Use of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) in Mashona heifers, under a J-Synch synchronization protocol, and its effect in pregnancy rate: Use of equine chorionic gonadotropin in a J-Synch protocol in heifers

Objective: The objective of the present study was to evaluate the J-Synch protocol with two doses of eCG in beef heifers during the summer in Northeast Mexico. Design/methodology/approach: In this experiment, 218 heifers of the Mashona breed (109/treatment) with a live weight of 350 ±12.1 kg were used. On Day 0, all heifers received an intravaginal device (1.2 g P4) plus 2 mg, i.m., EB; On day 5, it was withdrawn and 0.15 mg of D-Cloprostenol was applied; where treatment 1 (T1) consisted of the application of 250 IU of eCG; in treatment 2 (T2), 300 IU of eCG was applied. Subsequently, the total number of heifers from both treatments were inseminated at a fixed time (FTAI) at 72 hours after the removal of the device with frozen bull semen; likewise, at the time of the FTAI, 10.5 µg of GnRH was applied to each heifer. Results: There were no significant differences (p > 0.05) in the percentage of estrus at the first service (T1 = 91%; T2 = 96%; as well as in the percentage of repeaters (T1 = 25.2% vs T2 = 19 .2%). For the inseminating technician and the color of the heifers' coat, there was an effect on the percentage of heifers repeating estrus. For the percentage of pregnancy at first service, it was 64.8% for T1 and 70.1 % for T2 (p > 0.05) There was only an effect of the inseminator technician in terms of pregnancy percentage, varying from 63.4% for the best-qualified technician vs. 48.6% for the one with the lowest percentage. Limitations on study/implications: At least in this study, the pregnancy rate in beef heifers will depend mainly on the experience and skill of the inseminator technician. Findings/conclusions: According to the present investigation, the indistinct application of 250 or 300 IU of eCG can be used with the same results of the presence of estrus and gestation during the summer season in beef heifers, however, the inseminator technician has an important role on pregnancy outcomes.O Objective: To evaluate the J-Synch protocol with two eCG doses in beef heifers during the summer in northeastern Mexico. Design/Methodology/Approach: 218 heifers (109/treatment) with a body weight of 350 ± 12.1 kg were used. A J-Synch protocol was applied in order to evaluate two eCG doses: T1 (250 IU) and T2 (300 IU). Subsequently, the total number of heifers from both treatments were inseminated at a fixed time (FTAI): 72 h after removing the device. Results: No significant differences (p>0.05) were recorded in the estrous percentage at first service (T1 = 91%; T2 = 96%) and in the repeating heifers (T1 = 25.2%; T2 = 19.2%). The insemination technician and coat color variables impacted the estrous percentage in repeating heifers. The pregnancy percentage at first service was 64.8% and 70.1% for T1 and T2 (p>0.05), respectively. The insemination technician had a variable effect on the pregnancy percentage, from 63.4% (the best-qualified technician) to 48.6% (the technician who obtained the lowest percentage). Study Limitations/Implications: The pregnancy rate in beef heifers will depend mainly on the experience and skill of the insemination technician. Findings/Conclusions: The same results were obtained regarding the presence of estrous and pregnancy in beef heifers during the summer season, either with 250 or 300 IU of eCG

NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES: a data set on carnivore distribution in the Neotropics

Mammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecological health and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carnivores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide management and conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropical region: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae. Herein, we include published and unpublished data on native terrestrial Neotropical carnivores (Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae). NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES is a publicly available data set that includes 99,605 data entries from 35,511 unique georeferenced coordinates. Detection/non-detection and quantitative data were obtained from 1818 to 2018 by researchers, governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private consultants. Data were collected using several methods including camera trapping, museum collections, roadkill, line transect, and opportunistic records. Literature (peer-reviewed and grey literature) from Portuguese, Spanish and English were incorporated in this compilation. Most of the data set consists of detection data entries (n = 79,343; 79.7%) but also includes non-detection data (n = 20,262; 20.3%). Of those, 43.3% also include count data (n = 43,151). The information available in NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES will contribute to macroecological, ecological, and conservation questions in multiple spatio-temporal perspectives. As carnivores play key roles in trophic interactions, a better understanding of their distribution and habitat requirements are essential to establish conservation management plans and safeguard the future ecological health of Neotropical ecosystems. Our data paper, combined with other large-scale data sets, has great potential to clarify species distribution and related ecological processes within the Neotropics. There are no copyright restrictions and no restriction for using data from this data paper, as long as the data paper is cited as the source of the information used. We also request that users inform us of how they intend to use the data

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