Cellular and Cytokine Responses in the Granulomas of Asymptomatic Cattle Naturally Infected with Mycobacterium bovis in Ethiopia.

Cell (CD3+ T cell and CD68+ macrophages), cytokine (interferon gamma-positive [IFN-γ+] and tumor necrosis factor alpha-positive [TNF-α+]), and effector molecule (inducible nitric oxide synthase-positive [iNOS+]) responses were evaluated in the lymph nodes and tissues of cattle naturally infected with Mycobacterium bovis Detailed postmortem and immunohistochemical examinations of lesions were performed on 16 cows that were positive by the single intradermal cervical comparative tuberculin (SICCT) test and that were identified from dairy farms located around the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The severity of the gross lesion was significantly higher (P = 0.003) in M. bovis culture-positive cows (n = 12) than in culture-negative cows (n = 4). Immunohistochemical techniques showed that in culture-positive cows, the mean immunolabeling fraction of CD3+ T cells decreased as the stage of granuloma increased from stage I to stage IV (P < 0.001). In contrast, the CD68+ macrophage, IFN-γ+, TNF-α+, and iNOS+ immunolabeling fractions increased from stage I to stage IV (P < 0.001). In the early stages, culture-negative cows showed a significantly higher fraction of CD68+ macrophage (P = 0.03) and iNOS+ (P = 0.007) immunolabeling fractions than culture-positive cows. Similarly, at advanced granuloma stages, culture-negative cows demonstrated significantly higher mean proportions of CD3+ T cells (P < 0.001) than culture-positive cows. Thus, this study demonstrates that, following natural infection of cows with M. bovis, as the stage of granuloma increases from stage I to stage IV, the immunolabeling fraction of CD3+ cells decreases, while the CD68+ macrophage, IFN-γ+, TNF-α+, and iNOS+ immunolabeling fractions increases.

ERADICATION OF BRUCELLA MELITENSIS FROM TWO CAPTIVE GAZELLE POPULATIONS IN SAUDI ARABIA.

An outbreak of brucellosis occurred in a group of 726 sand gazelles (Gazella marica) at the Prince Mohammed Al-Sudairi Gazelle Breeding Center and in a group of 47 putative "Neumann's gazelles" (Gazella erlangeri) housed at the King Khalid Wildlife Research Center in Saudi Arabia. Clinical signs of anorexia, poor body condition, enlarged testes, reluctance to walk, swollen carpal joints, and suppurative arthritis were present in 16 sand gazelles and 14 Neumann's gazelles. All clinical cases were evaluated using a card agglutination test, complement fixation, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. All cases were serologically positive for Brucella melitensis, confirmed through culture and isolation of the microorganism. DNA was extracted from the isolated organisms, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used for sequencing. Evaluation focused on tracking the source of infection, the management of the two outbreaks, and the subsequent diagnosis, treatments, and success, including the successful eradication of Brucella from both populations.

Causes of mortality of captive Arabian gazelles (Gazella Arabica) at King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from 1988 to 2011.

We investigated the causes of mortality of the Arabian gazelle (Gazella arabica) based on the necropsy records of 1218 captive animals at King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre, Saudi Arabia, from 1988 to 2011. The largest number of deaths was attributed to trauma (391, 32.1%). Trauma was subdivided into the following three categories: collisions with fences (144, 11.8%); predator activity (91, 7.5%), and exhibit-mate aggression (156, 12.8%). Respiratory infection was another important cause of mortality, accounting for 186 (15.3%) deaths. Respiratory infection was more prevalent during the winter season (November to March). Other causes of death included gastrointestinal diseases, such as clostridiosis and salmonellosis (108, 8.9%). Maternal neglect (104, 8.5%), chronic renal fibrosis (34, 2.8%), and stress-related pathologies (35, 2.9%), in particular, capture myopathy, were also important causes of mortality. Here, the importance of these findings for improvement of the captive management of this vulnerable Arabian species is discussed, and for the first time, salmonellosis in Arabian gazelles is reported.

Starch composition and functional properties of raw and pretreated anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) tuber flours dried at different temperatures.

Anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) is an indigenous tuber crop produced in southwest part of Ethiopia. As an indigenous and underutilized tuber, limited scientific information is available about the characteristics of dried anchote powder. In this study, attempts were made to investigate the starch composition and functional properties of flours produced from the raw and pretreated tuber dried at different temperatures (60, 80, and 100°C). The results showed that both pretreatment and drying temperature significantly (p < .05) affected the amylose/amylopectin ratio, pH, total soluble solids (TSS), water absorption capacity (WAC), oil absorption capacity (OAC), water absorption index (WAI), water solubility index (WSI), swelling power (SP), total polyphenols content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC). The treatment combinations result in varied ranges of pH (5.70-6.47), TSS (5.37-10.8 °Brix), WAC (2.42-4.21 g/g), OAC (0.94-1.44 g/g), WAI (3.40-5.42 g/g), WSI (11.40%-20.37%), SP (4.56-7.20 g/g), foaming capacity (FC) (3.31%-33.33%), foam stability (FS) (1.89%-20.00%), amylose content (AC) (14.18%-36.11% ), TPC (0.22-0.80 mg GAE/g), and TFC content (0.12-0.44 mg CE/g). The blanched and boiled anchote flours dried at relatively lower drying temperature exhibited better WAC, SP, and WAI than the raw. Considering the determined parameters, the flour from the tuber can be used as an ingredient in different food formulations.