Effectiveness of acupuncture in veterinary medicine: systematic review

Acupuncture is a popular complementary treatment option in human medicine. Increasingly, owners also seek acupuncture for their animals. The aim of the systematic review reported here was to summarize and assess the clinical evidence for or against the effectiveness of acupuncture in veterinary medicine. Systematic searches were conducted on Medline, Embase, Amed, Cinahl, Japana Centra Revuo Medicina and Chikusan Bunken Kensaku. Hand-searches included conference proceedings, bibliographies, and contact with experts and veterinary acupuncture associations. There were no restrictions regarding the language of publication. All controlled clinical trials testing acupuncture in any condition of domestic animals were included. Studies using laboratory animals were excluded. Titles and abstracts of identified articles were read, and hard copies were obtained. Inclusion and exclusion of studies, data extraction, and validation were performed independently by two reviewers. Methodologic quality was evaluated by means of the Jadad score. Fourteen randomized controlled trials and 17 nonrandomized controlled trials met our criteria and were, therefore, included. The methodologic quality of these trials was variable but, on average, was low. For cutaneous pain and diarrhea, encouraging evidence exists that warrants further investigation in rigorous trials. Single studies reported some positive intergroup differences for spinal cord injury, Cushing's syndrome, lung function, hepatitis, and rumen acidosis. These trials require independent replication. On the basis of the findings of this systematic review, there is no compelling evidence to recommend or reject acupuncture for any condition in domestic animals. Some encouraging data do exist that warrant further investigation in independent rigorous trials.     

The potential for respiratory droplet-transmissible A/H5N1 influenza virus to evolve in a mammalian host

Avian A/H5N1 influenza viruses pose a pandemic threat. As few as five amino acid substitutions, or four with reassortment, might be sufficient for mammal-to-mammal transmission through respiratory droplets. From surveillance data, we found that two of these substitutions are common in A/H5N1 viruses, and thus, some viruses might require only three additional substitutions to become transmissible via respiratory droplets between mammals. We used a mathematical model of within-host virus evolution to study factors that could increase and decrease the probability of the remaining substitutions evolving after the virus has infected a mammalian host. These factors, combined with the presence of some of these substitutions in circulating strains, make a virus evolving in nature a potentially serious threat. These results highlight critical areas in which more data are needed for assessing, and potentially averting, this threat.     

Biochemical performance of degraded soil recovered by lake-dredged materials (LDM) as pedotechnomaterials

Purpose

The increasing need for disposal of lake-dredged material (LDM) as a consequence of intensified natural and/or anthropogenically mediated erosion processes has lead the scientific community to find new strategies for its reuse. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of LDM use on the biochemical and functional performance of a degraded soil affected by erosion and entisolization processes.

Materials and methods

As a paradigmatic case study, a hydrographic basin located in Sardinia (Italy) was investigated. Severe soil degradation processes affect this area and have resulted in intensive sheet and rill water erosion. In contrast, an increase in sedimentation has been recorded on the bottom of an artificial lake. A degraded soil, collected in this area, were treated by co-utilization of LDM, other mineral matrices (a zeolitized tuff), organic amendment (a commercial manure), and mineral fertilizer (urea, triple superphosphate, and potassium sulfate) for the growth of a pasture grass under controlled (pot) conditions. The evolution of nine different model proto-horizons (MPH) was monitored through a series of biochemical parameters and techniques (total/extracellular enzymatic activity, isoelectric focusing, and gas chromatography) to assess the potential of LDM in soil biochemical recovery.

Results and discussion

On the whole, treatments containing LDM resulted in good recovery of degraded soils, as shown by a general enhancement in biochemical functionality. Application of LDM increased the more stable fraction of organic matter and its active biochemical fraction, showing the highest stable humic carbon content and humic activity. Such outcomes seem to represent a long-term beneficial effect on soil functionality.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that LDM could be a useful pedotechnomaterial (PTM) for improving the biochemical functionality of extremely degraded soils. Additionally, the use of LDM as a PTM has the ecological advantage of recycling what is often considered as a “waste material.” From a socioeconomic point of view, the reuse of LDM in pedotechnique could represent a new low-cost alternative to the complex and expensive management and disposal of this material.

     

Diversity and antagonistic potential of Pseudomonas spp. associated to the rhizosphere of maize grown in a subtropical organic farm

Pseudomonas spp. are one of the most important bacteria inhabiting the rhizosphere of diverse crop plants and have been frequently reported as biological control agents (BCAs). In this work, the diversity and antagonistic potential of Pseudomonas spp. in the rhizosphere of maize cultivars Nitroflint and Nitrodent grown at an organic farm in Brazil was studied by means of culture-dependent and -independent methods, respectively. Sampling of rhizosphere soil took place at three different stages of plant development: 20, 40 and 106 days after sowing. A PCR-DGGE strategy was used to generate specific Pseudomonas spp. fingerprints of 16S rRNA genes amplified from total community rhizosphere DNA. Shifts in the relative abundance of dominant populations (i.e. PCR-DGGE ribotypes) along plant development were detected. A few PCR-DGGE ribotypes were shown to display cultivar-dependent relative abundance. No significant differences in diversity measures of DGGE fingerprints were observed for different maize cultivars and sampling times. The characterisation and assessment of the antagonistic potential of a group of 142 fluorescent Pseudomonas isolated from the rhizosphere of both maize cultivars were carried out. Isolates were phenotypically and genotypically characterised and screened for in vitro antagonism towards three phytopathogenic fungi and the phytopathogenic bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum. Anti-fungal activity was displayed by 13 fluorescent isolates while 40 isolates were antagonistic towards R. solanacearum. High genotypic and phenotypic diversity was estimated for antagonistic fluorescent Pseudomonas spp. PCR-DGGE ribotypes displayed by antagonists matched dominant ribotypes of Pseudomonas DGGE fingerprints, suggesting that antagonists may belong to major Pseudomonas populations in the maize rhizosphere. Antagonists differing in their genotypic and phenotypic characteristics shared the same DGGE electrophoretic mobility, indicating that an enormous genotypic and functional diversity might be hidden behind one single DGGE band. Cloning and sequencing was performed for a DGGE double-band which had no corresponding PCR-DGGE ribotypes among the antagonists. Sequences derived from this band were affiliated to Pseudomonas stutzeri and P. alcaligenes 16S rRNA gene sequences. As used in this study, the combination of culture-dependent and -independent methods has proven to be a powerful tool to relate functional and structural diversity of Pseudomonas spp. in the rhizosphere.     

Characterization of carrot root oil arising from supercritical fluid carbon dioxide extraction

Carrot root oil (SCO), obtained by supercritical fluid carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) extraction, was characterized and compared to a commercial carrot oil (MCO) and a virgin olive oil (VOO) (cv. Coratina). SCO showed much higher contents of carotenes, phenolics, waxes, phytosterols, and sesquiterpene and monoterpene volatiles. In SCO, the most prominent components present in the fully investigated analytical fractions (fatty acids, triglycerides, waxes, phytosterols, long-chain aliphatic alcohols, superior triterpene alcohols, and volatiles) were, respectively, linolenic acid, trilinolein, waxes C38, beta-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol, 1-hexacosanol, 24-methylencycloartanol and cycloartenol, beta-caryophyllene, alpha-humulene, alpha-pinene, and sabinene. In VOO, the major constituents of the above analytical classes were, respectively, oleic acid, trilinolein, waxes C36, unsaturated volatile C6 aldehydes (trans-2-hexenal most markedly), and the same prominent sterols and superior alcohols found in SCO. In MCO, which also contained a proportion of unknown plant oil, several components showed magnitudes that were lower compared to SCO but higher with respect to VOO. The last had the aliphatic and triterpene alcohol concentration higher compared to that of both SCO and MCO. Several chemometric methods, applied to different analytical data sets, proved to be effective in grouping the three oil kinds.     

Fluoride impact on native tree species of the atlantic forest near Cubatão,Brazil

Air pollutant emissions from the industrial complex of Cubatão, Brazil, have led to a severe deterioration of the Atlantic Forest ecosystem. In a field study, leaves of the tree speciesTibouchina pulchra, Miconia pyrifolia, andCecropia glazioui were collected at four sites with different pollution characteristics. Leaf fluoride contents of the three species were found to be highly elevated in a valley near to fertilizer factories. In an area further from the emission sources, which in the past had been affected by fluoride pollution, fluoride concentrations inTibouchina andMiconia continued to be elevated. Preliminary exposure experiments using Tibouchina seedlings as accumulative indicators are reported.     

Evaluation of Trace Metal Fluxes to Soils in Hinterland of Porto Marghera Industrial Zone: Comparisons with Direct Measurements in the Lagoon of Venice

Trace metal (As, Cd, Cr, Ni, Hg, Pb) concentrations in soil samples collected around the Porto Marghera (Italy) industrial zone (2–40 km) near the city of Venice were compared with direct measurements of atmospheric deposition measured at comparable distances from the same source. Concentrations of Cd and Pb in soils decreased exponentially with increasing distance from the source; less clear signals were detected for As, Cr and Ni. Significant differences were found among the soils, which were partially resolved when their clay contents were normalised. Preliminary comparisons of fluxes of Cd and Pb derived from soil with direct deposition measurements showed increasing values with longer integration times. Annual Cd and Pb flux values of one year of direct deposition were 5 to 10 times lower than mean annual fluxes derived from soils,integrating 50 to 100 years. Values range from ～0.1–0.4 to 1–2 mg m^-2 yr^-1 for Cd, and from 3–18 to 50–100 mg m^-2 yr^-1 for Pb. These results fit information on `historical' emission trends as recorded in sediments of the lagoon.     

Welfare assessment in intensive and semi-intensive dairy cattle management system in Sicily

The present study aimed to compare the welfare of dairy cows kept in two traditional husbandry systems (semi-intensive and intensive farming) in south-eastern Sicily. A total of 18 dairy farms (nine semi-intensive and nine intensive) were evaluated with a multicriteria system adapted for Sicilian conditions and obtained simplifying the model of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Values of welfare measures, collected by inspections of the farms (general well-being indicators, ventilation system, resting areas [cubicles or bedding], flooring, milking parlours and waiting area, manger and watering equipment), and those of health categories (cases of abortions, hypocalcemia, displacement of abomasum, acidosis/ketosis, enteritis, hoof problems, and mastitis) obtained through the farm records, were compared using Mann–Whitney and Chi-squared tests, respectively. Data showed significant differences (p ≤ .05) about the variables related to welfare categories such as housing ventilation system, resting area, manger, and water equipment that were better in the semi-intensive system than the intensive system. No significant differences were observed about the variables related to health indicators. The results demonstrated that in Sicily the semi-intensive farm is better than the intensive to satisfy the conditions of animal welfare.