Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Evaluation Of Casein Hydrolysate As An Alternative Dry-Off Treatment And Milk Quality Management Tool In Dairy Cows, Justine Elena Britten

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Mastitis, an infection of the mammary gland, is the most common and expensive animal health problem for the dairy industry and affects every dairy farm to some degree. This disease complex is painful for dairy cows, increases the on-farm use of antibiotics, presents a threat to milk quality and is a waste of time, money and milk production. Each year, the dairy industry loses as much as a billion dollars to mastitis.

Many cows will experience mastitis at least once during a lactation cycle and some animals will develop recurring mastitis episodes in a single mammary quarter. These mastitic quarters …

A Review Of Osteoarthritis, Madelin Brooke Session

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease which plagues many older animals and humans. It is a disease that is characterized by the degeneration of joint cartilage, inflammation, as well as chronic pain and stiffness that results from this disorder. Unfortunately, most of the treatments for this painful and chronic disease mostly involve pain management and temporary relief strategies. These strategies usually include pain medication, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, injectable lubricants, as well as surgical techniques. However, because these treatments are just temporary fixes meant for pain management and to improve quality of life they must continue throughout the remainder of the …

Male Reproductive Infection And Sexual Transmission Of Zika Virus In An Immunocompromised Mouse Model, Chad S. Clancy

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a sexually transmitted viral infection most frequently transmitted by mosquitoes. The source of infectious virions in the male reproductive tract has yet to be elucidated. The goals of the studies included developing and characterizing two mouse models for reproductive transmission studies and demonstration of sexual transmission of virus via artificial insemination. The mouse strains used in the study lacked receptors to interferon molecules, key signaling proteins of the host immune response. Inflammation severity was assessed during acute disease, 5-11 days after infection using a novel histopathology grading system. ZIKV proteins and genome were initially detected in …

Young Germ Cell Depleted Ovaries In Post-Reproductive Mice And Its Effects On Immune Function, Mckenna Walters

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

It has previously been shown that young, cycling ovarian transplantation in aged female mice increased the general health and life span in regard to their post-reproductive health. It has further been hypothesized that this enhancement of health is directly influenced by the ovarian somatic cells. To address this hypothesis, transplants of young germ cell depleted and germ cell containing ovaries were performed on female mice. The purpose of this study is to continue to discern the reproductive influence on aging health, specifically in the area of immunological well-being. Control group mice were separated by age and treatment mice were subsequently …

Manipulation Of Ovarian Function Significantly Influenced Glucose Metabolism In Cba/J Mice, Kyleigh Ann Tyler

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Menopause is associated with a decline in overall health in women. One health aspect impacted is glucose metabolism. As women experience menopause, their metabolism declines dramatically. The current study addressed the influence of ovarian somatic cells on the improvement of metabolic health through transplantations of young, germ cell-depleted ovaries. The purpose of this study is to expand the understanding of female reproductive health on metabolism. Control mice were grouped by age and treatment mice were age-matched. Treatment mice were placed into one of three groups: 1) mice received germ cell-depleted ovaries, 2) mice received germ cell-containing ovaries, and 3) mice …

A Pilot Study Of The Effects Of Mycoplasma Ovipneumoniae Exposure On Domestic Lamb Growth And Performance, Thomas E. Besser, Jessica Levy, Melissa Ackerman, Danielle Nelson, Kezia R. Manlove, Kathleen A. Potter, Jan Busboom, Margaret Benson

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae is a globally distributed pathogen that has been associated with pneumonia in both domestic and wild Caprinae. It is closely related to M. hyopneumoniae, a respiratory pathogen of swine that is associated with decreased growth rates of pigs as well as clinical respiratory disease. In order to assess the effects of M. ovipneumoniae on lamb performance, we generated a cohort of lambs free of M. ovipneumoniae by segregation of test negative ewes after lambing, then compared the growth and carcass quality traits of M. ovipneumoniae-free and -colonized lambs from weaning to harvest. Some signs of respiratory disease …

A Review Of Rat Lungworm Infection And Recent Data On Its Definitive Hosts In Hawaii, Chris N. Niebuhr, Susan I. Jarvi, Shane R. Siers

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a zoonotic nematode that causes rat lungworm disease (angiostrongyliasis), a potentially debilitating form of meningitis, in humans worldwide. The definitive hosts for rat lungworm are primarily members of the genus Rattus, with gastropods as intermediate hosts. This parasite has emerged as an important public health concern in the United States, especially in Hawaii, where the number of human cases has increased in the last decade. Here we discuss the current knowledge of the rat lungworm, including information on the life cycle and host species, as well as updates on known infection levels. Three …

Harnessing Population Genetics For Pest Management: Theory And Application For Urban Rats, Matthew Combs, Kaylee Byers, Chelsea Himsworth, Jason Munshi-South

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Effective management of rodent pests requires an ecological understanding of how they move through their environment and how those movements influence the invasion, persistence, or reinvasion of problematic colonies. Traditional methodologies used to describe rodent movement patterns, such as mark-recapture, are hindered by their time-consuming nature and limited geographic scope. As such, our understanding of how rodents interact with urban environments remains limited. Population genetic principles and tools have the capacity to greatly increase our understanding of rodent population dynamics, ecological relationships, and movements across space, but this field is often unapproachable to non-scientist pest management professionals (PMPs). In this …

Numbers Of Human Fatalities, Injuries, And Illnesses In The United States Due To Wildlife, Michael R. Conover

Human–Wildlife Interactions

I reviewed published and unpublished papers, government reports, and websites to estimate how many people are injured or killed each year by wildlife or stricken by a zoonotic disease. Over 47,000 people annually in the United States sought medical attention after being attacked or bitten by wildlife, and approximately 8 people died annually. Most bites were by snakes, birds, rodents, and raccoons (Procyon lotor). Each year, wildlife–vehicle collisions resulted in >59,000 human injuries and >440 human fatalities, while wildlife–aircraft collisions added 16 more injuries and 10 fatalities. I also found that >68,000 people each year sought medical …