) were on fodder beet, 33% were on pasture and 12% were on another crop such as kale, swedes, maize and oats.

A liver copper analysis shows that about 50–60% of the animals, regardless of the main winter feed, had low liver copper concentrations at the time of the fractures. Copper is necessary for the formation of collagen cross-links, and alterations in collagen structure increase fracture susceptibility (Saito and Marumo, 2015). However, copper deficiency at the time of fracture does not indicate the copper status of the animal in the months prior, when the current bone was formed. Collagen cross-links analysis will allow me to determine the true role of copper deficiency in the fractures (see Figure 2).

Microscopically, I am seeing a range of lesions including rickets/ osteomalacia (abnormal bone formation and defective bone mineralisation) and osteoporosis (reduction in bone mass/ quantity). These lesions vary depending on the cows’ main diets during winter. By determining the primary disease processes underlying the fractures, I hope to understand what is going wrong in heifer bone development.

There is still a long way to go in analysing my samples, but I hope to find answers that will help put an end to this catastrophic condition affecting so many heifers.

REFERENCES: Dittmer K, Hitchcock B, McDougall S, Hunnam J.

Pathophysiology of humeral fractures in a sample of dairy heifers. New Zealand Veterinary Journal 64, 230–7, 2016

Saito M, Marumo K. Effects of collagen crosslinking on bone material properties in health and disease. Calcified Tissue International 97, 242–61, 2015

Weston J. An outbreak of humeral fractures among dairy heifers. Proceedings of the Society of Dairy Cattle Veterinarians of the New Zealand Veterinary Association 241–3, 2008

Weston J, Thompson K, Dittmer K, Rashid Z.

Humeral fractures in dairy heifers. Proceedings of the Dairy Cattle Veterinarians of the New Zealand Veterinary Association 2.18, 2012

PhD candidate Natalie King compiles research projects underway at Massey University.