Evaluation of single and comparative intradermal tuberculin tests for tuberculosis eradication in caprine flocks in Castilla y León (Spain)

Goats can act as reservoirs for tuberculosis (TB) infection. The main etiological agents of TB in goats are Mycobacterium caprae and Mycobacterium bovis and they infect also a wide range of domestic and wild animals and humans. Control programmes based mainly on the application of single and comparative intradermal tuberculin (SIT and SCIT respectively) tests are being implemented in certain regions of Spain with a high density of caprine flocks as Castilla y León, including goats with epidemiological relationship with cattle. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of the intradermal tests in naturally TB-infected caprine flocks from this region. The study was performed using data from 17,450 goats in 54 different flocks that were classified as TB-infected in the control programmes executed in 2010 and 2011. Data from 1237 goats from 7 dairy flocks depopulated after the first intradermal testing were used to estimate the sensitivity (Se) using bacteriology as the gold-standard. Overall Se of the SIT test using the severe interpretation was 43.9% (CI 95%, 40.4–47.4) and decreased to 38.8% (CI 95%, 35.5–42.3) using the standard interpretation. Overall Se of the SCIT test ranged between 21.3% (CI 95%, 17.6–25.4) and 7% (CI 95%, 4.9–9.8) depending of the interpretation criteria. A significant weak positive correlation was found between age and skin fold thickness (Spearman’s test p < 0.05). Results from this study yielded, in general, low Se values probably due the systematic detection and slaughter of reactors as a consequence of the eradication programme in previous years or the presence of factors that may interfere in the diagnosis. Therefore, these results suggest the necessity of including ancillary diagnostic tools and/or strict interpretation criteria to maximize detection of positive animals in infected settings.     

Marketing of meat sheep with intensive finishing in southern state of Mexico

The objective of the present study was to quantify the marketing margins of cold sheep carcass and barbacoa meat in the southern state of Mexico. Data were obtained from the production chain links (production, industrialization, and marketing) where the marketing margins were calculated along with the benefit/cost (B/C) ratio. In the absolute marketing margin of the final consumer price per kilogram of carcass meat, the producer obtained US$2.7/kg (47 %) of the utilities, while the intermediaries obtained US$3.1/kg (53 %). Considering the final cooked product in barbacoa (typical dish), the margin was US$6.3/kg (29 %) for the producer and US$15.2/kg (71 %) for the intermediaries. The B/C ratio was 1.0, 1.1, 2, and 1.3 for the producer, stocker, butcher, and barbacoa seller, respectively. It is concluded that the best marketing channel for the producer was the producer-stocker-processor (butcher and barbacoa seller). The highest marketing margin was for the intermediaries followed by the producer. The order of importance of the B/C kilogram ratio of meat was for the butcher first, then barbacoa seller, and lastly stocker and producer.     

Mutants in the lipopolysaccharide of Brucella ovis are attenuated and protect against B. ovis infection in mice

Brucella spp. are Gram-negative bacteria that behave as facultative intracellular parasites of a variety of mammals. This genus includes smooth (S) and rough (R) species that carry S and R lipopolysaccharides (LPS), respectively. S-LPS is a virulence factor, and mutants affected in the S-LPS O-polysaccharide (R mutants), core oligosaccharide or both show attenuation. However, B. ovis is naturally R and is virulent in sheep. We studied the role of B. ovis LPS in virulence by mutating the orthologues of wadA, wadB and wadC, three genes known to encode LPS core glycosyltransferases in S brucellae. When mapped with antibodies to outer membrane proteins (Omps) and R-LPS, wadB and wadC mutants displayed defects in LPS structure and outer membrane topology but inactivation of wadA had little or no effect. Consistent with these observations, the wadB and wadC but not the wadA mutants were attenuated in mice. When tested as vaccines, the wadB and wadC mutants protected mice against B. ovis challenge. The results demonstrate that the LPS core is a structure essential for survival in vivo not only of S brucellae but also of a naturally R Brucella pathogenic species, and they confirm our previous hypothesis that the Brucella LPS core is a target for vaccine development. Since vaccine B. melitensis Rev 1 is S and thus interferes in serological testing for S brucellae, wadB mutant represents a candidate vaccine to be evaluated against B. ovis infection of sheep suitable for areas free of B. melitensis.     

Effect of increasing levels of seven tree species extracts added to a high concentrate diet on in vitro rumen gas output

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of increasing levels of extracts of Byrsonima crassifolia, Celtis pallida, Enterolobium cyclocarpum, Fraxinus excelsior, Ficus trigonata, Phoradendrom brevifolium and Prunus domestica on in vitro gas production (GP) and ruminal fermentation of a high concentrate diet. Plant extracts were prepared at 1 g dry matter (DM)/8 mL of solvent mixture (methanol : ethanol : water, 1:1:8) and added at levels of 0, 0.6, 1.2 and 1.8 mL/g DM of a high concentrate diet. In vitro GP was recorded at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h of incubation. Increasing addition of extracts linearly increased (P < 0.001), the GP₂₄, GP₄₈ and GP₇₂ (mL/g DM), and linearly decreased (P < 0.001), the discrete GP lag time. Moreover, increasing extract doses linearly increased (P < 0.001) the asymptotic GP and decreased (P < 0.001) the rate of GP. GP₆ was not impacted by treatments and GP₁₂ increased linearly (P = 0.01) with increasing addition of extracts. Rumen pH declined linearly (P < 0.05) with increasing doses of extracts added. As no interactions (P > 0.05) occurred between the extracts and doses, it could be conclude that all extracts positively modified rumen fermentation at doses of 1.2 to 1.8 mL extract/g diet DM.     

Polyunsaturated Aldehydes from Large Phytoplankton of the Atlantic Ocean Surface (42°N to 33°S)

Polyunsaturated aldehydes (PUAs) are organic compounds mainly produced by diatoms, after cell wounding. These compounds are increasingly reported as teratogenic for species of grazers and deleterious for phytoplanktonic species, but there is still scarce information regarding concentration ranges and the composition of PUAs in the open ocean. In this study, we analyzed the spatial distribution and the type of aldehydes produced by the large-sized (>10 μm) phytoplankton in the Atlantic Ocean surface. Analyses were conducted on PUAs released after mechanical disruption of the phytoplankton cells, referred to here as potential PUAs (pPUAs). Results show the ubiquitous presence of pPUA in the open ocean, including upwelling areas, as well as oligotrophic gyres. Total pPUA concentrations ranged from zero to 4.18 pmol from cells in 1 L. Identified PUAs were heptadienal, octadienal and decadienal, with heptadienal being the most common (79% of total stations). PUA amount and composition across the Atlantic Ocean was mainly related to the nitrogen:phosphorus ratio, suggesting nutrient-driven mechanisms of PUA production. Extending the range of trophic conditions considered by adding data reported for productive coastal waters, we found a pattern of PUA variation in relation to trophic status.     

Metabolomic Tools for Secondary Metabolite Discovery from Marine Microbial Symbionts

Marine invertebrate-associated symbiotic bacteria produce a plethora of novel secondary metabolites which may be structurally unique with interesting pharmacological properties. Selection of strains usually relies on literature searching, genetic screening and bioactivity results, often without considering the chemical novelty and abundance of secondary metabolites being produced by the microorganism until the time-consuming bioassay-guided isolation stages. To fast track the selection process, metabolomic tools were used to aid strain selection by investigating differences in the chemical profiles of 77 bacterial extracts isolated from cold water marine invertebrates from Orkney, Scotland using liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Following mass spectrometric analysis and dereplication using an Excel macro developed in-house, principal component analysis (PCA) was employed to differentiate the bacterial strains based on their chemical profiles. NMR ¹H and correlation spectroscopy (COSY) were also employed to obtain a chemical fingerprint of each bacterial strain and to confirm the presence of functional groups and spin systems. These results were then combined with taxonomic identification and bioassay screening data to identify three bacterial strains, namely Bacillus sp. 4117, Rhodococcus sp. ZS402 and Vibrio splendidus strain LGP32, to prioritize for scale-up based on their chemically interesting secondary metabolomes, established through dereplication and interesting bioactivities, determined from bioassay screening.     

Descriptive epidemiology of the outbreak of classical swine fever in Catalonia (Spain), 2001/02

Spain suffered an outbreak of classical swine fever between June 14, 2001 and May 7, 2002, which affected 49 herds; this paper describes the epidemiological characteristics of the 39 herds that were affected in Catalonia, an area of high pig density in the north east of Spain. The outbreak took place in two waves, which affected first the province of Lleida and then Barcelona. A total of 291,058 animals were slaughtered, 59,595 belonging to infected herds; 22 of the infected herds were detected on the basis of clinical suspicion on the part of the farmer or farm veterinarian, and the other 17 were detected by surveillance methods. The transmission of the virus between herds was attributed to the movement of people in 23 per cent of the cases, to animals in 13 per cent, vehicles in 10 per cent, proximity 18 per cent, the pick-up service of the rendering plant in 8 per cent and slurry in 5 per cent; in the other nine herds (23 per cent) the route of entry of the disease could not be established. The viruses isolated in the two waves of the outbreak were 100 per cent homologous and belonged to subgroup 2.3. The origin of the outbreak remains unknown.     

Study of nickel sorption onto biological sludges. possibilities for heavy metals removal treatments

Nickel adsorption onto a sludge wasting from a biological aeration tank is described in this work. This procedure is planned as an alternative method for metal removal from industrial effluents containing heavy metals in low concentrations. Experimental results of equilibrium adsorption and laboratory equipment operation are reported. Equilibrium data of nickel adsorption were fitted to the Freundlich equation. On the basis of this equation, the effect of several parameters such us metal concentration, sludge concentration and metal dosing rate were tested. Nickel removal efficiency is about 80% in the most favourable cases. Aeration during metal-sludge contact was also tested but little enhancing in metal uptake was observed. This analysis can be used to define the best operation conditions in practical cases either for metal or organic matter removal.