BACKGROUND Real-time, quantitative PCR (qPCR) methods for detecting Rhodococcus equi in feces have been developed as a noninvasive, rapid diagnostic test for R. equi pneumonia, but have not been evaluated in a large population of foals. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical utility of fecal PCR as a diagnostic test for R. equi pneumonia in foals using receiver ope...

The ecology of virulent strains of Rhodococcus equi on horse farms is likely to influence the prevalence and severity of R. equi pneumonia in foals. This study examined the association between the ecology of virulent R. equi and the epidemiology of R. equi pneumonia by collecting air and soil samples over two breeding seasons (28 farm-year combinations) on Thoroughbred breeding farms with diffe...

BACKGROUND Piroplasms are kinds of tick-borne parasitic apicomplexan protozoa, which are detrimental to humans and animals in tropical and subtropical areas around the world. Up until now, there has been a limited amount of reliable information available about the prevalence of piroplasms infections in wild animals in China. Therefore, we have investigated the infections of Babesia and Theileri...

BACKGROUND The present study was carried out to investigate the accurate status of ovine Theileria infection in sheep from Ahvaz and surrounding region, a tropical area southwest Iran. METHODS A PCR-RFLP method based on 18S ribosomal RNA gene was designed which could detect and differentiate Theileria and Babesia spp. and also differentiate main Theileria species in sheep at the same time. 11...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Bispectral index (BIS) values may be anaesthetic agent-specific, depending on their ability to suppress the electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. We carried out a prospective, randomised clinical trial to study the effect of nitrous oxide (N2O) on the BIS values at an equi-minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) of sevoflurane and desflurane. METHODS Sixty adult patients underg...

To design more effective tissue-engineered heart valve replacements, the replacement tissue may need to mimic the biaxial stress-strain behavior of native heart valve tissue. This study characterized the planar biaxial properties of tissue-engineered valve leaflets and native aortic valve leaflets. Fibrin-based valve equivalent (VE) and porcine aortic valve (PAV) leaflets were subjected to incr...

Ticks and tick-borne diseases, including theileriosis, constitute a major constraint to livestock production. Two species, known as Theileria lestoquardi and Theileria ovis, are suspected to contribute to ovine theileriosis in Iran. However, the epidemiological aspects of ovine theileriosis are poorly understood in this country. In a survey, designed to identify Theileria species in sheep, 52 (...