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This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and side effects of low dose cyclophosphamide chemotherapy plus meloxicam as an adjuvant treatment, compared with high dose doxorubicin or surgery alone in cats with mammary carcinoma. Medical records of 228 female cats treated for mammary carcinoma between 2008 and 2018, were reviewed in eight veterinary institutions. Only cats with complete tumour staging and radical mastectomy were included in the study. One hundred and thirty-seven cats were divided into three treatment groups: group 1 (n = 80) cats treated with surgery, group 2 (n = 34) cats that had surgery and adjuvant treatment with doxorubicin, and group 3 (n = 23) cats with surgery and adjuvant treatment with low dose metronomic cyclophosphamide and meloxicam. The study endpoints were disease free interval (DFI) and overall survival (OS). Toxicity was evaluated according to the VCOG-CTCAE criteria. The median DFI was 270, 226 and 372 days in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The median OS was 338 (group 1), 421 (group 2) and 430 (group 3) days. The differences between groups were not significant (DFI P = .280 and OS P = .186). Toxicity was observed in 52.9% (n = 18) of cats in group 2 and 39.1% (n = 9) of cats in group 3, with mild to moderate intensity. Differences were not significant (P = .306). In conclusion, adjuvant chemotherapy treatment did not improve survival and the overall benefit remains unproven. Randomized prospective trials are necessary to clarify the effectiveness of adjuvant chemotherapy treatment for feline mammary carcinomas.

Lymphoma is the most common haematological malignancy in dogs and its aetiology is largely unknown. The presence of canine vector-borne agents (CVBD) in lymphoma tissues has been described and its causative effects questioned. We intended to evaluate the presence and extent of Leishmania infantum, Ehrlichia canis, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Bartonella henselae infection in dogs with lymphoma. Sixty-one dogs, living in the Lisbon metropolitan area, with a diagnosis of lymphoma were enrolled. Immunofluorescence assays were used to detect serum IgG's. The presence of DNA from CVBD agents in tumour tissue was assessed by PCR. All dogs tested negative for B. henselae, A. phagocytophilum and E. canis by both serology and PCR. Regarding L. infantum, 8.2% (n = 5) of the dogs had a positive serologic result. L. infantum DNA was detected in two samples of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). These results show an increased, but not significant, seropositivity (8.2% vs 7.9%) and molecular detection (3.3% vs 1.2%) for L. infantum in dogs with lymphoma, when compared to the reported canine population in the same geographical area. We could not identify an association between lymphoma and E. canis, A. phagocytophilum, B. henselae or Leishmania infantum infection in the studied population. Nevertheless, further studies, following dogs trough their CVBD disease evolution, are worthwhile and may help clarify a possible role of CVBD agents in lymphomagenesis. Bayer Animal Health- Portugal info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Objectives Although feline mammary carcinomas (FMCs) are highly metastatic, the literature and treatment options pertaining to advanced tumours are scarce. This study aimed to investigate the clinical outcome of metastatic FMC with or without adjuvant treatment. Methods The medical records of 73 cats with metastatic FMC (stage IV) were reviewed and included in this study. Metastatic disease was detected by distinct imaging techniques (radiography, ultrasound and CT) and confirmed by cytology and/or histopathology. Cats with adjuvant chemotherapy treatment (n = 34) were divided into three groups: group 1 (n = 9) cats receiving maximum tolerated dose chemotherapy; group 2 (n = 15) cats receiving metronomic chemotherapy; and group 3 (n = 10) cats treated with toceranib phosphate. The study endpoints were time to progression (TTP) and tumour-specific survival (TSS). Treatment-related toxicity was evaluated according to the Veterinary Co-operative Oncology Group’s Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 1.1 (VCOG-CTCAE). Results Overall mean TTP and TSS were 23 and 44 days, respectively. Cats with clinical signs at the time of diagnosis had a lower TSS (14 days) than asymptomatic cats (128 days; P Conclusions and relevance To the best of our knowledge, this study includes the highest number of patients with metastatic FMC assessed. Despite the overall poor prognosis, some cats survived >6 months, indicating that adjuvant treatment may be an option to consider in metastatic disease. More studies are warranted for better understanding and management of stage IV patients.

Made available in DSpace on 2019-10-06T15:53:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2019-08-02 GPD Charitable Trust Leverhulme Trust The canine transmissible venereal tumor (CTVT) is a cancer lineage that arose several millennia ago and survives by “metastasizing” between hosts through cell transfer. The somatic mutations in this cancer record its phylogeography and evolutionary history. We constructed a time-resolved phylogeny from 546 CTVT exomes and describe the lineage's worldwide expansion. Examining variation in mutational exposure, we identify a highly context-specific mutational process that operated early in the cancer's evolution but subsequently vanished, correlate ultraviolet-light mutagenesis with tumor latitude, and describe tumors with heritable hyperactivity of an endogenous mutational process. CTVT displays little evidence of ongoing positive selection, and negative selection is detectable only in essential genes. We illustrate how long-lived clonal organisms capture changing mutagenic environments, and reveal that neutral genetic drift is the dominant feature of long-term cancer evolution. Transmissible Cancer Group Department of Veterinary Medicine University of Cambridge Animal Management in Rural and Remote Indigenous Communities (AMRRIC) World Vets Animal Shelter Stichting Dierenbescherming Suriname Sikkim Anti-Rabies and Animal Health Programme Department of Animal Husbandry Livestock Fisheries and Veterinary Services Government of Sikkim Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies Roslin Institute University of Edinburgh Easter Bush Campus ConserLab Animal Preventive Medicine Department Faculty of Animal and Veterinary Sciences University of Chile Corozal Veterinary Hospital University of Panamá St. George's University Nakuru District Veterinary Scheme Ltd Animal Medical Centre International Animal Welfare Training Institute UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Centro Universitário de Rio Preto (UNIRP) Department of Clinical and Veterinary Surgery São Paulo State University (UNESP) Ladybrand Animal Clinic Veterinary Clinic Sr. Dog's World Vets Latin America Veterinary Training Center National Veterinary Research Institute Animal Clinic Intermunicipal Stray Animals Care Centre (DIKEPAZ) Animal Protection Society of Samoa Faculty of Veterinary Science University of Zulia Veterinary Clinic BIOCONTROL Faculty of Veterinary Medicine School of Health Sciences University of Thessaly Veterinary Clinic El Roble Animal Healthcare Network Faculty of Animal and Veterinary Sciences University of Chile OnevetGroup Hospital Veterinário Berna Universidade Vila Velha Veterinary Clinic Zoovetservis École Inter-états des Sciences et Médecine Vétérinaires de Dakar Department of Small Animal Medicine Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Utrecht University Vetexpert Veterinary Group Veterinary Clinic Lopez Quintana Clinique Veterinaire de Grand Fond Saint Gilles les Bains Department of Veterinary Sciences University of Messina Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México School of Veterinary Medicine Universidad de las Américas Cancer Development and Innate Immune Evasion Lab Champalimaud Center for the Unknown Touray and Meyer Vet Clinic Hillside Animal Hospital Kampala Veterinary Surgery Asavet Veterinary Charities Vets Beyond Borders Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Autonomous University of Yucatan Laboratorio de Patología Veterinaria Universidad de Caldas Interdisciplinary Centre of Research in Animal Health (CIISA) Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Lisbon Four Paws International Help in Suffering Veterinary Clinic Dr José Rojas Department of Biotechnology Balochistan University of Information Technology Engineering and Management Sciences Corozal Veterinary Clinic Veterinary Clinic Vetmaster State Hospital of Veterinary Medicine Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Laboratory of Biomedicine and Regenerative Medicine Department of Clinical Sciences Faculty of Animal and Veterinary Sciences University of Chile Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences University of Melbourne Animal Anti Cruelty League Clinical Sciences Department Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Bucharest Department of Pathology Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Ankara University Faculty of Veterinary Sciences National University of Asuncion Lilongwe Society for Protection and Care of Animals (LSPCA) Wellcome Sanger Institute Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine University of California San Diego Department of Clinical and Veterinary Surgery São Paulo State University (UNESP) Leverhulme Trust: 102942/Z/13/A

The era of chemotherapy, which started in the middle of the last century, has been ruled by the routine use of dose-intense protocols, based on the "maximum-tolerated dose" concept. By promoting a balance between patient's quality of life and the goal of rapidly killing as many tumour cells as possible, these protocols still play a prominent role in veterinary oncology. However, with the opening of a new millennium, metronomic chemotherapy (MC) started to be considered a possible alternative to traditional dose-intense chemotherapy. Characterized by a long-term daily administration of lower doses of cytotoxic drugs, this new modality stands out for its unique combination of effects, namely on neovascularization, immune response and tumour dormancy. This article reviews the rationale for treatment with MC, its mechanism of action and the main studies conducted in veterinary medicine, and discusses the key challenges yet to be solved.

Diagnostic methods used in the initial and post-treatment evaluation of canine lymphoma are heterogeneous and can vary within countries and institutions. Accurate reporting of clinical stage and response assessment is crucial in determining the treatment efficacy and predicting prognosis. This study comprises a systematic review of all available canine multicentric lymphoma studies published over 15 years. Data concerning diagnosis, clinical stage evaluation and response assessment procedures were extracted and compared. Sixty-three studies met the eligibility criteria. Fifty-five (87.3%) studies were non-randomized prospective or retrospective studies. The survey results also expose variations in diagnostic criteria and treatment response assessment in canine multicentric lymphoma. Variations in staging procedures performed and recorded led to an unquantifiable heterogeneity among patients in and between studies, making it difficult to compare treatment efficacies. Awareness of this inconsistency of procedure and reporting may help in the design of future clinical trials.

Here we describe the establishment of a new canine mammary tumour (CMT) cell line, FR37-CMT that does not show dependence on female hormonal signaling to induce tumour xenografts in NOD-SCID mice. FR37-CMT cell line has a stellate or fusiform shape, displays the ability to reorganize the collagen matrix, expresses vimentin, CD44 and shows the loss of E-cadherin which is considered a fundamental event in epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). The up-regulation of ZEB1, the detection of phosphorylated ERK1/2 and the downregulation of DICER1 and miR-200c are also in accordance with the mesenchymal characteristics of FR37-CMT cell line. FR37-CMT shows a higher resistance to cisplatin (IC50 >50 µM) and to doxorubicin (IC50 >5.3 µM) compared with other CMT cell lines. These results support the use of FR37-CMT as a new CMT model that may assist the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying EMT, CMT drug resistance, fostering the development of novel therapies targeting CMT.

BACKGROUND: Zoonotic leishmaniosis, caused by the protozoan Leishmania infantum, is a public and animal health problem in Asia, Central and South America, the Middle East and the Mediterranean Basin. Several phlebotomine sand fly species from the subgenus Larroussius are vectors of L. infantum. Data from dogs living in endemic areas of leishmaniosis advocate the use of antibody response to phlebotomine sand fly saliva as an epidemiological biomarker for monitoring vector exposure. The aim of this study was to analyse the exposure of cats to phlebotomine sand flies using detection of IgG antibodies to Phlebotomus perniciosus saliva. The association between phlebotomine sand fly exposure and the presence of Leishmania infection was also investigated. RESULTS: IgG antibodies to P. perniciosus saliva were detected in 167 (47.7%) out of 350 cats; higher antibody levels were present in sera collected during the period of phlebotomine sand fly seasonal activity (OR = 19.44, 95% CI: 9.84-38.41). Cats of 12-35 months had higher antibody levels than younger ones (OR = 3.56, 95% CI: 1.39-9.16); this difference was also significant with older cats (for 36-95 months-old, OR = 9.43, 95% CI: 3.62-24.48; for older than 95 months, OR = 9.68, 95% CI: 3.92-23.91). Leishmania spp. DNA was detected in the blood of 24 (6.9%) cats, while antibodies to L. infantum were detected in three (0.9%). Only one cat was positive to Leishmania by both techniques. Cats presenting IgG antibodies to P. perniciosus had a significantly higher risk of being positive for Leishmania infection. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating anti-sand fly saliva antibodies in cats. The evaluation of the contact of this animal species with the vector is important to the development of prophylactic measures directed to cats, with the aim of reducing the prevalence of infection in an endemic area. Therefore, studies evaluating whether the use of imidacloprid/flumethrin collars reduces the frequency of P. perniciosus bites in cats are needed. It is also important to evaluate if there is a correlation between the number of phlebotomine sand fly bites and IgG antibody levels. publishersversion published

We aim to evaluate two different econometric screens for identifying anti-competitive behavior in the fuel retail market: (i) The Markov-Switching GARCH (MS-GARCH) Models; (ii) The Local Gaussian Correlation (LGC) approach. Using the gasoline cartel judged and condemned in Brasilia as a benchmark, our results indicate that the LGC model, based on the correlation of the resale price margin and price variability, may provide a biased likelihood as well as an incorrect identification of cartel behavior over time. The MSGARCH model, based only on the log deviation of the average gasoline sales price, showed better accuracy in cartel detection.

A previously unpublished, modernized transcript of the manuscript História do descobrimento da cochonilha no Brasil (History of the discovery of the cochineal in Brazil), edited by the physician and chemist Manuel Joaquim Henriques de Paiva between 1774 and 1801, is presented. By bringing out this reviewed, annotated version of the pioneering study by his brother, the physician José Henriques Ferreira, Paiva wanted to encourage the culture and trade of the cochineal, an insect that produced a red dye that was in great demand in Europe. História... thus provides indications of the key role of so-called scientific knowledge in the development and growth of the Portuguese kingdom and their primary colony.O documento que o leitor encontrará a seguir é a transcrição inédita e modernizada do manuscrito História do descobrimento da cochonilha no Brasil, editado pelo médico e químico Manuel Joaquim Henriques de Paiva entre os anos de 1774 e 1801. O propósito de Paiva, com essa versão revista e anotada do estudo pioneiro de seu irmão, o médico José Henriques Ferreira, era estimular a cultura e o comércio da cochonilha, um inseto produtor de corante avermelhado muito requisitado na Europa. A História..., portanto, fornece indícios do papel capital dos saberes ditos científicos para o fomento e engrandecimento do Reino português e de sua principal colônia.

Haemangiosarcoma (HSA) has an aggressive biological behaviour and carries a poor prognosis, with less than 10% of treated dogs surviving longer than 1 year. In this retrospective study a varied metronomic chemotherapy (MC) regimen preceded by adjuvant doxorubicin-based maximum-tolerated dose chemotherapy (MTDC) was compared with MTDC, in terms of efficacy [time to metastasis, (TTM) and survival time (ST)] and safety in dogs with biologically aggressive HSA. Dogs were eligible if they had no metastasis after MTDC and received either no further chemotherapy or MC maintenance. Twelve dogs received MTDC, and 10 received MC thereafter. Median TTM and ST were significantly longer for dogs receiving MTDC-MC (not reached versus 150 days, P = 0.028; and not reached versus 168 days, P = 0.030, respectively). Treatment was well tolerated. MTDC followed by MC is safe and suggests improved TTM and ST in dogs with surgically removed, biologically aggressive HSA that are treated in the microscopic setting.

Lymph node (LN) metastasis in canine cutaneous mast cell tumours (cMCTs) is a well-known negative prognostic factor. The role of lymphadenectomy in the treatment of stage II disease remains controversial because of its uncertain therapeutic benefit. Aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the impact of lymphadenectomy on tumour control and survival for dogs with stage II cMCTs. Dogs with firstly occurring, histologically confirmed cMCT with LN metastasis undergoing resection of the primary tumour and medical treatment thereafter were retrospectively enrolled. Dogs were classified into two groups: LN sampling (LNS; diagnosis of metastasis obtained by cytology) and regional LN dissection (LND; diagnosis obtained by histopathology). To determine the therapeutic value of lymphadenectomy, the characteristics of recurrence (local, nodal and distant) and survival were compared between groups. Evaluated outcome variables included signalment, anatomic location, diameter, ulceration, substage, surgical margins, Patnaik grading, Kiupel grading and medical treatment. Overall, 152 dogs were included: 81 underwent LND as part of primary surgery and 71 LNS. The median follow-up time was 409 days for LND group and 620 days for LNS group. On univariable analysis, the risk of developing local, nodal or distant relapse was significantly higher in the LNS group compared with LND (P < 0.001). On multivariable analysis, the risk of tumour progression and tumour-related death were 5.47 and 3.61 times higher in the LNS group, respectively (P < 0.001). Regional lymphadenectomy may have therapeutic value and improve prognosis in dogs with stage II cMCTs undergoing surgical removal of the primary tumour and medical treatment.

This satellite meeting to the 12th International Conference on Malignant Lymphoma was conceived to bring together European researchers focused on canine lymphoma to explore several facets of this promising model of human disease. A series of invited lectures showed striking similarities between the two diseases namely in topics related to pathogenesis, diagnosis and classification and therapy. In particular, the potential value of the model was shown at the level of the NF-kB/p65 pathway, the Bcl-2 family of proteins, Ki67 and the S-phase fraction, as well as the MMPs, VEGF and PDGF. The utility of the growing body of well-characterized canine cell lines was stressed. The value of cytology and flow cytometry as tools for diagnosis, disease progression monitoring and prognosis were emphasized, whereas the failure so far of the standard immunohistochemical panel to differentiate between germinal centre and non-germinal centre diffuse large B-cell lymphomas subtypes in dogs was discussed. Further contributions included the report of encouraging results from a chemo-immunotherapy trial administered to dogs with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, an overview on the use of radiation therapy for canine lymphoma and the role of surgery in splenic lymphoma. Altogether, the success of this meeting, attended by more than 160 participants, documents the rising interest for the spontaneous canine lymphoma model. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Summary Wind direction plays an important role in the spread of air pollutants over a geographical region. We discuss how to include wind directional information in the covariance function of spatial models. Our models are based on a constructive convolution approach, wherein a spatial process is described as a convolution between a spatially varying smoothing kernel and a white noise process. We describe two different ways of accounting for wind direction: one makes use of a non-stationary version of the Matérn covariance function and the other a kernel function that resembles the exponential correlation function. We fit the models proposed to ground level ozone observed at a monitoring network in north-eastern USA. We compare our wind-based covariance models with three other models: two that make use of standard covariance functions, and one whose kernel function varies across space according to latent spatial processes. The inference procedure is performed under the Bayesian paradigm, and uncertainty about parameter estimation is naturally accounted for when performing spatial interpolation. Samples from the posterior distribution under our proposed models are obtained much faster when compared with the model based on latent spatial processes. Although fitted values that are obtained under our proposed models and those obtained based on latent processes are quite similar, our models provided smaller ranges of the predictive posterior credible intervals.

Staphylococcus aureus son algunos de los microorganismos más representativos de la contaminación del queso, es responsable de intoxicaciones alimentarias por la producción de enterotoxinas. La mala manipulación y la falta de conocimiento de las medidas higiénico-sanitarias por parte de los productores, comerciantes y consumidores son factores que influyen directamente en la colonización del queso artesanal por esta bacteria. La realización de este estudio permitirá conocer si las cepas aisladas en los quesos expendidos en el mercado Roberto Huembés son productoras de enterotoxinas y/o portadoras del gen mecA. Se desconocen en la actualidad la situación epidemiológica de los serotipos de enterotoxinas circulantes en el país y la propagación de cepas portadoras del gen mecA a través de este tipo de productos. Por tal razón se realizó un estudio descriptivo de corte transversal con el fin de detectar el gen universal codificador de enterotoxinas (Sea, Seb, Sec, Sed, See, Seg, Seh, Sei, Sej) y gen de resistencia mecA en Staphylococcus aureus aislados en quesos artesanales expendidos en el mercado Roberto Huembés Managua Nicaragua en el periodo de septiembre-Diciembre del 2016. El universo estuvo constituido por 8 puestos registrados por COMMEMA (Corporación de Mercados Municipales de Managua) del mercado Roberto Huembés donde cada tramo representara un sitio de muestreo. Se analizaron un total de 40 muestras entre quesos frescos (20) y blandos (20) artesanales expendidos en el mercado Roberto huembés, de los cuales se comprobó que el 67.5% estaban colonizados por Staphylococcus aureus. El 95% (19/20) de los quesos frescos y el 40% (8/20) de los blandos respectivamente. No se detectó ninguna cepa de Staphylococcus aureus portadora del gen universal codificador de enterotoxina ni del gen mecA en las muestras de queso artesanal analizadas.

Canine transmissible venereal tumour (CTVT) is a clonally transmissible cancer that originated approximately 11,000 years ago and affects dogs worldwide. Despite the clonal origin of the CTVT nuclear genome, CTVT mitochondrial genomes (mtDNAs) have been acquired by periodic capture from transient hosts. We sequenced 449 complete mtDNAs from a global population of CTVTs, and show that mtDNA horizontal transfer has occurred at least five times, delineating five tumour clades whose distributions track two millennia of dog global migration. Negative selection has operated to prevent accumulation of deleterious mutations in captured mtDNA, and recombination has caused occasional mtDNA re-assortment. These findings implicate functional mtDNA as a driver of CTVT global metastatic spread, further highlighting the important role of mtDNA in cancer evolution. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.14552.001, eLife digest A unique cancer called canine transmissible venereal tumour (CTVT) causes ugly tumours to form on the genitals of dogs. Unlike most other cancers, CTVT is contagious: the cancer cells can be directly transferred from one dog to another when they mate. The disease originated from the cancer cells of one individual dog that lived approximately 11,000 years ago. CTVT now affects dogs all over the world, which makes it the oldest and most widespread cancer known in nature. Like healthy cells, cancer cells contain compartments known as mitochondria that produce the chemical energy needed to power vital processes. Inside the mitochondria, there is some DNA that encodes the proteins that mitochondria need to perform this role. Changes (or mutations) to this mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) may stop the mitochondria from working properly. CTVT cells have previously been found to occasionally capture mtDNA from normal dog cells, which suggests that replenishing their mtDNA may help promote CTVT cell growth. Furthermore, these captured mtDNAs act as genetic "flags" that can help trace the spread of the disease. Here, Strakova, Ní Leathlobhair et al. analysed the mtDNA in CTVT tumours collected from over 400 dogs in 39 countries. The analysis shows that CTVT cells have captured mtDNA from normal dog cells on at least five occasions. Over the last 2,000 years, the disease appears to have spread rapidly around the world, perhaps transported by dogs travelling on ships along historic trade routes. CTVT may have only reached the Americas within the last 500 years, possibly carried there by dogs brought by Europeans. Likewise, CTVT probably only came to Australia after European contact. The experiments also revealed that the most damaging types of mutations were absent from the mtDNA of CTVT, which suggests that fully functioning mitochondria play an important role in CTVT. Unexpectedly, Strakova, Ní Leathlobhair et al. found evidence that certain sections of mtDNA in some CTVT cells have been exchanged, or shuffled, with the mtDNA captured from normal dog cells. This type of “recombination” is not usually thought to occur in mtDNA, and has not previously been detected in cancer. Future studies will determine if this process is widespread in other types of cancer, including in humans. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.14552.002

Lymphoma is the most common haematopoietic malignancy in dogs but little is known about the aetiology of this heterogeneous group of cancers. In humans, the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with several lymphoma subtypes. Recently, it has been suggested that EBV or an EBV-like virus is circulating in dogs. We therefore investigated whether EBV, or a novel herpesvirus, is associated with canine lymphoma using both serological and molecular techniques. In an assay designed to detect antibodies to EBV viral capsid antigens, 41% of dogs were positive. Dogs with cancers, including lymphoma, were more frequently positive than controls, but no particular association with B-cell lymphoma was noted. EBV-specific RNA and DNA sequences were not detected in lymphoma tissue by in situ hybridisation or PCR and herpesvirus genomes were not detected using multiple degenerate PCR assays with the ability to detect novel herpesviruses. We therefore found no evidence that herpesviruses are directly involved in common types of canine lymphoma although cannot exclude the presence of an EBV-like virus in the canine population.

In man, the combination of cancer and its treatment increases patients’ susceptibility to opportunistic infections, due to immune system impairment. In veterinary medicine little information is available concerning this issue. In order to evaluate if a similar dysfunction is induced in small animals undergoing chemotherapy, we assessed the complete blood count, leukocytic, plasma and fecal canine parvovirus (CPV) viral load, and anti-CPV protective antibody titers, in dogs with lymphoma treated with CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisolone) protocol, before and during chemotherapy. There was no evidence of decreased immune response, either at admission or after two chemotherapy cycles, indicating that the previously established immunity against CPV was not significantly impaired, supporting the idea that immunosuppression as a result of hematopoietic neoplasms and their treatment in dogs requires further investigation and conclusions cannot be extrapolated from human literature.

A 10-year-old male German shepherd dog was referred for evaluation of a cranial cervical mass causing progressively worsening respiratory distress. A fine-needle aspirate of the mass was obtained and the cytology results were compatible with a carcinoma. The dog underwent chemotherapy without clinical improvement and was ultimately euthanased because of clinical deterioration. At post-mortem examination, an irregular multi-lobated mass in the cranial cervical region was observed causing ventro-lateral tracheal deviation. Histopathology and immunohistochemistry revealed a mixed population of CD3 lymphocytes and macrophages in an exuberant fibrous stroma, associated with dispersed cytokeratin-positive epithelial cells with marked eosinophilic cytoplasm. Some of the epithelial cells were arranged in concentric clusters that were interpreted as Hassall's corpuscles. Histopathological examination of the thyroid gland revealed several neoplastic emboli composed of epithelial cells similar to those observed in the cervical mass. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of an ectopic cervical thymic carcinoma in a dog.

Wound healing is a complex process involving an integrated response by many different cell types and growth factors in order to achieve rapid restoration of skin architecture and function. The present study evaluated the applicability of a chitosan hydrogel (CH) as a wound dressing. Scanning electron microscopy analysis was used to characterize CH morphology. Fibroblast cells isolated from rat skin were used to assess the cytotoxicity of the hydrogel. CH was able to promote cell adhesion and proliferation. Cell viability studies showed that the hydrogel and its degradation by-products are noncytotoxic. The evaluation of the applicability of CH in the treatment of dermal burns in Wistar rats was performed by induction of full-thickness transcutaneous dermal wounds. Wound healing was monitored through macroscopic and histological analysis. From macroscopic analysis, the wound beds of the animals treated with CH were considerably smaller than those of the controls. Histological analysis revealed lack of a reactive or a granulomatous inflammatory reaction in skin lesions with CH and the absence of pathological abnormalities in the organs obtained by necropsy, which supported the local and systemic histocompatibility of the biomaterial. The present results suggest that this biomaterial may aid the re-establishment of skin architecture.

Structure, presentation and content are the 3 main blocks in web pages. Although HTML is the main technology for web pages development, it doesn’t provide mechanisms for a clear separation of these 3 blocks, which would be a great step towards the construction of flexible web pages. If one could define on the fly, which structure, presentation and content to use, web pages would reach their maximum flexibility. With this flexibility, each web page could reach specific goals in terms of users needs, namely, user disabilities (visual, hearing, motor, cognitive), user learning profile, etc. Here, it is presented a methodology to achieve the above mentioned goals.

MARIA LUISA LOBO, ANA TELES, MARGARIDA BARAO DA CUNHA, JOAQUIM HENRIQUES, ANA MAFALDA LOURENCO, FRANCISCO ANTUNES and OLGA MATOS Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical/Unidade de Protozoarios Oportunistas/VIH e outras Protozooses/UPMM, Rua da Junqueira, 96 1349-008 Lisboa, Portugal, and Jardim Zoologico de Lisboa, and Instituto Medico Veterinario–Alameda D. Afonso Henriques, and Clinica Veterinaria Sao Macario–Lazarim, and Clinica Universitaria de Doencas Infecciosas, Faculdade de Medicina, Hospital de Santa Maria, Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal

Bibliotheca das Fábricas publicada pela Associação Promotora da Indústria Fabril info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Learners are becoming increasingly divers. They may have much personal, social, cultural, psychological, and cognitive diversity. Forming suitable learning groups represents, therefore, a hard and time-consuming task. In Mobile Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (MCSCL) environments, this task is more difficult. Instructors need to consider many more issues, such as the rapid change of mobile learners' context, their direct and naturel interaction, and the characteristics of mobile devices and networks. This paper presents a systematic literature review (SLR) that examines the relevant solutions for the problem of group formation in MCSCL environments. In the context of this SLR, an initial list of 178 papers was reviewed. After careful analysis of each paper using specific selection criteria and a quality assessment method, a final list of 12 relevant studies was filtered and used to answer the research questions. The findings revealed that: (a) there is a lack of approaches addressing the group formation problem in MCSCL environments; (b) the most proposed solutions do not allow instructors to customize the grouping process; (c) there is no useful solutions to automatically capture and evaluate many of learners' behaviours and context information; (d) the majority of approaches do not support a dynamic formation of learning groups; (e) the majority of approaches do not provide descriptions about the implemented grouping algorithms nor about the evaluation methods. Extracted and synthesized data from the selected studies is discussed in this paper, together with current research gaps and recommendations for further works.

Purpose In this work, an alumina scaffold was produced through a new method to be used in a near future as a bone substitute. Methods In vitro and in vivo studies were performed in order to characterize the mechanical and biological properties of the scaffold. Results The results obtained showed that this scaffold has high mechanical resistance and a porous surface that allows human osteoblast cells to adhere and proliferate. The in vivo studies revealed no systemic reaction. Conclusions The alumina scaffold produced herein has the mechanical and biological properties that are compatible with its application in bone therapy.