Evaluation of common cleaning and disinfection programmes in battery cage and on-floor layer houses in France

1.?The aim in this study was to evaluate cleaning and disinfection programmes in battery cage and on-floor layer houses in France.

2.?Cleaning and disinfection efficiency was assessed by a visual evaluation of cleaning and a bacteriological monitoring of surface contamination from counts of thermotolerant streptococci on contact agar plates.

3.?In battery cage houses, dropping belts, manure conveyors, and house floors remained highly contaminated due to poor cleaning in half of the buildings examined.

4.?In on-floor houses, a high standard of cleaning was achieved but errors in the planning of cleaning and disinfection operations sometimes led to a high residual contamination of nest boxes and egg sorting tables.     

Some innovations in rice recurrent selection: The back recurrent selection (BCRS), the simplified and efficient rice breeding method (SERB), and the plant-parasite reciprocal recurrent selection (2P2RS)

Three key innovations of recurrent selection are proposed. (1) Back recurrent selection (BCRS) is a new method for transferring polygenic trait or several monogenic traits. With BCRS, breeders can tap several donor cultivars for the same polygenic trait, near-isogenic lines can be obtained for genetic studies of polygenic traits and cultivars can be improved while maintaining some unrevealed qualities. (2) New narrow-based populations (NBP) are proposed to overcome the broad-based population drawbacks. An NBP is created with a few progenitors, with each chosen to be the very best for each of the targeted traits. The use of NBP is the most important component of simplified and efficient rice breeding (SERB). (3) Resistance to rice blast disease is commonly overcome just after the cultivar is released. Plant-parasite reciprocal recurrent selection (2P2RS) is proposed to promote parasite adaptation during the breeding process. If this occurs, selection can still provide a solution.     

Antiplasmodial Activities of Homogentisic Acid Derivative Protein Kinase Inhibitors Isolated from a Vanuatu Marine Sponge Pseudoceratina sp.

As part of our search for new antimalarial drugs in South Pacific marine sponges, we have looked for inhibitors of Pfnek-1, a specific protein kinase of Plasmodium falciparum. On the basis of promising activity in a preliminary screening, the ethanolic crude extract of a new species of Pseudoceratina collected in Vanuatu was selected for further investigation. A bioassay-guided fractionation led to the isolation of a derivative of homogentisic acid [methyl (2,4-dibromo-3,6-dihydroxyphenyl)acetate, 4a] which inhibited Pfnek-1 with an IC₅₀ around 1.8 μM. This product was moderately active in vitro against a FcB1 P. falciparum strain (IC₅₀ = 12 μM). From the same sponge, we isolated three known compounds [11,19-dideoxyfistularin-3 (1), 11-deoxyfistularin-3 (2) and dibromo-verongiaquinol (3)] which were inactive against Pfnek-1. Synthesis and biological evaluation of some derivatives of 4a are reported.     

The prediction of bread wheat quality: joint use of the phenotypic information brought by technological tests and the genetic information brought by HMW and LMW glutenin subunits

Attempts have been made to predict Chopin alveograph or French bread-making tests, using tree-based models and PLS regressions. Data came from three sets of trials, involving 130, 214 and 103 different genotypes, which were described for HMW-GS, LMW-GS and small-scale tests currently used in breeding programs. Segmentation trees and PLS regressions indicated that HMW-GS and LMW-GS were not sufficient to explain alone the variability of bread wheat quality. This could be partly due to “allele × environment” and “locus × locus” interactions. For HMW-GS, Glu-B1 was the predominant locus for alveograph and French bread-baking, and some differences in the alleles hierarchy were demonstrated according to the end-use parameter considered. For LMW-GS, Glu-B3 seemed to be preponderant, with alleles b′, c and g being favourable and allele c′ unfavourable. Joint use of the information brought by glutenin subunits and technological tests did not enable to predict satisfactorily, neither the different parameters of French bread-baking, nor the extensibility L of alveograph. Only the prediction of the strength W proved reliable, and robust PLS equations were proposed for this alveograph parameter. These prediction equations could be of interest to select for high values of W in the mid generations of breeding.     

Accuracy of computed tomographic arthrography for assessment of articular cartilage defects in the ovine stifle

Articular cartilage defects are one of the features of osteoarthritis in animals and humans. Early detection of cartilage defects is a challenge in clinical veterinary practice and also in translational research studies. An accurate, diagnostic imaging method would be desirable for detecting and following up lesions in specific anatomical regions of the articular surface. The current prospective experimental study aimed to describe the accuracy of computed tomographic arthrography (CTA) for detecting cartilage defects in a common animal model used for osteoarthritis research, the ovine stifle (knee, femoropatellar/femorotibial) joint. Joints in cadaver limbs (n = 42) and in living animals under anesthesia (n = 13) were injected with a contrast medium and imaged using a standardized CT protocol. Gross anatomy and histological assessment of specific anatomic regions were used as a gold standard for the evaluation of sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value, and positive predictive value for CTA identification of articular cartilage defects in those regions. Pooled estimated sensitivity and specificity were 90.32% and 97.30%, respectively, in cadaver limbs, and 81.82% and 95.24%, respectively, in living animals. Pooled estimated positive predictive value and negative predictive values were 98.25% and 85.71%, respectively, in cadaver limbs, and 81.82% and 95.24%, respectively, in living animals. The delineation of cartilage surface was good for anatomical regions most frequently affected by cartilage defects in the ovine stifle: medial femoral condyle, medial tibial condyle, and patella. This study supported the use of CTA as an imaging technique for detecting and monitoring articular cartilage defects in the ovine stifle joint.     

A mixed methods study of ruminant brucellosis in central-eastern Tunisia

In this study, we conducted an investigation to determine the true prevalence of bovine and ovine brucellosis in central-eastern Tunisia. A total of 1134 veterinary samples taken from 130 ruminant herds were screened for brucellosis using IS711-based real-time PCR assay. Sera collected from the ruminants were tested using the Rose Bengal test and indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Based on serological and molecular results, the true adjusted animal population level prevalence was 23.5 % in cattle, against 13.5 % in sheep. In addition, the true adjusted herd level prevalence of brucellosis was 55.6 % in cattle and 21.8 % in sheep. A statistically significant association was found between vaginal and milk shedding for ruminants. In addition, our results showed that Brucella abortus could be responsible for bovine and ovine brucellosis. Multivariable logistic regression analysis at the animal population level indicated that age and origin variables were important risk factors for cattle. However, age and abortion variables were found to be associated with ovine brucellosis. At the herd level, risk factors for Brucella positivity were as follows: abortion and herd composition for cattle against herd composition, mortality rates, and hygiene for sheep. Animal hygiene, food quality, and sanitary practices on the farm should be applied as strategies to control brucellosis in herds.     

Spatio-temporal dynamics on a plot scale of cocoa black pod rot caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phytophthora megakarya</Emphasis> in Cameroon

Black pod disease is caused by several species of Phytophthora. In Cameroon, the disease is mainly due to Phytophtora megakarya. The pathogen attacks cocoa pods and can lead to almost total production losses in a plot if no control measures are applied. To control the disease, several research programmes are being conducted: breeding for increased resistance, development of several biocontrol or agronomic methods. However, for better use of a specific method it is useful to have a good understanding of several epidemiological processes and more effectively know how the disease is distributed in the field. The purpose of this study was to describe the spatial development of the disease in several cocoa fields in Cameroon. In particular, we determined the spatial relation of the disease using several tools, including geostatistics models and Moran indices. The results indicated that the disease was not randomly distributed, while correlations between neighbouring cocoa trees existed. The relationships were detected up to a distance of between 7 and 9 m, revealing the wide dispersal pattern of the pathogen over short distances. No spatial structure was found in the spread of the disease in the oldest cocoa plantations and the inoculum was dispersed throughout the plot. Disease dispersal over short distances should make it possible to adapt control methods by attempting to confine the first disease foci in young plots. Research should also be undertaken to limit inoculum dispersal.     

Quantifying the effects of soil and climate on aboveground biomass production of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Salix miyabeana</Emphasis> SX67 in Quebec

Soil and climatic conditions for optimizing aboveground biomass yields of bioenergy short rotation coppices (SRCs) of Salix are not well elucidated. The objective of this study was to identify and quantify the limitations induced by soil and climate, and compare the magnitude of their effects, on annual aboveground yields across ten SRCs of Salix miyabeana SX67 in Quebec, Canada. The effects of weather variation between years on yields were also tested within locations. In five plots per SRC, soil bulk density, particle size, exchangeable cations and bulk composition were analysed, and moisture deficits were estimated using leaf δ¹³C. For each location, numerous weather variables were simulated for spring, summer and the whole growing season. Climate was calculated by averaging weather variables for growing seasons for which annual yields were available. Annual aboveground biomass yields were modelled using linear regression, partitioning of the variance and mixed models with soil, weather and climate variables as predictors. Across SRCs, silt content, soil organic matter, pH, exchangeable Ca and Mg, and total N and Zn were significantly and positively related to aboveground yields (adj. R ² ranging from 0.38 to 0.79). Generally, annual yields were negatively related to summer temperature within SRCs (adj. R ² = 0.92) and drought across SRCs (adj. R ² = 0.54). Partitioning of the variance revealed that soil variables (~80%) had a greater effect on productivity than did climate variables (~10%). In fact, soil properties buffered or exacerbated water shortages and, thus, had a preponderant effect on yield.