Measurement of urinary and plasma estrone sulphate concentrations from pregnant sows

The accuracy of urinary estrone sulphate (E1S) concentrations as an indication of pregnancy was compared to that of plasma E1S concentration. Urine and plasma were collected from 145 sows 18 to 30 days after mating. Concentrations of E1S in urine were indexed to creatinine concentration (CR) and specific gravity (SG) to correct for urine dilution. There was no significant difference in E1S concentration between urine corrected for CR or SG and uncorrected urine (UN) from pregnant sows. Urinary E1S concentrations were 20 to 100 times higher than plasma E1S concentrations. The E1S test was accurate in the detection of pregnancy in sows using both plasma and urine (test sensitivity, 98.8% vs. 96.4%, respectively) during the optimal sampling period of 20 to 30 days post mating. The test was slightly more accurate (NS) using plasma than urine in detecting non-pregnant sows (test specificity, 100.0% vs. 91.9%, respectively) 20-30 days after mating. Urinary E1S concentrations could be used to predict litter size, but the precision was poor ( +/- 3 piglets), and thus could only be used to predict small (less than 5 piglets), medium (6-10 piglets) and large (greater than 11 piglets) litters.     

Two Cases of Mycobacteriosis in Psittacine Birds

Two cases of mycobacteriosis in individual psittacine birds from two separate small aviaries are described. The lesions consisted of infiltration of organs with large macrophages, containing numerous acidfast organisms. There was no caseation or encapsulation of the lesions. No microbiological studies were conducted as mycobacteriosis was not suspected at the time of necropsy.     

Crop protection--what will shape the future picture?

The drivers which influence the types of crop protection most needed by agriculture are changing. A polarisation of approaches has resulted in the needs of organic agriculture and biotechnological agriculture, which can be identified as the current extremes of the spectrum, becoming very different. The main requirements of these two sectors are identified here and used as the basis for questioning future EU research requirements in crop protection. Factors affecting/influencing organic farming and the use of genetically modified crops are discussed in some detail.     

Site and extent of digestion, duodenal flow, and intestinal disappearance of total and esterified fatty acids in sheep fed a high-concentrate diet supplemented with high-linoleate safflower oil

Our objective was to determine duodenal and ileal flows of total and esterified fatty acids and to determine ruminal fermentation characteristics and site and extent of nutrient digestion in sheep fed an 80% concentrate diet supplemented with high-linoleate (77%) safflower oil at 0, 3, 6, and 9% of DM. Oil was infused intraruminally along with an isonitrogenous basal diet (fed at 2% of BW) that contained bromegrass hay, cracked corn, corn gluten meal, urea, and limestone. Four crossbred wethers (BW = 44.3 +/- 15.7 kg) fitted with ruminal, duodenal, and ileal cannulas were used in a 4 x 4 Latin square experiment, in which 14 d of dietary adaptation were followed by 4 d of duodenal, ileal, and ruminal sampling. Fatty acid intake increased (linear, P = 0.004 to 0.001) with increased dietary safflower oil. Digestibilities of OM, NDF, and N were not affected (P = 0.09 to 0.65) by increased dietary safflower oil. For total fatty acids (free plus esterified) and esterified fatty acids, duodenal flow of most fatty acids, including 18:2c-9,c-12, increased (P = 0.006 to 0.05) with increased dietary oil. Within each treatment, duodenal flow of total and esterified 18:2c-9,c-12 was similar (P = 0.32), indicating that duodenal flow of this fatty acid occurred because most of it remained esterified. Duodenal flow of esterified 18:1t-11 increased (P = 0.08) with increased dietary safflower oil, indicating that reesterification of ruminal fatty acids occurred. Apparent small intestinal disappearance of most fatty acids was not affected (P = 0.19 to 0.98) by increased dietary safflower oil, but increased (P = 0.05) for 18:2c-9,c-12, which ranged from 87.0 to 97.4%, and for 18:2c-9,t-11 (P = 0.03), which ranged from 37.9% with no added oil to 99.2% with supplemental oil. For esterified fatty acids, apparent small intestinal disappearance was from 80% for 18:3c-9,c-12,c-15 at the greatest level of dietary oil up to 100% for 18:1t-11 and 18:1c-12 with 0% oil. We concluded that duodenal flow of 18:2c-9,c-12 was predominately associated with the esterified fraction, suggesting that the extent of ruminal lipolysis was decreased with increased dietary high-linoleate safflower oil. Furthermore, biohydrogenation intermediates observed in the esterified fatty acids indicated that some reesterification occurred, and the high level of apparent absorption of esterified fatty acids indicated that intestinal lipolysis did not limit overall digestion of the fatty acids fed to the sheep.