Evaluation of encapsulated anethole and carvone in lambs artificially- and naturally-infected with Haemonchus contortus.

Molecules from natural sources, such as essential oils, have shown activity against parasites in vitro, but have not yet been explored extensively in vivo. Anethole and carvone (10% each), encapsulated with 80% of a solid matrix, referred to as EO (encapsulated oils), were tested in vivo in 2 experiments. In Experiment 1: Lambs were artificially infected with multidrug resistant Haemonchus contortus, or left uninfected, and treated (or not) with 50 mg/kg bw (body weight) of EO in a controlled environment. Thirty-two male lambs were kept in individual cages for a period of 45 days, after which animals were evaluated for parasitological, hematological, toxicological, and nutritional parameters. After 45 days of treatment, EO at 50 mg/kg bw provided a significant (P ≤ 0.05) reduction in fecal egg count (FEC). Although FEC was reduced, animals from both treatments had similar counts of total adult worms. The low FEC was caused probably by a significant reduction (P ≤ 0.05) in both male worm size and female fecundity. Dry matter intake of uninfected controls was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) reduced, although no toxicity was observed in treated animals. Thus, in Experiment 2, conducted for five months we used an EO dose of 20 mg/kg bw. Thirty-four weaned lambs, free of parasites, were divided in two groups and kept in collective pens. One group received EO at 20 mg/kg bw mixed with concentrate for 5 months and the other was kept as a control group (CTL). Parasitological and hematological parameters as well as body weight were evaluated. In the first 2.5 months, CTL and EO groups were confined, and both presented similar clinical parameters. Then, animals were allotted to graze on contaminated pastures to acquire natural infection for the next 2.5 months. The infection was patent after 25 days and both groups had similar decreases in weight gain, increases in FEC, and decreases in blood parameters. Coprocultures from CTL and EO groups established that parasite population was 90% Haemonchus sp. We concluded that the technology of encapsulation is safe and practical to deliver to lambs at the farm level and anethole and carvone at 50 mg/kg bw caused a significant decrease in FEC and, consequently, in pasture contamination by free living stages of H. contortus. However, EO at 20 mg/kg bw was not effective to prevent or treat sheep naturally-infected with gastrointestinal nematodes.

Supplementation of moist and dehydrated citrus pulp in the diets of sheep artificially and naturally infected with gastrointestinal nematodes on the parasitological parameters and performance.

The inclusion of industrial byproducts such as citrus pulp in the composition of animal diets has been widely recommended due to sustainability aspects and their high level of carbohydrates. Limonene is found in citrus pulp and has been described elsewhere as a major compound of citrus essential oils with excellent anthelmintic activity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the parasitological parameters of lambs artificially infected (Experiment 1) with Haemonchus contortus and naturally infected (Experiment 2) by gastrointestinal nematodes, fed diets with dehydrated citrus pulp or silage of moist orange pulp. Both experiments had three treatments (C: control, DP: diet+dehydrated citrus pulp, and MP: diet+silage of moist orange pulp). The diets were isoproteic (11% crude protein) and the concentrate was corrected every 14 days according to animal weight. Parasitological parameters were evaluated for both experiments each 14 days (body weight, body condition; fecal egg counts-FEC, egg hatch assay-EHA, coproculture, and packed cell volume-PCV). Analysis of variance (GLM of the SAS software) was performed with repeated measures in time, and the means were compared by the Tukey test. Gas chromatography with mass spectrometry was used to detect constituents of dry or moist citrus pulp. Dehydrated citrus pulp had 0.02% essential oil (major compounds were 85.9% limonene and 7.6% valencene). Moist orange pulp contained 1.5% essential oil (major compounds were 65.5% limonene and 31.2% alpha- and gamma-terpineol). In both experiments, the weight gain among the treatments was similar (p>0.05) demonstrating that both moist and dehydrated orange pulp can be used to replace corn kernels to feed infected lambs. The supplementation with orange pulp did not decrease natural or artificial infections of gastrointestinal nematodes according to the FEC results (p>0.05). However, PCV increased from animals fed dehydrated and moist pulp in natural infection (Experiment 2, p<0.05) in comparison with the control group. In addition, the consumption of the dehydrated citrus pulp from animals infected with H. contortus (Experiment 1) caused lower hatching rates after 42 days of consumption (p<0.05), suggesting a tendency to shed fewer eggs to the environment.

Performance and nematode infection of ewe lambs on intensive rotational grazing with two different cultivars of Panicum maximum.

The daily live weight gain (DLWG), faecal nematode egg counts (FEC), and packed cell volume (PCV) of Suffolk, Ile de France and Santa Inês ewe lambs were evaluated fortnightly for 56 days in the dry season (winter) and 64 days in the rainy season (summer) of 2001-2002. The animals were distributed in two similar groups, one located on Aruana and the other on Tanzania grass (Panicum maximum), in rotational grazing system at the Instituto de Zootecnia, in Nova Odessa city (SP), Brazil. In the dry season, 24 one-year-old ewe lambs were used, eight of each breed, and there was no difference (p > 0.05) between grasses for DLWG (100 g/day), although the Suffolk had higher values (p < 0.05) than the other breeds. In the rainy season, with 33 six-month-old ewe lambs, nine Suffolk, eight Ile de France and 16 Santa Inês, the DLWG was not affected by breed, but it was twice as great (71 g/day, p < 0.05) on Aruana as on Tanzânia grass (30 g/day). The Santa Inês ewe lambs had the lowest FEC (p < 0.05) and the highest PCV (p < 0.05), confirming their higher resistance to Haemonchus contortus, the prevalent nematode in the rainy season. It was concluded that the best performance of ewe lambs on Aruana pastures in the rainy season is probably explained by their lower nematode infection owing to the better protein content of this grass (mean contents 11.2% crude protein in Aruana grass and 8.7% in Tanzania grass, p < 0.05) which may have improved the immunological system with the consequence that the highest PCV (p < 0.05) observed in those animals.

[Diagnostic value of echocardiography with dipyridamole in coronary disease and evaluation of its prognostic potentiality face to ergometry, plane dipyridamole Tc99m-MIBI myocardial perfusion scintigraphy and coronary cineangiography]. / Valor diagnóstico da ecocardiografia com dipiridamol em doença coronária e avaliação de sua potencialidade prognóstica frente à ergometria, cintigrafia de perfusão miocárdica planar com dipiridamol e Tc99m-MIBI e cinecoronariografia.

PURPOSE: To assess in a consecutive series of patients, the diagnostic accuracy of dipyridamole echocardiography and to compare its prognostic power with that from other tests. METHODS: Seventy eight patients prospectively were underwent to dipyridamole echocardiography (DET) and coronary arteriography for diagnostic and post-infarction investigation. The majority was underwent to treadmill stress test and Tc99MIBI-dipyridamole planar myocardial scintigraphy. Eleven variables with possible prognostic importance were analyzed in a stepwise model to identify independent predictors of events. RESULTS: Sensitivity and specificity for the presence of coronary artery disease (in non-M patients) and multivessel disease (in post-MI patients) were, respectively, 44%, 91%, 53% and 88%. Mean follow-up was 21 +/- 9 months, during which there were four deaths, four unstable angina episodes, four nonfatal myocardial infarctions and eight revascularization procedures. By multivariate analysis, the only independent predictor of events was the change in wall motion score index from rest to peak stress. CONCLUSION: DET is a valuable alternative to exercise stress test and myocardial perfusion scintigraphy. Semiquantitative estimation of ischemic area during pharmacological stress is an important prognostic marker.

[Silent myocardial ischemia: its increase with aging]. / Isquemia miocárdica silenciosa: seu aumento com a idade.

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether the number and duration of the episodes of silent myocardial ischemia increase with aging of patients. METHODS: A Holter monitoring, with CardioData equipment, was made in 1,300 patients and 330 with proven significant coronary obstructions were selected for this study. The anti-anginal medication was maintained during the 24 or 48 hours of Holter recording. The patients were arbitrarily divided into four groups according to age less than 50 years, 50 to 59 years, 60 to 69 years and greater than or equal to 70 years old. The statistical analysis was made with two models, the model of logistic regression and the Poisson model. RESULTS: Myocardia ischemia was detected in 72 patients (21.8%), 55 (76%) had only silent episodes, 6 (9%) had only anginal ischemia and 11 patients (155) had both silent and anginal ischemia. There was a progressive increase in the number and duration of the episodes of myocardial ischemia with aging. The proportion of patients with episodes of myocardial ischemia in the 4 age groups was 12.12%, 19.75%, 22.25% and 31.48% and the duration of the episodes of ischemia per patient 37, 37.5, 50.8 and 85.1 minutes, respectively. Statistical analysis showed a significant increase with aging in number and duration of the episodes. CONCLUSIONS: Myocardial ischemia is still present in asymptomatic patients during anti-anginal treatment and the ischemia is mainly silent. There is a progressive increase with aging in number and duration of the episodes of ischemia.

[Silent myocardial ischemia. Experience with ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring]. / Isquemia miocárdica silenciosa. Experiência com a moniorização eletrocardiográfica ambulatoriai.

A 24-hour recording of ambulatory EKG (Holter) was obtained in 159 patients with coronary disease: previous myocardial infarction (n = 76), myocardial revascularization (n = 66), severe obstruction during cine-coronarography (n = 13) or during coronary angioplasty (n = 4). Prophylactic anti-anginal drugs were maintained during the Holter and, despite the medication, transitory episodes of myocardial ischemia (MI) were recorded in 51 patients (32%), either with angina (AMI) or silent (SMI), isolated SMI was recorded in 44 patients (86%), 6 subjects had both SMI (16 episodes) and AMI (12 episodes) and one patient had only one episode of AMI. There was a total of 119 episodes of MI, 106 of SMI (89.1%) and 13 AMI (10.9%). The total duration of the episodes of SMI per patient varied from 1 min to 235 min and the IMS maximal duration was 221 min. In the six cases with both SMI and AMI, the total duration of SMI was 461 min and AMI was 306 min. The circadian distribution of the episodes of SMI was: from 12:00 to 18:00-31.4%, 18:00 to 24:00-27.6%, 0:00 to 6:00-7.7% and 6:00 to 12:00-33.3%. The SMI activity was recorded in 89 episodes-23.6% during sleep, 22.4% at rest, 46% during physical activity and 8% during other activities. The mean ST segment depression during SMI (n = 106) was of -2.25 mm and during AMI (n = 13) was of -3.25 mm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)