Creating Open Education Resources for Teaching and Community Development through Action Research: An Overview of the Makerere AgShare Project

The AgShare Phase I Program, conducted at Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, was created to create open education resources for teaching and community development through action research. The study was conducted by an interdisciplinary team of investigators from fields of veterinary medicine and agri-business. Two Master of Science students conducted dairy value chain action research that produced case materials that were used to create OER course modules (milk hygiene and marketing modules), and design interventions that would improve milk production, quality and safety, reduce milk spoilage, increase prices received by farmers, and support on-farm processing of yogurt and other dairy products. This research was used in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the Master’s degree in Livestock Development, Planning and Management (MLD) and the Master’s degree in Agri-business Management (M Agbus Mgt) by these students. The conceptual design, implementation, monitoring, and impacts of action research on teaching, students learning, and the dairy industry are discussed in detail

Milk Hygiene in Rural Southwestern Uganda: Prevalence of Mastitis and Antimicrobial Resistance Profiles of Bacterial Contaminants of Milk and Milk Products

Mastitis and antimicrobial resistance are a big challenge to the dairy industry in sub-Saharan Africa. A study was conducted in Kashongi and Keshunga subcounties of Kiruhura District (in Uganda) where the government and private sector have deliberate programs to improve production efficiency, quality, and safety of milk and its products. The study aimed to determine the prevalence of mastitis, its common causative agents, antimicrobial sensitivity of mastitis causing organisms, and contaminants of processed milk products: yoghurt and ghee. Seventy-one milk, fourteen yoghurt, and three ghee samples were collected from nine farms. Of the 71 cows tested, 54 (76.1%) had mastitis. The mastitis cases from Keshunga were 32 (59.3%) and Kashongi contributed 22 (40.7%) of the cases. The common mastitis causative agents were Staphylococcus spp. (30.8%), Streptococcus spp. (12.3%), Corynebacterium spp.(15.4%), and E. coli (7.7%). Some of the isolates were resistant to tetracycline and penicillin. Prevalent contaminants of yoghurt were Staphylococcus spp. (8.3%), Streptococcus spp. (8.3%), Corynebacterium spp. (8.3%), and E. coli (8.3%), whereas all ghee contained Streptococcus spp. (100%). Prevalence of mastitis, antimicrobial resistance, and contamination of milk products are high in the study area. Targeted programs to prevent and control mastitis as well as antibiotic resistance are recommended

A retrospective analysis of antimicrobial resistance in pathogenic Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. isolates from poultry in Uganda

There are increasing reports of antimicrobial treatment failures for bacterial diseases of poultry in Uganda. The paucity of data on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of pathogenic bacteria in Uganda is a major setback to AMR control. This study investigated the occurrence of fowl typhoid, colibacillosis, and AMR in associated pathogens from 2012 to 2018. Laboratory records from the Central Diagnostic Laboratory (CDL), a National Veterinary Diagnostic Facility located at Makerere University, were reviewed. Archived isolates of the causative bacteria for the two diseases were also evaluated for AMR. The frequencies of the two disease conditions, their clinical and necropsy presentations and the demographic data of the diagnostic samples were summarized from the records. Archived bacterial isolates were revived before antimicrobial susceptibility testing. This was done on Mueller Hinton agar using the disk diffusion method, against 16 antimicrobials of medical and veterinary importance according to the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. A total of 697 poultry cases were presented for bacteriological investigations in the review period. Colibacillosis and salmonellosis had prevalence rates of 39.7% (277/697) and 16.2% (113/697), respectively. A total of 63 and 92 isolates of Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp., respectively, were archived but 43 (68.3%) E. coli and 47 (51.1%) Salmonella spp. isolates were recovered and evaluated for AMR. Multidrug resistance was more frequent in E. coli (38; 88.4%) than salmonellae (25; 53.2%), (p < 0.001). The high prevalence of colibacillosis, salmonellosis and the AMR of associated pathogens warrants immediate institution of appropriate disease control measures

Removal of a subset of non-essential genes fully attenuates a highly virulent mycoplasma strain

Mycoplasmas are the smallest free-living organisms and cause a number of economically important diseases affecting humans, animals, insects, and plants. Here, we demonstrate that highly virulent Mycoplasma mycoides subspecies capri (Mmc) can be fully attenuated via targeted deletion of non-essential genes encoding, among others, potential virulence traits. Five genomic regions, representing approximately 10% of the original Mmc genome, were successively deleted using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as an engineering platform. Specifically, a total of 68 genes out of the 432 genes verified to be individually non-essential in the JCVI-Syn3.0 minimal cell, were excised from the genome. In vitro characterization showed that this mutant was similar to its parental strain in terms of its doubling time, even though 10% of the genome content were removed. A novel in vivo challenge model in goats revealed that the wild-type parental strain caused marked necrotizing inflammation at the site of inoculation, septicemia and all animals reached endpoint criteria within 6 days after experimental infection. This is in contrast to the mutant strain, which caused no clinical signs nor pathomorphological lesions. These results highlight, for the first time, the rational design, construction and complete attenuation of a Mycoplasma strain via synthetic genomics tools. Trait addition using the yeast-based genome engineering platform and subsequent in vitro or in vivo trials employing the Mycoplasma chassis will allow us to dissect the role of individual candidate Mycoplasma virulence factors and lead the way for the development of an attenuated designer vaccine

Canine Staphylococcaceae circulating in a Kenyan animal shelter.

Microbiological data from sub-Saharan Africa are scarce compared to data from North America, Europe, or Asia, and data derived from dogs, the man's best friend, kept in sub-Saharan Africa are largely missing. This work presents data on Staphylococcaceae mainly isolated from the nasal cavity of dogs stationed at a Kenyan shelter in 2015. We characterized 92 strains isolated from 85 dogs, diseased and apparently healthy ones. The strains isolated covered nine validated species and we determined their phenotypic resistance and characterized their complete genomes. Interestingly, Staphylococcus aureus of two predominant genetic lineages, likely to be acquired from humans, colonized many dogs. We also detected 15 novel sequence types of Mammaliicoccus sciuri and S. pseudintermedius indicating sub-Saharan-specific phylogenetic lineages. The data presented are baseline data that guide antimicrobial treatment for dogs in the region

Mastitis on selected farms in Wakiso district, Uganda: Burden, pathogens and predictors of infectivity of antimicrobial resistant bacteria in dairy herds

Abstract Background Mastitis and associated antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are major challenges to the dairy industry worldwide. Objective This study aimed to expose the mastitis burden, causative bacteria and drivers for mastitis‐causing multi‐drug‐resistant (MDR) Staphylococci infectivity in cows on dairy farms in Wakiso district, Uganda. Methods On 22 farms, practices were documented using questionnaires, and 175 cows were screened by the California mastitis test. Composite milk samples from the positive reactors were submitted to the laboratory for bacterial culture testing. Antimicrobial sensitivity testing by the Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method was done only on Staphylococci with a panel of 10 antimicrobials of clinical relevance. Results Mastitis was detected in 80.6% (n = 141) of the 175 sampled cows, of which sub‐clinical mastitis (76.0%: n = 133) was predominant. The Chi‐squared analysis hypothesized that cow age (p = 0.017), sub‐county (p = 0.013), parity (p < 0.0001), sex of farm owner (p = 0.003), farm duration in dairy production (p = 0.048) and the use of milking salve (p = 0.006) were associated with mastitis. Coagulase‐negative Staphylococci were the most prevalent (71.4%; n = 95), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (30.1%, n = 40). Staphylococci (76.3%; n = 135) were majorly resistant to penicillin and tetracycline. Only one isolate was phenotyped as a methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus specie (MRSS). The prevalences of MDR strains at cow and isolate level were 6.3% and 8.3%. The major MDR phenotype identified was penicillin–tetracycline–trimethoprim‐sulphamethoxazole. The isolate detected as an MRSS exhibited the broadest MDR pattern. Cow parity was identified as a predictor of infectivity of mastitis‐causing MDR Staphylococci in dairy herds. Conclusion The high prevalence of mastitis and associated pathogen AMR found exposes possibilities of economic losses for the dairy sector warranting the need for farmer sensitization on the institution of proper mastitis prevention and control programs, with emphasis on milking hygiene practices and routine disease monitoring

Removal of a Subset of Non-essential Genes Fully Attenuates a Highly Virulent Mycoplasma Strain

Mycoplasmas are the smallest free-living organisms and cause a number of economically important diseases affecting humans, animals, insects, and plants. Here, we demonstrate that highly virulent Mycoplasma mycoides subspecies capri (Mmc) can be fully attenuated via targeted deletion of non-essential genes encoding, among others, potential virulence traits. Five genomic regions, representing approximately 10% of the original Mmc genome, were successively deleted using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as an engineering platform. Specifically, a total of 68 genes out of the 432 genes verified to be individually non-essential in the JCVI-Syn3.0 minimal cell, were excised from the genome. In vitro characterization showed that this mutant was similar to its parental strain in terms of its doubling time, even though 10% of the genome content were removed. A novel in vivo challenge model in goats revealed that the wild-type parental strain caused marked necrotizing inflammation at the site of inoculation, septicemia and all animals reached endpoint criteria within 6 days after experimental infection. This is in contrast to the mutant strain, which caused no clinical signs nor pathomorphological lesions. These results highlight, for the first time, the rational design, construction and complete attenuation of a Mycoplasma strain via synthetic genomics tools. Trait addition using the yeast-based genome engineering platform and subsequent in vitro or in vivo trials employing the Mycoplasma chassis will allow us to dissect the role of individual candidate Mycoplasma virulence factors and lead the way for the development of an attenuated designer vaccine