Dyreetik i økologisk husdyrhold

Økologisk jordbrug, og herunder økologisk husdyrhold, voksede frem i Danmark i 1980erne som en protest mod det intensive landbrug. Fokus var fra starten på landbrugets påvirkning af miljø og natur, til en vis grad inspireret af den biodynamiske bevægelse. Derimod var der fra begyndelsen ikke særlig fokus på dyrevelfærd i det økologiske jordbrug. Det kom der først midt i 1990erne. Det er vores klare indtryk, at der i det forløbne årti er sket væsentlige fremskridt, når det gælder om at sikre dyrevelfærden i den økologiske husdyrproduktion, men der er dog flere grund til at tro, at der fortsat vil være udfordringer forbundet med at sikre dyrevelfærd i det økologiske husdyrhold. I det videre arbejde med dyreetik i regi af økologisk husdyrproduktion er der ikke bare tale om, at der skal foretages afvejninger mellem dyrevelfærd og andre hensyn (fx økonomi, miljø og fødevaresikkerhed). Der er også tale om, at der er brug for at diskutere forskellige idealer om det gode dyreliv og det gode liv mellem dyr og mennesker

Veterinarians’ role in clients’ decision‑making regarding seriously ill companion animal patients

BACKGROUND: When companion animals become seriously ill clients may have doubts about treatment choices, if any, and turn to veterinarians for help. But how should veterinarians reply? Influence on clients’ decision-making may or may not be acceptable—depending on one’s attitude to principles such as ‘paternalism’, ‘respect for autonomy’ and ‘shared decision-making’. This study takes as a starting point a situation where the animal is chronically ill, or aged, with potentially reduced animal welfare and client quality of life, and thus where clients need to consider treatment options or euthanasia. It is assumed throughout that both veterinarians and clients have the animals’ best interest at heart. The purpose of the study was to explore the challenges these situations hold and to investigate how clients experience veterinary influence. A second aim was to reflect on the ethical implications of the role of veterinarians in these situations. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 12 dog owners considering treatment or euthanasia of their chronically ill or aged dogs. RESULTS: Challenges relating to the dog and to the client were identified. Some situations left the interviewees hesitant, e.g. if lacking a clear cut-off point, the dog appeared normal, the interviewee felt uncertain about treatments or animal welfare, or experienced conflicting concerns. Some interviewees found that veterinarians could influence their decisions. Such influence was received in different ways by the interviewees. Some interviewees wanted active involvement of the veterinarian in the decision-making process, and this may challenge a veterinarian’s wish to respect client autonomy. CONCLUSIONS: Different preferences are likely to exist amongst both veterinarians and clients about veterinary involvement in clients’ decision-making, and such preferences may vary according to the situation. It is suggested, that one way to handle this challenge is to include respect for client preference on veterinary involvement under a wider understanding of respect for autonomy, and to apply models of shared decision-making to veterinary practice. In any case there is a need to further explore the challenges these situations raise, and for the veterinary profession to engage in more formal and structured deliberation over the role of veterinarians in relation to clients’ decision-making. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13028-016-0211-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

DNA quality evaluation of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded heart tissue for DNA methylation array analysis

Abstract Archived formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) heart tissue from autopsied individuals represents an important resource for investigating the DNA methylation of heart tissue of deceased individuals. The DNA quality of FFPE tissue from autopsies may be decreased, affecting the DNA methylation measurements. Therefore, inexpensive screening methods for estimating DNA quality are valuable. We investigated the correlation between the DNA quality of archived FFPE heart tissue examined with the Illumina Infinium HD FFPE QC assay (Infinium QC) and Thermo Fisher’s Quantifiler Trio DNA Quantification kit (QuantifilerTrio), respectively, and the amount of usable DNA methylation data as measured by the probe detection rate (probe DR) obtained with the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC array. We observed a high correlation (r2 = 0.75; p < 10−11) between the QuantifilerTrio degradation index, DI, and the amount of usable DNA methylation data analysed with SeSAMe, whereas a much weaker correlation was observed between the Infinium QC and SeSAMe probe DR (r2 = 0.17; p < 0.05). Based on the results, QuantifilerTrio DI seems to predict the proportion of usable DNA methylation data analysed with the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC array and SeSAMe by a linear model: SeSAMe probe DR = 0.80–log10(DI) × 0.25

DNA quality evaluation of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded heart tissue for DNA methylation array analysis

Archived formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) heart tissue from autopsied individuals represents an important resource for investigating the DNA methylation of heart tissue of deceased individuals. The DNA quality of FFPE tissue from autopsies may be decreased, affecting the DNA methylation measurements. Therefore, inexpensive screening methods for estimating DNA quality are valuable. We investigated the correlation between the DNA quality of archived FFPE heart tissue examined with the Illumina Infinium HD FFPE QC assay (Infinium QC) and Thermo Fisher’s Quantifiler Trio DNA Quantification kit (QuantifilerTrio), respectively, and the amount of usable DNA methylation data as measured by the probe detection rate (probe DR) obtained with the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC array. We observed a high correlation (r(2) = 0.75; p < 10(−11)) between the QuantifilerTrio degradation index, DI, and the amount of usable DNA methylation data analysed with SeSAMe, whereas a much weaker correlation was observed between the Infinium QC and SeSAMe probe DR (r(2) = 0.17; p < 0.05). Based on the results, QuantifilerTrio DI seems to predict the proportion of usable DNA methylation data analysed with the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC array and SeSAMe by a linear model: SeSAMe probe DR = 0.80–log(10)(DI) × 0.25

Evolution of the <i>Piscine orthoreovirus</i> Genome Linked to Emergence of Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation in Farmed Atlantic Salmon (<i>Salmo salar</i>)

Heart and skeletal muscle inflammation (HSMI) in farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) was first diagnosed in Norway in 1999. The disease is caused by Piscine orthoreovirus-1 (PRV-1). The virus is prevalent in farmed Atlantic salmon, but not always associated with disease. Phylogeny and sequence analyses of 31 PRV-1 genomes collected over a 30-year period from fish with or without HSMI, grouped the viral sequences into two main monophylogenetic clusters, one associated with HSMI and the other with low virulent PRV-1 isolates. A PRV-1 strain from Norway sampled in 1988, a decade before the emergence of HSMI, grouped with the low virulent HSMI cluster. The two distinct monophylogenetic clusters were particularly evident for segments S1 and M2. Only a limited number of amino acids were unique to the association with HSMI, and they all located to S1 and M2 encoded proteins. The observed co-evolution of the S1-M2 pair coincided in time with the emergence of HSMI in Norway, and may have evolved through accumulation of mutations and/or segment reassortment. Sequences of S1-M2 suggest selection of the HSMI associated pair, and that this segment pair has remained almost unchanged in Norwegian salmon aquaculture since 1997. PRV-1 strains from the North American Pacific Coast and Faroe Islands have not undergone this evolution, and are more closely related to the PRV-1 precursor strains not associated with clinical HSMI