Identifying challenges to manage body weight variation in pig farms implementing all-in-all-out management practices and their possible implications for animal health: a case study

peer-reviewedBackground Managing body weight (BW) variation is a challenge in farrow-to-finish farms implementing all-in/all-out (AIAO) production systems due to the lack of “off-site” facilities to segregate slow growing pigs (SGP). This case study investigated different approaches to managing BW variation in a farrow-to-finish commercial pig farm with a self-declared AIAO management and the possible implications for animal health. Case presentation A total of 1096 pigs (1047 pigs born within 1 week plus 49 pigs born 1 week later) were tracked until slaughter as they moved through the production stages. Piglets were individually tagged at birth and their location on the farm was recorded on a weekly basis. In total, 10.3% of pigs died during lactation. Four main cohorts of pigs were created at weaning and retrospectively identified: cohort 1 = pigs weaned at 21 days (4.5%); cohort 2 = pigs weaned at 28 days (81.0%), which was sub-divided at the end of the first nursery stage into sub-cohort 2a = pigs split at 3 weeks post-weaning (29.7%); sub-cohort 2b = pigs split at 3 weeks post-weaning from cohort 2a and split again 5 weeks post-weaning (35.5%) and sub-cohort 2c = remaining smaller size pigs from cohort 2b (10.9%); cohort 3 = pigs weaned at 35 days (2.7%) and cohort 4 = pigs weaned at 49 days (1.5%) that were later mixed with SPG, delayed pigs from other cohorts and sick/injured pigs that recovered. Four strategies to manage BW variation were identified: i) earlier weaning (cohort 1); ii) delayed weaning of SGP (cohort 3 and 4); iii) re-grading pens by BW (sub-cohorts 2a, 2b and 2c) and, iv) delayed movement of SGP to the next production stage (several pigs from all cohorts). A higher percentage of delayed pigs presented pericarditis, pleurisy and enzootic pneumonia like lesions at slaughter compared with pigs under other strategies. Conclusion A variety of management practices were implemented to minimise BW variation during the production cycle. However, several cohorts of pigs were created disrupting AIAO management. Earlier weaning should only be practiced under specific circumstances where optimal animal health and welfare are guaranteed. Delayed weaning of SGP and delaying pigs to move to the next production stage could negatively affect animal health and should be avoided

Treatment with tocilizumab or corticosteroids for COVID-19 patients with hyperinflammatory state: a multicentre cohort study (SAM-COVID-19)

Objectives: The objective of this study was to estimate the association between tocilizumab or corticosteroids and the risk of intubation or death in patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) with a hyperinflammatory state according to clinical and laboratory parameters. Methods: A cohort study was performed in 60 Spanish hospitals including 778 patients with COVID-19 and clinical and laboratory data indicative of a hyperinflammatory state. Treatment was mainly with tocilizumab, an intermediate-high dose of corticosteroids (IHDC), a pulse dose of corticosteroids (PDC), combination therapy, or no treatment. Primary outcome was intubation or death; follow-up was 21 days. Propensity score-adjusted estimations using Cox regression (logistic regression if needed) were calculated. Propensity scores were used as confounders, matching variables and for the inverse probability of treatment weights (IPTWs). Results: In all, 88, 117, 78 and 151 patients treated with tocilizumab, IHDC, PDC, and combination therapy, respectively, were compared with 344 untreated patients. The primary endpoint occurred in 10 (11.4%), 27 (23.1%), 12 (15.4%), 40 (25.6%) and 69 (21.1%), respectively. The IPTW-based hazard ratios (odds ratio for combination therapy) for the primary endpoint were 0.32 (95%CI 0.22-0.47; p < 0.001) for tocilizumab, 0.82 (0.71-1.30; p 0.82) for IHDC, 0.61 (0.43-0.86; p 0.006) for PDC, and 1.17 (0.86-1.58; p 0.30) for combination therapy. Other applications of the propensity score provided similar results, but were not significant for PDC. Tocilizumab was also associated with lower hazard of death alone in IPTW analysis (0.07; 0.02-0.17; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Tocilizumab might be useful in COVID-19 patients with a hyperinflammatory state and should be prioritized for randomized trials in this situatio

The inclusion of rapeseed meal in fattening pig diets, as a partial replacer of soybean meal, alters nutrient digestion, faecal composition and biochemical methane potential from faeces

[EN] The effects of including rapeseed meal (RSM) as an alternative source of vegetable protein in pig diets on animal performance, nutrient digestibility and methane production from faeces was investigated. A total of 96 pigs of 42.4 (±4.04) kg of body weight (BW) were allocated into two dietary treatments (48 animals/treatment). One group was fed a conventional diet (C) and the other with a diet containing RSM (R). The level of RSM in the R diet was 120 g/kg during the growing phase (40 70 kg BW; days 1 34 of study) and 200 g/kg during the finishing phase (70 114 kg BW; days 35 76 of study). Average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio were measured throughout the study. During the finishing phase, faeces were collected and analysed for dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), crude fat, fibre fractions, pH, volatile fatty acids and biochemical methane potential (B0). Additionally, the coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) of nutrients was measured using the acid-insoluble ash method. At slaughter (114 ± 12.2 kg BW), the main carcass and meat quality characteristics were registered and the fatty acid (FA) profile of the subcutaneous fat and muscle was analysed. During the growing phase, R animals showed lower ADG compared with C animals (818 vs. 890 g/d; P<0.05). These differences disappeared during the finishing phase. Faeces from treatment R showed a lower B0 compared to those from treatment C (308 vs. 351 mL methane/g OM). Animals from R group showed a lower DM, OM and CP CTTAD than C animals (0.790, 0.826 and 0.729 vs. 0.832, 0.865 and 0.818, respectively; P<0.05) and tended to show lower fibre digestion rates. Consequently, animals from R group showed a higher amount of these components in faeces. However, fat digestion was not affected. No differences were found between treatments on most carcass characteristics. Overall, the inclusion of high levels of RSM in pig diets decreased final BW and nutrient digestibility (except fat) in the finishing phase. However, faeces from animals fed RSM were less degradable, producing less methane per gram of OM.This research was supported by the company Vall Companys Group (Lleida, Spain), the Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias (Valencia) and the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (Valencia).Torres-Pitarch, A.; Moset, V.; Ferrer Riera, P.; Cambra López, M.; Hernández, P.; Coma, J.; Pascual Amorós, MDLD.... (2014). The inclusion of rapeseed meal in fattening pig diets, as a partial replacer of soybean meal, alters nutrient digestion, faecal composition and biochemical methane potential from faeces. Animal Feed Science and Technology. 198:215-223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anifeedsci.2014.09.017S21522319

Earliest Known Human Burial in Africa

The origin and evolution of hominin mortuary practices are topics of intense interest and debate1–3. Human burials dated to the Middle Stone Age (MSA) are exceedingly rare in Africa and unknown in East Africa1–6. Here we describe the partial skeleton of a roughly 2.5- to 3.0-year-old child dating to 78.3 ± 4.1 thousand years ago, which was recovered in the MSA layers of Panga ya Saidi (PYS), a cave site in the tropical upland coast of Kenya7,8. Recent excavations have revealed a pit feature containing a child in a flexed position. Geochemical, granulometric and micromorphological analyses of the burial pit content and encasing archaeological layers indicate that the pit was deliberately excavated. Taphonomical evidence, such as the strict articulation or good anatomical association of the skeletal elements and histological evidence of putrefaction, support the in-place decomposition of the fresh body. The presence of little or no displacement of the unstable joints during decomposition points to an interment in a filled space (grave earth), making the PYS finding the oldest known human burial in Africa. The morphological assessment of the partial skeleton is consistent with its assignment to Homo sapiens, although the preservation of some primitive features in the dentition supports increasing evidence for non-gradual assembly of modern traits during the emergence of our species. The PYS burial sheds light on how MSA populations interacted with the dead. The earliest known human burial in Africa, that of a young child, is dated to around 78,000 years ago