1,720,978 research outputs found
MARKERS OF INFLAMMATION, IMMUNITY AND RENAL DAMAGE IN DOGS WITH CANINE LEISHMANIASIS
No full textCanine Leishmaniasis is a zoonotic disease that is spreading over mediterranean basin. Despite the pathogenesis of canine leishmaniasis has been investigated through several studies, some aspect of the host-parasite interaction that lead to overt diseases and typical inflammatory lesions have not yet been understood. Among these, the oxidant-anti-oxidant mechanisms that occur in dogs with the clinical disease are particularly interesting since on one hand they can provide to us useful information on the pathogenesis of the disease, which can also be a model for investigating immune-mediated chronic inflammatory conditions occurring also in other species on the other hand the identification of changes in molecules involved in oxidative stress may serve as a potential target for ancillary treatments or as markers of disease severity and progression. Similarly, most of the researches done until now have been focused on renal damage but only a few studies were focused on markers of tubular damage, despite the development of tubulo-interstitial nephritis is associated with more advanced stages of the disease. As regards inflammatory/oxidative responses, our studies confirmed the presence of oxidative phenomena associated with the inflammatory profiles of infected dogs and suggested that reactive oxygen species released by inflammatory cells are not the only oxidative mediators involved in this disease. The serial analysis of markers of inflammation or oxidation defined the possible role of these markers as prognostic factors, especially after treatment. More specifically, antioxidant molecules such as PON1 and HDL may play a role as early markers of remission after treatment since they quickly normalize in dogs that respond to treatments. As regards renal markers, we evidenced the possible role of GGT as a simple and inexpensive marker of tubular damage in dogs with leishmaniasis
Haematological and biochemical reference intervals of four feline breeds
No full textMany feline breeds have been generated from a small number of ancestors. Thus, breed-specific peculiarities can be expected, which could include haematological and biochemical measurements. Despite this, there are only a few reports on breed-specific reference intervals (RI). This information is essential in routine practice where results from individual patients are usually compared with an RI. The aim was to compare haematological and biochemical data from clinically healthy Abyssinian, Holy Birman, Norwegian Forest and Siberian cats with published RIs to assess whether the published RIs are acceptable in these breeds. Comparison with established RIs using guidelines from the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards and the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathology, revealed a number of breed-related clinicopathological differences. New RIs were established, but in most cases the new RIs overlapped with published RIs, and the use of the breed-specific data would minimally affect the clinical interpretation of laboratory results. Important differences that could result in misinterpretation of laboratory results were as follows: microcytosis and high α2-globulin concentrations in Abyssinian cats; high serum creatinine, α2-globulin and glucose concentrations in Holy Birman cats; high serum alkaline phosphatase activity and calcium and phosphate concentration in Norwegian Forest cats; low β2-globulin and γ-globulin concentrations in Norwegian Forest and Siberian cats. Breed-specific RIs should be used for these analytes. In addition, care should be taken in interpreting clinicopathological data in purebred cats for which specific RIs have not been established
Sodium-dodecylsulphate agarose gel electrophoresis (SDS-AGE) as a tool for monitoring the pattern of proteinuria in dogs with leishmaniasis
Full text linkDogs with leishmaniasis develop an immune-complex glomerulonephritis that suddenly induces functional or structural lesions in tubular cells. Leishmanicidal treatments should decrease immuno-complex formation and deposition. This can modify the composition of urinary proteins over time. The aim of this study was to assess whether sodium dodecyl sulphate-agarose gel electrophoresis (SDS-AGE), which differentiates urinary proteins based on their molecular weight (MW), may identify changes in the composition of urinary proteins associated with leishmanicidal treatments.
Urine samples from 11 leishmaniotic dogs in IRIS stage I that were proteinuric (n = 10) or borderline proteinuric (n = 1) were collected before treatment and 2, 4 and 6 weeks after the beginning of treatment with meglumine antimoniate and allopurinol. The urinary protein to creatinine (UPC) ratio was measured just after collection and SDS-AGE was performed. Samples were classified as affected by glomerular or tubular proteinuria if at least two bands of MW higher or lower than that of albumin (69 kDa) were present; mixed proteinuria was diagnosed when bands of MW higher and lower than that of albumin were present. All the dogs remained in IRIS stage I after treatment. Consistent with a previous report, the UPC ratio decreased in 6/11 dogs, remained unchanged in
2/11 dogs and increased in 3/11 dogs despite the amelioration of clinical signs, likely depending on the release of antigens, that form additional immune complexes after the death of the parasite. As expected, proteinuria before treatment was mixed in 7/11 cases, glomerular in 2/11 cases and tubular in 2/11 cases. In 3 dogs, mixed proteinuria persisted during the follow-up. In 4 dogs with mixed proteinuria, the samples collected after treatment became glomerular, tubular, or negative (despite a UPC ratio > 0.5); one dog with glomerular proteinuria and one dog with tubular proteinuria became negative and the others remained glomerular or tubular, respectively, after treatment. Pure tubular proteinuria or negative results in proteinuric dogs may depend on dilutional effects that do not allow detection of weak glomerular bands, on storage artifacts or on the presence of proteins from the genital tract. Apart from these artifacts, the pattern of proteinuria in dogs treated for leishmaniasis tends not to change over time. In conclusion, SDS-AGE may be influenced by preanalytical factors and does not provide reliable information during the follow-up of dogs treated for canine leishmaniasis
Urinary gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) as a marker of tubular proteinuria in dogs with canine leishmaniasis, using sodium dodecylsulphate (SDS) electrophoresis as a reference method
Full text linkIn order to assess if urinary γ- glutamyl transferase (GGT) identify tubular proteinuria in leishmaniotic dogs, the GGT/urinary creatinine (UC) ratio was calculated in 39 leishmaniotic dogs. According to sodium dodecylsulphate-agarose gel electrophoresis, the dogs had albuminuria (A, n = 10), glomerular (G, n = 3), tubular (T, n = 4) or mixed proteinuria (M, n = 22). The median GGT/UC ratio was 0.3, 0.3, 2.2, and 7.5, in groups G, A, M, and T, respectively. Statistically significant differences were found between groups G and M (P = 0.002), G and T (P < 0.001), A and M (P < 0.001), and A and T (P < 0.001). Median values were higher in dogs with tubular components of proteinuria (M/T, 2.5) than in dogs without tubular components of proteinuria (A/G, 0.3), and in dogs with tubular proteinuria (T, 7.5) than in dogs with non-tubular proteinuria (NT, 1.0). GGT/UC values >0.81 or >2.64 could identify dogs in the M/T or T groups, respectively. Therefore, GGT/UC might be useful for the management of leishmaniotic dogs
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
APPUNTI IN TEMA DI AMMINISTRAZIONE E RAPPRESENTANZA
No full textCOMMENTARY TO THE RULES ON MANAGEMENT AND LEGAL AUTORITY IN S.R.L
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Effects of Morphine withdrawal on Shell and Core medium spiny neurons of the rat Nucleus Accumbens: a Golgi-Gox staining and immunohistochemical/densitometric study
No full text- …
