169 research outputs found
Economic losses associated with respiratory and helminth infections in domestic pigs in Lira district, Northern Uganda.
This study sought to quantify direct economic losses due to respiratory and gastrointestinal (GI) helminth infections in domestic pigs in Uganda. In a longitudinal study design with repeated measures, farm visits were made at 2 month intervals from October 2018 to September 2019. Weaner and grower pigs (n = 288) aged 2-6  months from 94 farms were sampled. The pigs were monitored for growth and screened for exposure to four important respiratory pathogens: porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSv), Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (M. hyo), Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (App) using ELISA tests. Farm management practices were recorded and used to generate management level scores. Treatment expenses incurred were recorded throughout the study. A mixed effects model was fitted to quantify effects of respiratory and helminth infections on average daily weight gains (ADGs), with farm and pig as random effects. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine differences in mean treatment costs by farm management standard. Financial losses were estimated from average carcass dressing percentage, ADG reductions during fattening (200  days). Results showed a grower pig in a given farm exposed to PRRSv and Ascaris spp. had significantly lower ADG by 17.10 gr/day and 16.80 grams/day respectively, compared to a similar unexposed pig (p < 0.05). Mean treatment costs per pig declined significantly with increase in management standard scores (MSS), from USD 1.13 per pig in MSS 1 (poor management) farms to USD 0.95 for MSS 3 (better management) farms (p < 0.05). We show that monetary losses due to PRRSv and Ascaris spp. infection amounted to USD 6.6 ± 2.7 and 6.50 ± 3.2 (Mean ± SEM) per pig, respectively during 200 days of fattening. This study strengthens evidence that improving management practices to reduce infections mitigates economic losses. To guide interventions, further studies are required to unravel the full extent of indirect economic losses
Participatory training and mobile phone assisted approaches for strengthening capacity of Uganda smallholder pigs value chains actors in biosecurity and disease control
The feeding component in rural and peri-urban smallholder pig systems in Uganda
In the last 30 years, Uganda has had a massive growth in pig population, from 190,000
in the late 90’s to 3.2 million pigs in 2008, and currently has the highest per capita consumption
of pork in East Africa (3.4 kg year). The majority of Uganda’s pig farmers
are smallholders (1.2 million households raise pigs), practicing low input/ low output
systems. In the three districts of Kamuli, Masaka and Mukono, where the study was
carried out, results of focus group discussions conducted in 35 villages showed that
regardless of the setting, whether rural or peri-urban, the smallholder pig production
systems are typical crop-livestock system, with high dependence on crop residues, i.e.
sweet potato vines, cassava leaves, yam leaves, and Amaranth spp. for pig feeding.
However, the relative contribution of those crop residues is strongly affected by rainfall
seasonality, which in turn influences crop production. The bulk (>95 %) of crop
residues used for feeding pigs is produced on farm. Trading of crop residues is minimal
hence comprising only <2% hence they can be obtained from farms for free.
Women and children are mostly responsible for pig feeding and management, as well
as for collecting crop residues for pigs (85.8 and 78.6% of farms in rural and periurban
settings, respectively). Kitchen leftovers, including banana peelings, provide
18–20% of the total ration, whereas forages (i.e., Napier grass) represented 20–28 %,
and compounded feeds (commercial and home-mixed) 25–27 %, with maize bran as
the main ingredient. The main feeding constraints identified by farmers are: dry season
fodder shortages (crop residues and forages); risk of parasite infestation through
forages, either grazed or cut and carried. In the case of concentrates, constraints include
high cost of commercial feeds, price fluctuation of feed ingredients, and poor
quality of purchased feeds. There is a need for enhancing knowledge on feeding
strategies and fodder conservation among farmers, but also on proper feed formulation
for farmers and feed stockists. The implementation of quality control of feeds
available in the market is urgently needed
Identification of Subsets of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli Associated with Diarrheal Disease among Under 5 Years of Age Children from Rural Gambia.
Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) cause acute and persistent diarrhea, mostly in children worldwide. Outbreaks of diarrhea caused by EAEC have been described, including a large outbreak caused by a Shiga toxin expressing strain. This study investigated the association of EAEC virulence factors with diarrhea in children less than 5 years. We characterized 428 EAEC strains isolated from stool samples obtained from moderate-to-severe diarrhea cases (157) and healthy controls (217) children aged 0-59 months recruited over 3 years as part of the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS) in The Gambia. Four sets of multiplex polymerase chain reaction were applied to detect 21 EAEC-virulence genes from confirmed EAEC strains that target pCVD432 (aatA) and AAIC (aaiC). In addition, Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed on 88 EAEC strains following Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute guidelines. We observed that the plasmid-encoded enterotoxin [odds ratio (OR): 6.9, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.06-29.20, P 12 months). Our data suggest that some EAEC-virulent factors have age-specific associations with moderate-to-severe diarrhea in infants. Furthermore, our study showed that 85% and 72% of EAEC strains tested were resistant to sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim and ampicillin, respectively. Sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim and ampicillin are among the first-line antibiotics used for the treatment of diarrhea in The Gambia
Multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) as catalysts for smallholder pig value chain development in Uganda
The observed diurnal cycle of low-level stratus clouds over southern West Africa: a case study
This study presents the first detailed observational analysis of
the complete diurnal cycle of stratiform low-level clouds (LLC) and involved
atmospheric processes over southern West Africa (SWA). The data used here
were collected during the comprehensive DACCIWA
(Dynamics-Aerosol-Chemistry-Cloud-Interactions in West Africa) ground-based
campaign, which aimed at monitoring LLC characteristics and capturing the
wide range of atmospheric conditions related to the West African monsoon
flow. In this study, in situ and remote sensing measurements from the
supersite near Savè (Benin) collected during a typical day, which is
characterized by the onset of a nocturnal low-level jet (NLLJ) and the
formation of LLC, are analyzed. The associated dynamic and thermodynamic
conditions allow the identification of five different phases related to the
LLC diurnal cycle: the stable, jet, stratus I, stratus II, and convective
phases. The analysis of relative humidity tendency shows that cooling is a
dominant process for LLC formation, which leads to a continuous increase in
relative humidity at a maximum rate of 6 % h−1, until finally saturation is reached and LLC form with a
cloud-base height near the height of NLLJ maximum. Results of heat budget
analysis illustrate that horizontal cold-air advection, related to the
maritime inflow, which brings the cool maritime air mass and a prominent NLLJ
wind profile, has the dominant role in the observed strong cooling of
−1.2 K h−1 during the jet phase. The contribution from horizontal
cold advection is quantified to be up to 68 %, while radiative cooling
and sensible heat flux divergence both contribute 16 % to the observed heat
budget below the NLLJ maximum. After the LLC form (stratus phases I and II),
turbulent mixing is an important factor leading to the cooling below the
cloud base, while strong radiative cooling at the cloud top helps to maintain
thick stratus.</p
Population structure, epidemiology and antibiotic resistance patterns of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 5: prior to PCV-13 vaccine introduction in Eastern Gambia.
BACKGROUND: Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 5 is among the most common serotypes causing invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in The Gambia. We anticipate that introduction of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV-13) into routine vaccination in The Gambia will reduce serotype 5 IPD. However, the emergence of new clones that have altered their genetic repertoire through capsular switching or genetic recombination after vaccination with PCV-13 poses a threat to this public health effort. In order to monitor for potential genetic changes post-PCV-13 vaccination, we established the baseline population structure, epidemiology, and antibiotic resistance patterns of serotype 5 before the introduction of PCV-13. METHODS: Fifty-five invasive S. pneumoniae serotype 5 isolates were recovered from January 2009 to August 2011 in a population-based study in the Upper River Region of The Gambia. Serotyping was done by latex agglutination and confirmed by serotype-specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Genotyping was undertaken using Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST). Antimicrobial sensitivity was done using disc diffusion. Contingency table analyses were conducted using Pearson's Chi(2) and Fisher's exact test. Clustering was performed using Bionumerics version 6.5. RESULTS: MLST resolved S. pneumoniae serotype 5 isolates into 3 sequence types (ST), namely ST 289(6/55), ST 3339(19/55) and ST 3404(30/55). ST 289 was identified as the major clonal complex. ST 3339, the prevalent genotype in 2009 [84.6% (11/13)], was replaced by ST 3404 [70.4% (19/27)] in 2010 as the dominant ST. Interestingly, ST 3404 showed lower resistance to tetracycline and oxacillin (P < 0.001), an empirical surrogate to penicillin in The Gambia. CONCLUSIONS: There has been an emergence of ST 3404 in The Gambia prior to the introduction of PCV-13. Our findings provide important background data for future assessment of the impact of PCV-13 into routine immunization in developing countries, such as The Gambia
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