Effect of breed of cattle on transmission rate and innate resistance to infection with Babesia bovis and B bigemina transmitted by Boophilus microplus

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of breed of cattle on the transmission rates of and innate resistance to Babesia bovis and B bigemina parasites transmitted by Boophilus microplus ticks. DESIGN: Groups of 56 purebred B indicus and 52 B indicus cross B taurus (50%, F1 generation) steers were placed in a paddock seeded with and also naturally infested with B microplus which were the progeny of females ticks fed on B taurus cattle specifically infected with a virulent isolate of B bovis. The cattle were placed in the infested paddock 50 days after seeding had started. PROCEDURE: Cattle were inspected from horseback daily for 50 days. Clinically ill cattle were brought to yards and assessed by monitoring fever, depression of packed-cell volume, parasitaemia and severity of clinical signs. Any animals that met preset criteria were treated for babesiosis. Blood samples were collected from all cattle on day 28, 35 and 42 after exposure and antibodies to Babesia spp and packed cell volume measured. RESULTS: All steers, except for one crossbred, seroconverted to B bovis and B bigemina by day 35 and 75% of the crossbred steers showed a maximum depression in packed cell volume of more than 15% due to infection with Babesia spp compared with only 36% of the B indicus group. Ten of the 52 crossbreds and 1 of the 56 B indicus steers showed severe clinical signs. Two of the crossbreds required treatment of which one died 2 weeks after initial treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Pure-bred B indicus cattle have a high degree of resistance to babesiosis, but crossbred cattle are sufficiently susceptible to warrant the use of preventive measures such as vaccination. Transmission rates of B bovis and B bigemina to B indicus and crossbred cattle previously unexposed to B microplus were the same.     

Growth of rose roots and shoots is highly sensitive to anaerobic or hypoxic regions of container substrates

Commercial greenhouse cut rose plants commonly have shallow root systems, even in well-drained substrates. We studied rose plant responses to a wide range of soil air-filled porosity values to determine tolerance to low soil aeration. ‘Kardinal’ rose plants on ‘Natal Briar’ rootstock were grown for 11 weeks in containers holding 2.5 l of Yolo loam soil. The soil had been treated with a polyacrylamide soil conditioner to stabilize aggregates after they had been separated into three size fractions: coarse (1–2 mm), medium (0.1–1 mm), and fine (<0.1 mm). Plants were irrigated frequently to keep the soil at container capacity. Total new root growth was greatest in the medium and coarse soil fractions, which had average air-filled porosities of 7.6% and 15.9%, respectively. The fine soil fraction, which had an average air-filled porosity of 1.3%, had almost no root growth. In all soil fractions, roots were absent or scarce in regions of soil that were anaerobic or hypoxic. Highest root length densities occurred at air-filled porosity values of 12–17%, and no new roots grew at air-filled porosity values below 3%. Shoot yields were lower for plants in the substrate with low air-filled porosity, and their leaves had lower stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content, mid-day water potential, and macronutrient concentrations. Frequent irrigation that precludes aeration of the lower regions of the substrate profile will result in shallow root systems and could lead to decreased yields.     

Studies on the effect of temperature and pH on the inactivation of fish viral and bacterial pathogens

Disposal of fish by‐products in the European Community must comply with Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 which categorizes animal by‐products according to risk, and specifies methods of disposal of by‐products according to that risk. There is provision under the regulation for composting or ensiling to be used for by‐products from aquatic animals. Biosecurity considerations require knowledge of the parameters of time and temperature, or time and pH, required to inactivate any fish pathogens that may be present. To provide those data, we undertook laboratory studies on the inactivation of a number of fish pathogenic viruses and bacteria at 60 °C, pH 4.0 and pH 12.0 as a preliminary to conducting subsequent trials with the most resistant viruses and bacteria in fish tissues. The most resistant bacterium to 60 °C, pH 4.0 as well as pH 12.0 was Lactococcus garvieae. Its concentration was reduced to the level of sensitivity of the test after 24–48 h exposure to 60 °C, but it survived for at least 7 days at pH 4.0 and 14 days at pH 12.0. The most resistant virus to 60 °C was infectious pancreatic necrosis virus, and to pH 12.0 was infectious salmon anaemia virus. The majority of the viruses tested survived exposure to pH 4.0 for up to 28 days. The results suggest that the process of acid ensiling alone is not an effective method for the inactivation of many viral and bacterial pathogens, and fish by‐products would need further treatment by a method approved under the regulation following ensiling, whereas alkaline or heat treatment are likely to provide an increased degree of biosecurity for on‐farm processing of mortalities.     

水分胁迫下4种冷季型草坪草抗旱性比较研究

采用盆栽育苗法,研究了4种冷季型草坪草在不同水分胁迫下的抗旱性,结果表明:1)随着水分胁迫程度的加深,4种冷季型草坪草的外观质量和叶片相对含水量显著下降,细胞质膜透性、MDA含量和Pro含量上升。2)模糊数学综合评价结果表明,4种冷季型草坪草种抗旱性能由强到弱的顺序为:高羊茅>多年生黑麦草>草地早熟禾>匍匐翦股颖。     

Magnetic Collapse in Transition Metal Oxides at High Pressure: Implications for the Earth

Magnetic collapse in transition metal ions is predicted from first-principles computations at pressures reached in the Earth's lower mantle and core. Magnetic collapse would lead to marked changes in geophysically important properties, such as elasticity and conductivity, and also to different geochemical behavior, such as element partitioning, than estimated by extrapolating low-pressure data, and thus change the understanding of Earth's structure and evolution. Magnetic collapse results from band widening rather than from changes in crystal field splitting under pressure. Seismic anomalies in the outer core and the lowermost mantle may be due to magnetic collapse of ferrous iron, dissolved in iron liquid in the outer core, and in solution in magnesiowustite in the lowermost mantle.     

Rib osteomyelitis in three foals

Three foals aged between 21 and 44 days were presented for evaluation of pyrexia and lameness. Each had subcutaneous abscessation associated with osteomyelitis of a rib at the costochondral junction and pathological fracture of the affected rib; one foal had more than one rib affected. Other localised sites of infection included other sites of osteomyelitis, omphalophlebitis, uveitis, enterocolitis, and calcaneal bursitis. The subcutaneous abscessation and rib osteomyelitis was treated surgically in two foals. Salmonella typhimurium was isolated from the subcutaneous abscess in one foal and from the faeces of another. Two of the three foals were euthanased. Ultrasonography was a more useful modality than radiography for establishing the diagnosis of costal osteomyelitis.