Farm management practices associated with macrocyclic lactone resistance on sheep farms in New Zealand

AIM: To identify farm practices associated with the presence of resistance to a macrocyclic lactone (ML) anthelmintic on sheep farms in New Zealand. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted to test for associations between the presence of resistance to an ML anthelmintic (ivermectin) and management practices on sheep farms in New Zealand. Selection of farms was both random (n=80) and purposive (n=32; being farms with a history of suspected ML resistance). Resistance was inferred from faecal nematode egg count (FEC) reduction (FECR) tests (FECRTs) when there was <95% reduction in FEC 7-10 days after treatment with a half dose of ivermectin (0.1 mg/kg). A logistic regression model was built to identify farm-level factors that were associated with the presence or absence of ML resistance. RESULTS: Of the 112 flock managers that were approached for interview, 103 (92%) returned useable questionnaires. The odds of ML resistance were increased: on farms that had used long-acting ML products in ewes as a pre-lambing treatment for > or =3 of the previous 5 years (odds ratio (OR) = 7.2; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.7-30.3); on farms where <70% of the total stock units mid-winter were from sheep (OR=6.5; 95% CI=1.6-25.6); on farms which over the year purchased >10% of the number of sheep present mid-winter (OR=7.1; 95% CI=1.5-34.7); and on farms where the average wool diameter of the main flock was <37 (OR=4.1; 95% CI=1.1-14.7) microns. The model provided a good fit to the data (pseudo R2=0.64; Hosmer-Lemeshow statistic = 0.38). CONCLUSIONS: Explanatory factors identified as associated with the presence of ML (ivermectin) resistance on farms included the use of long-acting anthelmintic formulations in ewes pre-lambing, sources of refugia of unselected parasites on the farm, breed of sheep and their requirements for anthelmintic treatments, and the importing of resistant parasites with purchased stock. The study provides support for controls that aim to provide refugia of susceptible worms and that minimise the risk of introduction of resistance through effective quarantine drenching.     

Anthelmintic resistance and management of nematode parasites on beef cattle-rearing farms in the North Island of New Zealand

AIM: To provide information on current farmers' opinions and farming practices thought to be related to anthelmintic resistance, and to test for associations between the presence of anthelmintic resistance and management practices on beef-cattle rearing farms in the North Island of New Zealand. METHODS: A study using an interview-based questionnaire about management of internal parasites was conducted on 62 beef cattle-rearing farms in the North Island of New Zealand, using case-control analyses to test for associations between management practices and the presence or absence of resistance to ivermectin or albendazole. Resistance was inferred from faecal nematode egg count (FEC) reduction (FECR) tests (FECRTs) when there was <90% reduction in FEC 7-10 days after treatment of calves <12 months of age. RESULTS: Of the 59 farmers who completed the questionnaire, most (n=40) ranked parasites highly, and at about the same level as quality and quantity of feed, as important production-limiting factors for their enterprises. In contrast, anthelmintic resistance was not perceived to be a problem on 13 farms, and its importance was rated low on 24, moderate on 15, and high on only six farms. Despite all farms having planned parasite control programmes, there was heavy reliance on clinical signs of parasitism to determine frequency of treatments. About one in three farmers with beef breeder cows routinely treated their calves at marking, one in five treated mixed-age cows, and almost half treated rising 2-year-old cows before calving. One in four farmers used anthelmintics on calves on 8-12 occasions in their first year of life. Co-grazing with other species was rare, but follow-on grazing within 3 months after older cattle or sheep was common. On most farms, grazing cattle was restricted to part of the farm, a finding with implications for parasite control and persistence of larvae in refugia. Macrocyclic lactone (ML) anthelmintics or their combinations with other action families were currently, and for the past 5 years, used more frequently than benzimidazoles and levamisole, and benzimidazole-levamisole combinations. The prevalence of resistance to ivermectin was high (82%) and no plausible model of associations could be constructed from the data. The prevalence of resistance to albendazole was 60%, and the risk of resistance increased as the number of rising 1-year-old cattle present mid-winter increased, and decreased as the number of breeding cows >2 years old present mid-winter increased. CONCLUSION: It is clear that in practice anthelmintic resistance is a secondary consideration to obtaining productivity advantages from the use of anthelmintics in beef cattle. Farmers' opinions were divided on many issues and the overall impression was of confused and diverse thinking regarding the principles of the use of anthelmintics. The overall outlook regarding anthelmintic resistance in cattle is bleak unless the need for integrated and long-term research activities is acted upon soon.     

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of Campylobacter jejuni sheep abortion isolates

Campylobacter species are a significant cause of sheep abortion in most sheep-raising countries. In New Zealand, Campylobacter fetus subsp. fetus is the leading cause of diagnosed sheep abortion and the species C. jejuni and C. coli have also been implicated. To date, strain typing information of C. jejuni sheep abortion isolates is limited. The objective of the present study was to genotype C. jejuni isolates cultured from sheep abortions submitted to diagnostic laboratories in New Zealand during the 2000 breeding season, using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). In this study, C. jejuni isolates were cultured from approximately 10% of farms from which Campylobacter species were isolated from sheep abortions in the year 2000. This equated to 25 C. jejuni isolates from 21 farms. These isolates were obtained from the veterinary diagnostic laboratories and strain typed using the molecular typing technique PFGE. Ten distinct PFGE types were identified amongst the isolates. No particular PFGE type was found most frequently amongst these C. jejuni sheep abortion isolates. However, indistinguishable or similar C. jejuni PFGE types were identified from different aborted foetuses from the same flock, consistent with the role of C. jejuni as an infectious cause of abortion in sheep. These strain types were similar or indistinguishable from C. jejuni sheep abortion isolates obtained in 1999 in a smaller study (Mannering, S.A., Marchant, R.M., Middelberg, A., Perkins, N.R., West, D.M., Fenwick, S.G., 2003. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis typing of C. fetus subsp. fetus from sheep abortions in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand. NZ Vet. J. 51, 33-37).     

A comparison of GHG emissions from UK field crop production under selected arable systems with reference to disease control

Crop disease not only threatens global food security by reducing crop production at a time of growing demand, but also contributes to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by reducing efficiency of N fertiliser use and farm operations and by driving land use change. GHG emissions associated with adoption of reduced tillage, organic and integrated systems of field crop production across the UK and selected regions are compared with emissions from conventional arable farming to assess their potential for climate change mitigation. The reduced tillage system demonstrated a modest (<20%) reduction in emissions in all cases, although in practice it may not be suitable for all soils and it is likely to cause problems with control of diseases spread on crop debris. There were substantial increases in GHG emissions associated with the organic and integrated systems at national level, principally due to soil organic carbon losses from land use change. At a regional level the integrated system shows the potential to deliver significant emission reductions. These results indicate that the conventional crop production system, coupled to reduced tillage cultivation where appropriate, is generally the best for producing high yields to minimise greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to global food security, although there may be scope for use of the integrated system on a regional basis. The control of crop disease will continue to have an essential role in both maintaining productivity and decreasing GHG emissions.     

舒泰对野生猕猴麻醉效果的观察

利用舒泰50(替来它明和唑拉西泮合剂)对36只野生猕猴按(5.79±1.28)mg/kg的剂量肌肉注射进行麻醉,麻醉期间对镇痛、镇静、肌松、呼吸、心率、血压、体温及血氧饱和度等指标进行监测.结果显示:舒泰对猕猴的诱导期为(2.72±1.72)min,平均诱导效果判定为"极好",麻醉期间体温为(38.74±0.46)℃,...     

不同湿度和氨水平对肉仔鸡抗氧化性能及肉品质的影响

本研究旨在探讨鸡舍内不同湿度和氨浓度对肉仔鸡机体抗氧化性能和肉品质的影响.试验选用健康、体质量相近的21日龄AA雄性肉仔鸡192只,随机分为2组.一组为高氨组(暴露于70 mg·kg-1氨气,H),另一组是低氨组(暴露于30 mg·kg-1氨气,L).其中每一组的一半分别置于60％湿度(对照组,C),另一半置于35％湿度(处理组,T),这样组成4个试验组,对照1:60％湿度+30 mg·kg-1氨水平组(C+L)、对照2:60%湿度+70 mg·kg-1氨水平组(C+H)、处理1:35％湿度+30 mg·kg-1氨水平组(T+L),以及处理2:35％湿度+70 mg· kg-1氨水平组(T+H),试验期21 d.试验结束时测定肉仔鸡生产性能,血液及肌肉抗氧化性能和肉品质相关指标.试验结果表明,高氨(70 mg· kg-1)水平显著降低肉仔鸡结束体质量,平均日采食量,日增体质量,血液及肌肉中总抗氧化力及肉仔鸡宰后45 min时的胸肌a*值(P＜0.05);增加了胸肌存放5d时硫代巴比妥酸反应物水平(TBARS)含量,胸肌滴水损失率,宰后45 min时的胸肌b*值(P＜0.05)和L*值(P=0.054)及肌肉剪切力(P=0.075).低湿(35％相对湿度)处理降低了肉仔鸡试验结束体质量(P＜0.05),平均日采食量(P＜0.05)及平均日增体质量(P=0.072),胸肌中超氧化物歧化酶及谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性(P＜0.05)及宰后45 min时的胸肌L*值(P=0.053);增加了肌肉剪切力(P=0.057)和胸肌存放5及7d时的TBARS含量(P＜0.05).与低氨对照组(C+L)相比,高氨低湿组处理组(T+H)肉仔鸡的试验结束体质量、平均日采食量、平均日增体质量、血清总抗氧化力、胸肌中总超氧化物歧化酶及谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性,胸肌宰后45 min a*值均显著降低(P＜0.05),而宰后5及7d肌肉中TBARS含量、肌肉中滴水损失及肌肉剪切力均显著提高(P＜0.05).本研究结果揭示肉仔鸡舍内高氨(70 mg·kg-1)及低湿度均显著降低了肉仔鸡生产性能、机体抗氧化能力及肌肉品质,且低湿度环境加剧了高氨的不良影响.     

Porcine circovirus-2 and concurrent infections in the field

Porcine circovirus-2 (PCV-2) is the necessary cause of post-weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) in swine; however, a variety of co-factors, including other infectious agents, are thought to be necessary in the full expression of disease. Porcine parvovirus (PPV) was found in the inoculum used in the first experiments to reproduce PMWS in gnotobiotic swine. Retrospective and prospective studies in the field and laboratory have demonstrated PCV-2 can act synergistically with PPV to enhance the severity of PMWS. PCV-2 has been shown to play a role in the porcine infectious disease complex (PRDC). Other co-infecting agents with PCV-2 in the lung include, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), swine influenza virus (SIV) and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae. Exposure of pregnant sows to PPV, PRRSV, or encephalomyocarditis virus may interact with PCV-2 infected foetuses. The severity of hepatic lesions in PCV-2 infected pigs may be enhanced by co-infection with agents such as swine hepatitis E virus and Aujezsky's disease virus. Additional studies are required to determine the mechanistic basis for the interaction of PCV-2 with other agents in the pathogenesis of the various clinical syndromes that have been associated with PCV-2 infection.     

Anthephora pubescens nees

Grondwaterherverspreiding vind vinnig in die hele grondprofiel van drie subhabitatte nl. Eragrostis pallens, Ochna pulchra en Grewia flavescens van ‘n Burkea‐savanna plaas. Na ‘n reënbui van 50 mm herversprei water binne 12 uur tot op ‘n diepte van 90 cm in ‘n sandgrond wat as die Chesterserie van die Huttonvorm geklassifiseer is. In die E. pallens en O. pulchra subhabitatte vind wateropname hoofsaaklik in die boonste 60 cm van die grondprofiel plaas terwyl vog vrylik beskikbaar is in die ondergrond selfs in die droogste maande nl. Junie, Julie en selfs Augustus. In die G. flavescens subhabitat vind wateropname deur die hele grondprofiel plaas tot op ‘n diepte van 120 cm. Die G. flavescens subhabitat blyk meer onderhewig aan vogstremminge te wees.