ABSTRACT
Eight healthy female adult camels were used to study the effect of long term dehydration on serum constituents in extreme climatic conditions viz. cold and hot. The dehydration phases were of 24 days in cold and 13 days in hot conditions. The changes in sodium, potassium, calcium and phosphorus were non significant (P > 0.05) while in chloride, glucose, total proteins, urea, bilirubin, cholesterol and creatinine were significant (P < or = 0.05) during dehydration phase. The mean values of all the constituents tended to return to normal as the rehydration phase advanced. Changes in sodium and potassium in dehydrated camels reflected that they were able to maintain the salt balance.
Subject(s)
Camelus/blood , Cold Climate/adverse effects , Dehydration/blood , Desert Climate/adverse effects , Animals , Female , TimeABSTRACT
Zinc deficiency was produced experimentally in guinea-pigs fed on a diet containing 1.03 mg Zn/kg over a period of 45 days. Clinical signs exhibited in Zn-deficient (ZnD) animals were depression with abnormal posture, scaly skin lesions on various parts of the body, oedematous swelling on hind limbs and marked alopecia. There was no effect on food intake. Serum studies in ZnD group revealed significant decreases in the concentrations of Zn from 20 days onwards, and tri-iodo-thyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) from 30 days onwards. Thyroid glands of ZnD animals were smaller in size and pale or whitish pale in colour. Histopathologically, these glands showed changes of atrophy and degeneration in the follicles. It could be concluded that the depletion in serum T3 and T4 due to Zn deficiency was related to thyroid lesions.
