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In California there are 16 different climate zones, as defined in the California Energy Code (Title24). The code requires slightly different types of buildings in each zone. These different building code requirements make it important for people who are designing, building, or maintaining these buildings to understand the unique attributes of their climate and how it will influence the design and performance of their buildings. In this UCEI project we developed a simple, free, easy-to-use, graphic-based computer program called Climate Consultant 3, and we have posted it on the State of California’s Flex Your Power web site and on the UCLA Energy Design Tools web site. Our objective is to make it freely accessible to architects, builders, contractors, and homeowners, etc., to help them understand their local climate and how it impacts their building’s energy consumption.

: Introduction: Guidelines regarding antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation in HIV infection have varied over time, with the 2015 World Health Organization recommendation suggesting ART initiation at the time of diagnosis regardless of CD4 T‐cell counts. Herein, we investigated the influence of socio‐demographic and clinical factors in addition to time trends on early ART initiation among participants of the Montreal Primary HIV Infection Study. Methods: The Montreal Primary HIV Infection Study is a prospective cohort established in three community medical centres (CMCs) and two university medical centres (UMCs). Recently diagnosed HIV‐infected adults were categorized as receiving early (vs. delayed) ART if ART was initiated within 180 days of the baseline visit. Associations between early ART initiation and socio‐demographic, socio‐economic and behavioural information were examined. Independent associations of factors linked with early ART initiation were determined using multivariable binary logistic regression analysis. Results: A total of 348 participants had a documented date of HIV acquisition of Conclusions: Early ART initiation during primary HIV infection was associated with diminished biological prognostic factors and calendar time mirroring evolution of treatment guidelines. In addition, socio‐economic factors such as having a paid employment, contribute to early ART initiation in the context of universal access to care in Canada., Introduction Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) affects over 36.7 million people worldwide. Nearly, half of those infected with HIV remain untreated, increasing their risks for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), onward [...]

Background: Global brain ischaemia following cardiopulmonary arrest is uncommonly reported in veterinary medicine yet neurologic injury after arrest is a known morbidity. Case report: An 18‐week‐old male entire Cavalier King Charles Spaniel‐Poodle was referred following 3 days of neurologic abnormalities after cardiopulmonary arrest. After resuscitation, the animal had decerebrate rigidity, a stuporous mentation and intermittent episodes of vocalisation and apnoea. A brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was undertaken 4 days after cardiopulmonary arrest, with standard sequences (T1‐weighted, T2‐weighted and fluid‐attenuated inversion recovery) as well as diffusion‐weighted imaging to better discern ischaemic injury and cytotoxic oedema for prognostic reasons. MRI findings were consistent with global brain ischaemia affecting the hippocampus, cerebellum and substantia nigra, the latter two not previously identified in canine cases of global brain ischaemia. The patient was euthanased on day eight post‐cardiopulmonary arrest due to a lack of neurological improvement and developing sepsis as a complication. Ante‐mortem identification of affected areas of the brain was confirmed on histological examination, with evidence of ischaemic injury seen in the cerebrum, hippocampus, cerebellum, basal nuclei and thalamus. Conclusion: This report describes ante‐mortem MRI and postmortem findings in a dog with global brain ischaemia following cardiopulmonary arrest. A multimodal approach to neuroprognostication in patients recovering from cardiopulmonary arrest is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The product 4CYTE™ Canine (Interpath Pty Ltd., Ballarat, Victoria, Australia) contains four active ingredients: three marine‐derived ingredients and Epiitalis®, which is extracted from the seed of the plant Biota orientalis. Carprofen is a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID) licensed for the treatment of osteoarthritis in dogs and is the active ingredient in several licensed products. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of 4CYTE Canine with carprofen for the treatment of pain from osteoarthritis. The trial was a randomised, masked, parallel group trial in dogs with naturally occurring osteoarthritis. Sixty‐nine dogs with body weight of between 10 and 50 kg were enrolled in the study, of which 66 (95.7%) completed the study. The 4CYTE Canine was administered at 60 mg active/kg daily and carprofen at 2–4 mg/kg daily, with a loading dose of up to 4 mg/kg on the first day. The trial duration was 28 days. The primary outcome was defined as improvement in Owner Lameness Score at Day 28 compared with Day 0. Other outcomes measured included Veterinary Lameness Scores and the Owner Mobility Scores. At Day 28, 14 of 29 (48.3%) dogs that received 4CYTE Canine and 13 of 37 (35.1%) dogs that received carprofen had improved. The 4CYTE Canine was found to be non‐inferior to carprofen at Day 14 for the Owner Mobility Score and at Day 28 for all three outcomes. This response pattern suggests that improvement in response to 4CYTE Canine continued between Days 14 and 28. These results support the conclusion that 4CYTE Canine is not inferior to carprofen by end‐point clinical efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, and its declaration as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), the reliance on pharmacists as one of the first points of contact within the healthcare system has been highlighted. This evidence-based review is aimed at providing guidance for pharmacists in community, hospital and other settings in South Africa, on the management of patients with suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19. The situation is rapidly evolving, and new evidence continues to emerge on a daily basis. This guidance document takes into account and includes newly available evidence and recommendations, particularly around the following aspects relating to COVID-19: • Epidemiology • The virus, its modes of transmission and incubation period • Symptom identification, including the differentiation between influenza, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis and COVID-19 • Social media myths and misinformation • Treatment guidelines and medicines that may need to be kept in stock • Treatment and prevention options, including an update on vaccine development • The case for and against the use of NSAIDs, ACE-inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) in patients with COVID-19 • Interventions and patient counselling by the pharmacist. It is critical, though, that pharmacists access the most recent and authoritative information to guide their practice. Key websites that can be relied upon are: • World Health Organization (WHO): https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel- coronavirus-2019 • National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD): https://www.nicd.ac.za/diseases- a-z-index/covid-19/ • National Department of Health (NDoH): http://www.health.gov.za/index.php/ outbreaks/145-corona-virus-outbreak/465-corona-virusoutbreak; https://sacoronavirus. co.za/ [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ultrasound in avian patients is useful for identifying abnormalities within the coelomic cavity. A correlation between sonographic evaluation of jejunal thickness and body weight has been reported in mammals, but not the chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus). The purpose of this study was to prospectively assess the normal values of jejunal thickness in the chicken and compare this to body weight. Methods: Coelomic ultrasound was performed on 89 clinically normal chickens with no history or signs of gastrointestinal disease. Two populations of hens (commercial layers and backyard purebred and mixed‐breed hens) were used. Breed and ultrasonographically measured jejunal wall thickness were recorded in all hens. Body weight was recorded in 45 of the hens (mixed‐breed and purebred backyard chickens). Results and conclusion: There was no statistically significant correlation between body weight and ultrasonographically measured jejunal wall thickness. The mean thickness of the jejunal wall in healthy chickens was 2.1 ± 0.08 mm. Further studies comparing jejunal thickness in chickens with and without signs of GI disease would be useful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osteopetrosis is a rare disorder characterised by a defect in osteoclastic bone resorption. This report describes osteopetrosis in a neonatal donkey that suffered a displaced tibial fracture. Radiographic examination identified generalised reduction in medullary cavity size, thickened mid-diaphyseal cortices and conical metaphyseal bone extending toward the mid-diaphysis of long bones. Postmortem examination identified additional fractures and brittle bones. Histologically, osteoclasts were absent in multiple bone sections. Diaphyseal cortices consisted of concentric bone lamellae with marrow tissue infiltration. Large wedges of secondary spongiosa extended from the metaphyseal growth plate. Clinical and histopathological features were similar to an osteoclast-deficient, autosomal recessive form of osteopetrosis in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 3-year-old Domestic Shorthair cat was presented with weight loss, anorexia and icterus. Feline hepatic lipidosis and gallbladder mucocoele were diagnosed; this is the first report of gallbladder mucocoele in the cat. The case was managed successfully with cholecystojejunostomy, gastrostomy tube placement and tube feeding for 3 months. The cat has survived over the long term with minimal complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey was conducted of the prevalence of environmental pathogens, especially Streptococcus uberis, as causes of clinical mastitis in dairy cows. The response of intramammary infections with S uberis to conventional treatment was monitored by taking milk samples for bacteriology and somatic cell counting seven, 14 and 21 days after the treatment. The results showed that 51 per cent of the infections failed to respond, and the odds of cases failing to respond was significantly increased when the individual quarter somatic cell count seven days after the treatment was greater than 201,000 cells/ml. Ninety-six per cent of the suspected S uberis isolates identified by culture were confirmed as S uberis by using the AP120 Strep system. Restriction endonuclease fingerprinting was used to type the strains of S uberis isolated from 75 milk samples from 32 cows. Analysis showed that 96 per cent of the cases of S uberis that failed to respond to conventional treatment were persistent infections with one strain rather than reinfections with different strains. The persistent cases of S uberis were treated further with an extended course of intramammary preparations containing either procaine penicillin with dihydrostreptomycin or cefquinome. There was no significant difference between the cure rates achieved by the two preparations, and 55 per cent of the cases that had failed to respond to conventional treatment responded to the additional treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Signs of ascites were observed in only nine of 1863 cattle examined over a period of five years. The ascites was most commonly associated with either primary or secondary cardiac disease; cattle with ascites have a poor prognosis because the condition is usually assocaited with terminal disease. Two animals had cor pulmonale with chronic pneumonia, three had cardiomyopathy, one had bacterial endocarditis, two had thrombosis of the caudal vena cava and one had diffuse abdominal epithelioid mesothelioma. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

After oral ingestion of a free amino acid mixture by three cystinuric patients, plasma increments of lysine and arginine were lower and those of many other amino acids were significantly higher than those found in control subjects. Similar results were obtained in control subjects after amino acid imbalance had been artificially induced by the omission of cystine, lysine, and arginine from the amino acid mixture. Especially high increments of alanine and proline provided the best evidence of amino acid imbalance caused by a temporary lysine and, to a lesser extent, arginine and cystine deficit. No such amino acid imbalance was found to occur in the cystinuric patients after ingestion of whole protein, indicating that absorption of oligopeptides produced by protein digestion provided a balanced physiological serum amino acid increment. This is considered to explain the lack of any unequivocal nutritional deficit in cystinuric patients despite poor absorption of the essential free amino acid, lysine. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Acute metabolic acidosis alters 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D metabolism in experimental animals. We have used the NH4Cl-treated rachitic rat as a model to investigate the effect of acidosis on hepatic 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25 OHD) production. NH4Cl ingestion for 4 days was associated with a significant decrease in blood pH (7.44 +/- 0.03 vs 7.17 +/- 0.03, P less than 0.001) and bicarbonate (22.2 +/- 0.9 vs 10.5 +/- 1.6 mEq/liter, P less than 0.001). Acute metabolic acidosis stimulated 3H-25 hydroxyvitamin D production in liver homogenates. Acidosis resulted in a 52% decrease in Km (50.9 nM vs 24.5 nM) and an 11% decrease in the Vmax (554 picomoles/g liver protein/3 h vs 491 picomoles/g liver protein/3 h). The data collectively suggest that an acid load in vivo increases hepatic 25 OHD production and apparently enhances enzyme affinity for substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]