Prevalence of anthelmintic resistance on 62 beef cattle farms in the North Island of New Zealand

AIM: To establish the prevalence of anthelmintic resistance in parasitic nematodes on a random sample of beef cattle herds in the North Island of New Zealand.

METHODS: A cross-sectional prevalence study was conducted using a standardised faecal nematode egg count (FEC) reduction (FECR) test (FECRT) for ivermectin, levamisole and albendazole on 60 calves on each of 62 farms in the North Island chosen at random from farms that conformed with the selection criteria. Resistance to an anthelmintic was inferred when there was <95% reduction in FEC 7-10 days after treatment. Larval cultures were performed for all control groups and for treated groups for which resistance was evident.

RESULTS: Of the farms that completed the FECRT, 4/61 (7%) showed ≥95% reduction in FEC for all anthelmintics tested. Resistance to ivermectin was evident on 56/61 (92%) farms, to albendazole on 47/62 (76%) farms, and to both ivermectin and albendazole on 45/61 (74%) farms. Resistance to levamisole was evident on only 4/62 (6%) farms. The parasites most prevalent in resistant populations cultured were Cooperia spp. On 45/61 (74%) farms where Cooperia spp were present in suffi cient numbers, resistance to both ivermectin and albendazole was evident. No cases of levamisole-resistant Cooperia spp were detected. Resistance of Ostertagia spp to ivermectin was evident on 4/45 (9%) farms, to albendazole on 15/46 (35%) farms, and to levamisole on 4/46 (9%) farms.

CONCLUSION: Anthelmintic resistance in parasitic nematodes of cattle is common in the North Island of New Zealand. Beef farmers need to be aware of the risks posed by anthelmintic resistance, and routine FECR testing is recommended to ensure optimal productivity and to guide decision-making when purchasing anthelmintics to be used on-farm.     

水稻对黑条矮缩病感病生育期研究初报

为明确水稻品种对黑条矮缩病的感病生育期,分别于水稻二、四、六、八、十叶龄期模拟田间发病条件对特特普和华粳6号两品种进行接种比较抗病性差异。结果发现八叶龄以内的特特普与十叶龄以内的华粳6号均表现为感病,十叶龄水稻品种则表现为不感病,随着叶龄的增加水稻品种对病害敏感程度呈下降趋势。这表明水稻品种不同生育期对黑条矮缩病感病性存在差异,而秧田期和本田前期是水稻对水稻黑条矮缩病感病性较强的时期,本研究结果可望为水稻黑条矮缩病综合防治策略的制定提供重要依据。     

The teaching of dermatology in veterinary education in North America (2002)

The purpose of this study was to collect and report the current quantity and content of dermatology taught in the nonclinical and clinical curricula of North American veterinary colleges. This is the first published record of this information and was gathered from 29/30 colleges. Half of the respondents of the questionnaire thought that veterinary students currently receive sufficient didactic dermatology course work. A separate didactic dermatology course is required at 16/29 colleges, which provides a mean of 31.31 instructional units. Twenty-four of 29 veterinary colleges offer a separate clinical dermatology rotation. Thirteen schools report that students who desire a clinical rotation through dermatology usually attain it. However, it is only required for graduation in seven colleges. This report serves as a tool for veterinary schools assessing their existing curriculum and allows them to compare the education they provide in this specialty with that of other colleges.     

Experimental inoculation of raccoons (Procyon lotor) with Spiroplasma mirum and transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME)

The primary objective of this study was to determine whether or not Spiroplasma mirum would be capable of producing lesions of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) when inoculated in raccoons (Procyon lotor) and, if that was possible, to compare the clinicopathological findings with those of transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) in the same experimental model. For this purpose, 5 groups (n = 5) of raccoon kits were inoculated intracerebrally with either S. mirum and/or TME. Two other groups (n = 5) of raccoon kits served as sham-inoculated controls. All animals inoculated with TME, either alone or in combination, showed clinical signs of neurologic disorder and were euthanized within 6 mo post-inoculation (MPI). None of the carcasses revealed gross lesions. Spongiform encephalopathy was observed by light microscopy and the presence of abnormal disease-causing prion protein (PrP(d)) was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and Western blot (WB) techniques in only the raccoons administered TME. Raccoons inoculated with Spiroplasma, but not administered TME agent, were euthanized at 30 MPI. They did not show clinical neurologic signs, their brains did not have lesions of spongiform encephalopathy, and their tissues were negative for S. mirum by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and for PrP(d) by IHC and WB techniques. The results of this study indicate that Spiroplasma mirum does not induce TSE-like disease in raccoons.     

Photoinduced Chemical Dynamics of High-Spin Alkali Trimers

Nanometer-sized helium droplets, each containing about 10(4) helium atoms, were used as an inert substrate on which to form previously unobserved, spin-3/2 (quartet state) alkali trimers. Dispersed fluorescence measurements reveal that, upon electronic excitation, the quartet trimers undergo intersystem crossing to the doublet manifold, followed by dissociation of the doublet trimer into an atom and a covalently bound singlet dimer. As shown by this work, aggregates of spin-polarized alkali metals represent ideal species for the optical study of fundamental chemical dynamics processes including nonadiabatic spin conversion, change of bonding nature, and unimolecular dissociation.     

Citrus pulp for cattle.

Citrus pulp is classified as an energy concentrate by-product feed. Citrus by-products fed to beef cattle include citrus molasses, citrus meal, wet citrus pulp, dried citrus pulp, and pelleted citrus pulp; however, in current production systems, pulp (wet, dry, and pelleted) is the only by-product commonly used. Citrus pulp production in the United States is limited to specific subtropical regions, of which south central Florida remains the largest with additional production in California and Texas.     

Evaluation of a barrier dental sealant in dogs

A study was conducted in 40 healthy, randomly selected, client-owned, mixed and purebred dogs to assess the efficacy of a barrier dental sealant. All dogs showed evidence of dental plaque, calculus, or gingivitis. The dental sealant was applied to one side of the mouth following a professional teeth cleaning procedure and reapplied weekly for 8-weeks following the cleaning procedure. Dental parameters evaluated included plaque, calculus, gingivitis, and gingival bleeding indices. A statistically significant difference was detected between treated and untreated teeth compared with baseline values for plaque and calculus at weeks 4 and 8, gingivitis at week 4, and gingival bleeding time at week 8. A professional teeth cleaning procedure followed by a single application of the barrier dental sealant and weekly reapplication performed by a veterinarian or veterinary technician provided significant improvement in plaque and calculus indices during an 8-week period.     

First and second cattle passage of transmissible mink encephalopathy by intracerebral inoculation

To compare clinicopathologic findings of transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) with other transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE, prion diseases) that have been shown to be experimentally transmissible to cattle (sheep scrapie and chronic wasting disease [CWD]), two groups of calves (n = 4 each) were intracerebrally inoculated with TME agents from two different sources (mink with TME and a steer with TME). Two uninoculated calves served as controls. Within 15.3 months postinoculation, all animals from both inoculated groups developed clinical signs of central nervous system (CNS) abnormality; their CNS tissues had microscopic spongiform encephalopathy (SE); and abnormal prion protein (PrP(res)) as detected in their CNS tissues by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and Western blot (WB) techniques. These findings demonstrate that intracerebrally inoculated cattle not only amplify TME PrP(res) but also develop clinical CNS signs and extensive lesions of SE. The latter has not been shown with other TSE agents (scrapie and CWD) similarly inoculated into cattle. The findings also suggest that the diagnostic techniques currently used for confirmation of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) would detect TME in cattle should it occur naturally. However, it would be a diagnostic challenge to differentiate TME in cattle from BSE by clinical signs, neuropathology, or the presence of PrP(res) by IHC and WB.     

三种氮源对绿色巴夫藻生长及细胞营养组成的影响

本文研究了5个浓度(0、0.9、1.8、3.5、7mmol/L)的3种氮源(硝酸钠、氯化铵、尿素)对绿色巴夫藻(Pavlova viridis)生长代谢的影响。结果表明绿色巴夫藻在尿素浓度为3.5mmol/L时生长最快,最大细胞密度达30.927*106个细胞。氮源及其浓度显著影响绿色巴夫藻叶绿素a和蛋白质的含量,叶绿素a在3.5mmol/L尿素时,含量最高为0.913μg/106个细胞。蛋白质在7.0mmol/L尿素时,含量最高为36.698μg/106个细胞。脂肪酸主要由16:0、16:1、20:5组成,氮源浓度为1.8mmol/LNaNO3时,EPA和多不饱和脂肪酸含量最高,占总脂的37.31%和45.88%。