Psychosis and sexual abuse: An interpretative phenomenological analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the first-person perspective of psychosis sufferers who survived childhood sexual abuse. METHODS: Interpretative phenomenological analysis was employed to explore the experiences of 7 women with a history of sexual abuse and psychosis. RESULTS: Analysis generated six themes: (a) degradation of self, interlinking shame, guilt, and sometimes disgust; (b) body-self entrapment, experiencing bodily constraint and distortion; (c) a sense of being different to others, involving interpersonal problems; (d) unending struggle and depression, a pervasive sense of defeat; (e) psychotic condemnations and abuse, describing psychotic phenomena related to harm and sexual abuse; and (f) perception of links to the past, the links made from past abuse to current functioning. CONCLUSION: Participants suffered extreme psychological, physical, and interpersonal difficulties past and present. Psychotic experiences reported exhibited themes of condemnation by external entities and reflected the topic of sexual abuse. Participants did not generally link psychosis to their past abusive experiences.

Milk composition of free-ranging red hartebeest, giraffe, Southern reedbuck and warthog and a phylogenetic comparison of the milk of African Artiodactyla.

The composition of major nutrients and fatty acids of the milk of three species, red hartebeest, Southern reedbuck and warthog, and milk fatty acids of giraffe, that have not been published before, are reported, and together with the same parameters of 11 species previously published, were incorporated in a phylogenetic comparison. Unique properties of milk composition have been observed. Southern reedbuck milk seems to have a complex casein composition, similar to that of sheep. Milk composition varies between species. Although some differences may be ascribed to biological condition, such as stage of lactation, or ecological factors, such as availability of certain nutrients, the contribution by evolutionary history is not well documented and the emphasis is usually on the composition of the macro nutrients. Phylogenetic comparisons often lack representatives of multiple species of taxonomic groups and sub-groups. To date phylogenetic comparisons of milk composition have been carried out by using data from different publications. The problem with this approach is that the ecological factors cannot be completely ruled out. A statistical phylogenetic comparison by PCA between 15 species representing 7 different suborders, families or subfamilies of African Artiodactyla was carried out. The phylogenetic properties showed that the milk composition of the Bovinae, represented here by the subfamilies Bovini and Tragelaphini, differs from the other taxonomic groups, in that the Alcelaphinae had a high milk fat content of the medium chain length fatty acids C8-C12 (>17% of total fatty acids) and the Hippotraginae high amounts of oligosaccharides (>0.4%).

Conserving large carnivores: dollars and fence.

Conservationists often advocate for landscape approaches to wildlife management while others argue for physical separation between protected species and human communities, but direct empirical comparisons of these alternatives are scarce. We relate African lion population densities and population trends to contrasting management practices across 42 sites in 11 countries. Lion populations in fenced reserves are significantly closer to their estimated carrying capacities than unfenced populations. Whereas fenced reserves can maintain lions at 80% of their potential densities on annual management budgets of $500 km(-2) , unfenced populations require budgets in excess of $2000 km(-2) to attain half their potential densities. Lions in fenced reserves are primarily limited by density dependence, but lions in unfenced reserves are highly sensitive to human population densities in surrounding communities, and unfenced populations are frequently subjected to density-independent factors. Nearly half the unfenced lion populations may decline to near extinction over the next 20-40 years.

Pathology and immunohistochemistry of papillomavirus-associated cutaneous lesions in Cape mountain zebra, giraffe, sable antelope and African buffalo in South Africa.

Skin lesions associated with papillomaviruses have been reported in many animal species and man. Bovine papillomavirus (BVP) affects mainly the epidermis, but also the dermis in several species including bovine, the best-known example being equine sarcoid, which is associated with BVP types 1 and 2. This publication describes and illustrates the macroscopic and histological appearance of BPV-associated papillomatous, fibropapillomatous or sarcoid-like lesions in Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra) from the Gariep Dam Nature Reserve, 2 giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) from the Kruger National Park, and a sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) from the Kimberley area of South Africa. An African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) cow from Kruger National Park also had papillomatous lesions but molecular characterisation of lesional virus was not done. Immunohistochemical staining using polyclonal rabbit antiserum to chemically disrupted BPV-1, which cross-reacts with the L1 capsid of most known papillomaviruses, was positive in cells of the stratum granulosum of lesions in Giraffe 1, the sable and the buffalo and negative in those of the zebra and Giraffe 2. Fibropapillomatous and sarcoid-like lesions from an adult bovine were used as positive control for the immunohistochemistry and are described and the immunohistochemistry illustrated for comparison. Macroscopically, both adult female giraffe had severely thickened multifocal to coalescing nodular and occasionally ulcerated lesions of the head, neck and trunk with local poorly-circumscribed invasion into the subcutis. Necropsy performed on the 2nd giraffe revealed neither internal metastases nor serious underlying disease. Giraffe 1 had scattered, and Giraffe 2 numerous, large, anaplastic, at times indistinctly multinucleated dermal fibroblasts with bizarre nuclei within the sarcoid-like lesions, which were BPV-1 positive in Giraffe 1 and BPV-1 and -2 positive in Giraffe 2 by RT-PCR. The sable antelope presented with a solitary large lesion just proximal to the right hind hoof, which recurred after excision, and was BPV-1 positive by RT-PCR. Other wart-like growths were present elsewhere on the body. The Cape mountain zebra either succumbed from their massive lesions or were euthanased or removed from the herd because of them. The lesions were BPV-1 and/or -2 positive by RT-PCR. The buffalo lesions were wart-like papillomatous projections in the inguinal and udder region. Stratum granulosum cells that stained immunohistochemically positive in the various species appeared koilocyte-like, as described in human papillomaviral lesions.

Increased activation of the left hippocampus region in Complex PTSD during encoding and recognition of emotional words: a pilot study.

To gain insight into memory disturbances in Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Complex PTSD), we investigated declarative memory function and medial temporal lobe activity in patients and healthy non-traumatized controls. A case-control study was performed in nine patients with Complex PTSD and nine controls. All respondents performed a declarative memory task with neutral and emotional, negative words during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Memory performance of neutral words was impaired in Complex PTSD with a relative conservation of recall of negative words. Deep encoding of later remembered negative words, as well as correct recognition of negative words and false alarms, was associated with an enhanced Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) response in the left hippocampus extending into the parahippocampal gyrus of Complex PTSD patients compared with controls. Post-hoc volumetric comparisons did not reveal significant anatomical differences in the medial temporal lobe between Complex PTSD patients and controls. We conclude that in Complex PTSD preferential recall of negative words is associated with increased activation in the left hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus during both successful and false recall. These findings support a model of an abnormally functioning hippocampus in Complex PTSD.

Prevalence and body distribution of sarcoids in South African Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra).

There are no reports in the literature describing any tumours, and specifically sarcoids, in zebras. The equine sarcoid, a locally aggressive, fibroblastic skin tumour, is the most common dermatological neoplasm reported in horses. The Cape mountain zebra (CMZ) has been described as one of the most vulnerable mammals in South Africa with current populations existing in isolated units. All South African CMZ are descendants from no more than 30 individual animals originating from 3 populations, namely the Mountain Zebra National Park, and Kammanassie and Gamka Mountain Nature Reserves near Cradock. The possibility therefore exists that the existing populations arose from a very small gene pool and that they are considerably inbred. A reduction in major histocompatibility complex diversity due to genetic bottlenecks and subsequent inbreeding probably contributed to uniform population sensitivity and the subsequent development of sarcoid in two CMZ populations, namely in the Bontebok National Park and Gariep Nature Reserve. The entire population of CMZ in the Bontebok National Park was observed and sampled during 2002 to document the prevalence and body distribution of sarcoids. During the same year, a comparative study was carried out on an outbred population of Burchell's zebra in the Kruger National Park. The prevalence in CMZ in the Bontebok National Park was 53 %, while the Burchell's zebra in Kruger National Park had a prevalence of 1.9 %. The most common sites for sarcoid in CMZ were the ventral abdomen and limbs. Prevalence of sarcoids in horses recorded in the literature varies between 0.5 % and 2 %. The Gariep Nature Reserve recently reported a prevalence of almost 25 % in CMZ in the reserve.

Descriptive study of an outbreak of equine sarcoid in a population of Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra) in the Gariep Nature Reserve.

An outbreak of equine sarcoid occurred in a population of Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra) at the Gariep Nature Reserve located in the southern Free State Province of South Africa in 1996. The course of the outbreak during 1996 to 2003 is described. During this period the average population size was 69 animals. Initially (1996) all affected animals were removed from the population. New cases continued to manifest and the incidence varied between 4.6% and 17.6%. Prevalence reached 24.7% in 2002. No sexual predilection was noticed in the 39 recorded cases. Of the affected individuals, 64% had a single lesion and no animal had more than 4 lesions. In males, the majority of lesions occurred in the inguinal area (55.17%), whereas in females they mostly occurred on the head and neck (41.38%). Lesions can increase 260% in size annually and may impede movement.

Crossing over and Diploid Egg Formation in the Elongate Mutant of Maize.

Rhoades (1941) found recombination in the proximal regions of chromosome 5 to be higher in male than in female flowers. Two explanations were proposed to account for the lower female values, namely: (1) there is a basic difference in rates of crossing over in mega- and microsporocytes, or (2) selective orientation of the chromosome 5 bivalent on the meiotic spindle leads to the preferential segregation of noncrossover chromatids to the basal megaspore. These alternatives have been tested by carrying out a half-tetrad analysis of the diploid eggs produced by plants homozygous for the recessive elongate (el) allele. The A2-Bt crossover values determined from the diploid eggs of elongate plants were much lower than those calculated from haploid sperm of both El el and el el plants. Since male and female flowers should have similar cross-over values if the orientation hypothesis were correct, it was concluded that the amount of crossing over in the A2-Bt region of chromosome 5 is intrinsically higher in male than in female meiocytes. In the analysis of diploid eggs the use of the Bt locus, which marks the centric region of chromosome 5, provided information on the origin of diploid eggs. The genotypic constitution of 425 diploid eggs was ascertained. Of these, 20.4% were Bt bt. They could not be accounted for by failure of the second meiotic division or by replication during the interphase between the two meiotic divisions, but are expected if there is a single division with an equational separation of the centromere regions of chromosome 5. The Bt Bt and bt bt genotypes arise from a disjunctional separation. It is proposed that diploid eggs are produced by an abnormal meiosis in which there is one division with either disjunctional or equational separation. Disjunctional separation is more frequent but the ratio of the two types varies from ear to ear. Recombination in the A2-Bt-Pr region of chromosome 5 was found to be higher in the haploid gametes of elongate homozygotes than in El El and El el plants. On the other hand, crossing over was reduced in the Sh-Bz segment of chromosome 9 in elongate plants, but the adjacent Bz-Wx interval was unaffected.

Comparative studies of UV-induced DNA cleavage by analogues of iodoHoechst 33258.

Following the earlier demonstration that iodo-Hoechst 33258 sensitizes DNA and cells to UVA, presumably mediated by formation of a carbon-centred radical on the ligand upon dehalogenation, three isomeric analogues of iodo-Hoechst 33258 have now been studied. The isomers differ in the location of the iodine atom in the phenyl ring of the ligand, relative to the site of attachment of the bibenzimidazole moiety, and are accordingly denoted ortho-, meta- and para-iodoHoechst. Comparison of the ligands with respect to induction of DNA ssb in pBR322 DNA revealed a wide range of activity; (D37's vary by a factor of 37), decreasing in the order: ortho- > meta- and para- > iodoHoechst 33258. Preliminary dehalogenation studies suggest that the higher activity of the ortho isomer results more from increased cross-section for dehalogenation than from increased efficiency of strand breakage per dehalogenation event. However, the chemistry of strand breakage by the ortho-isomer is distinctive, and tentatively assigned to initial attack at the 1'-deoxyribosyl carbon; the other two isomers, like iodo-Hoechst 33258, attack the 5'-carbon. The results are discussed in terms of the spectrum of DNA strand breakage chemistry associated with ionizing radiation, and the potential of DNA strand breaking agents such as the iodoHoechst compounds to study the chemical and biological consequences of the different subclasses of initial DNA damage.

Surgical treatment of metastatic melanoma of the small bowel.

Eighteen of 1420 patients with primary cutaneous melanoma presented with symptomatic small bowel metastases and were reviewed to establish the role and efficacy of surgical intervention. The median interval between treatment of the initial skin lesion and detection of the intestinal metastases was 4.4 years (range, 2 months to 15 years). Most patients presented with either anemia, abdominal pain, bowel obstruction, or intussusception. In six patients, small bowel involvement was the first sign of metastatic disease. Seventeen of the 18 patients underwent laparotomy, and all overt metastases were completely excised in 12. Three patients died postoperatively. Fourteen of the 17 patients had satisfactory palliation with complete symptomatic relief. Median survival after resection was 13 months (range, 2 days to 300 months). Median survival of the 12 patients in whom all macroscopic disease was resected was 44.5 months (range, 2-300 months), whereas the median survival in the four with incompletely resected tumors was 4 weeks (range, 2 days-24 weeks). Five of 12 patients who underwent complete resection of small bowel metastases survived more than 6 years, 3 of whom remain well and free of disease at 6, 14, and 25 years. These results justify active surgical intervention in patients with symptomatic small bowel metastatic melanoma, both for relief of symptoms and prolongation of life.

A field outbreak in Ile-de-France sheep of a cardiotoxicosis caused by the plant Pachystigma pygmaeum (Schltr) Robyns (Rubiaceae).

A field outbreak of Pachystigma pygmaeum intoxication in sheep is described. Noteworthy clinical signs were: respiratory distress, apathy and subcutaneous oedema of mainly the head. Gross changes included cardiomegaly, centrilobular hepatic necrosis and effusion of body cavities. Microscopically myocardial fibrosis, affecting predominantly the endocardium of the apex, left free ventricular wall and interventricular septum, was most striking in the majority of animals, whilst myofibre atrophy was present in 1 sheep.

Experimentally-induced Cestrum laevigatum (Schlechtd.) poisoning in sheep.

Dried, milled Cestrum laevigatum plant material was drenched to 6 ewes at doses ranging from 2,5 to 10 g/kg/day for 1 to 47 days. The most noticeable clinical signs were depression, anorexia and ruminal stasis. These signs were accompanied by clinical pathological changes indicative of liver involvement such as increases in the serum activities of aspartate transaminase, lactate dehydrogenase and gamma-glutamyltransferase. Hepatosis characterized by accentuated lobulation, and centrilobular to midzonal coagulative necrosis, haemorrhage and congestion occurred in 2 of the 3 ewes given high doses of plant material. Liver lesions in the other animals included disappearance of hepatocytes and collapse of the reticulin stroma in the centrilobular areas. Spongy changes in the cerebral white matter were evident in the ewes of the high-dose group. Ultrastructural changes in the liver comprised degeneration and necrosis of hepatocytes and occasionally endothelial cells, and disruption of sinusoidal walls.

The pathology of Cestrum laevigatum (Schlechtd.) poisoning in cattle.

The clinical features and pathological findings of 6 steers drenched with dried plant material of Cestrum laevigatum are described. Doses ranging from 0.5 to 10 g/kg/day were given intraruminally for 1 to 38 days. Animals that received 5 to 10 g/kg/day showed nervous signs including ataxia, muscle tremors, hypersensitivity and intermittent chewing. Clinical signs in the steers which received 0,5 to 4 g/kg/day were mild. High doses induced moderate to severe hepatosis characterized by centrilobular to midzonal coagulative necrosis, haemorrhage and congestion. At lower rates only mild hepatic lesions, characterized by disappearance of hepatocytes and collapse of the reticulin stroma in the centrilobular areas were evident. Ultrastructural changes were primarily limited to the hepatocytes and comprised degeneration, necrosis and fatty change. Degeneration and necrosis of endothelial cells and disruption of sinusoidal walls were occasionally observed.

Cardiomyopathy of ruminants induced by the litter of poultry fed on rations containing the ionophore antibiotic, maduramicin. I. Epidemiology, clinical signs and clinical pathology.

The epidemiological, clinical and clinical pathological findings in 20 cattle and 4 sheep from 15 outbreaks of poultry litter toxicity in South Africa over the past 6 years are documented. In 6 outbreaks, the litter emanated from batteries where maduramicin had been incorporated into rations of broilers. According to circumstantial evidence the litter involved in the 9 other outbreaks was also derived from broilers which had been fed on rations containing an ionophore. The litter was fed ad libitum to the affected stock or constituted 30-80% by volume of their rations. The principal sign manifested was sudden mortality of up to 70% of the herd or flock, usually within 20-40 days of commencement of feeding of poultry litter. A few cattle developed signs of congestive heart failure, and stiffness was commonly seen in sheep. In a dosing trial with poultry litter involving 1 steer and 6 sheep, the steer and a sheep died suddenly and a second sheep was destroyed in extremis. Tachycardia and/or cardiac arrythmia were recorded in 5 sheep, and the activity of aspartate transaminase (AST) and/or lactate dehydrogenase (LD) in the sera of 4 was elevated. Since the cardiac lesions in field cases were similar to those of ionophore poisoning and broiler rations containing maduramicin was a common factor in several outbreaks, toxic litter from some of these outbreaks were tested for the presence of this compound. Analysis by high performance liquid chromatography of litter from 2 specimens of outbreaks revealed that they contained 2.5 ppm and 6.1 ppm maduramicin.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Concurrent babesiosis and ehrlichiosis in the dog: blood smear examination supplemented by the indirect fluorescent antibody test, using Cowdria ruminantium as antigen.

Giemsa-stained, peripheral blood smears of 67 dogs, showing clinical signs typical of babesiosis or reminiscent of concurrent babesiosis and ehrlichiosis, were examined for the presence of Babesia canis and Ehrlichia canis. Since Cowdria ruminantium cross-reacts with Ehrlichia, the sera of these dogs were also subjected to the indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test in which C. ruminantium was used as antigen. Fifty-five per cent of these dogs had mixed infections of B. canis and E. canis, as judged by blood smear examination and serology. The serum of 32% of these dogs with mixed infections reacted positively in the IFA test. Six out of 9 dogs, the blood smears of which were negative for both B. canis and E. canis, were serologically positive for E. canis. Furthermore, sero-conversion from a negative in the initial serum sample to titres of up to 1:160 in a subsequent sample was recorded in 9 out of 13 dogs with suspected mixed infection on blood smear.

Cardiac glycoside poisoning in sheep caused by Urginea physodes (Jacq.) Bak. and the isolated physodine A.

Urginea physodes (Jacq.) Bak., a species closely related to or possibly synonymous with U. pusilla, is described and its distribution given. Four bufadienolides were isolated from U. physodes and the approximated LD50 and cumulative effect of some of them determined in guinea pigs. The most toxic one proved to be mildly cumulative. Typical signs of acute cardiac glycoside poisoning, involving the locomotory, gastro-intestinal, respiratory and cardiac system, were seen in the field cases and/or were experimentally induced by the plant. Similar signs could also be induced by injecting the isolated bufadienolide, physodine A, to a sheep.

Cardiomyopathy of ruminants induced by the litter of poultry fed on rations containing the ionophore antibiotic, maduramicin. II. Macropathology and histopathology.

This report contains an account of the gross and histopathological lesions of 20 cattle and four sheep in 15 field outbreaks of poultry litter toxicity, one steer fed ad lib. and six sheep dosed with toxic poultry litter, and ten sheep fed experimental rations containing c 2,5 ppm and 5 ppm maduramicin. The principle macroscopic lesions in most cattle that died in field outbreaks were indicative of congestive heart failure. The lesions in sheep were similar, but generally milder. Cardiac dilatation was observed in both sheep and cattle. Microscopically, the cardiac lesions were more pronounced in cattle and comprised varying degrees of atrophy, hypertrophy, degeneration, necrosis of myocardial fibres, and interstitial fibrosis. Skeletal muscle lesions were usually more severe in sheep, particularly in the muscles of the hindquarters which appeared pale, oedematous and mottled. One of the sheep in the poultry litter dosing trial developed signs of congestive heart failure and the hearts of two others were dilated. Extensive hypertrophy and atrophy of myocardial fibres were evident in the steer fed ad lib. with this material. As in field cases, the myocardial lesions of the sheep were less severe than those of the steer. Mild cardiac dilatation was present in four of the seven sheep in the maduramicin feeding trial. Diffuse hypertrophy of myocardial nuclei was present in all seven cases, myocardial fibre atrophy in six, multifocal fibrosis and necrosis in six and two cases, respectively, and focal endocardial thickening in two. The skeletal muscles revealed granular degeneration and foci of necrosis and regeneration. The cardiac and skeletal lesions in the field outbreaks, poultry litter feeding trials and maduramicin feeding trials, were highly comparable. This suggests that this form of poultry litter intoxication is a chronic form of ionophore toxicity the pathology of which is characterized by a dilated cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure and mild (cattle) to severe (sheep) skeletal muscle lesions.

A haemorrhagic syndrome in recently weaned pigs ascribed to hypovitaminosis K.

An outbreak of a haemorrhagic syndrome involved recently weaned, mixed-breed pigs in a large piggery. The pigs were fed a pelleted complete ration containing antibacterial drugs. Affected pigs failed to grow, became pale and developed large, subcutaneous haematomas. Some pigs became lame and one had epistaxis. The monthly mortality rate in the weaner house, which was previously less than 2%, exceeded 6% during the outbreak. Coagulation time, activated partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time were prolonged in blood from some of the pigs. The outbreak resolved promptly after supplementation of the diet with vitamin K3.

Capture and immobilisation of aardvark (Orycteropus afer) using different drug combinations.

Nine aardvarks (Orycteropus afer) were captured in the southern Free State, South Africa, for the placement of abdominal radio transmitters. Five combinations of ketamine hydrochloride with xylazine hydrochloride, midazolam or medetomidine hydrochloride were used to induce anaesthesia. In some cases the level of anaesthesia was maintained with 1.5% halothane. A mixture of ketamine hydrochloride and medetomidine hydrochloride was found to be most effective. Atipamizole reversed the affects of medetomidine hydrochloride, resulting in a smooth and full recovery within 8 minutes. The immobilisation and subsequent anaesthesia of these animals on cold winter nights resulted in hypothermia, and keeping the animals warm was essential to the success of the procedures undertaken. Reversal of the sedative medetomidine hydrochloride proved to be important, because animals that were released before they were fully conscious took refuge in their burrows so that care was impossible.

Spinal cord degeneration in adult dairy cows associated with the feeding of sorghum beer residues.

A neurological syndrome in a herd of Friesland cows (n = 100) on a diet including sorghum beer residues is described. Over a period of 8 months, 76 cows developed weakness of the hindquarters, progressively worsening ataxia and, eventually, paralysis and permanent recumbency. The course of the disease varied from 2 to 8 weeks. The lesions were significant in the 2 cows necropsied and included extensive, bilaterally symmetrical dilation of myelin sheaths, axonal swelling and loss with Wallerian degeneration, and depletion of myelin in both ascending and descending tracts at all levels of the spinal cord. Focal neuronal degeneration in the spinal cord grey matter and dorsal root ganglia, and focal loss of axons and ovoid formation in the spinal nerve roots and ischiatic nerves were also evident. The pathogenesis of the spinal lesions appears to involve a primary axonopathy with secondary myelin loss. The epidemiology, clinical signs and pathology suggest that the disease was associated with the fungus Aspergillus clavatus.