A giant panda that appeared perfectly healthy was found to suffer from a gastric ulcer during a recent biomedical checkup in Chengdu, capital of the southwestern Sichuan Province.

It was the first time for scientists to diagnose the disease in the rare species, said Wang Chenglong, associate researcher with the giant panda breeding and research base in Chengdu.

Wang and his colleagues recently worked with a group of US zoologists in conducting a thorough biomedical checkup on 13 pandas in the base.

They have found, with the help of gastroscopes, X-rays and ultrasounds, that the panda's stomach is very much like that of a dog.

Besides the gastric ulcer, the scientists also found ascites in many pandas. They assumed this abnormal accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity of pandas was a result of poor digestive capacity, as the older a panda was, the more fluid it had.

But to the scientists' disappointment, the vaccination presently used for pandas is not effectively protecting them from infectious diseases including murrain, parainfluenza and hepatitis, according to the biomedical checkup.

The checkup, which started on June 16 and lasted for nine days, also helped scientists to see clearly a female panda's ovary, womb and vagina.

All the pandas were put under general anesthesia for the checkup so that they did not feel much discomfort.

The checkup was carried out by a 10-member team from China and the United States, including zoologists from the US national zoo and zoos in Atlanta and San Diego.

"The biomedical check will contribute greatly to the ongoing research on giant pandas and training of zoologists," said Wang.

Jogayle Howard, a US scientist from the national zoo in Washington D.C., was also pleased with the cooperation, saying she and her colleagues had learned a great deal.

Scientists have also collected samples of tissue from the pandas and will announce more research findings in November.

Founded in 1987, the giant panda breeding and research base in the northern suburbs of the provincial capital Chengdu is home to 42 giant pandas, a quarter of the world's total raised in captivity. By simulating the wild environment, the base aims to make a comprehensive research of the propagation, breeding and disease prevention and treatment of giant pandas.

The latest report from the forestry administration says China has more than 1,750 giant pandas, including at least 1,590 in the wild -- mostly in the foggy mountains around the Sichuan Basin.

(Xinhua News Agency June 29, 2004)