Hog Cholera

Hog Cholera is an infectious disease of swine characterized by a high fever and more or less extensive congestion and hemorrhages of the lymphatic glands, the intestines, kidneys, lungs, spleen, heart and liver. Various other names have been applied to this disease, such as pig typhoid, swine fever, pneumo-enteritis, blue disease, etc., but it is most frequently referred to as hog cholera. The annual loss of pigs from this disease in the United States amounts to thousands of dollars and its ravages are a constant source of discouragement to breeders of pure-bred stock as well as those who make a special business of feeding hogs for the market. It is-impossible to determine the extent of the disease in South Dakota; and while in general the disease is confined to the southeastern portion of the state, yet outbreaks have been reported in various other sectors of the state, including the most northern counties

Qualitative assessment of the entry of capripoxviruses into Great Britain from the European Union through importation of ruminant hides, skins and wool

Sheep pox and goat pox (SPGP) virus and lumpy skin disease (LSD) virus belong to the genus Capripoxvirus and cause disease with economic impacts in sheep/goats and cattle respectively. In 2013/14, outbreaks of SPGP were reported in sheep in Greece and Bulgaria and LSD outbreaks were reported in cattle in Turkey, Egypt and some countries in the Middle East. Clinical signs for both diseases include pox lesions, papules and scabs on the skin which may contain virus. This, together with the fact that Great Britain (GB) currently imports cattle hides, sheep skins and wool from European Union (EU) countries without the requirement for treatment prior to export, raises concern that capripoxviruses could be introduced into GB. A qualitative assessment presented here concluded that the current risk of entry of SPGP virus into GB through the importation of one untreated sheep skin, hide or wool bale from an EU Member State (MS) with similar flock prevalence to that in sheep in Greece in 2013/14 is low. In terms of SPGP virus levels, those infected sheep skins/hides entering GB are more likely to be from infected animals with normal skin (i.e., not showing lesions) and hence carrying lower levels of virus than those from animals showing papules and scabs which contain very high virus levels and are easier to detect. The predicted risk of importation of LSD virus per cattle hide/skin is also low (assuming LSD were to emerge in an EU MS with similar herd prevalence to that reported for SPGP in Greece in 2013/14). The levels of LSD virus on an infected cow's hide, if imported, may be very low. It is recommended that the risks for entry of capripoxviruses are recalculated if outbreaks occur elsewhere within the EU

Pathways for entry of livestock arboviruses into Great Britain : assessing the strength of evidence

The emergence of bluetongue virus and Schmallenberg virus in Great Britain (GB) during the last decade has highlighted the need for understanding the relative importance of the various pathways of the entry of livestock arboviruses so as to help focus surveillance and mitigation. This study summarizes what is known for the main routes of entry and assesses the strength of the current evidence for and against. Entry through infected arthropod vectors is considered at the level of each life cycle stage for tick-, biting midge- and mosquito-borne viruses, and while there is evidence that this could happen through most tick and mosquito stages, strong evidence that only exists for entry through adult midges. There is also strong evidence that entry through immature midge stages could not happen. The weight of supporting evidence is strongest for importation of viraemic livestock including horses. While there is some indication of a common pathway for midge-borne viruses from sub-Saharan Africa to GB via Continental Europe, other factors such as maternal transmission in dogs and sheep need to be considered in the light of recent findings

Assessing the impact of climate change on vector-borne viruses in the EU through the elicitation of expert opinion

Expert opinion was elicited to undertake a qualitative risk assessment to estimate the current and future risks to the European Union (EU) from five vector-borne viruses listed by the World Organization for Animal Health. It was predicted that climate change will increase the risk of incursions of African horse sickness virus (AHSV), Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) and Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) into the EU from other parts of the world, with African swine fever virus (ASFV) and West Nile virus (WNV) being less affected. Currently the predicted risks of incursion were lowest for RVFV and highest for ASFV. Risks of incursion were considered for six routes of entry (namely vectors, livestock, meat products, wildlife, pets and people). Climate change was predicted to increase the risk of incursion from entry of vectors for all five viruses to some degree, the strongest effects being predicted for AHSV, CCHFV and WNV. This work will facilitate identification of appropriate risk management options in relation to adaptations to climate change

Q fever through consumption of unpasteurised milk and milk products – a risk profile and exposure assessment

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by the bacterium Coxiella burnetii which is endemic in cattle, sheep and goats in much of the world, including the United Kingdom (UK). There is some epidemiological evidence that a small proportion of cases in the developed world may arise from consumption of unpasteurised milk with less evidence for milk products such as cheese. Long maturation at low pH may give some inactivation in hard cheese, and viable C. burnetii are rarely detected in unpasteurised cheese compared to unpasteurised milk. Simulations presented here predict that the probability of exposure per person to one or more C. burnetii through the daily cumulative consumption of raw milk in the UK is 04203. For those positive exposures, the average level of exposure predicted is high at 1266 guinea pig intraperitoneal infectious dose 50% units (GP_IP_ID50) per person per day. However, in the absence of human dose–response data, the case is made that the GP_IP_ID50 unit represents a very low risk through the oral route. The available evidence suggests that the risks from C. burnetii through consumption of unpasteurised milk and milk products (including cheese) are not negligible but they are lower in comparison to transmission via inhalation of aerosols from parturient products and livestock contact

Genome-wide and Mendelian randomisation studies of liver MRI yield insights into the pathogenesis of steatohepatitis

Background A non-invasive method to grade the severity of steatohepatitis and liver fibrosis is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) based corrected T1 (cT1). We aimed to identify genetic variants influencing liver cT1 and use genetics to understand mechanisms underlying liver fibroinflammatory disease and its link with other metabolic traits and diseases. Methods First, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in 14,440 Europeans in UK Biobank with liver cT1 measures. Second, we explored the effects of the cT1 variants on liver blood tests, and a range of metabolic traits and diseases. Third, we used Mendelian randomisation to test the causal effects of 24 predominantly metabolic traits on liver cT1 measures. Results We identified six independent genetic variants associated with liver cT1 that reached GWAS significance threshold (p<5x10-8). Four of the variants (rs75935921 in SLC30A10, rs13107325 in SLC39A8, rs58542926 in TM6SF2, rs738409 in PNPLA3) were also associated with elevated transaminases and had variable effects on liver fat and other metabolic traits. Insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver and BMI were causally associated with elevated cT1 whilst favourable adiposity (instrumented by variants associated with higher adiposity but lower risk of cardiometabolic disease and lower liver fat) was found to be protective. Conclusion The association between two metal ion transporters and cT1 indicates an important new mechanism in steatohepatitis. Future studies are needed to determine whether interventions targeting the identified transporters might prevent liver disease in at risk individuals

Measurement of liver iron by magnetic resonance imaging in the UK Biobank population

The burden of liver disease continues to increase in the UK, with liver cirrhosis reported to be the third most common cause of premature death. Iron overload, a condition that impacts liver health, was traditionally associated with genetic disorders such as hereditary haemochromatosis, however, it is now increasingly associated with obesity, type-2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of elevated levels of liver iron within the UK Biobank imaging study in a cohort of 9108 individuals. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was undertaken at the UK Biobank imaging centre, acquiring a multi-echo spoiled gradient-echo single-breath-hold MRI sequence from the liver. All images were analysed for liver iron and fat (expressed as proton density fat fraction or PDFF) content using LiverMultiScan™. Liver iron was measured in 97.3% of the cohort. The mean liver iron content was 1.32 ± 0.32 mg/g while the median was 1.25 mg/g (min: 0.85 max: 6.44 mg/g). Overall 4.82% of the population were defined as having elevated liver iron, above commonly accepted 1.8 mg/g threshold based on biochemical iron measurements in liver specimens obtained by biopsy. Further analysis using univariate models showed elevated liver iron to be related to male sex (p5.6% PDFF) was associated with a slight increase in prevalence of elevated liver iron (4.4% vs 6.3%, p=0.0007). This study shows that population studies including measurement of liver iron concentration are feasible, which may in future be used to better inform patient stratification and treatment

Microplastics Detected in Groundwater

Low concentrations of microplastics are present in Illinois’ karst groundwater, according to a preliminary study completed in spring 2018. This is the first time that microplastics have been detected in groundwater. The study was conducted in collaboration with scientists at the Illinois State Geological Survey, Illinois State Water Survey, Loyola University Chicago, and ISTC. Full study results published in Panno, S.V., Kelly, W.R., Scott, J., Zheng, W., McNeish, R.E., Holm, N., Hoellein, T.J. and Baranski, E.L. (2019), Microplastic Contamination in Karst Groundwater Systems. Groundwater, 57: 189-196. doi:10.1111/gwat.12862.League of Women Voters of Jo Daviess County; Illinois State Geological Survey; Illinois State Water Survey; Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (Hazardous Waste Research Fund);. Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ; 074483-15907); National Science Foundation (CAREER 1553835).Ope

Assessing the risk of rabies re-introduction into the United Kingdom from Eastern European countries

There is a public concern of rabies re-introduction to the UK, given the recent changes in pet trade with parts of Eastern Europe and an increase in the movement of puppies. A previously developed quantitative risk assessment (QRA) for rabies introduction into the UK was modified in order to assess the risk from only Eastern European Union member states. The model estimates the annual probability of rabies entering the UK and also the expected number of years between rabies introductions. The change in risk between the original model and the updated model is then assessed. While the risk has increased compared to the previous assessment, the risk still remains low, with a case expected every 317 years (5th and 95th percentile, 193 and 486 years, respectively) and an annual risk of 3.41×10−3 (5th and 95th percentile, 2.05×10−3 and 5.17×10−3, respectively)

Nucleon Charge and Magnetization Densities from Sachs Form Factors

Relativistic prescriptions relating Sachs form factors to nucleon charge and magnetization densities are used to fit recent data for both the proton and the neutron. The analysis uses expansions in complete radial bases to minimize model dependence and to estimate the uncertainties in radial densities due to limitation of the range of momentum transfer. We find that the charge distribution for the proton is significantly broad than its magnetization density and that the magnetization density is slightly broader for the neutron than the proton. The neutron charge form factor is consistent with the Galster parametrization over the available range of Q^2, but relativistic inversion produces a softer radial density. Discrete ambiguities in the inversion method are analyzed in detail. The method of Mitra and Kumari ensures compatibility with pQCD and is most useful for extrapolating form factors to large Q^2.Comment: To appear in Phys. Rev. C. Two new figures and accompanying text have been added and several discussions have been clarified with no significant changes to the conclusions. Now contains 47 pages including 21 figures and 2 table