Hygienic and ecological risks connected with utilization of animal manures and biosolids in agriculture

In recent years the fate of human and animal pathogen microorganisms as a potential pollutant of the environment has been paid increased attention. Substantial quantities of these compounds and their metabolites are excreted, flushed down the drain, discarded as waste, or left over in animal feedlots. After passing to the sewer, several of these compounds are not adequately eliminated by the methods that are currently used in sewage treatment. Substantial quantities of biosolids and livestock manure end up on agricultural land. Effective sanitation of the environment, particularly of some of its special parts, which can be a source of spreading of diseases, plays an important role in prevention of infectious diseases. In this respect special attention should be paid to the disinfection of infected farm animal excrements. Sanitation of excrements should, on the one hand, ensure effective inhibition of infectious agents and, on the other hand, comply with the requirement of preserving the composition of the manure so it can be used in agricultural production.     

Specific characters of 16S rRNA gene and 16S–23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer sequences of Xylella fastidiosa pear leaf scorch strains

Pear leaf scorch, the only Xylella fastidiosa-induced disease reported from Taiwan, was found in area where the variety Hengshan (Pyrus pyrifolia) was grown. Strains of pear leaf scorch Xyl. fastidiosa (XF-PLS) shared similarities to strains of other host origins in the requirement of complex medium and the exhibition of rippled cell walls, however, recent serological and molecular biology studies showed difference among them. Five strains of XF-PLS were compared with 20 other strains originally isolated from almond, oleander, pecan, plum, peach, mulberry, grapes, citrus, coffee, and sycamore by sequence analyses of the 16S rRNA gene and 16S–23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer region (ITS). When sequences of 16S rRNA gene based on fragment size of 1,537–1,540 bp were compared, the similarity index among 5 XF-PLS strains was 99.3–99.8%, whereas it was 97.8–98.6% between XF-PLS strains and strains from other hosts. When sequences of 16S–23S rRNA ITS based on fragment size of 510–540 bp were compared, the similarity index among 5 XF-PLS strains was 99.0–100%, whereas it was 80.7–82% between XF-PLS strains and strains from other hosts. Multiple sequence alignments led to the identification of 5 polymorphic nucleotides in the 16S rRNA gene among the 25 Xyl. fastidiosa strains, and there were considerable variations in the nucleotide sequences of 16S–23S rRNA ITS between XF-PLS and the other 20 Xyl. fastidiosa strains. The phylogenetic trees revealed that XF-PLS strains were separated from strains of other hosts. Strains of other hosts were divided into four subgroups: strains from (1) oleander, (2) grape, almond M23 and mulberry, (3) citrus and coffee, and (4) pecan, peach, plum, sycamore and almond M12. Results indicate that XF-PLS strains were not closely related to the above-mentioned strains from other hosts and could possibly belong to a new subspecies of Xyl. fastidiosa.     

Spatial Assessment of Land Degradation Risk for the Okavango River Catchment,Southern Africa

The Okavango catchment in southern Africa is subject to environmental as well as socio‐economic transformation processes such as population growth and climate change. The degradation of soil and vegetation by deforestation and overgrazing is one of the downsides of this development, reducing the capacity of the land to provide ecosystem functions and services. In this study, climate simulations are brought together with secondary socioeconomic, pedologic and remote‐sensing data in a GIS‐based assessment of the factors commonly associated with land degradation risk. A high resolution overview is provided for decision‐makers and stakeholders in the region by identifying priority intervention areas where a long‐term decline in ecosystem function and land productivity is most likely to occur. The approach combines 19 risk factors into seven individual ratings for topography, landcover, soil, demography, infrastructure, livestock pressure and climate. These ratings are then weighted and combined into an integrated degradation risk index (DRI). The results show that the land degradation risk is quite heterogeneously distributed in the study area and caused by different factors. Three hot‐spots are identified and compared, one of which is in the far northwestern part of the catchment, one around the local center Rundu and one on the outskirts of the Okavango Delta. We conclude that the approach is suitable to give an overview on degradation risk in the study area, although the classification process is a crucial procedure that should be standardized for further research. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of an indirect competitive ELISA for flumequine residues in raw milk using chicken egg yolk antibodies

To detect flumequine in raw milk, an indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed. By carbodiimide conjugation, flumequine was conjugated to cationized bovine serum albumin (cBSA-flumequine) and to cationized ovalbumin (cOVA-flumequine). For the immunization of chickens, cBSA-flumequine was used, which allowed the isolation of specific chicken egg yolk immunoglobulins (IgY) for flumequine. As the coating antigen in the immunoassay, cOVA-flumequine was used. In the indirect competitive assay, standard flumequine was incubated together with the anti-flumequine antibodies. The antibody by which the lowest concentration of free flumequine that gives 50% inhibition of binding (IC50) was found in aqueous dilution was further tested for the applicability to detect flumequine in raw milk. An IC50 level in milk was reached that was about 5 times lower than in aqueous solution. So flumequine can be detected directly in raw milk at maximum residue level (50 microg/kg). No cross-reactivity was noticed with various related quinolones.     

Phytotoxin produced by the netted scab pathogen, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Streptomyces turgidiscabies</Emphasis> strain 65, isolated in Sweden

Streptomyces spp. are a highly diverse group of bacteria most of which are soil-inhabiting saprophytes. A few are plant pathogens that produce a family of phytotoxins called thaxtomins and cause significant economic losses, e.g., by reducing the marketability of potato tubers (Solanum tuberosum). In northern Europe, S. scabies, S. turgidiscabies and S. europaeiscabiei are the most common plant pathogenic species. In this study, a Streptomyces strain isolated from a netted scab lesion on a tuber of potato cv. Bintje in northern Sweden was identified as S. turgidiscabies but was found to differ in the genomic region carrying genes required for thaxtomin biosynthesis. Our results showed that the strain did not produce thaxtomin but rather phytotoxin fridamycin E, which is an anthraquinone novel to plant pathogenic Streptomyces spp. Fridamycin E was shown to reduce or inhibit sprouting of potato microtubers in vitro. While fridamycin E is known to have antibiotic activity against Gram-positive bacteria, the inhibitory activity of fridamycin E on plant growth is a novel finding.     

Associations between use of electric cow-trainers and clinical diseases, reproductive performance and culling in Swedish dairy cattle

The aims of this follow-up study were: (a) to evaluate the role of ECT technology as a risk factor for several diseases; and (b) to determine if the effects of these diseases on cows' reproductive performance and as risk factors for culling are influenced by exposure to ECTs. Diseases considered were retained placenta, metritis, ketosis, cystic ovaries, silent heat, milk fever, clinical mastitis, and foot and leg problems. We used historical and contemporary controls (with control herds selected to match the experimental herds for size and location). Data consisted of 10264 Swedish Red and White (SRB) and 5461 Swedish Friesian (SLB) lactation records in 150 herds of which 33 used cow-trainers. Logistic regression was used to estimate the effects of parity and exposure to electric cow-trainers on the risks of diseases and the effects of diseases and exposure to electric cow-trainers on risk of culling. The least-squares procedure was used to estimate the effects of diseases on reproductive performance.

The dominant effects associated with use of electric cow-trainers were an increased risk for silent heat, clinical mastitis, ketosis and culling relative to cows in herds not using cow-trainers. Diseases had negative effects on reproductive performance and the effects were larger for cows in herds using cow-trainers. In herds using electric cow-trainers, the largest increase in the interval from first service to conception (58 days) was caused by the occurrences of silent heat, cystic ovaries and the combination of two or more diseases. Retained placenta, metritis, cystic ovaries, clinical mastitis and a combination of two or more diseases increased the risk of culling about two times relative to healthy primiparous cows with the increase being greater for cows in herds using cow-trainers. Silent heat did not increase risk of culling in control groups, but was the largest risk factor for culling in the exposed group. We concluded that exposure to electric cow-trainers increased the incidence risk of silent heat, clinical mastitis, and ketosis and changed silent heat from a neutral disease with respect to culling to a major risk factor. Finally, exposure to cow-trainers increased the general negative effect of diseases on the cows' reproductive performance and risk for culling.     

Intermittent Stress in Pigs: Behavioural and Pituitary-Adrenocortical Reactivity

Abstract

Ninetysix pigs, half females and half castrated males from 12 litters, were housed in 24 groups of 4 litter mates (2 females, 2 castrates). The pigs were weaned at 4 weeks of age and from the age of 115 days half of the groups were subjected to a schedule of unpredictable, inescapable electroshocks for 33 days, and half served as control. The adrenocortical reactivity to ACTH stimulation and to an emotional stressor (the procedure associated with initiation of blood collection) was measured in females, whereas the behavioural and pituitary-adrenocortical reactivity to an open field test was measured in castrates, as was the behavioural reactivity in a social test. Intermittent stress increased adrenocortical reactivity to ACTH stimulation significantly. This effect was present within the first week of intermittent stress (p < 0.06), but no difference was found after 4–5 weeks of stress. In contrast, the adrenocortical reactivity to additional emotional stressors was unaffected by stress after one week of intermittent stress, but increased after 4–5 weeks. In the open field test, centre location increased after one week of intermittent stress, whereas exploration decreased and walking and ambulation increased after 4–5 weeks of stress. In addition, 4–5 weeks of intermittent stress decreased aggressiveness in a social test. In conclusion, the change in reactivity to an additional acute stressor during intermittent stress appeared in different variables and contexts at different times during the course of intermittent stress. Thus, assessment of stress based on changed reactivity has to include several distinct measures of behavioural and hormonal reactivity.