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Biomedical subjects

P F Ross

Publications and source records attributed to P F Ross.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Concentrations of fumonisin B1 in feeds associated with animal health problems.

Ninety-eight samples of feeds associated with 44 cases of equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM) and 83 samples of feed associated with 42 cases of a porcine pulmonary edema syndrome (PPE) were analyzed for fumonisin B1 (FB1). For comparison purposes, 51 feed samples not associated with PPE or ELEM were also analyzed. Feed associated with ELEM contained FB1 ranging from less than 1 microgram/g to 126 micrograms/g with 75% of the cases having at least 1 sample above 10 micrograms/g. Feeds associated with PPE ranged from less than 1 microgram/g to 330 micrograms/g with 71% of the cases having at least 1 sample greater than 10 micrograms/g. Quantitation was by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)/fluorescence using the fluorescamine derivative with confirmation by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and/or gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC/MS).

Animal Feed↗

Fumonisin B1 concentrations in feeds from 45 confirmed equine leukoencephalomalacia cases.

During the fall of 1989 and winter of 1990, numerous reports of equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM) occurred from many regions of the United States. Typically, horses were consuming feed partially or entirely composed of corn and/or corn screenings. From October 1989 through May 1990, samples from 55 confirmed or suspected ELEM cases were received at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories, Ames, Iowa, for fumonisin B1 analysis. Samples from 9 cases in 1984-1985 were also obtained. Fumonisin B1, a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium moniliforme, causes ELEM, but little is known of naturally occurring toxic or safe levels in feeds. To determine what levels of fumonisin B1 in feeds are associated with ELEM, 45 selected cases were studied. The fumonisin B1 concentrations ranged from less than 1 ppm to 126 ppm, with the majority of the samples above 10 ppm. All types of feeds were included: corn, screenings, sweet feeds, and commercially pelleted rations. The length of exposure varied from 7 to greater than 35 days. Horse feed samples not associated with ELEM were also collected and analyzed. None of the nonproblem feed samples contained fumonisin B1 levels greater than 8 ppm.

Animal Feed↗

Novel occurrence of cyclopiazonic acid in sunflower seeds.

Cyclopiazonic acid (CPA), a secondary metabolite produced by several species of Aspergillus and Penicillium, was detected in moldy sunflower seed screenings fed to sows who experienced conception problems and feed refusal. Tandem mass spectrometry confirmed the CPA which was estimated by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) to be present at 10 ppm. A Penicillium species was isolated from the moldy seeds, but in culture it did not produce CPA.

Animals↗

Production of fumonisins by Fusarium moniliforme and Fusarium proliferatum isolates associated with equine leukoencephalomalacia and a pulmonary edema syndrome in swine.

Fumonisin B1 (FB1) and FB2 were isolated from corn cultures of both Fusarium moniliforme and Fusarium proliferatum. Respective concentrations in culture materials of FB1 and FB2 ranged from 960 to 2,350 and 120 to 320 micrograms/g for F. moniliforme and from 1,670 to 2,790 and 150 to 320 micrograms/g for F. proliferatum. Thin-layer chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, high-performance liquid chromatography, and liquid secondary ion mass spectroscopy were used for detection. Fumonisins from F. proliferatum have not previously been reported.

Animal Feed↗

Identification of Brucella abortus strain 19 by decreased ability to utilize erythritol as determined by gas liquid chromatography.

A method to identify Brucella abortus strain 19 by erythritol utilization using gas liquid chromatography (GLC) was developed. A total of 69 strains of B. abortus (41 virulent field strain isolates and 28 strain 19 isolates) were tested. Following incubation of the isolate with a standard amount of erythritol, the erythritol present in the cell suspension was acetylated and measured by GLC. Field strains of B. abortus utilized an average of 90.9% of the erythritol, whereas vaccine strains utilized an average of 42.4%. This difference in erythritol utilization will allow a more rapid identification of B. abortus strain 19.

Animals↗

Fumonisin B1 levels associated with an epizootic of equine leukoencephalomalacia.

During the fall of 1989, an episode of equine leukoencephalomalacia involved 18 of 66 purebred Arabian horses at a breeding/training stable in Arizona. Of the 18 horses affected, the condition was fatal in 14. These horses, as well as 48 unaffected horses, had been fed a diet containing a substantial amount of white corn screenings. Gross pathologic findings included liquefactive necrosis in parts of the cerebral white matter and hemorrhagic foci of various sizes in the brain stem. Histopathologic findings included rarefied white matter with pyknotic nuclei and eosinophilic cytoplasm. Thin-layer chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy were utilized to identify and quantitate fumonisin B1 in 3 samples of corn from the farm. Concentrations of fumonisin B1 range from 37 to 122 ppm. Fumonisin B2 was also detected. Using information on diet, animal weights, and feeding practices, estimates of total fumonisin B1 dosage were determined. This is the first definitive report on equine leukoencephalomalacia and associated fumonisin B1 concentrations.

Animal Feed↗

A sensitive bioassay for detection of dietary estrogens in animal feeds.

Estrogen-responsive proliferation in the MCF-7 cell line was used as a bioassay for detection of dietary estrogens. The bioassay procedure was adapted to screen for estrogenic activity in feedstuffs that have been associated with hyperestrogenism in livestock. Methanolic feed extracts were added to the cell culture medium at microliter/ml concentrations for 4 days, after which the cell proliferation response was measured as DNA content. The half-maximal response for estradiol occurred at 2 pM, or 0.54 pg/ml. For zearalenone, a weaker estrogen, the half-maximal response occurred at approximately 200 pM, or 64 pg/ml. The bioassay was calibrated against a number of known estrogens (estradiol, diethylstilbestrol, zearalenone, zearalanol [cattle implant], beta-zearalenol, zearalane), including the naturally occurring phytoestrogens (formononetin, genistein, daidzein, biochanin A, and coumestrol). The estrogenic activity of feed samples was expressed as equivalents of zearalenone (ppm zearalenone) that would have to be present to equally stimulate proliferation of the MCF-7 cells. The sensitivity of the bioassay was 0.05-0.1 ppm equivalents of zearalenone in feed, well below the threshold level associated with reproductive problems. The feed additive melengestrol acetate (MGA) showed no estrogenic activity in this assay. Estrogenic activity of feed extracts was confirmed by competitive inhibition with the antiestrogens tamoxifen or LY156758 (keoxifene) to show that stimulation of growth by feed extracts was through an estrogenic mechanism. Confirmation of known estrogens was by tandem mass spectroscopy. The assay is a sensitive and reliable screening procedure for detecting estrogenic activity in feedstuffs.

Animal Feed↗

Use of thin layer chromatography for detection and high performance liquid chromatography for quantitating gliotoxin from rice cultures of Aspergillus fumigatus fresenius.

Gliotoxin, a mycotoxin with antimicrobial and immunosuppressive capabilities, is produced by several genera of fungi including the pathogenic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. The ability of selected isolates of A. fumigatus to produce gliotoxin on three different media was tested and a thin layer chromatographic and high performance liquid chromatographic method for quantitation of gliotoxin from rice culture was developed and is described. Rice cultures were extracted with chloroform and the resulting extract was partially purified by precipitation with petroleum ether and cleanup by gel permeation chromatography. Gliotoxin was detected by thin layer chromatography and quantitated by high performance liquid chromatography using a U.V. absorbance detector with a 254 nm filter and a mobile phase of methanol-water 43:57 (V/V) with a flow rate of 2.0 ml/min. The retention time for gliotoxin was approximately 4.8 min. From rice samples spiked with gliotoxin concentrations of 0.67, 1.33, 2.67, 4.00 and 5.33 micrograms/g the average recovery was 83.8%.

Aspergillus fumigatus↗

Carbofuran toxicosis in cattle: case history and analytical method.

Thirteen head of crossbred Brahman cattle were exposed to carbofuran which had been mixed with rice to control blackbirds. Three animals died within 20 minutes after eating the contaminated grain, and the other 10 exhibited clinical signs associated with carbamate toxicosis. The 4 most severely affected animals were treated with a subtherapeutic dose of atropine sulfate; they did not respond and subsequently died. The remaining 6 recovered. Samples of rumen contents from the animals that died contained carbofuran concentrations ranging from 2 to 51 mg/kg.

Animals↗

Toxaphene residues in the bovine after oral exposure.

Toxaphene was administered orally to 19 mixed-breed heifers at levels of 50, 100, or 150 mg/kg. Thirteen of 19 died with deaths in all 3 dosage levels. Liver, kidney, and brain samples were collected and analyzed for toxaphene residues by GLC. Liver residues varied logarithmically with dosage from 1.2 to 38 ppm, kidney residues were from 0.8 to 12 ppm, and brain residues were from 0.3 to 7.0 ppm. No detectable amounts of toxaphene (< 0.1 ppm) were observed in tissues collected from 2 control calves which received no toxaphene.

Administration, Oral↗

Screening nitrate in forages with a test strip: collaborative study.

A collaborative study was conducted for screening nitrate in forages with a commercially available test strip. The method involves extracting a finely ground sample with deionized water. The test strip is dipped in the sample extract. The color of the reaction zone on the test strip changes from white to pink or purple depending on the nitrate concentration in sample extract. The nitrate present in the extract is determined by comparing the color of the test strip to the color scale on the test strip container. Six blind quintuplicates of forage samples were analyzed by 20 collaborators. Nitrate concentrations in forage samples tested ranged from < 1000 ppm nitrate to > 10,000 ppm nitrate on dry matter basis. Each collaborator was asked to assign each sample to one of the 4 following nitrate concentration ranges: (1) < 1000 ppm, (2) 1000 to 5000 ppm, (3) > 5000 ppm to 10,000 ppm, and (4) > 10,000 ppm. Nineteen of 20 collaborators reported results. Results from 2 laboratories were rejected as outliers by inspection and chi 2 test. Sensitivity rates (p+) ranged from 0.965 to 0.998, with standard errors of 0.006 to 0.16. Specificity rates (p-) ranged from 0.991 to 0.997 for the 4 ranges, with standard errors of 0.003 to 0.006. False-positive rates (pf+) ranged from 0.006 to 0.046, with standard errors of 0.006 to 0.025. False-negative rates (pf-) ranged from 0.003 to 0.007, with standard errors of 0.003 to 0.006. Screening nitrate in forages with a test strip has been adopted first action by AOAC INTERNATIONAL.

Animal Feed↗