The Royal Veterinary College (informally the RVC) is a veterinary school located in London and a member institution of the federal University of London. The RVC was founded in 1791 and joined the University of London in 1949. It is the oldest and largest Veterinary school in the United Kingdom, and one of only nine in the country where students can study to become a vet.
Livestock farmers in the United Kingdom must balance productivity and economic viability with numerous sustainability goals, particularly those related to achieving net zero and nature restoration. Resultantly, interest is growing among stakeholders in organic and regenerative agriculture as potential routes to a sustainable food future. To explore the sustainability of these systems, a systematic literature review, following the PRISMA protocol, was conducted comparing the management practices used on organic and regenerative cattle and sheep farms in the UK. The relationship between farming system and management practices on outcomes for animal health, animal welfare, productivity, finances and biodiversity were compared to conventional. A total of 45 papers were included, revealing a gap in research on regenerative ruminant systems (2 documents), compared with organic systems (43 documents). Research on organic farming demonstrates that, compared to conventional farming, financial performance is improved, productivity is decreased, and no difference is frequently observed on animal health and welfare, and biodiversity. In contrast, empirical research on regenerative livestock farms only assessed earthworm abundance, as a soil health indicator, indicating the need for studies examining a broader range of outcomes. Comparisons were not possible between farm types due to heterogeneous study designs, highlighting the need for standardised methodologies to produce comparable evidence on sustainable farming practices. Methods used in organic research may be valuable for the design of studies evaluating regenerative livestock systems. Key management practices undertaken on livestock farms included rotational grazing, use of multi-species pastures, crop-livestock integration and improving biodiversity via practices like hedgerow maintenance.
The past decade has witnessed the performance of well-designed studies that enable diagnosing canine chronic inflammatory enteropathy and trials that assess treatment options. In these guidelines, we evaluate diagnostic approaches including endoscopy, biopsy, and histopathology, disease classification, and biomarkers used in the management of this condition. Dietary treatment options were assessed, along with the additional impact of several treatments used in conjunction with first-line dietary management.
Predicting lung cancer risk would enhance prevention trials. Although the Canakinumab Anti-inflammatory Thrombosis Outcome Study (CANTOS) trial demonstrated reduced lung cancer incidence with interleukin (IL)-1β inhibition, the high number needed to treat (NNT) to prevent lung cancer limits its use in unselected populations. Using machine learning, we identified a 14-protein plasma signature predicting lung cancer more than 5 years before diagnosis. The signature, validated across eight cohorts, was elevated in current smokers and individuals exposed to particulate matter (PM) and linked to lung myeloid and alveolar cells. In epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-driven lung adenocarcinoma, diverse epithelial lineages converged on a keratin8+/claudin4+ alveolar transitional state (KAC), whose transcriptional programs correlated with signature emergence. Components of the signature were induced by PM, oncogenic EGFR, or IL-1β, whereas IL-1β inhibition restrained PM-driven KAC expansion and early tumorigenesis. In CANTOS, the signature identified individuals who seemed to benefit more from anti-IL-1β therapy, lowering the NNT threshold and nominating circulating signals of tumor promotion for prevention.
Bone is a dynamic tissue that is maintained through the co-ordination of bone resorption and bone formation. An imbalance of these processes can lead to bone disease. In vitro studies of osteoblasts can help to understand bone formation, but primary cells have a limited lifespan in culture. Herein, we report the successful generation of equine immortalized osteoblasts through the stable overexpression of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) and Simian virus 40 (SV40) large T-antigen in osteoblasts isolated from trabecular bone taken from the third metacarpal of a two-year-old Thoroughbred horse. Primary osteoblasts displayed limited proliferation in culture, a decrease in the expression of osteogenic-associated genes and alkaline phosphatase activity with increasing passage and a failure to survive and produce a mineralised matrix after 21 days of osteogenic culture at high passage. In contrast, immortalized equine osteoblasts could be expanded for over 50 passages while retaining osteogenic gene expression, high alkaline phosphatase activity, a normal karyotype and the ability to produce a mineralised matrix after osteogenic culture. The immortalized equine osteoblasts therefore constitute a useful in vitro model to study equine bone formation.
BACKGROUND:Limited information is available on the long-term prognostic outcome of chronic inflammatory enteropathy (CIE) in dogs with serum albumin concentrations ≥20 g/L. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES:Assess prognostic factors for dogs with CIE without moderate to severe hypoalbuminemia. ANIMALS:Seventy-eight client-owned dogs with CIE. METHODS:Retrospective study of CIE cases with concurrent duodenal and colonic endoscopic biopsy specimens reviewed by a board-certified veterinary pathologist. Outcome data was collected via an electronic questionnaire distributed to referring veterinary practices. Univariable binary logistic regression assessed associations between clinicopathologic variables and gastrointestinal (GI)-related death. RESULTS:Food-responsive enteropathy (FRE, 48.3%) was the most common CIE treatment subtype, followed by immunosuppressive-responsive enteropathy (IRE, 30%) and non-responsive enteropathy (NRE, 21.7%). Food-responsive enteropathy carried the best outcome (0 GI-related deaths; IRE, 4 GI-related deaths; NRE, 9 GI-related deaths), highest remission rate (89.7%; IRE, 44.4%) and longest median follow-up time (1258 days; IRE, 572 days; NRE, 260 days). Age (odds ratio [OR], 1.015; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1-1.030), weight loss (OR, 5.37; 95% CI, 1.301-22.172), hypocobalaminemia (OR, 6.286; 95% CI, 1.45-27.250), alanine aminotransferase activity (OR, 4.317; 95% CI, 1.182-15.760), duodenal histopathological composite score (OR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.043-1.545), duodenal lacteal dilatation (OR, 6.647; 95% CI, 2.052-20.389), duodenal crypt dilatation (OR, 3.036; 95% CI, 1.185-7.77), and intraepithelial lymphocytes (OR, 2.602; 95% CI, 1.023-6.26) were significantly positively associated with GI-related death, with vomiting being protective (OR, 0.189; 95% CI, 0.05-0.715). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE:Histopathologic variables were associated with outcome in non- to mildly hypoalbuminemic dogs with CIE, indicating their potential as prognostic markers, as well as possible roles in guiding treatment and monitoring disease.
