Anthelmintic resistance of gastrointestinal cattle nematodes

Anthelmintic resistance of parasites in small ruminants, cattle and horses is increasing worldwide as a consequence of the over usage of the currently available products. In Belgium, Cooperia oncophora is the most common cattle nematode in which resistance, especially against macrocyclic lactones, occurs. Once resistance has been diagnosed, a change to another drug with a different mode of action is advised. However, effective anthelmintics will be hardly available in the near future. Therefore, it is important that farmers and veterinarians find a balance between achieving good parasite control and the sustainability of their control strategies. In this way, anthelmintic resistance may be delayed, and the effectiveness of anthelmintic drugs may be prolonged. This requires sensitive detection tools. With a sensitive detection technique, anthelmintic resistance can be diagnosed in a very early stage. Hence, the spread of resistance alleles in the parasite population may be prevented. In this review, different diagnostic assays for the detection of anthelmintic resistance are discussed, an overview is given of the current status of anthelmintic resistance in Belgian cattle, and measures are suggested to avoid or delay the development of anthelmintic resistance

Mitigation of cross-saturation effects in resonance-based sensorless switched reluctance drives

The stator and rotor yoke in a switched reluctance motor form magnetic circuit parts that are typically shared by different phases. If these parts saturate due to the excitation of one phase, this will lead to a change of the magnetic characteristics of all other phases sharing these parts. In several position-sensorless methods, cross-saturation leads to a load-dependent position estimation error. In this paper, the influence of cross-saturation on a resonance-based position estimation method is studied. The method extracts position information from electrical resonances triggered in an idle motor phase. A cross-saturation mitigation scheme is presented in order to reduce the commutation position error. The scheme uses only one additional parameter per phase which can be measured automatically during commissioning of the drive. Experimental results at low and medium speed show that the position estimation error remains smaller dan 2 mechanical degrees over the rated load range

Back functioning: the effectiveness of an intervention promoting good body mechanics in elementary schoolchildren

While back pain in childhood is a common condition, at young age symptoms are generally mild, do not often lead to restrictions of daily activities and represent little health consequences. However, the predictive value of back pain at young age for back pain as an adult, stresses the need for primary prevention. The multi-factorial nature of the risk for developing back pain in childhood is widely accepted. On the other hand, the causative mechanisms for back pain occurrence at young age remain largely undetermined. Based on epidemiological evidence in relation to the biomechanical concept suggesting a U-shaped relationship for optimal loading, several correlates may influence children’s back function. In this way, environmental factors that may counterbalance optimal spinal loading of children’s young body structures may be present at school, which is the workplace of the young. In this line, children’s postural behavior in the Flemish class environment was pictured. This pilot study was grounded because sitting is the most reported factor in relation to back pain reporting at young age and due to the reality that standard school managements prescribe long sitting periods. The study findings pointed out that prolonged static kyphotic sitting without use of the backrest is common in Flemish elementary schoolchildren and children who spend more time sitting with a flexed trunk reported significantly more thoraco-lumbar pain