Blood Tests Show Where Loggerhead Turtles Go

Every year, thousands of endangered loggerhead sea turtles crawl ashore at Florida's Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge to lay eggs before dragging their leathery bodies back into the sea. But where they go after their trek isn't well-known.

Scientists can use GPS devices to record turtles' travels, but these geolocator tags are expensive, and may be lost if turtles die. A group of researchers has come up with a less expensive, easier way to find out where loggerheads voyage: testing their blood. A new study, published Sept. 20 in the journal PLoS ONE, found that this technique is just as accurate as using GPS tags.

The technique examines carbon isotopes in the turtles' blood, which come from the food the animals eat. Carbon has different isotopes, or variants, present in all living things, and the exact mix of isotopes varies by region; for example, the mixture in the mid-Atlantic is different from that of the Caribbean. By examining the mixture of carbon isotopes in the turtles' blood, scientists could determine the region to which the turtles migrated.

Continued:  http://www.livescience.com/23379-tracking-loggerhead-sea-turtles.html

Veterinarians Find Infections Faster by Monitoring Blood Compound; Blood Test for Dogs Could Lead to Similar Human Test

ScienceDaily (Dec. 5, 2011) — In pets and people, the time it takes to diagnose an infection may mean life or death. Now, a University of Missouri veterinarian is identifying ways to diagnose pet infections in approximately a third of the current diagnosis time. The resulting test could be used eventually for humans.


"Infections can be difficult to diagnose, and many veterinarians have to send samples to a lab and wait three days or more as the lab attempts to grow a culture," said Amy DeClue, assistant professor of veterinary internal medicine in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine. "Meanwhile, the infection continues to spread each day that veterinarians wait on lab results, which is detrimental to the patient. In extreme infections, called sepsis, more than half of patients die. My group has been evaluating different blood biomarkers that could give a quick and accurate indication of infection, and we believe we've found a biomarker that will only require a simple blood test."


DeClue and her colleagues found that measuring the amount of the blood biomarker N-terminal portion of pro C-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pCNP) is a good indication of infection, and the same is true in humans. Working with collaborators at Veterinary Diagnostics Institute, DeClue hopes to develop a portable bedside test that veterinarians could use to quickly test patients for infection and ultimately target a better cure.

"In animal and human medicine, one goal is to reduce the amount of antibiotics used in treatment, to reduce bacterial resistance to antibiotics," DeClue said. "If successful, future tests could help veterinarians tailor treatment to the specific problem and reduce antibiotic use."

"The systems in dogs and people are very applicable to each other, so whatever biomarkers we find in dogs could also benefit people," DeClue said.

DeClue has tested several biomarkers for infection in dogs. "Evaluation of serum NT-pCNP as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for sepsis in dogs" was published in the May-June issue of the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine and "Plasma nitrate/nitrite concentrations in dogs with naturally developing sepsis and non-infectious forms of the systemic inflammatory response syndrome," was published in the November issue of the journal Veterinary Record. Co-authors include Kara Osterbur, a graduate student and emergency and critical care resident in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111205140603.htm