Experiments were conducted in order to assess the healing effect of bee venom (BV) cream on full-thickness skin wounds in rabbits. BV cream was compared with silver sulfadiazine (SS) as a topical medicament against a control on experimentally created full-thickness wounds. Two wounds measuring 2 × 2 cm were created bilaterally (four wounds/rabbit) on the dorsolateral aspect of the trunk of seven New Zealand white rabbits. Wound treatments were evenly distributed on four sites, using a Latin square design. The contact layer of wounds was treated with physiological saline (control), SS cream, and BV cream over a period of 28 days. Assessment of wound healing was based on scab hardness, wound exudates, wound area, unepithelialized granulation tissue, and histopathological findings. Topical application of BV and SS creams to wounds resulted in reduced inflammation, debridement of necrotic tissue, and promoted granulation and epithelialization. Wound healing was faster, with statistical significance in BV and SS treatments, compared to the control (P<0.05). Treatment with BV evoked an anti-inflammation effect in a rabbit model. BV cream produced a wound healing effect similar to that of commercially available SS cream. Anti-inflammation effect as a topical treatment with BV cream appears to be better than that with SS cream. These results suggest that topical application of BV cream may be an alternative treatment for full-thickness skin wounds.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of E. coli isolated from porcine semen on sperm viability, motility, and semen pH. Semen samples were prepared using commercial extender, SeminarkPro (Noahbio Tech, Korea) that did not contain antibiotics. And 4 different levels of E. coli were artificially innoculated to semen with following concentrations; 4,000 of sperms with 1 of E. coli (T1), 400 with 1 (T2), 40 with 1 (T3), and 4 with 1 (T4). Semen samples were preserved at 17℃ for 5 days in semen storage box until analyzed by flowcytometer. Aliquots were subjected to measure the sperm viability (Live/Dead® stain), motility (mitochondrial function), and semen acidity (pH) from day 0 (day of semen collection) to day 5. Sperm motility and viability were significantly decreased (p<0.05) on day 0 (4 hrs after preservation at 17℃) in T3 and T4 compared to control groups and were significantly decreased (p<0.05) in all groups from day 3. Sample pH was acidic in T3 (6.90～6.86) and T4 (6.86～6.65) from day 3 to day 5 (p<0.05). On the other hand, sample pH was maintained 7.0～7.1 in control, T1, and T2 during the experimental period. Sperm motility and viability were significantly decreased from day 0 to day 5 compared to control in samples contaminated with E. coli above a value of 40:1 (20×106 sperm cells/ml : 5×105 cfu/ml). Even on day 1 in T4 and on day 3 in T3, semen pH was acidic probably due to the acidification of dead spermatozoa. These results suggest that E. coli contamination has a concentration-dependent detrimental effect on extended porcine semen quality.

A nine-month-old male Pekingese weighing 5.7 kg was admitted to the Veterinary Medical Center at Chungbuk National University with a history of acute nonambulatory tetraparesis after minor trauma. A diagnosis of atlantoaxial instability with a dens axis fracture was based on examination of survey spinal radiographs and was confirmed during surgery. A modified ventral fixation technique using cortical screws was used for stabilization of the atlantoaxial joint. Serial evaluation based on radiographic and neurologic assessment was performed eight weeks after surgery. Symptoms of tetraparesis disappeared gradually, and arthrodesis of the atlantoaxial joint using a ventral fixation technique has maintained stable fixation.