Statistical method for testing the neutral mutation hypothesis by DNA polymorphism.

A DNA test to sex most birds.

Demand for animal protein for human consumption is rising globally at an unprecedented rate. Modern animal production practices are associated with regular use of antimicrobials, potentially increasing selection pressure on bacteria to become resistant. Despite the significant potential consequences for antimicrobial resistance, there has been no quantitative measurement of global antimicrobial consumption by livestock. We address this gap by using Bayesian statistical models combining maps of livestock densities, economic projections of demand for meat products, and current estimates of antimicrobial consumption in high-income countries to map antimicrobial use in food animals for 2010 and 2030. We estimate that the global average annual consumption of antimicrobials per kilogram of animal produced was 45 mg⋅kg(-1), 148 mg⋅kg(-1), and 172 mg⋅kg(-1) for cattle, chicken, and pigs, respectively. Starting from this baseline, we estimate that between 2010 and 2030, the global consumption of antimicrobials will increase by 67%, from 63,151 ± 1,560 tons to 105,596 ± 3,605 tons. Up to a third of the increase in consumption in livestock between 2010 and 2030 is imputable to shifting production practices in middle-income countries where extensive farming systems will be replaced by large-scale intensive farming operations that routinely use antimicrobials in subtherapeutic doses. For Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, the increase in antimicrobial consumption will be 99%, up to seven times the projected population growth in this group of countries. Better understanding of the consequences of the uninhibited growth in veterinary antimicrobial consumption is needed to assess its potential effects on animal and human health.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/112/18/5649.full.pdf

Global trends in antimicrobial use in food animals

L'incidence annuelle du syndrome de Guillain-Barre est de 1,5/100000 habitants La mortalite actuelle est estimee a environ 5 % d'apres des essais therapeutiques recents, bien conduits Dix pour cent des malades gardent des sequelles motrices tres invalidantes un an apres le debut des premiers signes neurologiques La prise en charge de ces malades necessite des equipes entrainees, multidisciplinaires, pouvant pratiquer l'ensemble des therapeutiques specifiques La corticotherapie per os'ou par voie intraveineuse est inefficace Les echanges plasmatiques sont le premier traitement dont l'efficacite a ete demontree par rapport a un groupe controle Les indications sont maintenant mieux connues Les formes benignes (marche possible) beneficient de 2 echanges plasmatiques; 2 echanges supplementaires sont realises en cas d'aggravation Dans les formes intermediaires (marche impossible) et les formes severes (recours a la ventilation mecanique), 4 echanges plasmatiques sont conseilles Il n'est pas utile d'augmenter leur nombre dans les formes severes ou en cas d'absence d'amelioration De fortes doses d'immunoglobulines donnees par voie intraveineuse (lq IV) [0,4 g/kg/j pendant 5 jours] sont aussi efficaces que les echanges plasmatiques dans les formes intermediaires et severes Dans ces formes, le choix entre Ig IV et echanges plasmatiques depend des contre-indications respectives de ces traitements et de leur faisabilite Les travaux en cours ont comme objectif de mieux preciser les indications respectives des echanges plasmatiques et des lq IV dans des formes de gravite differente, leur morbidite comparee, la dose optimale des lq IV

[Guillain-Barré syndrome].

Transepithelial/transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER) is a widely accepted quantitative technique to measure the integrity of tight junction dynamics in cell culture models of endothelial and epithelial monolayers. TEER values are strong indicators of the integrity of the cellular barriers before they are evaluated for transport of drugs or chemicals. TEER measurements can be performed in real time without cell damage and generally are based on measuring ohmic resistance or measuring impedance across a wide spectrum of frequencies. The measurements for various cell types have been reported with commercially available measurement systems and also with custom-built microfluidic implementations. Some of the barrier models that have been widely characterized using TEER include the blood–brain barrier (BBB), gastrointestinal (GI) tract, and pulmonary models. Variations in these values can arise due to factors such as temperature, medium formulation, and passage number of cells. The aim of this article ...

/pdf/teer-measurement-techniques-for-in-vitro-barrier-model-vxtiaue3j0.pdf

TEER Measurement Techniques for In Vitro Barrier Model Systems

The use of chemotherapeutics as a possible treatment strategy in avian oncology is steadily increasing over the last years. Despite this, literature reports regarding dosing strategies and pharmacokinetic behaviour of chemotherapeutics in avian species are lacking. The aim of the present study was to investigate the pharmacokinetics of carboplatin in a representative species of the order of Galliformes, Anseriformes, Columbiformes and Psittaciformes. Eight chickens, ducks and pigeons and twenty-eight parakeets were administered carboplatin intravenously (5 mg/kg body weight). A specific and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for quantification of the free carboplatin in plasma of the four birds species (limit of quantification: 20 ng/mL for chicken and duck, 50 ng/mL for pigeon and 100 ng/mL for parakeets). Non-compartmental pharmacokinetic analysis and allometric scaling demonstrated a significant correlation (R² = 0.9769) between body weight (BW) and elimination half-life (T1/2el). T1/2el ranged from 0.41 h in parakeets (BW: 61 ± 8 g) to 1.16 h chickens (BW: 1909 ± 619 g). T1/2el is a good parameter for dose optimization of carboplatin in other avian species, since also the previously reported T1/2el in cockatoos (average BW: 769 ± 68 g) of 1.00 h corresponds to the results obtained in the present study.

https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/6890831/file/6890835.pdf

Comparative Pharmacokinetics and Allometric Scaling of Carboplatin in Different Avian Species.

The macrolide and lincosamide (ML) resistance phenotype of 65 pigeon and 30 human Streptococcus gallolyticus strains was determined by the disk diffusion method. Constitutive resistance against the tested antibiotics was seen in 13 human and 28 pigeon strains. Simultaneous screening for the presence of erm(B) and mef(A) genes using PCR revealed that the erm(B) gene was present in 40 out of these 41 phenotypically resistant S. gallolyticus strains while the mef(A) gene was detected in only one resistant and one susceptible human-derived strain. The erm(B) genes of 10 human and 10 pigeon S. gallolyticus strains were sequenced and compared. Four human and seven pigeon strains possessed exactly the same sequence for the erm(B) gene. The sequence of the erm(B) gene of the remaining strains differed in one to five nucleotides. These findings could indicate a possible exchange of resistance genes between human and pigeon strains.

Phenotypic and Genetic Characterization of Resistance against Macrolides and Lincosamides in Streptococcus gallolyticus Strains Isolated from Pigeons and Humans

Net zoals bij andere diersoorten hebben stress en verminderd welzijn een negatief effect op de mentale status, gezondheid en op het gedrag van zowel in het wild als in gevangenschap levende slangen. Naast antropogene verstoring zijn de beschikbaarheid van voedsel en schuilplaatsen, de aanwezigheid van predatoren en omgevingscondities, zoals seizoenale en klimatologische veranderingen, de belangrijkste factoren die stress en welzijn van wilde slangenpopulaties beinvloeden. Bij in gevangenschap levende slangen is een ongeschikt management de meest prominente reden van chronische stress en verminderd welzijn. Chronische stress kan bepaald worden door gedragswijzigingen van de slang, maar een gestandaardiseerde kwantificatiemethode om (chronische) stresslevels accurater te bepalen, ontbreekt. Een biomerker die gebruikt kan worden, is het gehalte aan corticosterone in bloedplasma, feces en vervellingshuid.

https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8562368/file/8562369.pdf

Stress in wild and captive snakes: quantification, effects and the importance of management

The study of trophic ecology of terrestrial salamanders is central for a better understanding of their adaptability and dispersal, in particular in Mediterranean ecosystems where their feeding activity is reduced because of prolonged arid periods. Terrestrial salamanders are generalist predators that feed on a large array of invertebrate prey groups, however, there are few studies comparing the feeding strategy and the trophic specialization at the individual level in conspecific populations of salamanders living in different habitats. In this study, two populations of the Sardinian endemic salamander Speleomantes imperialis were sampled in areas characterized by different climate, vegetation and geological substrate. Dietary habits, obtained by stomach flushing, and physiological condition, assessed through a body condition index, were analysed and compared between populations. The two populations displayed different diets on the basis of the taxonomic composition of prey categories, but both of them behaved as generalist predators and shared a similar body condition index. Moreover, in both populations the indices of individual trophic specialization were significantly different from null models assuming a random prey distribution among predators. Therefore, the two populations were largely composed by individually specialized salamanders. Overall, these findings are in good agreement with other studies on the trophic ecology of top predators and in particular of terrestrial salamanders. The realized trophic strategies, i.e. generalist at the population and specialist at the individual level, were highly consistent geographically and the two populations exploited the different arrays of prey found in their environments similarly.

Consistency in trophic strategies between populations of the Sardinian endemic salamander Speleomantes imperialis

Real-time quantitative PCR studies largely depend on reference genes for the normalization of gene expression. Stable reference genes should be accurately selected in order to obtain reliable results. We here present a study screening commonly used reference genes (TEF1F, α-centractin, Ctsyn1, GAPDH, R6046, APRT and TUB) in the chytrid fungi Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal), which cause the lethal amphibian skin disease chytridiomycosis. We evaluated the stability of the reference gene candidates during different growth stages of the fungi, using different statistical software packages: ΔCT, BestKeeper, GeNorm, NormFinder and RefFinder. In order to reflect the in vivo situation, the stability of the candidates was assessed when taking all growth stages into account. Using an ex-vivo approach, we tested whether the expression of GAPDH, TUB, R6046 and APRT (Bd) and GAPDH, TUB, R6046 and α-centractin (Bsal) remained stable when these fungi came in contact with host tissue. Finally, their role as in vivo reference genes was examined in skin tissue of experimentally infected midwife toads (Alytes obstetricans) (Bd) and fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra) (Bsal). Summarized, the present study provides guidance for selecting appropriate reference genes when analyzing expression patterns of these fungal organisms during different growth stages and in Bd- or Bsal-infected tissues.

https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8638031/file/8638032.pdf

An Martel

Papers

Comparative Pharmacokinetics and Allometric Scaling of Carboplatin in Different Avian Species.

Phenotypic and Genetic Characterization of Resistance against Macrolides and Lincosamides in Streptococcus gallolyticus Strains Isolated from Pigeons and Humans

Stress in wild and captive snakes: quantification, effects and the importance of management

Consistency in trophic strategies between populations of the Sardinian endemic salamander Speleomantes imperialis

Reference gene screening of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis and Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans for quantitative real-time PCR studies.