Circulating miRNome of Trachemys scripta after elective gonadectomy under general anesthesia.

Post-surgical management is an important issue in veterinary medicine, requiring biomarkers with high sensitivity and specificity for timely and effective treatment. Emerging evidence suggests that miRNAs are promising stress- and pain-related markers. The aims were to profile the circulating miRNA signature in plasma of turtles (Trachemys scripta) and point out potential candidate biomarkers to assess the status of the animal. The plasma of female turtles underwent surgical gonadectomy were collected 24 h pre-surgery, and 2.5 h and 36 h post-surgery. The expression of miRNAs was profiled by Next Generation Sequencing and the dysregulated miRNAs were validated using RT-qPCR. The diagnostic value of miRNAs was calculated by ROC curves. The results showed that 14 miRNAs were differentially expressed over time. RT-qPCR validation highlighted that 2-miR-499-3p and miR-203-5p-out of 8 miRNAs tested were effectively modulated. The Area Under the Curve (AUC) of miR-203-5p was fair (AUC 0.7934) in discriminating pre- and 36 h post-surgery samples and poor for other time points; the AUC of miR-499-3p was excellent (AUC 0.944) in discriminating pre-surgery and 2.5 h post-surgery samples, and fair in discriminating pre-surgery and 36 h post-surgery (AUC 0.7292) and 2.5 h and 36 h post-surgery (AUC 0.7569) samples. In conclusion, we demonstrated for the first time that miRNAs profile changes in plasma of turtles underwent surgical oophorectomy and identified miR-203-5p and miR-499-3p as potential candidate biomarkers to assess animals' status. Further studies are necessary to confirm their diagnostic value and to investigate functional and mechanistic networks to improve our understanding of the biological processes.

Determination of Efficacy of Single and Double 4.7 mg Deslorelin Acetate Implant on the Reproductive Activity of Female Pond Sliders (Trachemys scripta).

The use of long-acting gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists to suppress fertility has been poorly investigated in reptiles, and the few available studies show inconsistent results. The efficacy of single and double intramuscular 4.7 mg deslorelin acetate implants in captive pond sliders (Trachemys scripta) was investigated, with 20 animals divided into three groups: a single-implant group (6 animals), a double-implant group (6 animals), and a control group (no implant). During one reproductive season (March to October), plasmatic concentration of sexual hormones (estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone) and ovarian morphometric activity via computed tomography were monitored about every 30 days. A significative decrease in the number of phase II ovarian follicles was detected in the double-implant group compared with the control group, but no significant difference was noted in the number of phase III and phase IV follicles, egg production, and plasmatic concentration of sexual hormones. Results show that neither a single nor a double deslorelin acetate implant can successfully inhibit reproduction in female pond sliders during the ongoing season, but the lower number of phase II follicles in the double-implant group can possibly be associated with reduced fertility in the following seasons.

Two-dimensional and doppler echocardiographic evaluation in twenty-one healthy Python regius.

Echocardiographic evaluation is a diagnostic tool for the in vivo diagnosis of heart diseases. Specific and unique anatomical characteristics of the ophidian heart such as the single ventricular cavity, a tubular sinus venosus opening into the right atrium, the presence of three arterial trunks and extreme mobility in the coelomic cavity during the cardiac cycle directly affect echocardiographic examination. Twenty-one awake, healthy ball pythons (Python regius) were analysed based on guidelines for performing echocardiographic examinations. Imaging in the sagittal plane demonstrated the caudal vena cava, sinus venosus valve (SVV) and right atrium and the various portions of the ventricle, horizontal septum, left aortic arch and pulmonary artery. Transverse imaging depicted the spatial relationship of the left and right aortic arches, the pulmonary artery and the horizontal septum. Basic knowledge of cardiac blood flow in reptiles is necessary to understand the echocardiographic anatomy. The flow of the arterial trunks and SVV was analysed using pulsed-wave Doppler based on the approach used for humans and companion mammals. The walls and diameters of the cavum arteriosum, cavum venosum and cavum pulmonale were also evaluated. This study should improve the veterinarian's knowledge of ophidian heart basal physiology and contribute to the development of cardiology in reptiles.

Comparison of Lateral and Dorsal Recumbency during Endoscope-Assisted Oophorectomy in Mature Pond Sliders (Trachemys scripta).

Ovariectomy via the prefemoral fossa is a well-described technique for sterilization in chelonians. The choice between lateral and dorsal recumbency is generally left to the surgeon's preference, with no data supporting an objective superiority of one over the other. Twenty-four sexually mature female pond sliders (Trachemys scripta) were enrolled for elective prefemoral endoscope-assisted oophorectomy, and were randomly divided in two groups: 12 animals were placed in right lateral recumbency with a left fossa approach (Group A), and 12 in dorsal recumbency with a right fossa approach (Group B). Scoring systems were applied to assess the ease of access to the coelomic cavity, and the ease of identification of the ovary opposite to the surgical incision. A negative correlation was found between the body weight of the animals and the ease of access to the coelom (p = 0.013), making the access easier in smaller animals. No significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of ease of access to the coelomic cavity, first ovary removal time, ease of identification of the second ovary, second ovary removal time, or total surgery time.