VN August 2020

Vetnuus | Augustus 2020 40 Kapur noted that theWorldHealthOrganisation,WorldOrganisation for Animal Health and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations define zoonotic TB as human infection with Mycobacterium bovis , a member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC). To evaluate the use of M. bovis as a proxy for zoonotic tuberculosis and to investigate the potential role of other MTBC subspecies, Kapur and his colleagues analysed 940 bacterial samples - both pulmonary and extrapulmonary – collected from patients who were visiting a large reference hospital for TB in southern India. The researchers used PCR to speciate M. tuberculosis complex organisms and then sequenced all the non- M. tuberculosis samples. Next, they compared the sequences to 715 sequences from cattle and humans that had previously been collected in south Asia and submitted to public databases. “Surprisingly, we did not find any evidence for the presence of M. bovis in any of the samples,” said Sreenidhi Srinivasan, postdoctoral scholar in the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences. “Instead, we found that seven of the patient samples contained M. orygis . Six of these came from patients with extrapulmonary TB.” They describe their findings in a paper published in The Lancet Microbe . As expected, most of the remainder of the sequences from the patients belonged to M. tuberculosis -- the TB bacterium that is generally thought to be transmitted only among humans. “Our findings suggest that M. bovis might be uncommon in India, and that its detection may not be an adequate proxy for zoonotic TB infection in humans,” said Srinivasan. “These data indicate that members of the TB complex other than M. bovis might be more prevalent in livestock in India.” Kapur added that the operational definition of zoonotic TB should be broadened to include other MTBC subspecies capable of causing human disease. “By 2035, the World Health Organization is aiming to reduce the incidence of tuberculosis by 90% as a part of its End TB Strategy ,” he said. “The increasing evidence supporting M. orygis endemicity in south Asia and the identification of M. tuberculosis in cattle highlight the importance of using a One Health approach, involving multi- sectoral collaboration across the veterinary and clinical sectors, to meet the WHO’s goal in India.” v (Source: www.sciencedaily.com ) Scottish-based teamdelves into mysteries of blubber Scottish-based scientists say new ways need to be found to better understand the health of large marine mammals. The body condition of cetaceans, assessed by measuring blubber reserves, has been used to gauge how well an animal was doing before it died. But the team of Inverness and Aberdeen-based scientists said this measurement alone could not provide an accurate picture of health. They said new health markers need to be developed. In a review of research, they said more information could be gleaned from blubber collected as part of post-mortem examinations of animals that have died after stranding on the UK's coastline. These cetaceans - whales, dolphins and porpoises - offer scientists some of the best opportunities to study the animals. The Inverness-based Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme (SMASS), which is part of Scotland's Rural College, worked with University of Aberdeen's School of Biological Sciences on the new review. They said research had shown blubber to be a complex tissue and "energy store" which is composed of "several layers and regions that have different physiological functions". But the scientists added there was a "gap in knowledge" about blubber and its link to health and its influence on the animals' behaviour, including reproduction. Dr AndrewBrownlow, of SMASS, said understanding animal health had far reaching implications. He said: "This work is about developing mechanisms for better understanding health in free-ranging cetaceans, of particular importance given the role of these iconic species as sentinels of environmental change and ecosystem viability. This is never more important, given the urgent need to understand the impact of multiple stressors, such as underwater noise, chemical pollution and climate change. It is not just for the sake of our marine species but, as the coronavirus pandemic has starkly demonstrated, also because human health is inexorably tied to the health and resilience of wild populations." The scientist added: "However, assessing health in free-ranging cetaceans is difficult - they are fast, mobile and spend most of the time under the ocean, hence that's where the UK's strandings surveillance programmes can play a role." v (Source: https://www.bbc.com/news) Full article: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00367/ full?fbclid=IwAR0G4lwtYI_arwYjp9bsgXO_wx_ UgP36LJBYBVZ9vtKJe_WlqMSL8PllkPM Photo: Skeeze, via Wikimedia Tuberculosis spread fromanimals to humans may be greater... <<< 39 Bits and Bobs I Stukkies en Brokkies