Evaluation of the Salmonella surveillance program in Belgian pig farms

Since July 2007, Belgium has implemented a national surveillance and control program for Salmonella in pigs. Pig farms are designated as Salmonella high risk farms based on serological profiles and are obliged to subsequently take part in a Salmonella specific action plan (SSAP). The SSAP was evaluated and potential risk factors for the persistence of Salmonella on the farm were investigated. First, the Kaplan-Meier method was used in order to study the period during which a farm maintains a Salmonella high risk status. Farms recovered more slowly from their high risk status before the SSAP was implemented compared to after the program was implemented (p<0.001). However, results showed that 29% of the farms were withdrawn from the program possibly only because of sampling error. The program should thus be adapted to accommodate for this. Secondly, the influence of several risk factors (type of farm, season of entrance into the SSAP, size of farm and farm density of the municipality) on the time to withdrawal from the high risk status was evaluated using univariable methods and a Cox multiple regression model for survival data. A statistically significant association was identified between the type of farm and the time to withdrawal from the high risk status. At any point in time after the onset of the SSAP, withdrawals from the high risk status occurred at a 39% and 28% higher rate in mixed (p=0.01) and fattening farms (p=0.05), respectively, compared to closed farms. The risk attributed to closed pig farms is related to the presence of sows in this particular type of structure, which underlines the importance of implementing control measures in this category of animals.     

Effect of body position on the arterial partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide in spontaneously breathing,conscious dogs in an intensive care unit

Objective – To evaluate the effect of body position on the arterial partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide (PaO₂, PaCO₂), and the efficiency of pulmonary oxygen uptake as estimated by alveolar‐arterial oxygen difference (A‐a difference). Design – Prospective, randomized, crossover study. Setting – University teaching hospital, intensive care unit. Animals – Twenty‐one spontaneously breathing, conscious, canine patients with arterial catheters placed as part of their management strategy. Interventions – Patients were placed randomly into lateral or sternal recumbency. PaO₂ and PaCO₂ were measured after 15 minutes in this position. Patients were then repositioned into the opposite position and after 15 minutes the parameters were remeasured. Measurements and Main Results – Results presented as median (interquartile range). PaO₂ was significantly higher (P=0.001) when patients were positioned in sternal, 91.2 mm Hg (86.0–96.1 mm Hg), compared with lateral recumbency, 86.4 mm Hg (73.9–90.9 mm Hg). The median change was 5.4 mm Hg (1.1–17.9 mm Hg). All 7 dogs with a PaO₂<80 mm Hg in lateral recumbency had improved arterial oxygenation in sternal recumbency, median increase 17.4 mm Hg with a range of 3.8–29.7 mm Hg. PaCO₂ levels when patients were in sternal recumbency, 30.5 mm Hg (27.3–32.7 mm Hg) were not significantly different from those in lateral recumbency, 32.2 mm Hg (28.3–36.0 mm Hg) (P=0.07). The median change was ?1.9 mm Hg (?3.6–0.77 mm Hg). A‐a differences were significantly lower (P=0.005) when patients were positioned in sternal recumbency, 21.7 mm Hg (17.3–27.7 mm Hg), compared with lateral recumbency, 24.6 mm Hg (20.4–36.3 mm Hg). The median change was ?3.1 mm Hg (?14.6–0.9 mm Hg). Conclusions – PaO₂ was significantly higher when animals were positioned in sternal recumbency compared with lateral recumbency, predominantly due to improved pulmonary oxygen uptake (decreased A‐a difference) rather than increased alveolar ventilation (decreased PaCO₂). Patients with hypoxemia (defined as PaO₂<80 mm Hg) in lateral recumbency may benefit from being placed in sternal recumbency. Sternal recumbency is recommended to improve oxygenation in hypoxemic patients.     

Localisation of iron in wheat grain using high resolution secondary ion mass spectrometry

Insufficient iron (Fe) is one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies in humans, with billions of people affected. Cereal grains are an important source of Fe for humans but the bioavailability of Fe in cereals is generally low. Information regarding the cellular and sub-cellular localisation of Fe in wheat grain will aid optimising nutrient delivery for human health. In this study high resolution secondary ion mass spectrometry (NanoSIMS) was used to map the distribution of Fe in the aleurone layer and in the endosperm of immature wheat grain. Iron was shown to be localised strongly in the phytin globoids in the aleurone cells and to a lesser extent in the cytoplasm around the starch granules in the endosperm.     

Gender power in Kenyan dairy: cows,commodities, and commercialization

In Western Kenya, smallholder dairy production is becoming incrementally commercialized through the commodification and sale of milk through formal market channels. While commercialization is often construed as a way to boost rural livelihoods through increased income from milk, emerging evidence suggests that married women are not directly benefiting from formal milk market participation. This critical issue of gender power imbalance has been framed by development interventions in economic efficiency and social justice perspectives, but thus far interventions in the sector have not addressed how underlying social-market mechanisms embedded in gendered ideology influence smallholder engagement in dairy commercialization. Drawing on feminist theories of power and social embeddedness, this study investigates how gendered power relationships materialize and influence formal milk marketing engagement and practices in Western Kenya. Facilitated discussion groups with smallholder farmers revealed the gendered ideologies and norms that ascribe masculinized meaning to cattle, milk, and commercial enterprise. Key informant interviews with commercial dairy management and farmers were used to identify current practices for increasing women’s formal market participation—namely, direct payments to women for milk deliveries. Findings from this study indicate that cattle and formal dairy market participation are imbued with gendered meaning that create legitimacy around men’s privilege over dairy proceeds. Interventions in the sector aimed at addressing gender power imbalances must acknowledge this dynamic, and accept the social trade-offs and gendered costs of dairy commercialization.     

Preliminary assessment of serum clusterin as a potential biomarker for canine lymphoma

Clusterin (CLU), also known as apolipoprotein J, is a widely expressed, heterodimeric, glycoprotein, important in tumourigenesis, apoptosis and immunoregulation. In humans, CLU expression has been associated with anaplastic large cell and Hodgkin's lymphoma. In this study, serum CLU levels in dogs with multicentric lymphoma (MLSA) were compared with healthy control dogs, using both western blot and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Western blot confirmed the presence of CLU in dog sera at the predicted molecular weight and the relative levels detected correlated with the levels detected by ELISA. CLU level analysis by ELISA found treatment naïve dogs with MLSA had a significantly (P < .001) lower serum CLU level compared with healthy controls. However, there was no significant difference between MLSA dogs prior to treatment and in complete remission. The wide variation in serum CLU levels may limit its potential as a single candidate biomarker for MLSA, although any prognostic predictive value of serum CLU concentrations has yet to be assessed.