The development and validation of the One Health Community Assessment

Interdisciplinary collaborations to address human, animal, and environmental health have been emphasized since the inception of the One Health framework. A quantitative survey instrument was developed to measure perceptions of the impacts of pets on One Health. Using the exploratory sequential mixed methods approach, 20 interviews were conducted with individuals from a racially diverse and low-socioeconomic status community in the U.S. to understand their perceptions of One Health. Data from those interviews informed the development of a Likert scale survey measuring individual perceptions of community, human, pet, and environmental health and welfare, as well as the connections between the domains of the One Health triad (human, animal, and environment). The resulting One Health Community Assessment (OHCA) was administered in two urban and two rural underserved U.S. communities longitudinally (2018-2021) through door-to-door data collection as well as phone, email, and text surveys. Validation of the instrument was completed using data collected in the third and fourth years of the study (n = 654). Factor analysis with orthogonal varimax rotation was used to assess the structure and internal consistency of the OHCA. Five subscales explained 42.4% of the variance in our 92-item instrument: community health (Cronbach's α = 0.897), human health (α = 0.842), pet health (α = 0.899), environmental health (α = 0.789), and connections between domains of One Health (α = 0.762). The OHCA represents the first reliable and validated instrument to measure the impacts of pets on One Health.

Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation Perspectives on Rez Dogs on the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota, U.S.A

The research on the relationships between free-roaming dogs, also referred to as reservation dogs or rez dogs, and Indigenous communities is extremely limited. This study aimed to document the cultural significance of rez dogs, challenges related to rez dogs, and community-specific solutions for rez dog issues affecting community health and safety from members of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara (MHA) Nation, also referred to as the Three Affiliated Tribes (TAT), who live on the Fort Berthold reservation in North Dakota, U.S.A. One hour semi-structured interviews with 14 community members of the MHA Nation were conducted in 2016. The interviews were analyzed via systematic and inductive coding using Gadamer's hermeneutical phenomenology. The primary intervention areas described by the participants included: culturally relevant information sharing, improved animal control policies and practices, and improved access to veterinary care and other animal services.

Evolving epidemiology of poliovirus serotype 2 following withdrawal of the serotype 2 oral poliovirus vaccine

Although there have been no cases of serotype 2 wild poliovirus for more than 20 years, transmission of serotype 2 vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV2) and associated paralytic cases in several continents represent a threat to eradication. The withdrawal of the serotype 2 component of oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV2) was implemented in April 2016 to stop VDPV2 emergence and secure eradication of all serotype 2 poliovirus. Globally, children born after this date have limited immunity to prevent transmission. Using a statistical model, we estimated the emergence date and source of VDPV2s detected between May 2016 and November 2019. Outbreak response campaigns with monovalent OPV2 are the only available method to induce immunity to prevent transmission. Yet our analysis shows that using monovalent OPV2 is generating more paralytic VDPV2 outbreaks with the potential for establishing endemic transmission. A novel OPV2, for which two candidates are currently in clinical trials, is urgently required, together with a contingency strategy if this vaccine does not materialize or perform as anticipated.

The influence of androgens on hibernation phenology of free-living male arctic ground squirrels

Free-living ground squirrel species are sexually dimorphic in hibernation phenology. The underlying causes of these differences are not yet known. Androgens, testosterone (T) in particular, inhibit hibernation. To determine the influence of endogenous androgens on annual timing of hibernation we first measured circulating levels of T and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an adrenal androgen implicated in non-mating season aggression in other species, in free-living male arctic ground squirrels (Urocitellus parryii, AGS). We also manipulated endogenous androgen levels by surgical castration, and consequently compared body temperature records from intact (n=24) and castrated (n=9) males to elucidate the influence of endogenous androgens on annual body temperature cycles. The highest T levels (0.53±0.10ng/mL) were in reproductively mature male AGS in spring; whereas, both immature males in spring and all males in late summer had T levels an order of magnitude lower (0.07±0.01 and 0.06±0.00ng/mL, respectively). DHEA levels were higher in males during the late summer compared to reproductively mature males in spring (120.6±18.9 and 35.9±2.3pg/mL, respectively). Eliminating gonadal androgens via castration resulted in males delaying euthermy by extending heterothermy significantly in spring (Apr 22 ±2.9) than reproductive males (Mar 28 ±3.9) but did not change the timing of hibernation onset (castrate: Oct 12 ±1.0 vs. intact: Oct 3 ±3.1). We conclude that while androgens play a significant role in spring hibernation phenology of males, their role in fall hibernation onset is unclear.

The control of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis infection in sheep flocks: a mathematical model of the impact of vaccination, serological testing, clinical examination and lancing of abscesses

A mathematical model of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis infection in sheep flocks was used to evaluate strategies for control and elimination of caseous lymphadenitis (CLA). Control strategies tested were vaccination, serological testing and removal of seropositives, clinical examination and removal of sheep with abscesses, lancing abscesses, and appropriate combinations. Three different infection rates with and without replacement of culled ewes were used to evaluate the control options. Controls were either implemented immediately after infection was detected in a flock or once CLA was at endemic equilibrium, and with different frequencies of examination or testing. Elimination of infection was defined as 99% confidence that no sheep were infected with C. pseudotuberculosis. The control strategies were evaluated by estimating the reduction in infection or probability of elimination and the number of ewes culled from the flock. Lancing abscesses reduced the prevalence of infection when the initial prevalence was <0.60, but elimination was unlikely. A vaccine efficacy of 0.79 or more led to elimination of infection from the flock, provided that the endemic prevalence of infection was <0.60. A combination of vaccination and clinical examination reduced the prevalence of infection at a faster rate than using clinical examination or vaccination alone where five rounds of clinical examination were done. Serological testing led to elimination of infection after five tests, but was highly dependent upon the diagnostic test sensitivity and specificity and management options used: a test sensitivity of 0.90 always resulted in elimination. A test specificity greater than 0.90 prevented removal of many false positive ewes and consequently prevented a large reduction in lamb production. Elimination was most likely using a serological test with sensitivity and specificity >0.90, but vaccination combined with clinical examination reduced infection rapidly with little impact on lamb productivity. Further research is required to develop a diagnostic test with at least 0.90 specificity and sensitivity under field conditions before any methods of control can be recommended with confidence.

Factors associated with preweaning mortality on commercial pig farms in England and Wales

Data from 67 pig farms with a variety of farrowing systems were used to identify factors associated with preweaning mortality in British pig herds. The median mortality reported by the farmers was 10.7 per cent (interquartile range 8.5 to 14 per cent). There was a significantly higher mortality when the pigs were weaned when they were older. A multivariable Poisson model was developed into which the types of farrowing system on each farm and the age at weaning were forced. Factors associated with a lower preweaning mortality rate were insulating the farrowing building, providing extra heat at farrowing, giving the piglets iron injections, dipping their navels, using fan ventilation and using artificial lighting systems. Factors associated with a higher mortality rate were a later weaning age, the use of infra-red lamps rather than other forms of supplementary heat, and the use of a creep without any bedding.

Investigation of risk factors for clinical mastitis in British dairy herds with bulk milk somatic cell counts less than 150,000 cells/ml

A sample of dairy farms in Great Britain with a monthly bulk milk somatic cell count of less than 150,000 cells/ml was enrolled into a 12-month prospective study. At the end of the study, a questionnaire on milking practice and other farm management practices was sent to the 482 farmers who had collected data on the occurrence of mastitis throughout the 12 months. The response rate was 93 per cent. The reported mean incidence of clinical mastitis was 36.9 cases per 100 cow-years. Factors associated with an increase in the incidence of clinical mastitis were cleaning out the straw yard less frequently than every six weeks, more than 5 per cent of cows leaking milk outside the parlour, checking the foremilk, wearing gloves during milking, an average annual milk yield of more than 7000 litres per cow, dipping or spraying teats before milking and keeping milk with a high somatic cell count out of the bulk tank. Factors associated with a decrease in the incidence of clinical mastitis were using a cloth to dry the teats after washing them as part of premilking preparation, using calving boxes for less than 40 per cent of calvings, and using both cubicles and straw yards to house dry cows, as opposed to other housing.

Ecological factors underlying the adrenocortical response to capture stress in arctic-breeding shorebirds

Birds breeding in the Arctic must carefully balance survival and reproduction because of the often extreme environmental conditions and the very brief breeding season. Acute elevation of plasma corticosterone is one mechanism that birds apparently use to alter the balance in favor of survival at the expense of reproduction when faced with stressors such as storms, predators, or low food availability. To examine this relationship, we applied a standardized stressor, capture and handling, to four species of shorebirds (Scolopacidae) during their breeding season in the Arctic and measured the increase in corticosterone between 3 min and 30 min after capture (hereafter called the stress response). We tested two hypotheses in an effort to explain the individual variation observed in the stress response. The first hypothesis states that individuals most responsible for parental care have a lower stress response than individuals less responsible for parental care. In species with uniparental care (Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris melanotos, Red Phalarope Phalaropus fulicaria), the caregivers had a lower stress response than the opposite sex, although in the latter species the difference was not significant (P = 0.016 and P = 0.102, respectively). In a species with equal biparental care (Semipalmated Sandpiper C. pusilla), the stress response did not differ between the sexes (P = 0.99, Barrow population). In a species with unequal biparental care (Western Sandpiper C. mauri), the more parental sex (males) had a much lower stress response than the less parental sex (P = 0.002). The second hypothesis states that individuals breeding in the high Arctic have a lower stress response than individuals breeding in the low Arctic. The stress response in a low-Arctic population of Semipalmated Sandpipers (Nome) was higher than that in a high-Arctic population (Barrow, P < 0.05). Individuals at an additional high-Arctic location (Prudhoe Bay) exhibited stress responses most similar to those of the Barrow population (P > 0.05). Taken together, these results provide evidence of a mechanism that birds may use to breed in environments with a brief breeding season and under conditions that might be perceived as stressful, if not for their reduced sensitivity to potential stressors.

Fibrosis of the lung and other tissues: new concepts in pathogenesis and treatment

Tissue fibrosis can lead to significant organ dysfunction and resulting patient morbidity and mortality. Unfortunately, the therapeutic repertoire is currently limited, nonspecific, and largely ineffective. While the pathogenesis is incompletely understood, evidence is accumulating that immune and cytokine mediated mechanisms are critical. In this review, data will be provided to support the role of Type 2 cytokines in the pathogenesis of fibrosis. The importance of the role of the pro-fibrogenic cytokine TGF-beta and CD40-CD40 ligand mediated fibroblast activation will also be evaluated. Finally, novel therapeutic options based on inhibiting these pathways will be described.

Hormones and territorial behavior during breeding in snow buntings (Plectrophenax nivalis): an Arctic-breeding songbird

We examined hormonal profiles and behavior associated with maintaining a single-purpose territory in an Arctic-breeding songbird-the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis). Snow buntings differ from many other Arctic-breeding passerines by using nest cavities, an uncommon and defended resource, but not relying upon the surrounding territory for forage. Circulating levels of testosterone in males were high when territories were established and then decreased over the breeding season. LH secretion was enhanced in females while laying eggs, followed by detectable levels of estradiol during incubation. Both sexes showed equivalent corticosterone responses to the stress of being captured and held. Male snow buntings vigorously defended territories in response to a simulated territorial intrusion both when initiating breeding and when feeding young. Exogenous testosterone implants surprisingly inhibited physical aggression but enhanced singing when birds were feeding young, thus suggesting that song and physical aggression are mediated by different hormonal mechanisms at this time of year. Together, these results contrast with hormonal profiles and behavior in other Arctic-breeding passerines.

Etiological heterogeneity in sirenomelia

Two babies with sirenomelia are described. Case 1, one of twins, showed the full sirenomelia sequence in conjunction with atelencephaly and cebocephaly. Case 2 had malformations consistent with a diagnosis of the VATER association. Review of the literature indicates that the basic defect in sirenomelia and the VATER association lies in the formation and differentiation of mesodermal tissue and that sirenomelia, the VATER association, and monozygotic twinning show a complex etiological interrelationship.