An 8-year-old, spayed female Maltese dog was presented with a one-month history of erythema, swelling and alopecia of periocular region with pruritus. The skin lesions were first detected at the age of three years, but this was the first time that symptoms had appeared in the eyes. Physical examination revealed markedly swollen and erythematous eyelids and conjunctiva including Meibomian glands. In addition, periocular alopecia and tears were identified. Slit lamp microscopy revealed erythema of conjunctiva and swelling of Meibomian glands. The Schirmer’s tear test was normal. Impression smear cytology of eyes revealed sterile neutrophils and corneal epithelial cells. There were no virus or bacterial infections in the eyes. On skin examination, generalized erythema was detected but there were no other skin lesions. A case of allergic blepharoconjunctivitis associated with canine atopic dermatitis was diagnosed based on history taking and skin examination. Treatment included cetirizine, cyclosporine, prednisolone and Forus eye drops®. The owner was instructed to wear an Elizabethan collar around his dog's neck at all times and restrict walking. And the diet was changed to hypoallergenic dog food. Medications and environmental restrictions significantly reduced erythema, edema and swelling of meibomian glands. Pruritus was also decreased. Six weeks later, the edema lesions of eyes disappeared.

A 2-year-old, spayed male Bengal cat was referred to our clinic due to a mass lesion on the upper lip, as well as lower lip swelling and redness. Furthermore, well-circumscribed, raised, pink lesions were found in the oral cavity. Complete blood counts (CBC) and serum biochemistry profiles revealed no remarkable findings. Bacterial and fungal cultures of the lesion in the oral cavity were negative. Fine needle aspiration of the lesions revealed numerous eosinophils. Based on both clinical examination and cytological evaluation, the cat was diagnosed with feline eosinophilic granuloma. As an initial treatment, oral prednisolone (PDS) with cyclosporine was administered. However, the cyclosporine caused the cat to vomit. The lesion was markedly improved after 2 weeks of PDS-only therapy; this was subsequently tapered for 2 months and discontinued. However, one month later, the lesion had relapsed. The cat was then treated for one month using tacrolimus with PDS, and the clinical signs of eosinophilic granuloma gradually improved. The tacrolimus was gradually tapered for 1 month, and the PDS was gradually tapered for 4 months. There is no standard protocol for the investigation and treatment of feline eosinophilic granuloma. The cat in this report was administered immunosuppressive therapies to treat eosinophilic granuloma. This case report provides evidence the combination of PDS and tacrolimus is effective for reducing relapse in feline eosinophilic granuloma.

In this study, we developed and validated microanalysis methods for the determination of linear alkylbenzenesulfonate (LAS), sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), and alpha olefin sulfonate (AOS). The conditions for the analysis of the surfactants using HPLC with FLD, RID, and ELSD detectors were investigated. The methods were validated by determining the linearity, limits of detection (LODs), limits of quantification (LOQs), recovery, precision, and accuracy. LAS analysis by FLD revealed calibration curves that were linear in the range of 10-200 mg/L for an LAS mixture. The calibration curves for C10-C13 had correlation coefficients of 0.995, 0.997, 0.996, and 0.997, respectively. SLS analysis using RID generated a linear calibration curve in the range of 10-300 mg/L. The calibration curve for SLS C12 had a correlation coefficient of 0.9994. AOS analysis using ELSD resulted in a correlation coefficient of 0.9940. For LAS, the LODs and LOQs were 0.09-0.56 and 0.30-1.87 mg/L, respectively. For SLS C12, the LOD and LOQ were 0.07 and 2.33 mg/L, respectively. For AOS C14, the LOD and LOQ were 16.55 and 21.83 mg/L, respectively. The recoveries were 97.17-98.84% for LAS C10-C14, 97.94% for SLS C12, and 96.11% for AOS C14. The established methods provide acceptable precision and accuracy. Our methods could be useful for the detection of anionic surfactants in dishwashing detergents.

The tongue has 4 kinds of papillae, which are filiform, fungiform (FU), foliate (FO) and circumvallate papilla (CV). Tongue papillae except filiform papilla include taste buds. The papillae differ in taste sensitivities, likely due to differential expression of taste receptors. In this study, we evaluated differences in the expression levels of taste receptors in FU, FO and CV. Male DBA2 mice, 42-60 days old, were used in the study. Messenger RNAs were extracted from the murine epithelial tissues including FU, FO and CV. Cloned DNAs were synthesized by reverse transcription. Quantitative PCRs (qPCRs) were performed to determine mRNA expression levels of taste receptors. Results of qPCR revealed that the relative expression levels and patterns were different among FU, FO and CV. All three type 1 taste receptors were expressed FU, FO and CV at varying relative expression levels. All 35 kinds of type 2 taste receptors showed higher expression in FO and CV than in FU. Tas2r108 and Tas2r137 showed the two highest expression levels in all tested papillae. The differential expression levels and patterns of taste receptors among the three papillae could contribute to the different physiological sensitivities by tongue areas. Additional studies such as in situ hybridization or taste receptor cell activity recording is necessary to elucidate the functional relationship between expression levels of taste receptors and taste sensitivity.

건강한 삶에 대한 현대인의 관심이 나날이 고조되고 있으며, 이에 따라 노화와 질병의 예방에 효과가 있는 항산화제의 연구가 활발히 이루어지고 있다. 특히 천연물이나 식품을 소재로 한 식이성 항산화제에 대한 연구는 꾸준히 증가하고 있는 추세이며, 천연물의 소재나 연구 분야의 폭이 매우 넓다. 본 연구는 고들빼기의 기능성 식품으로서 이용 가능성을 검토하기 위하여 동결건조 후, 각각의 용매(에탄올, 메탄올, 물)로 추출한 샘플을 DPPH radical 소거능, 아질산염 소거능, 총 페놀함량, 유기산 및 미생물함량을 측정하였다. 고들빼기 추출물에 대한 DPPH radical 소거능은 대체로 추출농도가 높아질수록 증가하는 경향을 보였고, 메탄올로 추출한 80% 희석액으로 추출했을 때 DPPH radical 소거능이 약 76.3%로 가장 높게 나타났다. pH가 증가함에 따라 아질산염 소거능은 감소하였고, 메탄올로 희석한 시료가 pH 1.2에서 77.8%으로 가장 높았다. 총 페놀 화합물 함량은 에탄올로 추출한 100% 희석액에서 76.7 mg GAE/g으로 가장 높았다. 고들빼기 김치의 유기산은 젖산, 구연산 순으로 높게 검출되었다. 저장기간이 길어질수록 총균수는 줄어들고, 유산균수함량이 증가하였다. 이러한 결과로 볼 때 고들빼기는 폴리페놀 함량이 풍부하고, DPPH, 아질산염 소거효과를 보여, 기능성 소재로서의 활용이 가능하리라 생각된다.