Mule deer forage availability and quality at the Chihuahuan Desert rangelands, Mexico after a severe 3-year drought

Mule deer historic range in Mexico has declined dramatically in the last decade. Forage availability and quality at the Chihuahuan Desert may play an important role sustaining populations at the southern end of their current distribution. We evaluated forage availability and quality at the end of a 3-year drought at two different localities in the Chihuahuan Desert: Old Net and Pulpit, we measured plant availability and quality, diet content and calculated diet preference indices. Vegetation at Old Net consisted primarily of both succulents (47%) and trees-shrubs (42%) while Pulpit had more grasses (60%) and herbs (24%) (P < 0.005). Feces collected at the Pulpit presented a high proportion of herbs (44%), while those collected at Old Net contained more trees and shrubs (53%). Preference index suggests that mule deer prefer herbs and overlook grasses, but there is no strong selection for any particular plant. Our results suggest that forage is appropriate to sustain mule deer populations, however, we found considerable variation in both localities suggesting a patchy landscape. More information regarding forage nutritional status and diet preferences can enhance our understanding on mule deer population dynamics in the Chihuahuan Desert

Mule deer forage availability and quality at the Chihuahuan Desert rangelands, Mexico after a severe 3-year drought

Mule deer historic range in Mexico has declined dramatically in the last decade. Forage availability and quality at the Chihuahuan Desert may play an important role sustaining populations at the southern end of their current distribution. We evaluated forage availability and quality at the end of a three-year drought at two different localities in the Chihuahuan Desert: Old Net and Pulpit, we measured plant availability and quality, diet content and calculated diet preference indices. Vegetation at Old Net consisted primarily of both succulents (47%) and trees-shrubs (42%) while Pulpit had more grasses (60%) and herbs (24%) (P<0.005). Feces collected at the Pulpit presented a high proportion of herbs (44%), while those collected at Old Net contained more trees and shrubs (53%). Preference index suggests that mule deer prefer herbs and overlook grasses, but there is no strong selection for any particular plant. Our results suggest that forage is appropriate to sustain mule deer populations, however, we found considerable variation in both localities suggesting a patchy landscape. More information regarding forage nutritional status and diet preferences can enhance our understanding on mule deer populations dynamics in the Chihuahuan Desert

First report of Siphonaptera parasites in Canis latrans in the Flora and Fauna Protection Area, Médanos de Samalayuca Chihuahua, Mexico

Siphonaptera are hematophage parasite vectors of both human and animal diseases. We aimed to identify ectoparasites parasitizing a coyote population (Canis latrans) in the northwest region of the Flora and Fauna Protection Area Médanos de Samalayuca, Chihuahua, Mexico. We captured 21 coyotes (15 males and 6 females) during the summer and winter of 2018. The individuals were anesthetized and thoroughly examined for ectoparasites. We found that 43% of the coyotes were infested. Based on characteristics such as the absence of pronotal and genal combs in the head, we identified 15 specimens as Pulex irritans. This is the first report of P. irritans in coyotes in Médanos de Samalayuca Chihuahua, Mexico

Production of Pleurotus ostreatus cultivated in substrates made from two invasive weeds

The species Pleurotus ostreatus is an edible mushroom with a high commercial value, cultivated for its ease and adaptability in substrates based on agro-industrial waste. The plant species Solanum elaeagnifolium and Salsola kali are two invasive weeds that spread rapidly in crops, ruderal or urban areas, representing high-cost agricultural losses and environmental impact. The hypothesis of this research was that at least one of the weeds would increase the production and quality of P. ostreatus. The objective was to evaluate the biological efficiency and carpophore productivity ofP. ostreatus with the use of substrates elaborated and combined from S. elaeagnifolim and S. kali. The fungal cultures were carried out with substrates generated from mixtures of weeds and using wheat straw as a control; from these combinations, seven treatments and four replicates were obtained in a completely randomized design. The carpophores obtained were measured for the width and length of the pileus and stipe, total production (g), biological efficiency (%), and proximate analysis of the harvested mushrooms was performed. Maximum production was 23.30 mushrooms, with minimum of 3.67 carpophores. The width and length of the pileus were 8.30-11.70 cm and 8.40-11.40 cm, respectively. The stipe length variable showed widths of 1.40-2.30 cm and lengths of 2.80-6.20 cm. The weights obtained were up to 358.33 g, with a minimum of 95.10 g. Proximate analysis showed carpophores with the following composition: 82.25-91.37 % moisture; 1.71 to 13.66 % ash; 15.70 to 20.93 % protein; 0.40 to 1.55 % lipids and 8.60-17.7 % dry matter. The variables evaluated showed differences (p ≤ 0.05), being the substrates made with 100 % S. elaeagnifolium the ones with the highest biological efficiency, carpophore production, harvest weight and nutritional value. The species P. ostreatus proved to be efficient in providing substrate for two weeds, as well as producing carpophores with high protein content

Biomass colonization and bioconversion of the molecular characterized Oxalobacter formigenes to mitigate calcium oxlate urolithiasis.

Calcium oxalate (CaOx) is one of the common causes of kidney stones and accounts for 40 to 50% of all uroliths in cats. Oxalobacter formigenes, an oxalate-degrading intestinal microbiota, has been hypothesized to play a protective role against CaOx urolithiasis due to its capability to degrade oxalate. This study was designed to reveal the association between biomass colonization of O. formigenes and clinical occurrence of CaOx urolithiasis in household tomcats. Fifteen tomcats were allocated into three groups (healthy control (n=5), static chronic kidney disease (static CKD) (n=4), and progressive CKD (n=6)) based on diagnosis of CaOx urolithiasis and disease progression. Fecal samples were collected from all tomcats, genomic DNA was extracted, and oxc, a gene specifc for O. formigenes, was quantifed using real-time PCR. Additionally, the clinical association between blood serum urea, creatinine, and relative abundance of oxc gene among diferent groups was examined. The oxc gene was detected in all cats in various frequency; however, its relative abundance was signifcantly higher in progressive CKD group compared to static CKD and control groups. In summary, our results suggest a protective role of O. formigenes against calcium oxalate urolithiasis only in static CKD. Further studies are required in a larger group of cats to help illustrate the protective role of O. formigenes in the pathophysiology of calcium oxalate urolithiasis in cats

Molecular Detection of Tick-Borne Pathogens in American Bison (Bison bison) at El Uno Ecological Reserve, Janos, Chihuahua, Mexico

American bison (Bison bison) is listed as near-threatened and in danger of extinction in Mexico. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of several emerging pathogens at the Janos Biosphere Reserve (JBR), inhabited by one wild herd of American bison. Blood samples were collected from 26 American bison in the JBR. We tested for the presence of Anaplasma marginale, Babesia bigemina, B. bovis, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, and Rickettsia rickettsii DNA using nested and semi-nested PCR protocols performing duplicates in two different laboratories. Results showed three animals (11.5%) positive for B. burgdorferi s. l., three more (11.5%) for Rickettsia rickettsii, and four (19.2%) for B. bovis. Two individuals were co-infected with B. burgdorferi s. l. and B. bovis. We found no animals positive for A. marginale and B. bigemina. This is the first report in America of R. rickettsii in American bison. American bison has been described as an important reservoir for pathogens of zoonotic and veterinary importance; thus, the presence of tick-borne pathogen DNA in the JBR American bison indicates the importance of continuous wildlife health survey

International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortiu (INICC) report, data summary of 43 countries for 2007-2012. Device-associated module

We report the results of an International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) surveillance study from January 2007-December 2012 in 503 intensive care units (ICUs) in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. During the 6-year study using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) U.S. National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) definitions for device-associated health care–associated infection (DA-HAI), we collected prospective data from 605,310 patients hospitalized in the INICC's ICUs for an aggregate of 3,338,396 days. Although device utilization in the INICC's ICUs was similar to that reported from ICUs in the U.S. in the CDC's NHSN, rates of device-associated nosocomial infection were higher in the ICUs of the INICC hospitals: the pooled rate of central line–associated bloodstream infection in the INICC's ICUs, 4.9 per 1,000 central line days, is nearly 5-fold higher than the 0.9 per 1,000 central line days reported from comparable U.S. ICUs. The overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia was also higher (16.8 vs 1.1 per 1,000 ventilator days) as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (5.5 vs 1.3 per 1,000 catheter days). Frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas isolates to amikacin (42.8% vs 10%) and imipenem (42.4% vs 26.1%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (71.2% vs 28.8%) and imipenem (19.6% vs 12.8%) were also higher in the INICC's ICUs compared with the ICUs of the CDC's NHSN