This is a reprint of Myburgh, J.G. Botha, C.J. Booyse, D.G. & Reyers, F., 2008, 'Provisional clinical chemistry parameters in the African Sharptooth catfish (Clarias gariepinus)', Journal of the South African Veterinary Association 79(4), 156-160. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/jsava.v79i4.265:Pollution affects aquatic systems worldwide and there is an urgent need for efficient monitoring. Fish are generally sensitive to their environment and are thus considered to be valuable bioindicator species. The African Sharptooth catfish (Clarias gariepinus) is particularly important in this respect because of its very wide distribution. In order to use C. gariepinus as a bioindicator species its baseline clinical chemistry must be defined. Existing data are scarce, and the objective of this work was therefore to establish clinical chemistry parameters for C. gariepinus. Blood was collected from male and female catfish and a number of clinical chemistry parameters were determined. Plasma protein values, but particularly those of plasma albumin, were found to be very low, approximately half the value for dogs, but similar to the values in Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus). Plasma urea values in Sharptooth catfish were found to be much lower than in dogs, but only marginally lower than in Channel catfish. Plasma creatinine in Sharptooth catfish, however, was only a quarter of that of dogs and one third of that found in Channel catfish. These findings may have implications for using urea and / or creatinine as an index of renal glomerular filtration, as is done in mammals. Plasma enzyme activity ranges were much lower in Sharptooth catfish than in dogs, particularly for alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). By comparison, Channel catfish have an even lower ALT activity range but an ALP range that is very similar to dogs. The implications for using these enzymes as markers for liver disease are not clear from these data, as factors such as plasma half-life and tissue distribution remain to be determined. The very low plasma thyroxine (T4) levels have important implications for laboratory personnel, who will have to set up calibration and standardisation adaptations for the methods that are generally designed for human samples. Although the sample size was too small for reliable comparisons, it appeared that there was little difference in the parameters measured between male and female fish. The values obtained are a useful starting point for using C. gariepinus as a bioindicator species.

A study was conducted to investigate changes in the development of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) in relation to body growth of growing ostriches. There was an 11-fold increase (P < 0.001) in body weight between 3 and 72 days of age. The relative (to body weight) weight of the proventriculus/gizzard, caeca and colon also increased (P < 0.001) with age. The relative weight of the small intestine peaked at 41 days of age and then tended to decline (P < 0.05) subsequently. The relative weight of the pancreas peaked at 27 days of age and remained fairly stable thereafter. The activities of chymotrypsin and lipase declined (P < 0.001) with age between 3 and 72 days. At 3 days of age, the protein content of the duodenal mucosal homogenate was higher (P < 0.001) than that of the jejunum or ileum, but at all subsequent periods the jejunal protein content was the highest. The protein content of the intestinal brush-border membrane was higher (P < 0.001) at the jejunum than at the duodenum or ileum. The specific activity of maltase declined (P < 0.001) with age in all three regions, most especially between 3 and 27 days of age. The activity of alkaline phosphatase (AP) at 41 and 55 days of age was higher (P < 0.001) in the duodenum than in the jejunum or ileum. The activity of AP fluctuated with age in the duodenum but there was a more defined decline (P < 0.001) with age in the jejunum and ileum. The relative protein content of the liver increased (P < 0.001) with age, with two peaks at 27 and 55 days of age. Arginase activity was not detected in the liver of 3-day old chicks and was not significantly affected by age between 27 and 72 days of age. The pattern of development observed is similar to that in growing poultry. There is, however, a need for evaluation at closer intervals in early life as well as an in-depth assessment of the morphometry of the intestinal mucosa.

Rumen contents from four blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) and six black wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou) were collected f rom two l ocati ons during two winter culling seasons. A total of 16 species of protozoa were found in blue wildebeest with Dasytricha ruminantium, Opisthotrichum janus and Ostracodinium gracile occurring in all four animals. In black wildebeest, 23 species of protozoa were observed with only Diplodinium bubalidis f. bubalidis and Ostracodinium damaliscus being present in all animals. In the blue wildebeest, the total number of species in an individual animal varied from 9 -11 and in the black wildebeest, the number ranged from 4 -14 species per animal.Concentrations of cells per ml ranged from 1110 to 5880 in the blue wildebeest and 3120 to 6240 in the black wildebeest. This study is the first report on protozoa species in the blue and black wildebeest. A new species of Entodinium is described, Entodinium taurinus n. sp., observed in the rumen contents of three blue wildebeest. Several physical parameters of the 2 digestive tract were also measured, including distribution, pH, temperature and density of gastrointestinal contents in different sections of the total tract. In vitro gas production was estimated for rumen, cecum and colon contents.

The warthog (Phacochoerus aethiopicus) is a grazer and hindgut fermenter with an apparent unique population of protozoa; however, only a limited number of specimens have been studied to date. In addition to having a very low number of protozoal species, little is known about temporal (seasonal) variation and geographic variation in protozoan diversity. Forty-one warthogs were harvested over a two-year period ( Several physical parameters of the digestive tract were measured, i.e. pH, temperature, organ length, weight of organ contents, dry matter, density and digesta in vitro gas production. Samples were collected from the caecum and colon for protozoal counts. In the animals from Ditholo and Northam, Telamodinium onyx was present in 42 of the 44 animals and was the predominant species. Megadinium aethiopicum was observed in 33 animals and Teratodinium sphaeredon was present in 10 of the warthogs. Blepharoconus krugerensis was present in four animals. A single species of both Cyclopostidae and Isotricha were present in two separate animals. In the warthogs harvested at Knapdaar, T. onyx, M. aethiopicum and B. krugerensis were present in all three animals, while M. sphaeredon was present in only two. Unexpectedly, the species Blepharosphaera intestinalis and Charonina equi were found in all three animals. Concentration of protozoans in caecum/colon fluid averaged about 25 × 10 3 per ml. In conclusion, the larger number of animals studied established that there can be considerable protozoan diversity among animals and that both seasonal and geographic variation occur.