Therapeutic Effects of an Alpha-Casozepine and White Fish Muscle Hydrolyzed Complementary Feed on Canine Separation-Related Disorders and Quality of Life of Dogs and Their Pet Owners

Background: Separation-related disorders are prevalent in dogs and can result in problem behaviours such as inappropriate elimination, destructive behaviour, and distress vocalizations which occur when an owner is absent or perceived as absent. Numerous natural products are marketed for managing anxiety in dogs;however, few, if any, of these products have documented evidence of efficacy in veterinary behaviour. Purpose: This open, multicentric clinical trial aimed to assess the efficacy of a new supplement containing alpha-casozepine and fish muscle hydrolysate on the separation-related problem in dogs and the impact on the quality of life of dogs and their pet owners. Material and Methods: Fifty-one dogs with clinical signs compatible with separation-related problems were included. The dogs were treated with a complementary feed (Zylkene Plus, Vetoquinol, France) for 30 days. Separation-related behaviour assessment (SRP), emotional disorders assessment (EDED) and the quality of life (QoL) of the pets and their pet owner were assessed at baseline and the end of the study by the veterinarians. In addition, owners were asked to rate their dog’s SRP weekly after enrolment using the same questionnaire that the veterinarian used at the beginning of the study. Results: There was a statistically significant improvement in the SRP, EDED, and QoL scores (P Conclusion: The results of this study support the hypothesis that the combination of alpha-casozepine and fish muscle hydrolysate is a promising and effective option to reduce the frequency and severity of separation-related behaviour in dogs and improve the quality of dogs and their owners.

Simultaneous quantification of several classes of antibiotics in water, sediments, and fish muscles by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

Precise and sensitive methods for the simultaneous determination of different classes of antibiotics, including sulphonamides, fluoroquinolones, macrolides, tetracyclines, and trimethoprim in surface water, sediments, and fish muscles were developed. In water samples, drugs were extracted with solid-phase extraction （SPE） by passing 1000 mL of water through hydrophilic lipophilic balanced （HLB） SPE cartridges. Sediment samples were solvent-extracted, followed by tandem SPE （strong anion exchange （SAX） ＋ HLB） clean-ups. Fish muscles were extracted by a mixture of acetonitrile and citric buffer （80：20, v/v） solution, and cleaned by SPE. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry （LC-MS/ MS） with multiple reaction monitoring （MRM） detection was employed to quantify all compounds. The recoveries for the antibiotics in the spiked water, sediment, and fish samples were 60.2%-95.8%, 48.1%-105.3%, and 59.8%- 103.4%, respectively. The methods were applied to samples taken from Dianchi Lake, China. It showed that concentrations of the detected antibiotics ranged from limits of quantification （LOQ） to 713.6 ng- L1 （ofloxacin） in surface water and from less than LOQ to 344.8 μg·kg-1 （sulphamethoxazole） in sediments. The number of detected antibiotics and the overall antibiotic concentrations were higher in the urban area than the rural area, indicating the probable role of livestock and human activities as important sources of antibiotic contamination. In fish muscles, the concentration of norfioxacin was the highest （up to 38.5 μg·kg-1）, but tetracyclines and macrolides were relatively low. Results showed that the methods were rapid and sensitive, and capable of determining several classes of antibiotics from each of the water, sediment, and fish matrices in a single run.

Effect of Fertilizer Diammonium Phosphate on Liver,Kidney and Muscle 5-Nucleotidase Activity of Fresh Water Teleost Fish Clarias batrachus

The toxic effect of fertilizer Diammonium phosphate resulted in alterations of 5'-Nucleotidase activity of tissues liver, kidney and muscles offish C. batrachus at varying intervals and exposures. Alterations in 5'-Nuclcotidase activity of body organs gave an idea of the toxicity caused by the fertilizer. Thus the enzyme 5'-Nucleotidase can be used to monitor the pollution in aquatic ecosystem.

Analysis of monomeric and oligomeric organophosphorus flame retardants in fish muscle tissues using liquid chromatographyeelectrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry:Application to Nile tilapia(Oreochromis niloticus)from an e-waste processing area in northern Vietnam

Using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry combined with liquid chromatography(LC),a novel analytical method was developed to quantify eight monomeric organophosphorus flame retardants(m-PFRs)and three oligomeric organophosphorus flame retardants(o-PFRs)in fish muscle samples.The optimization and validation experiments indicate that the developed method can determine accurately the concentrations of analytes in fish muscle samples.The recoveries of analytes in fish muscle samples were in the range of 74-105%.The coefficients of variation of the concentrations of analytes in fish muscle samples were 0.6-8.9%.The concentrations of analytes in procedural blanks were below the limit of quantification(LOQ)values.Furthermore,the developed method was applied to the analysis of m-PFRs and o-PFRs in the muscle samples of tilapias collected from an electronic waste(ewaste)processing area in northern Vietnam.The concentrations of m-PFRs such as tris(2-chloroethyl)phosphate(TCEP),tris(2-chloroisopropyl)phosphate(TCIPP),and triphenyl phosphate(TPHP)were dominant among the investigated m-PFRs.The respective concentrations of TCEP,TCIPP,and TPHP were up to 160,300,and 230 ng g^-1 lipid weight,respectively,whereas those of o-PFRs were up to 10 ng g^-1 lipid weight.The results of this study indicate lower accumulation potential of o-PFRs compared with m-PFRs for the first time.