Search Results
You are looking at 1 - 3 of 3 items for
- Author or Editor: Günter Scholtysik x
- Refine by Access: All Content x
Abstract
Objective—To determine concentrations of excitatory and inhibitory amino acids in CSF of a large number of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy or genetic epilepsy and to evaluate changes in CSF amino acid concentration with regard to drug treatment and sex.
Animals—35 Labrador Retrievers with genetic epilepsy (20 male and 15 female), 94 non-Labrador Retrievers with idiopathic epilepsy (71 male and 23 female), and 20 control dogs (10 male and 10 female).
Procedure—Collection of CSF was performed > 72 hours after the occurrence of seizures. Cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glutamate (GLU), aspartate (ASP), serine, and glycine were determined by use of high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection.
Results—CSF concentrations of GABA and GLU were significantly lower in Labrador Retrievers with genetic epilepsy (LR-group dogs) than in control-group dogs or in non-Labrador Retrievers with idiopathic epilepsy (non–LR-group dogs). The GLU-to-GABA ratio was significantly higher in LR-group dogs than in non–LR-group dogs. CSF concentrations of GLU and ASP were significantly lower when all dogs with epilepsy (non–LR- and LR-group dogs combined) were compared with control-group dogs.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—A decrease in CSF concentrations of GABA appears to play a role in the pathogenesis of genetically determined epilepsy in Labrador Retrievers. However, this decrease in CSF concentrations of GABA may also be a consequence of seizure activity. The GLU-to-GABA ratio may prove to be a useful indicator of genetic epilepsy in Labrador Retrievers. (Am J Vet Res 2004;65:1108–1113)
Abstract
Objective—To characterize and compare in vitro contractility patterns of sections of abomasal wall harvested from cattle of 3 dairy breeds.
Sample Population—Longitudinal and circular smooth muscle preparations harvested from the antrum and body of the abomasum of 30 recently slaughtered Holstein-Friesian, Brown Swiss, and Simmental X Red Holstein cows.
Procedure—Spontaneous isometric contractions of specimens in tissue baths of modified Krebs solution were recorded during a 4-hour period. Maximal amplitude, frequency of contractions, and change of basal tension were used to characterize contractility. Statistical analyses were used to test for differences among time periods, among breeds, between specimen locations, and between fiber orientations.
Results—Myoactivity patterns of abomasal smooth muscle preparations are highly variable and differ on the basis of location and fiber orientation. Frequency of contractions differed significantly among time periods for longitudinally oriented specimens with decreasing frequencies of contractions over time. Maximal amplitude of the longitudinally oriented specimens from the antrum increased significantly, whereas maximal amplitude of the circularly oriented specimens from the antrum decreased significantly. Values did not differ significantly among breeds.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Patterns of spontaneous contractility of abomasal wall specimens are not homogeneous. During a 4-hour recording period, maximal amplitude and frequency of contractions of specimens varied significantly with respect to orientation and location; however, spontaneous contractile myoactivity did not differ significantly among breeds. Therefore, breed predisposition for displaced abomasum is not correlated with spontaneous activity of smooth muscle specimens. (Am J Vet Res 2002;63:1687–1694)
Abstract
Objective
To compare concentrations of acetic, propionic, butyric, and i- and n-valerianic acids in digesta samples obtained from the rumen, cecum, proximal loop of the ascending colon (PLAC), and rectum of healthy cows and cows with cecal dilatation or dislocation (CDD).
Animals
20 cows with CDD and 20 healthy cows.
Procedure
Samples were collected from all sites during surgical correction of CDD and also from the rectum 1, 2, and 3 days after surgery (group CDD). Samples from healthy (control) cows, matched on the basis of diet and milk yield, were obtained at a slaughterhouse. Concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFA) were analyzed by use of gas chromatography. Absolute concentration of each VFA was additionally corrected for pH to allow calculation of the concentration of undissociated VFA.
Results
Absolute concentration and concentration of the undissociated form of all analyzed VFA were significantly increased in samples collected from the cecum and PLAC of cows in group CDD, compared with concentrations for control cows. Within 3 days after surgery, significant decreases of the absolute concentration of butyric, i- and n-valerianic acids, and undissociated i- and n-valerianic acids were evident in samples obtained from the rectum of group-CDD cows. Concentrations of VFA in samples obtained from the rectum during surgery correlated with corresponding VFA concentrations in samples obtained from the PLAC.
Conclusions
Concentrations of VFA are increased in the cecum and PLAC of cows with CDD. However, the role of increased concentrations of VFA in the etiopathogenesis of CDD is unknown. (Am J Vet Res 1999;60:1540–1545)
