January 2019 Research Roundup
A look at some of the newest published studies coming out of the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine.
- A combination of chemotherapy drugs mitoxantrone and dacarbazine is a safe treatment option for lymphoma in dogs, according to a study co-authored by Joanne Intile.
Resistance to chemotherapy is a common cause of treatment failure in dogs with lymphoma. Combination chemotherapy has been shown to be an effective treatment option.
The new research, published in the Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, notes that the combination of mitoxantrone and dacarbazine (also known as DTIC), along with antibiotics and antiemetics, is a safe and effective regimen to rescue dogs with resistant lymphoma.
- Research co-authored by Duncan Lascelles and David Knazovicky finds potential in using quantitative sensory testing to measure how dogs respond to treatment for painful diseases such as osteoarthritis.
Quantitative sensory testing, or QST, evaluates response to physical stimuli, such as pressure, heat or cold. The testing measures have shown differences in dogs with osteoarthritis compared with healthy dogs. QST measures in dogs altered following successful joint surgery, suggesting the method may evaluate response to treatments.
The study, published in The Veterinary Journal, notes that research is ongoing to assess the ability of QST to measure response to medications.
- A study outlining E. coli and Salmonella risks on farms in Uganda offers important information to use when developing antimicrobial resistance surveillance programs in the country.
The research characterizes the dangerous pathogens in samples taken from dairy cattle farms in the Wakiso District of the African nation. Researchers found several isolates resistant to at least one antimicrobial and others exhibited multidrug resistance. The study can be used as a baseline for launching a more robust national integrated surveillance system throughout Uganda.
Paula Cray, Joy Horovitz, Sid Thakur, Hongyu Ru and Takiyah Ball are co-authors on the study, published in Foodborne Pathogens and Disease.
- A study co-authored by Nathan Nelson is the first thorough clinical description of pulmonary veno-occlusive disease and pulmonary capillary hemangiomatosis in dogs.
The research, published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, describes the clinical features, diagnostics, treatment and outcomes of dogs with either PVOD or PCH and urges increased awareness of the pulmonary vascular disorders. The study aims to improve diagnosis and prognostication of the diseases and to promote future studies on treatment interventions, as well as investigations into genetic and environmental triggers for the conditions.
- Most veterinarians in the United States are comfortable with both their knowledge of cannabinoids and using them to treat canine medical conditions, according to a study co-authored by Regina Schoenfeld.
Among the findings of the survey: The majority of veterinarians understood the difference between different types of cannabinoid products and felt comfortable discussing CBD with colleagues, though less than half were comfortable talking about the topic with clients.
Respondents also said their state veterinary medical associations and state boards do not provide sufficient guidance on practicing within applicable CBD laws. Frontiers in Veterinary Science published the study.
- The use of the pig model is contributing greatly to the understanding of several human medical conditions and can prove beneficial in studying male and female human sexually transmitted infections, according to a study co-authored by Tobias Kaeser.
There has been growing success in using the pig as an experimental model for human medicine, in large part due to similarities in anatomy, genetics, immunology and physiology to humans. The new study outlines ways a porcine model can play a crucial role ion STI research, including studies on chlamydia, herpes and HPV. Infection, Genetics and Evolution published the study.
- New research describes a successful protocol to treat an infectious neurological disease impacting horses in America.
The study, co-authored by Mark Papich and published in The Veterinary Journal, says that a low dose of diclazuril pellets given to horses every three to four days resulted in plasma drug concentrations known to inhibit Sarcocystis neurona, a parasite that causes equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, or EPM.
EPM can lead to permanent neurological damage and its signs often mimic other equine disorders.
- A study co-authored by Craig Harms compares ways to effectively diagnose roof-of-the-mouth hooking injuries in dolphinfish.
Researchers analyzed injuries to 42 dolphinfish, often popularly known as the mahi-mahi, comparing CT scanning and gross necropsy techniques typically used for diagnosing hooking injuries in fish. Researchers noted that CT scanning accurately identifies fractures and some soft tissue damage, but some injuries found in gross necropsy, such as optic nerve damage were not observed in CT scans.
Additionally, gross necropsies revealed injuries that have the potential to compromise vision and decrease post-release survival rates for the dolphinfish. The North American Journal of Fisheries Management published the study.
