1,721,009 research outputs found
Determinazione del biosierotipo e dei caratteri di virulenza in stipiti di Yersinia enterocolitica isolati da suini macellati
No full textEffect of welfare standards and biosecurity practices on antimicrobial use in beef cattle
Full text linkAntimicrobial use (AMU) in livestock species and the associated antimicrobial resistance are a global concern, thus strategies for their reduction and a more judicious use are needed. Previous research has revealed a link between improved animal welfare, biosecurity and AMU reduction in pig and dairy sectors, however, little is known about the beef sector. This study aimed to investigate the impact of welfare standards and biosecurity on AMU in beef cattle. Data on performance traits and AMU were collected over a 3.5 year time from 27 specialised beef farms and a treatment incidence was calculated using the defined daily dose for animals. An on-farm assessment was carried out by assigning a score from 0 (very poor) to 100% (very good) to 3 sections: welfare, biosecurity and emergency management. The highest average score was obtained for the welfare section (76%) followed by emergency management (39%) and biosecurity (24%). This suggests that major focus on strategies for the implementation of biosecurity measures and emergency management is needed, due to the low scores reported. A statistically significant lower AMU was observed with improved level of welfare. These results may be helpful for farm benchmarking and highlight the importance of improved animal welfare for an efficient antimicrobial stewardship
Correction to: The synergistic effect of organic acids, phytochemicals and a permeabilizing complex reduces Salmonella Typhimurium 1,4,[5],12:i-shedding in pigs (Veterinary Research Communications, (2018), 42, 3, (209-217), 10.1007/s11259-018-9723-3)
No full textThis article was originally published with all author names incorrectly listed. All author names have now been transposed and appear correctly above
Effect of mixing animals in France on the use of antimicrobials in Italian beef fattening farms
No full textSince their discovery, antimicrobials have contributed to treat infectious diseases. However, several studies have highlighted an association between antimicrobial use (AMU) and the development of antimicrobial resistance, a threat to both human and animal health. Italy is the main European importer of young beef bulls and heifers from France. Before transportation to Italy, animals are collected by exporter companies from farms located across the country and mixed. The practice of mixing animals from different farms is known for its negative effects on animal health and welfare, such as the increased incidence of bovine respiratory disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the initial mixing of beef cattle in France on AMU in Italian fattening farms. The study was carried out using the information of 25 Italian specialised beef fattening farms associated with a producer organization of Veneto region (AZoVe, Cittadella, Italy), and included approximately 50,000 male and female animals of Charolaise and Limousine breeds imported from France from 2015 to 2018. In vivo performances and information on animal ID, a number of treatments administered per animal and amount of antimicrobial per treatment (ml) were available. A treatment incidence of 100 (TI100) per animal was calculated to quantify AMU. Each animal belonged to a batch defined as a group of individuals of the same breed and sex and similar entry body weight in the fattening farm. To investigate the effect of mixing on AMU, each batch was assigned to 1 of 6 classes created according to the French province of origin. Specifically, class 1 contained batches of animals collected from 1 province only, and so on up to 6 provinces. Data were analysed using the software SAS 9.4. Overall, males were more treated than females (TI100: 4.15 vs. 3.56; p < .05), and Limousine tended to receive more treatments than Charolaise (TI100: 4.06 vs. 3.62; p=.09). The highest T100 was observed in autumn and the lowest in spring (3.98 vs. 3.62; p < .05). The practice of mixing animals from different provinces was significant in explaining the variation of AMU (p < .05), with class 1 having lower TI100 compared to other classes; this suggests that reducing a priori the number of provinces where animals are originally collected may contribute to decreasing AMU in beef production
Feasibility of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy in the Classification of Pig Lung Lesions
No full textRespiratory diseases significantly affect intensive pig farming, causing production losses and increased antimicrobial use. Accurate classification of lung lesions is crucial for effective diagnostics and disease management. The integration of non-destructive and rapid techniques would be beneficial to enhance overall efficiency in addressing these challenges. This study investigates the potential of near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy in classifying pig lung tissues. The NIR spectra (908-1676 nm) of 101 lungs from weaned pigs were analyzed using a portable instrument and subjected to multivariate analysis. Two distinct discriminant models were developed to differentiate normal (N), congested (C), and pathological (P) lung tissues, as well as catarrhal bronchopneumonia (CBP), fibrinous pleuropneumonia (FPP), and interstitial pneumonia (IP) patterns. Overall, the model tailored for discriminating among pathological lesions demonstrated superior classification performances. Major challenges arose in categorizing C lungs, which exhibited a misclassification rate of 30% with N and P tissues, and FPP samples, with 30% incorrectly recognized as CBP samples. Conversely, IP and CBP lungs were all identified with accuracy, precision, and sensitivity higher than 90%. In conclusion, this study provides a promising proof of concept for using NIR spectroscopy to recognize and categorize pig lungs with different pathological lesions, offering prospects for efficient diagnostic strategies
S. Typhimurium and S. Typhimurium Monophasic variant attenuated vaccines. A comparison of efficacy in homologous and heterologous infection in piglets
No full textIntroduction: Salmonella Typhimurium and its monophasic variant (S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i-) are increasingly responsible of food borne infections in
humans and pork represents the principal source of infection. Infection is generally sub-clinical in pigs and carrier pigs could introduce bacteria in the
slaughterhouse. The aim of the study was to test the efficacy and safety of an attenuated vaccine of S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i- (S. Typhimurium
Monophasic variant ΔznuABC) during an homologous and heterologous infection, with a field isolated strain of S. Typhimurium. The efficacy and safety of
S. Typhimurium Monophasic variant ΔznuABC was compared to an attenuated strain of S. Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium ΔznuABC).
Materials and Methods: Twenty eight weaned piglets were divided in 3 groups and acclimatized for a week. Group T was composed of 8 piglets vaccinated
with an oral administration of S. Typhimurium ΔznuABC at the final dose of 5 х 107 CFU. Group M was composed of 10 piglets vaccinated with an oral
administration of S. Typhimurium Monophasic variant ΔznuABC at the final dose of 5 х 107 CFU. Group C was composed of 10 unvaccinated piglets. At
day 35 after vaccination, all piglets were challenged by an oral gavage with 5 х 108 CFU of S. Typhimurium Monophasic variant or S. Typhimurium.
Particularly, piglets from group T were divided in 2 groups: 3 piglets were infected with S. Typhimurium, the other 5 piglets were infected with S.
Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i-. Piglets from group M were divided in 2 groups: 5 piglets were infected with S. Typhimurium. The other 5 piglets were infected
with S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i-. Unvaccinated piglets were divided in 2 groups: 5 piglets were infected with S. Typhimurium, the other 5 piglets were
infected with S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i-. Analyzed parameters were weight, temperature, fecal shedding and organ colonization.
Results: In control groups, the amount of S. Typhimurium in feces tends to be higher than S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i- from challenge to the end of the
trial and temperature was significantly different at day 1 after infection indicating that S. Typhimurium was more virulent than S. Typhimurium 1, 4, [5], 12:i-.
The safety of vaccine strains was monitored analyzing fecal shedding and growth of animals.
Conclusion: Attenuated vaccines were safe, in fact they were not isolated in feces after three weeks from vaccination and did not affected growth of
animals. Furthermore, both attenuated vaccines reduced the shedding of virulent strains in comparison to unvaccinated groups and S. Typhimurium
ΔznuABC appeared more effective in homologous and heterologous challenge infections
Piglets fed seed-based oral vaccine against verocytotoxic Escherichia coli - in vivo study
No full textPromoting Judicious Antimicrobial Use in Beef Production: The Role of Quarantine
Full text linkJudicious antimicrobial stewardship in livestock industry is needed to reduce the use of antimicrobials (AMU) and the associated risk of antimicrobial resistance. Biosecurity measures are acknowledged for their role against the spread of diseases and the importance in reducing AMU in different species. However, their effectiveness in beef production has been scarcely considered. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the quarantine strategy on AMU in beef cattle. A total of 1206 Charolaise animals in five farms were included in the trial. Roughly half of the animals followed the standard procedure of the fattening cycle (no-quarantine; NO-QUA group) and half followed a 30-day period of quarantine (QUA group) since their arrival. Performance and antimicrobial data were recorded and a treatment incidence 100 (TI100it) per animal was calculated. Penicillins was the most used class of antimicrobials. Differences between groups were significant for males only, with NO-QUA group having greater TI100it (3.76 vs. 3.24; p < 0.05) and lower body weight at slaughter (713.4 vs. 723.7 kg; p < 0.05) than QUA group. Results suggest that quarantine strategy can reduce AMU in males without compromising their performance, whereas further investigation is needed for females
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