The nutrient composition of three cuts obtained from P-class South African pork carcasses.

The shoulder, loin and leg from P-class pork carcasses were used to determine the nutrient composition of both raw and cooked cuts. Significantly lower fat content were observed in the current study for the leg (5.21g/100g) and loin (6.99g/100g) compared to the shoulder cut (10.32g/100g). The overall percentage fat for all three cuts was less than 10% which is recommended by the South African Heart Mark. The cooked loin cut contained the most protein (27.50g/100g) of the three cooked cuts. When compared to other meat products (beef, mutton and chicken) it is clear that pork is a good source of B vitamins, especially vitamin B3. The cooked loin cut contained the least vitamin B1 (0.22mg/100g), B2 (0.02mg/100g) but the most vitamin B3 (7.09mg/100g), of the three cooked cuts. The 100g cooked shoulder, loin and leg cuts provide on average 40.11% protein, 5.19% magnesium, 3.37% calcium, 24.29% phosphorus, 18.22% zinc, 22.33% iron and 22.50% vitamin B1, 2.57% vitamin B2 and 42.6% vitamin B3 of Recommended Daily Allowances for males, age 25-50. Energy from a 100g portion provides 5.81% of the Recommended Daily Allowances. To conclude, the pork cuts are undoubtedly a good source of nutrients that is required for good health because it is high in protein, have a low fat content and are a nutrient-packed choice for the family and compares favourably with the fat, energy, and cholesterol content of many other meats and poultry.

Monitoring the prevalence of methamphetamine-related presentations at psychiatric hospitals in Cape Town, South Africa.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine a demographic profile of methamphetamine (MA)-related admissions to major psychiatric services in Cape Town, obtain a substance use profile from admitted patients, a profile of common MA-related symptoms encountered during the assessment of the patients presenting with MA-related problems, and a brief profile of the psychiatric diagnoses made. METHOD: Staff in six psychiatric hospitals or wards in Cape Town collected data on methamphetamine related admissions between July and December 2008 using a one-page record review form. The data collection form consisted of the patient's demographic details, presenting symptoms, previous admission details, current MA and other substance use information, and DSM-IV diagnosis. RESULTS: A total of 235 forms were completed. Most patients were male (69%) and the mean age was 25 years. The most common presenting symptoms were aggressive behaviour (74%), followed by delusions (59%) and hallucinations (57%). Males were two times more likely to present with aggression as compared to females, while females were significantly more likely to present with depressed mood or euphoric/elevated mood. The majority of patients had substance-induced psychotic disorder (41%), followed by schizophrenia (31%). Twelve percent (12%) had bipolar mood disorder. CONCLUSION: MA-related psychiatric admissions pose serious challenges to all health services dealing with these patients. Further training and treatment protocol development and distribution is indicated.

Genetic identification of two sweet-potato-infecting begomoviruses in South Africa.

The complete genome sequences of two monopartite begomovirus isolates (genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae) that occurred either alone or in mixed infection in sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) plants collected in Waterpoort, South Africa, are presented. One of the isolates corresponds to sweet potato mosaic-associated virus (SPMaV; SPMaV-[ZA:WP:2011]), with which it shared 98.5 % nucleotide identity, whereas the second isolate corresponds to a new variant of sweet potato leaf curl Sao Paulo virus (SPLCSPV; SPLCSPV-[ZA:WP:2011]), with which it shared 91.4 % nucleotide identity. The phylogenetic and recombination relationships of these isolates to other monopartite Ipomoea-infecting begomoviruses were also investigated. SPLCSPV-[ZA:WP:2011] was found to be a natural recombinant of swepoviruses consisting of two distinct parental genomic sequences from SPLCSPV and sweet potato leaf curl Georgia virus (SPLCGV).

First Report of Pepino mosaic virus Infecting Tomato in South Africa.

Pepino mosaic virus (PepMV) (genus Potexvirus) is a highly infectious virus that is responsible for significant losses in yield of tomato fruit (Solanum lycopersicum) across Europe, Asia, and the Americas in the last decade (1). During the winter growing season of 2008, uneven discoloration of tomato fruit from farms in Limpopo Province, South Africa, was detected at the Pretoria fresh produce market. Twenty fruit were randomly selected from five different suppliers in this region and the 100 samples were batched into subsamples of five fruit. Leaves with suspect mosaic and bubbling symptoms were also detected from farms in Limpopo and were thus sampled. Leaf and fruit samples were tested by double antibody-sandwich (DAS)-ELISA (2) using polyclonal antibodies against PepMV (Agdia, Elkhart, IN) combined with appropriate positive and negative controls. Fruit samples from two of the suppliers, and all leaf samples tested, reacted strongly with PepMV antibodies. Inoculum was prepared from pooled DAS-ELISA-positive leaf samples and inoculated onto 10, 4-week-old, susceptible S. lycopersicum cv. Rooikhaki seedlings. After 3 weeks, all inoculated plants had developed characteristic PepMV symptoms (2) including leaf bubbling, distortion, and curled leaves. Older leaves developed yellow spots and light/dark green leaf mosaic while apical regions were stunted and branches were distorted to form 'nettle-head' symptoms. Fruit surfaces were marbled or displayed flaming and uneven discoloration. Leaves from symptomatic plants were sampled for confirmation of PepMV infection by DAS-ELISA and all samples reacted positively with PepMV antibodies. Total RNA was extracted from 500-µg replicates of pooled leaf samples from infected plants with the RNeasy Plant Mini Kit (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany), and amplified by conventional two-step reverse-transcription-PCR using a PepMV-specific primer set: Ker 1 (2) and PepCP-R (4) for a 986-bp region, including the coat protein, of the PepMV genome. PCR products were cloned into pTZ57R/T vector (Fermentas, Vilnius, Lithuania [UAB]) and six clones were purified and sequenced using universal M13 primers (3). Phylogenetic analysis clustered the sequence with EU (European), LP (Peruvian), US1 (United States)/CH1 (Chilean) and US2/CH2 PepMV isolates. The PepMV isolate accessions for US2/CH2 (AY509927, FJ612601, EF408821, FJ212288, and DQ000985) were identified as the closest relatives based on 98 to 99% nucleotide similarity obtained using BLASTN. The coat protein sequence of the South African isolate was submitted to GenBank (Accession No. HQ872607). To our knowledge, this is the first confirmed report of PepMV in South Africa. Further studies are necessary to determine its incidence and spread in this country. The presence of PepMV signals the urgent need for adoption of appropriate phytosanitary measures to restrict the spread and impact of this virus. References: (1) I. M. Hanssen and B. P. H. J. Thomma. Mol. Plant Pathol. 11:179, 2010. (2) I. M. Hanssen et al. Plant Pathol. 58:450, 2009. (3) J. Messing. Method Enzymol. 101:20, 1983. (4) I. Pagán et al. Phytopathology 96:274, 2006.

Relative Pathogenicity of Cryphonectria cubensis on Eucalyptus Clones Differing in Their Resistance to C. cubensis.

Cryphonectria cubensis causes a destructive canker disease of Eucalyptus species. Management of this disease is primarily through breeding and selection of disease resistant trees. One means of selecting such trees is by artificial inoculation with the pathogen. In routine screening trials in South Africa, an isolate of C. cubensis, considered to be highly pathogenic, has been used for such inoculations. Although the most resistant clones under natural conditions are the same as those detected in inoculation trials, a question has arisen whether all clones respond similarly to different C. cubensis isolates. Thus, a trial consisting of five clones, known to differ in susceptibility to infection by C. cubensis, was established. These trees were inoculated with nine South African C. cubensis isolates previously shown to differ in pathogenicity. Inoculations showed a significant isolate × clone interaction as well as an "apparent immunity" for one clone × isolate interaction, providing evidence highly suggestive of a vertical resistance component in the pathosystem. Disease screening in this pathosystem has traditionally relied on a single pathogen isolate; however, considering data presented here, future reliance on a single isolate may be inadequate.

Reaction to boar odour by different South African consumer groups.

A consumer sensory study of South African pork consumers (n=300) including equal numbers of males and females and consumers from three ethnic groupings (black, white and coloured consumers) was conducted to determine the effects of gender and ethnicity on consumer reactions towards boar odour compounds. Samples consisted of boar fat with varying concentrations of skatole and androstenone. Each consumer evaluated the odour of seven fat samples. Consumers' liking of pork meat in general had a significant effect on the hedonic rating of the boar odour. The majority of consumers represented in this study would be dissatisfied with pork meat exhibiting detectable levels of skatole. In general, more females compared with males, will also respond more negatively towards samples with detectable levels of androstenone. An apparent liking for samples with medium levels of androstenone (0.5-1 µg/g) was found for some consumers, especially males, and can be partly attributed to the inability of some consumers to smell this compound at these levels or a genuine liking for the odour of androstenone. Significant differences in the sensitivity of consumers from different ethnic groups were found with white females responding more negatively than white males and blacks. Although it was not possible to compare responses directly with the white and black groups, it was found that a higher percentage of coloureds responded negatively to boar odour compounds. Coloured males responded particularly negatively towards samples with detectable skatole, while black males, in general, were found to be more critical than black females. Based on these results it is predicted that the majority of consumers would be less willing to consume pork meat exhibiting detectable levels of boar odour.

Characterization of South African Cryphonectria cubensis Isolates Infected with a C. parasitica Hypovirus.

ABSTRACT Cryphonectria cubensis is the causal agent of a serious canker disease of Eucalyptus spp. in tropical and subtropical parts of the world. In this study, a South African C. cubensis isolate was transfected by electroporation with a synthetic RNA transcript corresponding to the full-length coding strand of the C. parasitica hypovirus (CHV1-EP713). Hypovirus infection resulted in pronounced morphological changes that included a striking increase in bright yellow-orange pigment production, a reduction in mycelial growth rate, and reduced sporulation. Greenhouse studies revealed that the virus-containing strain was significantly less virulent than the original virulent C. cubensis isolate. Although the hypovirus was not transmitted through conidia produced by infected C. cubensis, the virus was readily transmitted via hyphal anastomosis to C. cubensis isolates representing a broad range of vegetative compatibility groups. These results suggest that vegetative incompatibility may not pose a strong barrier against virus transmission in South African isolates of C. cubensis and that hypovirus-mediated biological control could provide opportunities to reduce the impact of Cryphonectria canker in South Africa.

Flavour- and tenderness-related quality characteristics of goat and sheep meat.

The quality characteristics of 27 Angora goats, Boer goats and sheep carcases were compared. Significant differences exist between the quality characteristics of sheep meat and Angora or Boer goat meat. Sheep meat has a more intense aroma, it is more tender, contains less fibrous tissue residue and the species flavour is more pronounced (typical) than that of Angora and Boer goat meat. In general, goat meat was found to be significantly different to sheep meat, the Angora to a lesser extent, however, than the Boer goat. This study confirms the fact that the meat of younger animals is more tender, contains less fibrous tissue residue and the species flavour is less typical than that of older animals. This was irrespective of whether it was obtained from sheep, Angora or Boer goat. With increasing fatness of carcases, the tenderness and species flavour of the cooked cuts increased significantly.

Cooking- and juiciness-related quality characteristics of goat and sheep meat.

Significant differences exist between the quality characteristics of meat obtained from 27 sheep, Angora and Boer goat carcases, when compared. Sheep meat showed greater drip loss than goat meat and was more juicy than that of Angora and Boer goat meat. In general, Angora goat meat was found to be more juicy than Boer goat meat. Drip loss increased significantly with increased animal age. Meat of younger animals (no permanent incisors) was more juicy (initial and sustained) than that of older animals (7-8 permanent incisors). This was irrespective of whether it was obtained from sheep, Angora or Boer goats and was confirmed by the expressible moisture measurements. Higher drip, evaporation and total cooking loss were reported when carcases had increased fat content. With increasing fatness of carcases, the juiciness of the cooked cuts decreased and the expressible moisture content of the meat increased.