The First Bacterial Endocarditis Due to Achromobacter xylosoxidans in a Dog.

Infectious endocarditis (IE) in dogs is often associated with a high mortality rate as diagnostic work-up as well as antibiotic treatment might be challenging. The present case describes bacteremia in a dog caused by Achromobacter xylosoxidans, leading to an infectious endocarditis. Achromobacter xylosoxidans (A. xylosoxidans) is an aerobic Gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium, which has been associated with multiple nosocomial opportunistic diseases in human medicine. One such manifestation of A. xylosoxidans infection is endocarditis. A. xylosoxidans infections are challenging to treat due to the reduced effectiveness of a wide range of antimicrobial agents. To date, only a few case reports of infections with A. xylosoxidans in animals have been described. This is the first case report of A. xylosoxidans endocarditis in a dog. Whole-genome sequencing was performed to determine the sequencing type and to gain more information about this bacterium regarding its intrinsic resistance genes. With this case report, we seek to increase awareness of A. xylosoxidans as an opportunistic nosocomial pathogen in dogs and to provide a short summary regarding the current state of general knowledge and known resistance patterns.

Comparison of the effects of open-tube and evacuated tube-assisted sampling methods on thromboelastography variables for blood samples from healthy dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of open-tube blood sampling with previously investigated blood sampling methods via evacuated tube on thromboelastography variables for blood samples from dogs. ANIMALS: 10 healthy Beagles from the research colony owned by the Clinic of Small Animal Internal Medicine, University Veterinary of Medicine, Vienna, were used. PROCEDURES: In this prospective study, blood was sampled from each dog serially into citrate solution-containing tubes via 20-gauge needle. One evacuated tube was filled from a jugular vein via the evacuated tube port, and the second tube was opened and filled by catching blood flowing through the needle from a lateral saphenous vein. Venipuncture quality was scored with a previously described method. Thromboelastography was performed for each sample. RESULTS: Inferential statistics used with the Wilcoxon signed rank test showed significant differences in reaction time (R) of 3.43 ± 0.84 minutes versus 4.53 ± 0.62 minutes (mean ± SD) between evacuated tube assisted and open-tube sampling, respectively. No other significant differences were identified. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The sampling methods compared have a small but significant effect on R in thromboelastographic analysis for blood samples from healthy dogs. Shear stress by vacuum sampling seems to accelerate coagulation in jugular blood samples harvested by evacuated tube, resulting in a shortened R. Results suggested that the open-tube method avoids shear stress induced activation of coagulation and is an appropriate sampling method for thromboelastography when used within a standardized protocol.

Cytotoxicity screening of emulsifiers for pulmonary application of lipid nanoparticles.

INTRODUCTION: The pulmonary route is a non-invasive administration route that receives growing attention. The challenge for formulation development of orally inhaled formulations is, however, the limited number of approved excipients. Lipid nanoparticles are desired drug delivery systems for inhalation because lipids are biocompatible. However, addition of emulsifiers to stabilize the formulation may cause toxic effects. Alveolar epithelial cells and alveolar macrophages are the main cell types that get in contact with inhaled formulations in the deep lung. The different cell types are supposed to differ in the extent of particle uptake. Kolliphor RH40, Poloxamer 188, and Tween 80 are approved for use in oral formulations and widely used in the academic field for manufacturing of lipid nanoparticles. However, little is known about their pulmonary toxicity. METHODS: Cytotoxicity of Kolliphor RH40, Poloxamer 188, and Tween 80 was studied by integration into solid lipid nanoparticles loaded with itraconazole as model drug. Cytotoxicity of the formulations was assessed in human alveolar epithelial cells and human and murine macrophages and correlated to cell uptake. RESULTS: The tested emulsifiers showed overall low cytotoxicity with less pronounced adverse effects in human cells than in murine macrophages. Cellular uptake of Poloxamer 188 containing lipid nanoparticles was decreased in macrophages, while uptake of lipid nanoparticles with the other emulsifiers was similar in epithelial cells and phagocytes. CONCLUSION: The tested emulsifiers appear suitable for use in pulmonary applications. Due to larger cell size and lower proliferation rate human cells showed lower cytotoxicity than the murine cells. Being human cells, they appear more suitable for the screening of adverse effects in human lungs.