Impact of foot-and-mouth disease on mastitis and culling on a large-scale dairy farm in Kenya

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a highly transmissible viral infection of cloven hooved animals associated with severe economic losses when introduced into FMD-free countries. Information on the impact of the disease in FMDV-endemic countries is poorly characterised yet essential for the prioritisation of scarce resources for disease control programmes. A FMD (virus serotype SAT2) outbreak on a large-scale dairy farm in Nakuru County, Kenya provided an opportunity to evaluate the impact of FMD on clinical mastitis and culling rate. A cohort approach followed animals over a 12-month period after the commencement of the outbreak. For culling, all animals were included; for mastitis, those over 18 months of age. FMD was recorded in 400/644 cattle over a 29-day period. During the follow-up period 76 animals were culled or died whilst in the over 18 month old cohort 63 developed clinical mastitis. Hazard ratios (HR) were generated using Cox regression accounting for non-proportional hazards by inclusion of time-varying effects. Univariable analysis showed FMD cases were culled sooner but there was no effect on clinical mastitis. After adjusting for possible confounders and inclusion of time-varying effects there was weak evidence to support an effect of FMD on culling (HR = 1.7, 95% confidence intervals [CI] 0.88-3.1, P = 0.12). For mastitis, there was stronger evidence of an increased rate in the first month after the onset of the outbreak (HR = 2.9, 95%CI 0.97-8.9, P = 0.057).

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13567-015-0173-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

油松毛虫幼虫种群动态格局的研究

本文在以6种分布型指数测定油松毛虫(Dendrolimus tabulaeformis Tsai et Liu)幼虫种群静态空间格局的基础上,通过聚类分析,可将油松毛虫幼虫种群在上树过程中的水平格局和垂直格局聚为两类:即前期型和中后期型;其6种分布型指数可分为三类:即(1)m~*/m,C_A,I_δ;(2)入;(3)C,L。     

新媒体时代科普工作原则--基于CAS理论视角

简述了新媒体和复杂自适应系统（CAS）理论的相关概念,辨析了传统科普和新媒体时代科普的不同,指出了新媒体时代的科普系统是CAS ,提出了用CAS理论指导新媒体时代科普工作的几点原则。     

Study of wavelet denoising in apple's charge-coupled device near-infrared spectroscopy

Discrete wavelet transform was used to eliminate the noise in the charge-coupled device near-infrared (CCD-NIR) spectra of apple. The influence of three parameters (wavelet function, decomposition level, and threshold) on the predictive ability of the calibration model was investigated. The result showed that the db, sym, and bior wavelet families performed well, while the coif, dmey, and haar wavelets were not able to denoise effectively. The best decomposition level was 2. The threshold selection rules of the default, Birge-Massart, and Penalty had good denoising results, while SURE, Sqtwolog, Heuristic SURE, and Minimax set all detailed coefficients to zero due to their high threshold values. The best denoising result was obtained with the combination of the bior3.3 wavelet function, two levels of decomposition, default threshold selection rule, and the soft thresholding method. The optimal model of soluble solids content was constructed. The relative standard deviation of prediction decreased from 7.79 to 5.82% after wavelet denoising.     

Inhibition of low-density lipoprotein oxidation and oxidative burst in polymorphonuclear neutrophils by caffeic acid and hispidin derivatives isolated from sword brake fern (Pteris ensiformis Burm.)

Several antioxidant compounds have been previously identified from sword brake fern (Pteris ensiformis Burm.) by DPPH bleaching and Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) analyses. Among the isolates, 7-O-caffeoylhydroxymaltol 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside and hispidin 4-O-beta- D-glucopyranoside [6-(3,4-dihydroxystyryl)-4-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside-2-pyrone] were two new compounds. The aim of this study is to elucidate the possible effect of the aqueous extract of sword brake fern (SBF) and these two compounds in preventing atherosclerosis. The results demonstrated that SBF and these two compounds strongly inhibited Cu2+-mediated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation measured by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances assay (TBARS), conjugated diene production, and relative electrophoretic mobility. The commercial antioxidant dl-alpha-tocopherol showed lower antioxidant activity than these two compounds at the same molecular concentration. SBF and these two compounds also suppressed N-formylmethionyl-leucylphenylalanine (fMLP)-stimulated reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in human polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN). These findings indicate that sword brake fern may prevent atherosclerosis via inhibition of both LDL oxidation and ROS production.     

2008―2021年新疆审定长绒棉品种主要性状演变分析

为全面了解近年新疆育成长绒棉品种的特征特性,对2008―2021年新疆维吾尔自治区主要农作物品种审定委员会审定的43个早中熟长绒棉品种和4个当前待审品种的主要性状演变情况进行分析.结果表明:2012年以来审定品种的铃重较之前明显增加,普遍在3.40 g以上;衣分总体表现较为平稳,皮棉产量受气候环境等因素影响波动较大;纤...     

The siderophore-interacting protein is involved in iron acquisition and virulence of Riemerella anatipestifer strain CH3

Riemerella anatipestifer causes epizootic infectious disease in poultry and serious economic losses especially to the duck industry. However, little is known regarding the molecular basis of its pathogenesis. The ability to acquire iron under low-iron conditions is related to the virulence of a variety of bacterial pathogens. In this study, a sip (Riean_1281) deletion mutant CH3Δsip was constructed and characterized for iron-limited growth, biofilm formation, and pathogenicity to ducklings. Results showed that siderophore-interacting protein (SIP) was involved in iron utilization and the sip deletion significantly reduced biofilm formation and adherence to and invasion of Vero cells. In addition, the sip gene was absent in 1 of 24 (4.17%) virulent strains and 2 of 3 (66.7%) avirulent strains of R. anatipestifer, and the sip gene from six R. anatipestifer strains, which belong to serotypes 1, 2, and 10, respectively, shared 100% amino acid identities to those of R. anatipestifer strains DSM15868 and RA-GD. These results suggested that siderophore-mediated iron acquisition may be an important iron-uptake pathway in R. anatipestifer. Animal experiments indicated that the median lethal dose of the CH3Δsip mutant in ducklings was about 35-fold higher than that of the wild-type CH3 strain. Thus, our results demonstrated that R. anatipestifer SIP was involved in iron acquisition and necessary for its optimal virulence.     

Soil acidification induced by intensive agricultural use depending on climate

Journal of Soils and Sediments - Soil acidification is a major issue in agricultural ecosystems. However, how agricultural land uses shape the soil pH pattern and affect soil acidification on a...     

不同浓度盐胁迫下闽楠和楠木光合生理研究

在3种不同盐胁迫条件下,分析了闽楠和楠木的光合生理特性。结果表明：盐胁迫对闽楠和楠木的净光合速率（Pn）、蒸腾速率（Tr）、气孔导度（Gs）、胞间CO2浓度（Ci）和气孔限制值（Ls）均有明显的抑制作用,且同一处理不同树种间的净光合速率（Pn）、蒸腾速率（Tr）、气孔导度（Gs）、胞间CO2浓度（Ci）和气孔限制值（Ls）存在差异;同一树种在不同处理条件下,净光合速率（Pn）、蒸腾速率（Tr）、气孔导度（Gs）、胞间CO2浓度（Ci）和气孔限制值（Ls）也发生明显变化。