A decision support tool to place drinking water sources in rural communities.

Installing more drinking water sources is a promising way to achieve the 6th sustainable development goal "Clean water and sanitation" in rural communities. A key parameter for the installation of new water pumps is geographical position, because the number of people who could gain access to drinking water depends on the location of the pump. To improve the choice of the most appropriate location, we propose a decision support tool to place a new drinking water source in a rural community. This tool relies on four complementary maps, which are obtained from GPS data, survey data, and a water source choice model. The first map shows the spatial distribution of the households and of the existing water sources in the village. The three remaining maps present the following quantities as a function of the position of a new drinking water source in the village: the number of users of the new drinking water source, the improvement of drinking water access, and the daily water demand per capita at the new drinking water source. The decision support tool is applied to a village in Burkina Faso. Results indicate that using the proposed method could allow eight times more people to gain access to drinking water in comparison to a random positioning of the new drinking water source. The original contribution of this work is, first, the consideration of existing water sources in the village, as well as seasonality. Second, we base our analysis on a water source choice model, which accounts for water quality in addition to the distance to the water source. Third, we consider the variability of the water volume collected by the households throughout the village. The developed tool is generic, transferable to other villages and useful for various decision-making entities (e.g. local authorities and non-governmental organizations).

The speed of kill of a topical combination of selamectin plus sarolaner against induced infestations of Ixodes scapularis ticks on cats.

The speed of kill of a novel, topical product containing selamectin in combination with sarolaner (selamectin/sarolaner; Revolution® Plus/Stronghold® Plus) was evaluated against Ixodes scapularis ticks on cats. Sixteen cats were randomly allocated to a treatment group and treated topically on Day 0 with either placebo (vehicle control) or 6 mg/kg selamectin plus 1 mg/kg sarolaner. Cats were infested with approximately 50 unfed viable adult I. scapularis ticks on Days -2, 7, 14, 21, 28 and 35. Efficacy was assessed at 4, 8, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h after treatment on Day 0 and at 4, 8, 12 and 24 h after post-treatment re-infestations. There were no adverse reactions to the topical treatment with selamectin/sarolaner. Placebo-treated cats maintained tick infestations throughout the study. Treatment with selamectin/sarolaner significantly reduced tick counts within 12 h (P < 0.0001) and resulted in 100% efficacy by 24 h. For subsequent re-infestations, live tick counts were significantly reduced by 12 h after infestation on Day 7 (P = 0.0120) and by 24 h for Days 14-35 (P < 0.0001). At 24 h after the post-treatment re-infestations, efficacy based on geometric (arithmetic) means was ≥96.1% (94.5%) through Day 21, 75.3% (67.7%) on Day 28 and 66.4% (56.4%) on Day 35. Thus, a single topical dose of Revolution® Plus/Stronghold® Plus at the recommended minimum dose started killing ticks within 12-24 hours after treatment and re-infestations for up to 5 weeks. High acaricidal efficacy (≥90% reduction in tick burden) was achieved within 24 h after treatment and subsequent re-infestations for at least three weeks.

Efficacy of a new topical formulation containing selamectin plus sarolaner against three common tick species infesting cats in the United States.

The efficacy of a single topical application of a combination product containing selamectin and sarolaner (selamectin/sarolaner; Revolution® Plus/Stronghold® Plus) was evaluated in seven laboratory studies against Ixodes scapularis (three studies), Dermacentor variabilis (two studies), or Amblyomma maculatum (two studies). In each study, cats were randomly allocated to treatment groups based on pre-treatment host-suitability tick counts. On Days -2, 5, 12, 19, 26 and 33, the cats were infested with unfed adult ticks. On Day 0, cats were treated with either a placebo (vehicle control) or with the spot-on solution at the minimum dose of 6.0 mg selamectin and 1.0 mg sarolaner/kg bodyweight. In one study with I. scapularis and one with D. variabilis an additional group of cats was treated with selamectin alone (Revolution®, Zoetis) at 6.0 mg/kg bodyweight. Tick counts were conducted after treatment and after each weekly re-infestation and efficacy determined relative to placebo-treated animals. There were no treatment-related adverse reactions in any of the studies. Geometric mean live tick counts were significantly (P < 0.05) lower in the selamectin/sarolaner-treated groups compared to the geometric mean tick counts in the placebo-treated groups at all time-points in all studies. For all species, a single topical administration of the selamectin/sarolaner combination resulted in>90% efficacy against existing infestations based on geometric means. Efficacy against weekly re-infestations was >90% based on geometric means for at least 5 weeks for I. scapularis and D. variabilis, and for at least 4 weeks against A. maculatum. Selamectin alone had no efficacy against I. scapularis, where counts on selamectin-treated cats were not significantly different from placebo at all time points (P > 0.05), and for D. variabilis, counts were not significantly different from placebo at 2, 3 and 5 weeks after treatment (P > 0.05) and efficacy was never greater than 85%. Thus, the activity of the sarolaner against three common tick species found on cats in the US is complementary to the existing broad-spectrum parasite control of selamectin. The inclusion of sarolaner with selamectin in a combination product (Revolution® Plus/Stronghold® Plus) provides for the treatment of existing tick infestations and gives at least one month of control against re-infestation following a single topical application.

Efficacy and speed of kill of a new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner against flea infestations in cats.

The efficacy of a new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner against induced flea infestations in cats was confirmed in three placebo-controlled, blinded studies. Purpose-bred adult cats (n=8/group) were blocked by pre-treatment flea counts and randomly allocated to treatment with either a placebo or with the spot-on formulation at the minimum dose of 6.0mg selamectin and 1.0mg sarolaner per kg bodyweight. Treatments were applied topically once on Day 0. All cats were infested with approximately 100 unfed, adult Ctenocephalides felis prior to treatment and at weekly intervals for 5 weeks. In Studies 1 and 2 comb counts were conducted to determine the numbers of viable fleas 24h after treatment and subsequent weekly infestations. In Study 3, flea counts were conducted at 6, 12, 24 and 48h after treatment and 3, 6, 12 and 24h after subsequent weekly infestations to evaluate the speed of kill against fleas. Cats in the placebo-treated groups maintained flea infestations throughout all studies. In Study 1, no live fleas were found on any of the treated cats, resulting in 100% efficacy for 5 weeks after a single treatment (P≤0.0001). In Study 2, selamectin/sarolaner reduced flea counts by 92.4% immediately after treatment and by 97.7%-100% after re-infestations for five weeks (P≤0.0001). In the speed of kill study, selamectin/sarolaner started killing fleas within 12h after treatment administration and within 6h following re-infestation for at least 28days. Efficacy was 98.1% by 24h after treatment and 100% within 24h after re-infestations for 5 weeks. A single topical administration of a new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner at the minimum dose rapidly and consistently kills fleas on cats for at least 5 weeks.

Efficacy of a new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner for cats against adult Ctenocephalides felis, flea egg production and adult flea emergence.

A new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner was evaluated against fleas for adulticidal efficacy, and for the effect on egg production and hatching when applied to flea-infested cats. Ten male and ten female adult domestic shorthair cats were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups based on pre-treatment flea counts. Cats received topical treatment on Day 0 in a single spot to the dorsal scapular area with either a placebo formulation or with the combination formulation at the minimal dose of 6.0mg selamectin plus 1.0mg sarolaner per kg bodyweight. On Days -1, 5, 12, 19, 26 and 33, cats were infested with approximately 100 (±5) unfed Ctenocephalides felis fleas. At 24h after treatment or 48h after subsequent flea infestation, cats were housed for a 20-h period in a cage to allow collection of flea eggs. At the end of this period, flea eggs were collected from the cages and cats were combed to remove and count live fleas. Emerged viable larvae and emerged adult fleas were counted 3days and 35days, respectively, after egg collection. The new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner provided 100% efficacy against adult fleas up to Day 36 following a single application. Fleas on placebo-treated cats produced large numbers of eggs throughout the study, with individual counts ranging from 110 to 1256 eggs. Following treatment, four flea eggs were collected from a single selamectin/sarolaner-treated cat on Day 29, but there were no eggs collected from any other selamectin/sarolaner-treated animal during the study. No larvae or adult fleas developed from these four eggs. From the eggs collected from the placebo-treated cats, the mean percentage of live larvae and adults that emerged ranged from 67.3% to 84.2% and from 50.7% to 81.8%, respectively. A single topical treatment with a new spot-on formulation of selamectin plus sarolaner at the minimum label dose thus controlled fleas on cats and was 100% effective in preventing flea reproduction for over one month after treatment.

Efficacy and safety of sarolaner (Simparica™) against fleas on dogs presented as veterinary patients in the United States.

The efficacy and safety of a novel isoxazoline parasiticide, sarolaner (Simparica™), for the control of fleas on dogs was evaluated in a randomized, controlled clinical study conducted in 19 general veterinary practices throughout the United States. Four hundred and seventy nine (479) dogs from 293 households were enrolled. Each household was randomly assigned to treatment with either sarolaner oral tablets (Simparica™, Zoetis) at the proposed label dose or an approved comparator product at the label dose (spinosad, Comfortis(®), Elanco). Dogs were dosed by their owners at home on Day 0 and on approximately Days 30 and 60. Dogs were examined at the clinics for general health, flea and tick infestation, and clinical signs of flea allergy dermatitis (FAD) at the initial visit and Days 14, 30, 60 and 90. Blood was collected for clinical pathology at screening and Day 90. Sarolaner was well-accepted by dogs with the majority of flavored chewable tablets (91.5%) accepted free choice, by hand or in food. Geometric mean live flea counts were reduced by >99% at the first time measured (14 days) after initiation of treatment and continued to reduce through the study. Treatment success (proportion of dogs with ≥90% reduction in fleas) for the sarolaner-treated dogs was superior to that for spinosad-treated dogs at Days 14 and 30 and non-inferior on Days 60 and 90 (P≤0.025) The rapid reduction in flea infestations resulted in a similar rapid resolution of the clinical signs associated with FAD. Sarolaner chewable tablets were well tolerated with no treatment related adverse reactions. Most of the clinical signs reported were consistent with allergies and dermatitis or sporadic occurrences of conditions commonly observed in the general dog population. A wide variety of concomitant medications, including many commercially available heartworm preventatives and other anthelmintic drugs, were administered to study dogs and all were well tolerated. Sarolaner administered orally to provide a minimum dosage of 2.0mg/kg (range 2-4mg/kg) once monthly for three consecutive treatments was safe and effective in the treatment and prevention of natural infestations of fleas and resulted in a substantial improvement of clinical signs associated with FAD.

Efficacy and safety of a novel oral isoxazoline, sarolaner (Simparica™), for the treatment of sarcoptic mange in dogs.

The efficacy of the novel isoxazoline, sarolaner (Simparica™) was investigated in dogs with clinical signs consistent with sarcoptic mange and harbouring natural infestations of Sarcoptes scabiei. One placebo-controlled laboratory study and one multi-centred field study with a commercial comparator containing imidacloprid/moxidectin (Advocate(®) spot-on) were conducted. Oral or topical treatments were administered on Days 0 and 30. Up to 10 skin scrapings were taken for the assessment of S. scabiei infestations from each dog before treatment and on Days 14, 30, 44 and 60 in the laboratory study, and on Days 30 and 60 in the field study. In the laboratory study, efficacy was calculated based on the percent reduction of mean live mite counts compared to the placebo group. In the field study parasitological cure rate (% dogs free of mites) was determined and non-inferiority of sarolaner to the control product was assessed. In the laboratory study 44 mixed breed dogs were enrolled in four batches. Due to decreasing mite counts in the placebo treated dogs, immunosuppression with dexamethasone (0.4mg/kg three times per week for two weeks) was initiated in all dogs on study at that time (n=6) and those subsequently enrolled (n=14). In the field study, dogs were enrolled in a 2:1 ratio (sarolaner:comparator); 79 dogs were assessed for efficacy and safety, and an additional 45 dogs were assessed for safety only. There were no treatment related adverse events in either study. In the laboratory study, no mites were found on any sarolaner-treated dogs 14 days after the first treatment except for one dog that had a single mite on Day 44. In the field study, the parasitological cure rate was 88.7% and 100% in the sarolaner group and 84.6% and 96.0% in the imidacloprid/moxidectin group, on Days 30 and 60, respectively. Statistical analysis showed that sarolaner was non-inferior to imidacloprid/moxidectin at both time points. The clinical signs of sarcoptic mange, including hair loss, papules, pruritus, erythema, and scaling/crusting improved throughout the study. Sarolaner was safe, achieved 100% reduction in the numbers of S. scabiei detected and resulted in marked improvement of the clinical signs of sarcoptic mange in dogs following two monthly oral administrations.