Heliotropium europaeum poisoning of sheep with low liver copper concentrations and the preventive efficacy of cobalt and antimethanogen

In a field experiment in the Mallee district of Victoria, Merlno xBorder Leicester ewes and wethers grazed Heliotropium europaeum (heliotrope) over periods of 3 to 4 months in 4 successive years. By the end of the second year 12% (14 of 120) of the sheep had died; after 4 years the loss attributable to heliotrope was between 18% and 35%. Mortality was not affected by intraruminal treatment with cobalt or antimethanogen. At the end of the experiment the highest concentration of copper in the liver was 1.95 mmol/kg wet weight (approximately 413 micrograms/g dry weight). The relatively low mortality from primary heliotrope poisoning and the low concentration of copper in the liver of sheep grazing the plant are discussed in relation to the contrasting situation that prevails in the Riverina area of New South Wales. The importance of local environmental factors in the management of heliotrope grazing by sheep is emphasised, particularly in relation to the number of seasons in which the plant may be a major component of the diet.     

Seroprevalence of Canine Herpesvirus‐1 in the Belgian Dog Population in 2000

Canine herpesvirus‐1 (CHV‐1) is known to be associated with fertility and fecundity disorders as well as neonatal mortality in puppies of less than 3 weeks of age. The virus is presumed to be enzootic in dogs all over the world and recent studies in several European countries suggest a high seroprevalence among the dog population. In the year 2000, a total of 647 Belgian canine sera from 102 privately owned patients and 545 breeding dogs were analysed with an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Furthermore 77 of the samples were submitted to two serum neutralization (SN) tests for comparison. An overall CHV‐1 seroprevalence of 45.75% was observed in the Belgian dog population. No significant differences could be observed based on breeding status, reason for consultation or sex. The correlation between the ELISA and both SN tests appeared to be moderate with a significantly greater sensitivity of the ELISA. This study also demonstrated that the CHV‐1 seroprevalence in the Belgian dog population is similar to that in other recently investigated European countries and that the incidence in breeding units is not necessarily higher than in non‐breeding dogs.     

Studies on the persistency of carbaryl residues in fruit

Summary The paper deals with studies on the dynamics of Carbaryl residue loss on apples, plums and peaches.The initial toxicant deposit ranges between 8 and 13 ppm on peaches, 2, 3 and 3, 4 ppm on apples and up to 1.5 ppm on plums. According to the dynamics of Carbaryl residue loss on fruit results a rest period of 2 days for plums, 7 days for apples and 21 days for peaches, on admitting a 2 ppm tolerance.

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Zusammenfassung Unter Berücksichtigung der Witterungsbedingungen wurde die Geschwindigkeit des Abbaus von Carbaryl-Rückständen bei Äpfeln, Pflaumen und Pfirsichen untersucht. Die anfängliche Höhe der Rückstände betrug bei Pfirsichen zwischen 8 und 13 ppm, bei Äpfeln 2,3 und 3,4 ppm und bei Pflaumen bis zu 1,5 ppm. Wird eine Toleranz von 2 ppm zugrundegelegt, ergibt sich entsprechend der Abbau-Geschwindigkeit von Carbaryl bei Früchten eine Wartezeit von 2 Tagen bei Pflaumen, 7 Tagen bei Äpfeln und 21 Tagen bei Pfirsichen.

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Resume On présente de données sur la dynamique de la dégradation des résidus de Carbaryl sur pommes, prunes et pêches. Le résidu initial atteint 8–13 ppm chez les pêches, 2,3–3,4 ppm chez les pommes et 1,5 ppm chez les prunes.De cette dynamique de la dégradation des résidue sur fruits il résulte que pour les prunes l'intervalle de pause de deur jours, pour les pommes de 7 jours et pour les pêches de 25 jours dans les conditions climatiques de Roumanie.

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Presented at the Congress of Chemistry in Agriculture, Bratislava, Sept. 1969.     

Feeding untreated and pasteurized waste milk and bulk milk to calves: effects on calf performance,health status and antibiotic resistance of faecal bacteria

Non‐saleable milk (waste milk, WM) is contaminated with an undefined spectrum of potentially harmful pathogens and antimicrobial residues. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of feeding bulk milk (BM) or WM – both pasteurized or not – on calf performance, health and the antibiotic resistance of specific faecal bacteria. A total of 114 calves from a large‐scale dairy were housed outdoors in individual hutches and were randomly assigned to one of four feeding groups. The calves were fed either WM, pasteurized WM (pWM), BM or pasteurized BM (pBM) from day 3 to 56 of life. Milk samples taken from the pasteurizer and calves’ nipple buckets were investigated at regular intervals for total plate count and counts of thermoduric bacteria, coliforms and mastitis pathogens. Faecal samples were taken on days 2, 14, 28 and 56 of life from randomly selected calves of the WM, pWM and BM groups (each N = 8–9) and processed to obtain from each sample preferably two isolates of Escherichia (E.) coli and Enterococcus spp. respectively. Isolates were tested for their antimicrobial susceptibility to 25 antimicrobial agents by broth microdilution. Daily weight gain, milk and calf starter intake and health parameters did not differ significantly between the calves of the four feeding groups. The proportion of resistant E. coli isolates was significantly higher in calves fed WM and in calves fed pWM (most pronounced for cephalosporins) than in calves receiving BM. No differences in resistance were found for Enterococus spp. Thus, the concerns for selecting resistant faecal bacteria by feeding WM seem to be justified. Nonetheless, pasteurized WM of cows not treated with antimicrobials represents an acceptable feed for young calves.     

Associations between lamb growth to weaning and dam udder and teat scores

ABSTRACT

Aims: To investigate associations between lamb growth to weaning and dam udder and teat scores measured at pre-mating, pre-lambing, docking and weaning.

Methods: Mature Romney ewes (n?=?1,009) were enrolled from a commercial sheep flock located near Masterton, in the Wellington region of New Zealand in 2017. A range of udder and teat traits were scored in all ewes, using visual assessment and palpation, at pre-mating, pre-lambing, docking and weaning. During the lambing period, each newborn lamb was matched to its dam and lamb sex, birthweight and birth-rank were recorded. A rearing rank was allocated to each live-lamb at weaning, when all lambs were weighed (n?=?1,570), allowing calculation of daily growth rates (g/day). Associations between udder and teat scores and lamb growth rates to weaning were examined using multivariable models for each udder-scoring time.

Results: Growth rates of lambs whose dams had udder palpation scores of hard, or both teats recorded as abnormal, pre-mating were lower than lambs whose dams had normal scores (229.9 (95% CI?=?213.2–246.6) vs. 254.5 (95% CI?=?245.6–263.5) g/day; p?=?0.011) and (227.4 (95% CI?=?208.3–246.6) vs. 247.9 (95% CI?=?235.7–260.2) g/day; p?=?0.024), respectively. Growth rates of lambs whose dams had clinical mastitis at docking or weaning were lower than those without mastitis (215.8 (95% CI?=?199.9–231.7) vs. 235.4 (95% CI?=?225.4–255.0) g/day; p?=?0.007) and (220.0 (95% CI?=?205.2–234.8) vs. 254.7 (95% CI?=?248.9–260.5) g/day; p?<?0.001), respectively. Growth rates of lambs whose dams had asymmetrical udders at docking or weaning were lower than lambs whose dams had symmetrical udders (204.6 (95% CI?=?189.7–219.5) vs. 240.2 (95% CI?=?225.4–255.0) g/day; p?<?0.001) and (223.3 (95% CI?=?213.9–232.7) vs. 242.2 (95% CI?=?229.4–255.0) g/day; p?=?0.014), respectively.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Pre-mating udder palpation and teat palpation scores can be used to identify ewes whose lambs are predicted to have lower growth to weaning. Assuming a mean lamb age at weaning of 84.4 days, lambs born to ewes with a pre-mating score of hard would be expected to have a mean weaning weight that was 2.1?kg less than those whose dams had normal scores. Udder palpation, udder symmetry and clinical mastitis scores during lactation were also associated with lamb growth rates.

Abbreviation: CALW: Conceptus-adjusted liveweight     

Familial episodic ataxia in lambs

Abstract

HISTORY: A similar episodic neurological disorder occurred in new born lambs on two unrelated properties involving disparate breeds of sheep. Because of the number of lambs born, cross-breeding and the fact it occurred in some mating groups and not others, a dominant mode of inheritance was, initially and separately, suspected in each case. The sires of affected lambs were apparently normal. Whereas one was New Zealand Romney, the other was a composite breed with East Friesian genetics, but both rams originated from the same source property. To investigate the pathogenesis of the disorder these two rams were acquired and mated with unrelated sheep, under experimental conditions in a more controlled environment.

CLINICAL FINDINGS: A proportion of lambs born to both sires exhibited a similar neurological disorder. Some lambs were noted to be abnormal at birth, both on home properties and in the experimental flock. They tended to adopt a head and neck extended posture and were slow to get to their feet and suckle when they then became more or less normal. When forced to move, they and other more robust lambs elicited an asymmetric gait, base-wide extensor hypertonia (hypometria) of thoracic limbs and flexor hypertonia (hypermetria) of pelvic limbs. In some there was nystagmus. After several metres of asymmetric ataxic gait they would fall to one side, sometimes adopting a sitting position. Recovery usually occurred in one to several minutes. As lambs aged, it became more difficult to elicit the episodes of dysfunction and by 6 months of age they appeared normal.

DIAGNOSIS: The disorder was diagnosed as a dominant familial episodic cerebellovestibular ataxia inherited as a dominant trait, with incomplete penetration of observed clinical signs and variable expressivity.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: A proportion of affected lambs are likely to die in the neonatal period so the specific nature of the disorder may go unrecognised. Because of incomplete penetrance and varying expressivity, many of the lambs carrying this mutation will survive without showing clinical signs and may enter breeding flocks, where the disorder may be perpetuated and contribute to neonatal deaths.     

The Effects of Sample Size on the Outcome of Ovarian Tissue Cryopreservation

Cryopreservation of ovarian tissue is known to affect follicular survival. Several variables may be responsible for this. Little attention has focused on the effect of the size of the fragment to be cryopreserved. This study was conducted to assess the effect of the size of the tissue on follicular histology after freezing with 1,2-propanediol. Histological evaluations were performed of control and cryopreserved tissue. Fragments were cut 10 × 3 × 2 mm³ (2 mm group) or 10 × 3 × 4 mm³ (4 mm group). Percentages of normal follicles in control fragments cut into 2 and 4 mm slices were 56% and 34%, respectively. The relative risks to obtain normal follicles in the 2 mm and the 4 mm fragments after cryopreservation were 0.63 and 0.47, respectively. Freezing reduced follicle survival to a significantly greater extent in the larger tissue fragments. There is an increased risk of damage to primary and primordial follicles, when the tissue slices are cut with all dimensions larger than 2 mm.     

Culturing and molecular methods to assess the infectivity of porcine circovirus from treated effluent of swine manure

Samples were collected at the effluent of two swine manure treatment systems and were analyzed by qPCR to determine the presence and amounts of porcine circovirus (PCV2) genetic material. ST cells were inoculated with the positive samples to evaluate virus viability and for viral genotyping. Twenty-five water samples were collected monthly from treated effluent (March 2009 to December 2010). The PCV2 genome was identified by qPCR in 60% of the samples, and all of the positive samples were able to infect ST cells in vitro. Positive samples were genotyped and 60% of them were positive for both PCV2a and PCV2b, 20% were positive for genotype 2a, and 20% were positive for genotype 2b. Our results suggest that these viruses were able to resist the regular wastewater treatment, and this finding demonstrates the necessity of adding a virus inactivation step to the treatment system to guarantee the safety of water reuse.     

Environmental conditions and isozyme polymorphism in Chenopodium album L.

Electrophoretic variations within four enzyme systems (α-esterase, acid phosphatase, malate dehydrogenase and leucine amino peptidase), were studied for various garden and field populations of Chenopodium album. A correlation was found between the degree of polymorphism for the electrophoretic traits and environmental conditions. The amount of phenotypic polymorphism is very high in gardens, intermediate in an untreated and, low in herbicide-treated fields and nil for a triazine resistant population in a maize (Zea mats L.) monoculture. Furthermore, the tetraploid versus hexaploid ratio is higher within garden populations. Higher variability in garden populations is due, in part, to a high proportion of polymorphic phenotypes, and in part to a low effect of selection pressure in such types of habitat. Although there is a difference between phenotypes of populations from acid soils and those from more basic ones, we cannot be sure that the variation of polymorphism is due only to selection.