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Two cases of obstructive urethral calculi in the male dromedary camel are reported. Infection, metabolic disorders, malnutrition and climatic stress are cited as possible causes. The diagnosis and the surgical treatment of this condition are discussed, with particular reference to the anatomy of the camel's penis.
The reactivity of the superficial veins of the camel was investigated in vitro in response to stretch, heat, norepinephrine, and transmural nerve stimulation (TNS). Stretch at 30 degrees C or 37 degrees C produced a maintained tone and phasic contractions of the facial and nasal veins. The developed tone increased significantly with increasing the temperature (from 30 to 45 degrees C), especially in the proximal part of the buccal facial vein. Norepinephrine caused a constrictor response in the facial vein with the proximal part showing a lower maximum. TNS evoked a constrictor response in proximal segment and a dilator response in the more proximal segment of the buccal facial vein. Either responses were blocked by bretylium or tetrodotoxin. Morphological examination of the vasoactive segment of the facial vein showed a thick muscular layer and a valve in the proximal segment of the buccal facial vein. These results show functional variation in the distribution of adrenoceptors in the facial vein. The high-temperature sensitivity of the buccal facial vein suggests that this part could serve as a temperature-sensitive sphincter that diverts cool nasal blood to the brain for selective cooling of the camel brain during heat stress.
The metabolism of tritiated water in the camel was compared in two 10-day periods, one when water was readily available and the second during dehydration. There was a radically depressed metabolism after 2 days of dehydration. Two other experiments examined the absorption rate of drinking water. In one experiment drinking water was labeled with tritium, and in the second experiment dilution of tritium-labeled blood was examined. In both experiments there was a rapid uptake and dilution of the blood, which continued for 4 h. Following this only slight changes were observed up to 24 h after drinking. The results are in accord with other data showing changes in erythrocyte shape 4 h after rapid rehydration. It is concluded that there is a rapid absorption of water in the rehydrating camel.
Gartner's duct is fairly constant in the camel, especially in young animals. It contains fluid secretion, yellowish translucent and viscid in character. Secondary coagulation of the secretion occurs on standing, and so becomes gelatinous. The ducts were histologically studies and glandular acini were found opening in them. An explanation of the manner of formation of Gartner's duct cyst is suggested. Gartner's duct may be a functioning accessory gland of the female sexual apparatus in the camel.
The camel eye shows some distinct features such as a pigmented peripheral cornea, a remarkably thickened Descement membrane, and endothelial-lined pectinate ligament, a cleft ciliary body, long ciliary processes, a horizontally oval pupil with well-developed corpora nigra and a holangiotic retina. Some of these are characteristic of horses, cattle and sheep, whereas others are more commonly found in lower mammals such as the rabbit. The reason for this staggered evolution in the development of the camel eye remains obscure.
The present paper describes mucous cells in the forestomach glandular region which immunoreacted to antibovine pepsinogen serum in adult and young bactrian camels, Camelus bactrianus (female, 25 years old; female, 6 months old; from Hilar Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China, in August 1988). These immunoreactive cells in forestomach glandular regions also reacted to Alcian blue (pH 1.0) and/or periodic acid-Schiff. Cross-reactivity of antibovine pepsinogen serum against extracts from the forestomach glandular region was analyzed by Western blotting, supporting that this serum could detect pepsin and/or pepsinogen in the bactrian camel. It was suggested that mucous cells in forestomach glandular regions produce pepsinogen molecules.
Camels use their teeth to bite, lift and throw their enemies, their feet to kick, paw or trample over, their whole body to knock over, press and squeeze, and their spit or regurgitated food to cover their perceived adversaries. Camel injuries can be very serious, resulting in fractures and severe lacerations of skin, muscle, tendons and nerves. Deaths have been reported.
Between late January and early February 1997, an outbreak of plague, associated with cervical lymphadenopathy and fever, occurred in the Jordanian village of Azraq ad-Druze, which lies about 50 km west of the border with Saudi Arabia. The 12 cases who presented at hospital were initially assumed to have tularaemia, and all were successfully treated with gentamicin. When, however, their sera were tested for evidence of Yersinia pestis or Francisella tularensis infection (using haemagglutination, enzyme immuno-assays for specific IgM or the F1 antigen of Y. pestis, and micro-agglutination tests), all 12 were found to have anti-Y. pestis IgM. Three dogs shot near the Saudi Arabian border were also found seropositive for antibodies against Y. pestis. Eleven of the 12 patients reported that, 2-4 days before their symptoms appeared, they had eaten the meat cut from the carcass of the same camel, either raw (10 cases) or cooked (one case). All 12 patients were diagnosed as cases of pharyngeal plague (the first cases of plague reported in Jordan for more than 80 years), caused by Y. pestis that most had acquired when they ate raw meat from a camel that was infected with the pathogen.
A cross-sectional study has been carried out in order to determine the prevalence of Trypanosoma evansi infection in susceptible hosts in the Punjab region (Pakistan). A total of 170 equines and 150 dromedary camels were examined. Five (3.3%) and 6 (4%) camels were positive at parasitological and serological examination, respectively. None of the equines tested positive at any method. These results seem to indicate that T. evansi infection has a relatively low prevalence in the Punjab region. However, efforts must be done in order to establish control measures in affected herds and avoid dissemination of the disease.
This work addresses the kinetic analysis of the interaction of methotrexate (MTX) with camel retina acetylcholinesterase (A ChE, EC 3.1.1.7). It was found that the MTX effect was reversible in nature. The IC50 was determined, by two methods, to be 1.362 mM. The Michaelis-Menten constant (Ks) for the hydrolysis of acetylthiocholine iodide (ASCh) by AChE was 0.123 mM in the control system, and the MTX-treated systems showed a 10-35% decrease in this value. The Vmax was 0.789 mumol/min/mg protein for the control system, while it was decreased by 23-76% in the MTX-treated systems. The Lineweaver-Burk plot, Dixon plot and their secondary replots indicated that the inhibition was a linear mixed type; i.e., uncompetitive and noncompetitive. The values of Ki and KI were estimated as 0.782 and 0.404 mM, respectively. The use of camel retina as a model for the study of human retina may open new avenues for studying various aspects of AChE.
This study was designed to examine the ability of rabbit metaphase II oocyte cytoplasm to support the development of interspecies nuclear transfer embryos reconstructed using donor nuclei from different species. Skin fibroblast cells from a camel and Tibetan antelope were used as donor nuclei. As a first step, we investigated the efficiency of different activation protocols by comparing the parthenogenetic development of rabbit oocytes. The protocol that yielded the highest blastocyst rate was used to activate the reconstructed embryos in nuclear transfer experiments. In addition, the effect of donor cell serum starvation on the development of the reconstructed embryo was also examined. More than half of the karyoplast-cytoplast couplets could be fused, and about one third of the reconstructed embryos were capable of completing first cleavage, regardless of the species of donor nuclei. Some of the cleaving reconstructed embryos were even capable of progressing further and developing to the blastocyst stage (1.4-8.7% for the Tibetan antelope and 0-7.5% for the camel, respectively). Our results suggest that the mechanisms regulating early embryo development may be conserved among mammalian species and some factors existing in rabbit oocyte cytoplasm for somatic nucleus reprogramming and dedifferentiation may not be species-specific. Rabbit oocyte cytoplasm can reprogram donor nuclei regardless of the origin of the nucleus and support in vitro development to an advanced stage.
The complementary DNAs of the Th1 (IL-2, IL-12p35, and IFN-gamma) and Th2 (IL-4, IL-10 and IL-13) cytokine genes of the bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus) were cloned, sequenced, and analyzed. IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, IL-12p35, IL-13, and IFN-gamma were found to have 465, 402, 537, 669, 411, and 501 bp length open reading frames with 154, 133, 178, 222, 136, and 166 amino acid encodings, respectively. The homology ranged from 58.8% to 100% between the nucleotide sequences of the camel cytokine genes and the published sequences of other mammalian genes, including the llama, pig, cow, horse, human, and mouse. The cDNA had highest homology with orders Artiodactyla (pigs and cattle) and Perissodactyla (horses), especially to the recently cloned llama sequences.
Ciliate composition in the forestomach was examined in four Bactrian camels, Camelus bactrianus, inhabiting Mongol and Steppes, then 7 genera containing 14 species with 5 formae were identified. One of these formae was a new forma, and described as Entodinium okoppensis f. cameli n.f. Six species containing one new forma were new records in the forestomach of camels. The percentage composition of genera varied with the individuals of host and the collection sites in the stomach but Entodinium was generally predominant. Total ciliate density per milliliter of stomach fluid was 2.1 x 10(5) on average.
In 6 adult camels (Camelus dromedarius) the uterus had 2 arteries on each side; one was the cranial uterine artery, which was a branch from the ovarian artery, and the other was the caudal uterine artery, which originated from the urogenital (vaginal) artery. There was no middle uterine artery, as is found in ruminants. The ovarian artery originated directly from the aorta and divided into 3 branches (ovarian proper, uterine and oviduct arteries) at a point approximately 5 cm before the ovary. The main drainage consisted of the utero-ovarian and caudal uterine veins. Although interconnections between arteries as well as between veins were numerous, no true veno-arterial anastomoses were found. These anatomical findings would suggest that there may be local unilateral uterine control of ovarian function in the camel.
During the follicular phase of bactrian camels, basal concentrations of LH were 2.7 +/- 1.2 ng/ml. By 4 h after insemination peak values of 6.9 +/- 1.0 ng/ml occurred. In addition, a smaller LH peak (5.4 +/- 2.5 ng/ml) appeared 1 day before regression of the follicle began in unmated camels. During the follicular phase peripheral plasma progesterone values were low (0.36 +/- 0.28 ng/ml), but values increased to reach 1.73 +/- 0.74 ng/ml at 3 days and 2.4 +/- 0.86 ng/ml at 7 days after ovulation. Plasma oestradiol-17 beta concentrations were 26.8 +/- 9.0 pg/ml during the follicular phase and 30.8 +/- 5.1 pg/ml when the follicle was maximum size. Values fell after ovulation but rose to 29.8 +/- 6.5 pg/ml 3 days later.
Injection of 7000 i.u. PMSG induced oestrus in 7 camels during the last part of seasonal anoestrus. Mature follicles developed and a CL was formed after fertile mating. However, pregnancy was not maintained by Day 60 in the 3 females detected as pregnant by rectal palpation and increased progesterone concentrations at Day 50. A single male camel mated with 4 of the females 2-16 days after the PMSG injection, and 2 or 3 matings occurred. The failure of pregnancy after induction of oestrus and mating during seasonal anoestrus was probably due to inadequate luteal function.
Corpora lutea (n = 20) were detected in 5 one-humped female camels studied during a period of 4 months. Complete mating by a vasectomized male, male introduction into the pen of females without mating, or a progesterone decrease from a previous corpus luteum were followed by a similar progesterone pattern. A maximal plasma concentration of 4.5 +/- 1.5 ng progesterone/ml (2.7-8.8 ng/ml) occurred 8.55 +/- 1.32 days (6-11 days) after the inducing stimulus. Luteal regression, beginning 8.65 +/- 1.18 days after the stimulus, was completed at Day 11.55 +/- 1.05. Morphological development of ovarian structures, detected by rectal palpation, was in synchrony with the progesterone increase, but there was a prolonged period of regression. Females accepted mating up to 7 days after the ovulatory stimulus, when progesterone levels were as high as 3.5 ng/ml. This study establishes the absence of pseudopregnancy in the one-humped female camel, and offers opportunities for improving the management of reproduction. It also shows that ovulatory stimuli other than mating can be effective in these animals.
Peripheral plasma concentrations of progesterone, total oestrogens and testosterone (measured by RIAs) and LH (monitored by the mouse Leydig cell bio-assay) were measured in 8 female camels for a complete oestrous cycle (23.1 +/- 1.2 days). The absence of an LH surge and a low concentration of progesterone (less than 1 ng/ml) during oestrus (5 days) and throughout the cycle indicated a failure of spontaneous ovulation and absence of a subsequent luteal phase in this species. High concentrations of testosterone and oestrogens indicated that the oestrous cycle in the camel is mostly follicular and that the increasing values of the two hormones during follicular development (5 days) is probably the stimulus to behavioural oestrus.