Assessing the effects of the first 2 years of industry-led badger culling in England on the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in cattle in 2013–2015

Culling badgers to control the transmission of bovine tuberculosis (TB) between this wildlife reservoir and cattle has been widely debated. Industry-led culling began in Somerset and Gloucestershire between August and November 2013 to reduce local badger populations. Industry-led culling is not designed to be a randomised and controlled trial of the impact of culling on cattle incidence. Nevertheless, it is important to monitor the effects of the culling and, taking the study limitations into account, perform a cautious evaluation of the impacts. A standardised method for selecting areas matched to culling areas in factors found to affect cattle TB risk has been developed to evaluate the impact of badger culling on cattle TB incidence. The association between cattle TB incidence and badger culling in the first two years has been assessed. Descriptive analyses without controlling for confounding showed no association between culling and TB incidence for Somerset, or for either of the buffer areas for the first two years since culling began. A weak association was observed in Gloucestershire for Year 1 only. Multivariable analysis adjusting for confounding factors showed that reductions in TB incidence were associated with culling in the first two years in both the Somerset and Gloucestershire intervention areas when compared to areas with no culling (IRR: 0.79, 95%CI: 0.72-0.87, p<0.001 and IRR: 0.42, 95%CI: 0.34-0.51, p<0.001 respectively). An increase in incidence was associated with culling in the 2 km buffer surrounding the Somerset intervention area (IRR: 1.38, 95%CI: 1.09-1.75, p=0.008), but not in Gloucestershire (IRR: 0.91, 95%CI: 0.77-1.07, p=0.243). As only two intervention areas with two years’ of data are available for analysis, and the biological cause-effect relationship behind the statistical associations is difficult to determine, it would be unwise to use these findings to develop generalisable inferences about the effectiveness of the policy at present

Differences in the gut microbiota between Gurkhas and soldiers of British origin

Previous work indicated that the incidence of travellers’ diarrhoea (TD) is higher in soldiers of British origin, when compared to soldiers of Nepalese descent (Gurkhas). We hypothesise that the composition of the gut microbiota may be a contributing factor in the risk of developing TD in soldiers of British origin. This study aimed to characterise the gut microbial composition of Gurkha and non-Gurkha soldiers of the British Army. Recruitment of 38 soldiers (n = 22 Gurkhas, n = 16 non-Gurkhas) and subsequent stool collection, enabled shotgun metagenomic sequencing-based analysis of the gut microbiota. The microbiota of Gurkhas had significantly (P &lt; 0.05) lower diversity, for both Shannon and Simpson diversity indices, using species level markers than the gut microbiota of non-Gurkha soldiers. Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) of the Bray-Curtis distance matrix revealed a significant difference in the composition of the gut microbiota between Gurkhas and non-Gurkha soldiers, at both the species level (P = 0.0178) and the genus level (P = 0.0483). We found three genera and eight species that were significantly enriched in the non-Gurkha group and one genus (Haemophilus) and one species (Haemophilus parainfluenzae) which were enriched in the Gurkha group. The difference in the microbiota composition between Gurkha soldiers and soldiers of British origin may contribute to higher colonization resistance against diarrhoeal pathogens in the former group. Our findings may enable further studies into interventions that modulate the gut microbiota of soldiers to prevent TD during deployment

Differences in the gut microbiota between Gurkhas and soldiers of British origin

Previous work indicated that the incidence of travellers’ diarrhoea (TD) is higher in soldiers of British origin, when compared to soldiers of Nepalese descent (Gurkhas). We hypothesise that the composition of the gut microbiota may be a contributing factor in the risk of developing TD in soldiers of British origin. This study aimed to characterise the gut microbial composition of Gurkha and non-Gurkha soldiers of the British Army. Recruitment of 38 soldiers (n = 22 Gurkhas, n = 16 non-Gurkhas) and subsequent stool collection, enabled shotgun metagenomic sequencing-based analysis of the gut microbiota. The microbiota of Gurkhas had significantly (P &lt; 0.05) lower diversity, for both Shannon and Simpson diversity indices, using species level markers than the gut microbiota of non-Gurkha soldiers. Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) of the Bray-Curtis distance matrix revealed a significant difference in the composition of the gut microbiota between Gurkhas and non-Gurkha soldiers, at both the species level (P = 0.0178) and the genus level (P = 0.0483). We found three genera and eight species that were significantly enriched in the non-Gurkha group and one genus (Haemophilus) and one species (Haemophilus parainfluenzae) which were enriched in the Gurkha group. The difference in the microbiota composition between Gurkha soldiers and soldiers of British origin may contribute to higher colonization resistance against diarrhoeal pathogens in the former group. Our findings may enable further studies into interventions that modulate the gut microbiota of soldiers to prevent TD during deployment

A framework for models of movement in geographic space

This article concerns the theoretical foundations of movement informatics. We discuss general frameworks in which models of spatial movement may be developed. In particular, the article considers the object–field and Lagrangian–Eulerian dichotomies, and the SNAP/SPAN ontologies of the dynamic world, and classifies the variety of informatic structures according to these frameworks. A major challenge is transitioning between paradigms. Usually data is captured with respect to one paradigm but can usefully be represented in another. We discuss this process in formal terms and then describe experiments that we performed to show feasibility. It emerges that observational granularity plays a crucial role in these transitions

Smart cities in a smart world

Very often the concept of smart city is strongly related to the flourishing of mobile applications, stressing the technological aspects and a top-down approach of high-tech centralized control systems capable of resolving all the urban issues, completely forgetting the essence of a city with its connected problems. The real challenge in future years will be a huge increase in the urban population and the changes this will produce in energy and resource consumption. It is fundamental to manage this phenomenon with clever approaches in order to guarantee a better management of resources and their sustainable access to present and future generations. This chapter develops some considerations on these aspects, trying to insert the technological issues within a framework closer to planning and with attention to the social impact

Meta-analyses of the sensitivity and specificity of ante-mortem and post-mortem diagnostic tests for bovine tuberculosis in the UK and Ireland

Publication history: Accepted - 26 February 2017; Published online - 6th March 2017.Bovine Tuberculosis (bTB) in cattle is a global health problem and eradication of the disease requires accu-rate estimates of diagnostic test performance to optimize their efficiency. The objective of this study was,through statistical meta-analyses, to obtain estimates of sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp), for 14 differ-ent ante-mortem and post-mortem diagnostic tests for bTB in cattle. Using data from a systematic reviewof the scientific literature (published 1934–2009) diagnostic Se and Sp were estimated using Bayesianlogistic regression models adjusting for confounding factors. Random effect terms were used to accountfor unexplained heterogeneity. Parameters in the models were implemented using Markov Chain MonteCarlo (MCMC), and posterior distributions for the diagnostic parameters with adjustment for covariates(confounding factors) were obtained using the inverse logit function. Estimates for Se and/or Sp of thetuberculin skin tests and the IFN- blood test were compared with estimates published 2010–2015.Median Se for the single intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin skin (SICCT) test (standard inter-pretation) was 0.50 and Bayesian credible intervals (CrI) were wide (95% CrI 0.26, 0.78). Median Sp forthe SICCT test was 1.00 (95% CrI 0.99, 1.00). Estimates for the IFN- blood test Bovine Purified ProteinDerivative (PPD)-Avian PPD and Early Secreted Antigen target 6 and Culture Filtrate Protein 10 (ESAT-6/CFP10) ESAT6/CFP10 were 0.67 (95% CrI 0.49, 0.82) and 0.78 (95% CrI 0.60, 0.90) respectively for Se,and 0.98 (95% CrI 0.96, 0.99) and 0.99 (95% CrI 0.99, 1.00) for Sp. The study provides an overview of theaccuracy of a range of contemporary diagnostic tests for bTB in cattle. Better understanding of diagnostictest performance is essential for the design of effective control strategies and their evaluation.The SE3238 project “Meta-analysis of diagnostic tests and modelling to identify appropriate testing strategies to reduce M. bovis infection in GB herds” was funded by the UK Department for Envi-ronment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)

?2-Microglobulin Amyloid Fibril-Induced Membrane Disruption Is Enhanced by Endosomal Lipids and Acidic pH

Although the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathology of amyloidoses are not well understood, the interaction between amyloid proteins and cell membranes is thought to play a role in several amyloid diseases. Amyloid fibrils of ?2-microglobulin (?2m), associated with dialysis-related amyloidosis (DRA), have been shown to cause disruption of anionic lipid bilayers in vitro. However, the effect of lipid composition and the chemical environment in which ?2m-lipid interactions occur have not been investigated previously. Here we examine membrane damage resulting from the interaction of ?2m monomers and fibrils with lipid bilayers. Using dye release, tryptophan fluorescence quenching and fluorescence confocal microscopy assays we investigate the effect of anionic lipid composition and pH on the susceptibility of liposomes to fibril-induced membrane damage. We show that ?2m fibril-induced membrane disruption is modulated by anionic lipid composition and is enhanced by acidic pH. Most strikingly, the greatest degree of membrane disruption is observed for liposomes containing bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP) at acidic pH, conditions likely to reflect those encountered in the endocytic pathway. The results suggest that the interaction between ?2m fibrils and membranes of endosomal origin may play a role in the molecular mechanism of ?2m amyloid-associated osteoarticular tissue destruction in DRA

Evaluation of the methodological quality of studies of the performance of diagnostic tests for bovine tuberculosis using QUADAS

There has been little assessment of the methodological quality of studies measuring the performance (sensitivity and/or specificity) of diagnostic tests for animal diseases. In a systematic review, 190 studies of tests for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in cattle (published 1934-2009) were assessed by at least one of 18 reviewers using the QUADAS (Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies) checklist adapted for animal disease tests. VETQUADAS (VQ) included items measuring clarity in reporting (n = 3), internal validity (n = 9) and external validity (n = 2). A similar pattern for compliance was observed in studies of different diagnostic test types. Compliance significantly improved with year of publication for all items measuring clarity in reporting and external validity but only improved in four of the nine items measuring internal validity (p < 0.05). 107 references, of which 83 had performance data eligible for inclusion in a meta-analysis were reviewed by two reviewers. In these references, agreement between reviewers' responses was 71% for compliance, 32% for unsure and 29% for non-compliance. Mean compliance with reporting items was 2, 5.2 for internal validity and 1.5 for external validity. The index test result was described in sufficient detail in 80.1% of studies and was interpreted without knowledge of the reference standard test result in only 33.1%. Loss to follow-up was adequately explained in only 31.1% of studies. The prevalence of deficiencies observed may be due to inadequate reporting but may also reflect lack of attention to methodological issues that could bias the results of diagnostic test performance estimates. QUADAS was a useful tool for assessing and comparing the quality of studies measuring the performance of diagnostic tests but might be improved further by including explicit assessment of population sampling strategy.The SE3238 project “Meta-analysis of diagnostic tests and modelling to identify appropriate testing strategies to reduce M. bovis infection in GB herds” was funded by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/prevetmedam2018Veterinary Tropical Disease