Use of quantitative real-time PCR to determine the local inflammatory response in the intestinal mucosa and muscularis of horses undergoing small intestinal resection.

BACKGROUND: Studies in rodents and humans have demonstrated that intestinal manipulation or surgical trauma initiates an inflammatory response in the intestine which results in leucocyte recruitment to the muscularis externa causing smooth muscle dysfunction. OBJECTIVES: To examine the intestinal inflammatory response in horses undergoing colic surgery by measuring relative differential gene expression in intestinal tissues harvested from surgical colic cases and control horses. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective case-control study. METHODS: Mucosa and muscularis externa were harvested from healthy margins of resected small intestine from horses undergoing colic surgery (n = 12) and from intestine derived from control horses euthanised for reasons unrelated to the gastrointestinal tract (n = 6). Tissue was analysed for genes encoding proteins involved in the inflammatory response: interleukin (IL) 6 and IL1ß, C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), tumour necrosis factor (TNF), prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO1). Relative expression of these genes was compared between the two groups. Further analysis was applied to the colic cases to determine whether the magnitude of relative gene expression was associated with the subsequent development of post-operative reflux (POR). RESULTS: Samples obtained from colic cases had increased relative expression of IL1ß, IL6, CCL2 and TNF in the mucosa and muscularis externa when compared with the control group. There was no difference in relative gene expression between proximal and distal resection margins and no association between duration of colic, age, resection length, short-term survival and the presence of pre-operative reflux and the relative expression of the genes of interest. Horses that developed POR had significantly greater relative gene expression of TNF in the mucosa compared with horses that did not develop POR. MAIN LIMITATIONS: Small sample size per group and variation within the colic cases. CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary data support an upregulation of inflammatory genes in the intestine of horses undergoing colic surgery.

Immunohistochemical study of morphology and distribution of CD163+ve macrophages in the normal adult equine gastrointestinal tract.

Intestinal macrophages are the largest group of mononuclear phagocytes in the body and play a role in intestinal innate immunity, neuroimmune interactions and maintaining intestinal homeostasis. Conversely, they also are implicated in numerous pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, such as postoperative ileus and inflammatory bowel disease. As a result, macrophages could be potential therapeutic targets. To date, there are limited studies on the morphology and distribution of macrophages in the equine gastrointestinal tract (GIT). The aim of this study was to identify the location and abundance of resident macrophages in the equine GIT using CD163 as an immunohistochemical marker. Tissue samples were obtained post-mortem from 14 sites along the gastrointestinal tracts of 10 horses free from gastrointestinal disease; sample sites extended from the stomach to the small colon. CD163+ve cells were present in all regions of the equine GIT from stomach to small colon. CD163+ve cells were also identified in all tissue layers of the intestinal wall, namely, mucosa, submucosa, muscularis externa (ME), myenteric plexus and serosa. Consistent with a proposed function in regulation of intestinal motility, CD163+ve cells were regularly distributed within the ME, with accumulations closely associated with the myenteric plexus and effector cells such as neurons and the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC).

Success at Veterinary School: Evaluating the Influence of Intake Variables on Year-1 Examination Performance.

A major challenge in admissions to veterinary medical degrees is to select those students most suitable for clinical training programs and careers from a large pool of applicants with very high academic ability. Predicting the success of students in a veterinary course is challenging, and relatively few objective studies have been undertaken to identify factors that facilitate progression through this educational experience. Prior educational attainment is considered by some to be a good predictor of success at undergraduate level. The aims of this study were to analyze intake data such as educational history and demographic factors of students entering the University of Edinburgh and to investigate possible relationships between these data and academic performance in the first year at veterinary school. Data were collated for three veterinary intakes, including school qualification, subjects, grades, grade point average (GPA), degree classification, domicile, gender, and age. Performance was measured by marks achieved in first-year veterinary degree examinations. Relationships between marks and the influence of intake variables were statistically analyzed via ANOVA. For school-leaving entrants, the presence of straight A grades in school was linked to better exam performance. Students with an A grade in Chemistry or Biology performed better; A grades in Mathematics and Physics did not show such a consistent linkage with performance. Higher GPA was associated with better performance in first year for students in a graduate entry program. This study shows prior educational attainment does appear to be linked with subsequent performance in the first year at veterinary school.

Getting Started with Peer-Assisted Learning in a Veterinary Curriculum.

Peer-Assisted Learning (PAL) methodologies that involve students teaching other students have been shown to be valid and effective in a variety of disciplines and are gaining increasing interest within veterinary medical education. PAL has been formally embedded within the undergraduate veterinary clinical skills curriculum at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies (R(D)SVS), Edinburgh, since 2009 (and informally for several years before this) and has been delivered successfully to over one thousand first-year tutees by over one thousand fourth-year tutors (in their penultimate clinical year). This "teaching tip" article therefore aims to provide an informative overview of PAL for colleagues who may be interested in the methodology and to give practical tips as to how it can be successfully implemented in a veterinary degree program. We will summarize key evidence from the literature, provide a detailed example of how PAL has been implemented and optimized in our own veterinary degree program, include a subset of representative evaluation data from both tutors and tutees, and then conclude by providing colleagues with practical tips and resources (such as planning checklists and lesson plan templates) for implementing a PAL activity at their own school.

The transition into veterinary practice: opinions of recent graduates and final year students.

BACKGROUND: The transition from veterinary student to member of the veterinary profession is known to be challenging. This study aimed to determine and compare the opinions of final year veterinary students and recent graduates on graduate attributes that ease this transition. METHODS: The study was carried out across 3 veterinary schools in the United Kingdom. Paper based or electronic surveys were used. Final year students in the 3 schools were surveyed either electronically (school A) or on paper (schools B and C). Student cohort sizes were 112, 227 and 102 respectively. Recent graduates were contacted either at a reunion event (school A) or electronically from database records (school B and school C). Cohort sizes of contacted graduates were 80, 175 and 91 respectively. Respondents were asked to rate 42 individual attributes on a 5 point Likert scale. Focus groups with final year students and recent graduates and telephone interviews with recent graduates were carried out. Data were analysed by two researchers through a combination of manual coding and thematic analysis. Data were grouped into broad themes then sorted into narrower themes. Data were then searched for counter examples. RESULTS: Response rates for final year students were 34% (school A), 36% (school B) and 40% (school C). Response rates for recent graduates were 56% (school A), 20% (school B) and 11% (school C). There was a high level of agreement between the cohorts with respect to communication skills, problem solving and decision making skills, recognition of own limitations and the ability to cope with pressure all rated unanimously important or very important. Business acumen, knowledge of veterinary practice management and research skills were the 3 attributes ranked at the bottom of the list. Nine attributes were identified with a significantly different (p < 0.05) ranking between the cohorts. Final year students ranked veterinary clinical knowledge, knowledge of veterinary public health and zoonotic issues, veterinary legislation and veterinary practice management, commitment to continuing professional development and ability to evaluate information higher than recent graduates. Recent graduates ranked the attributes of integrity, friendliness and compassion higher than final year students. CONCLUSIONS: Recent graduates and final year students rate highly the attributes which help foster the client/veterinarian relationship. Recent graduates reflect that a focus on knowledge based attributes is less important once in practice when compared to final year. The study confirms the importance to recent graduates and final year students of attributes considered as non-technical in the transition to working in the veterinary profession.

Comparative analysis of c-kit gene expression and c-Kit immunoreactivity in horses with and without obstructive intestinal disease.

Previous immunohistochemical studies targeting the receptor tyrosine kinase (c-Kit) have demonstrated an apparent reduction in the number of gastrointestinal pacemaker cells--the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC)--in horses with intestinal motility disorders. This study compared the level of transcription of the c-kit gene encoding this receptor in horses with and without such motility disorders. Transcription levels of this gene were also compared to the density of ICC immunohistochemically positive for the c-Kit antigen. Intestinal samples were collected from 18 horses with intestinal disease and from 15 control animals. Following gene extraction and identification, real-time quantitative analysis of c-kit and a control gene, ACTB (ß-actin), was carried out on all samples and the density of the c-Kit-positive ICC compared. There was a significant reduction in c-Kit immunoreactivity in the ICC of horses with large intestinal obstructive disorders relative to controls but no significant difference in the transcription of the c-kit gene between normal and affected animals. Further studies will be required to elucidate the mechanisms regulating c-Kit expression and to assess the pathophysiological significance of these findings.