{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T00:37:17Z","timestamp":1760143037483,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,1,15]],"date-time":"2024-01-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1705276800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"JST Adaptable and Seamless Technology Transfer Program through Target-driven R&amp;D (A-STEP)","award":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"]}]},{"name":"Joint Research Promotion Project with the Private Sector, Gifu University","award":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"]}]},{"name":"JSPS KAKENHI","award":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["JPMJTM22CK","23K17441"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Veterinary Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Cetaceans, including beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas), have high morbidity and mortality rates due to bacterial or fungal lower respiratory infections. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) collection by bronchoscopy is beneficial for detecting pathogenic microorganisms in the lower respiratory tract. Efficient and safe bronchoscopy requires characterizing the bronchial tree systems of beluga whales, as no reports exist on bronchial length and bifurcation. In this study, bronchoscopy was performed on five captive beluga whales (9\u201344 years old) to detect bronchial length and bifurcation. The lengths from the blowhole to the scope impassable points due to the minimized bronchi diameters of the left principal bronchus (LPB), right principal bronchus (RPB), and tracheal bronchus (TB) were 110\u2013155, 110\u2013150, and 80\u2013110 cm, respectively, and were correlated with the body length. Bronchoscopy identified more than 10, 10, and 6 bifurcated bronchi from the LPB, RPB, and TB, respectively. This is the first report to clarify the differences in bronchial tree systems between beluga whales and other cetaceans, as well as the differences for each individual beluga whale. These results could be useful for obtaining BALF via bronchoscopy to detect pathogenic microorganisms causing infections in the lower respiratory tract of beluga whales.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/vetsci11010033","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,1,15]],"date-time":"2024-01-15T07:25:07Z","timestamp":1705303507000},"page":"33","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Bronchial Tree System Analysis of Live Beluga Whale (Delphinapterus leucas) Using Bronchoscopy"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"given":"Takashi","family":"Kamio","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"},{"name":"Laboratory of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, Japan"},{"name":"Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yukako","family":"Odani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wataru","family":"Ohtomo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Akira","family":"Ogushi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yuichiro","family":"Akune","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Masanori","family":"Kurita","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, 1-3 Minato-machi, Minato-ku, Nagoya 455-0033, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ayaka","family":"Okada","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1189-8392","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yasuo","family":"Inoshima","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, Japan"},{"name":"Joint Graduate School of Veterinary Sciences, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, Japan"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,1,15]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"16","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mmcr.2017.03.005","article-title":"Successful treatment of azole-resistant invasive aspergillosis in a bottlenose dolphin with high-dose posaconazole","volume":"16","author":"Bunskoek","year":"2017","journal-title":"Med. 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