Trichinella britovi in a red fox (Vulpes vulpes) from Portugal

Trichinellosis is one of the most important foodborne parasitic zoonoses, caused by nematodes of the genus Trichinella. Pigs and other domestic and wild animals, including red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), are sources of Trichinella infection for human beings. Trichinella britovi is the major agent of infection in sylvatic animals and the most important species circulating in the European wildlife. The present study aimed at assessing Trichinella spp. infection in red foxes from the North of Portugal. Forty-seven carcasses of wild red foxes shot during the official hunting season or killed in road accidents were obtained between November 2008 and March 2010. In order to identify the presence of Trichinella spp. larvae in red foxes, an individual artificial digestion was performed using approximately 30g of muscle samples. Larvae of Trichinella spp. were detected in one (2.1%) out of the 47 assessed foxes. After a multiplex polymerase chain reaction analysis, T. britovi was molecularly identified as the infecting species. The recognition of T. britovi in a red fox confirms that a sylvatic cycle is present in the North of Portugal and that the local prevalence of Trichinella infection in wildlife must not be ignored due to its underlying zoonotic risks.

[Lung and pleural lesions before and after implementation of a national eradication program against enzootic pneumonia and actinobacillosis as well as changes of slaughter carcass organs in slaughter pigs in Switzerland].

In a representative cross-sectional study during 12 months of the years 2008/2009 in four abattoirs in Switzerland, lung and pleura lesions as well as lesions of slaughter carcasses and organs of 34 706 pigs were studied for frequency and type of macroscopic lesions. Of the 24276 examined pigs, 91.2% of the lungs, 94.4% of the heart and 95.5% of the livers showed no macroscopically visible lesions. Pigs that were produced for a label program had significantly less bronchopneumonia and pneumonia residuals, pleuritis and liver lesions due to echinococcosis. Pigs supervised by the Swiss Pig Health Service (SGD), showed significantly less bronchopneumonia and pneumonia residuals, diffuse pleuritis, pleuritis/pericarditis and milkspots compared to the non-SGD supervised farms. Thanks to the national eradication program for enzootic pneumonia (EP) and actinobacillosis, the health-status of lungs has been considerably improved and the prevalence of pleurisy decreased considerably. The results of this study indicate a good herd health in Swiss pig production.

Virulence-associated gene pattern of porcine and human Yersinia enterocolitica biotype 4 isolates.

Yersinia enterocolitica 4/O:3 is the most important human pathogenic bioserotype in Europe and the predominant pathogenic bioserotype in slaughter pigs. Although many studies on the virulence of Y. enterocolitica strains have showed a broad spectrum of detectable factors in pigs and humans, an analysis based on a strict comparative approach and serving to verify the virulence capability of porcine Y. enterocolitica as a source for human yersiniosis is lacking. Therefore, in the present study, strains of biotype (BT) 4 isolated from Swiss slaughter pig tonsils and feces and isolates from human clinical cases were compared in terms of their spectrum of virulence-associated genes (yadA, virF, ail, inv, rovA, ymoA, ystA, ystB and myfA). An analysis of the associated antimicrobial susceptibility pattern completed the characterization. All analyzed BT 4 strains showed a nearly similar pattern, comprising the known fundamental virulence-associated genes yadA, virF, ail, inv, rovA, ymoA, ystA and myfA. Only ystB was not detectable among all analyzed isolates. Importantly, neither the source of the isolates (porcine tonsils and feces, humans) nor the serotype (ST) had any influence on the gene pattern. From these findings, it can be concluded that the presence of the full complement of virulence genes necessary for human infection is common among porcine BT 4 strains. Swiss porcine BT 4 strains not only showed antimicrobial susceptibility to chloramphenicol, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, colistin, florfenicol, gentamicin, kanamycin, nalidixic acid, sulfamethoxazole, streptomycin, tetracycline and trimethoprim but also showed 100% antibiotic resistance to ampicillin. The human BT 4 strains revealed comparable results. However, in addition to 100% antibiotic resistance to ampicillin, 2 strains were resistant to chloramphenicol and nalidixic acid. Additionally, 1 of these strains was resistant to sulfamethoxazole. The results demonstrated that Y. enterocolitica BT 4 isolates from porcine tonsils, as well as from feces, show the same virulence-associated gene pattern and antibiotic resistance properties as human isolates from clinical cases, consistent with the etiological role of porcine BT 4 in human yersiniosis. Thus, cross-contamination of carcasses and organs at slaughter with porcine Y. enterocolitica BT 4 strains, either from tonsils or feces, must be prevented to reduce human yersiniosis.

Characterization of the Abydos region through OSIRIS high-resolution images in support of CIVA measurements

Context. On 12 November 2014, the European mission Rosetta delivered the Philae lander on the nucleus of comet 67P /Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P). After the first touchdown, the lander bounced three times before finally landing at a site named Abydos. Aims. We provide a morphologically detailed analysis of the Abydos landing site to support Philae's measurements and to give context for the interpretation of the images coming from the Comet Infrared and Visible Analyser (CIVA) camera system onboard the lander. Methods. We used images acquired by the OSIRIS Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) on 6 December 2014 to perform the analysis of the Abydos landing site, which provided the geomorphological map, the gravitational slope map, the size-frequency distribution of the boulders. We also computed the albedo and spectral reddening maps. Results. The morphological analysis of the region could suggest that Philae is located on a primordial terrain. The Abydos site is surrounded by two layered and fractured outcrops and presents a 0.02 km(2) talus deposit rich in boulders. The boulder size frequency distribution gives a cumulative power-law index of 4.0 + 0.3/0.4, which is correlated with gravitational events triggered by sublimation and /or thermal fracturing causing regressive erosion. The average value of the albedo is 5.8% at lambda(1) = 480.7 nm and 7.4% at lambda(2) = 649.2 nm, which is similar to the global albedos derived by OSIRIS and CIVA, respectively.

On the prospective detection of polyoxymethylene in comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko with the COSIMA instrument onboard Rosetta

The presence of polyoxymethylene (POM) in cometary grains has been debated years ago. Although never proven, its presence can not be excluded. Rosetta, the ESA mission to comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, may answer this question. On board the spacecraft, COSIMA (COmetary Secondary Ion Mass Analyzer) will analyze the grains ejected from the nucleus using a Time Of Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer (TOF-SIMS). In this paper we report the extent to which COSIMA will be able to detect POM if this compound is present on cometary grains. We have analyzed two kinds of POM polymers with a laboratory model of COSIMA. Positive mass spectra display alternating sequence of peaks with a separation of 30.011 Da between 1 and 600 Da related to formaldehyde and its oligomers but also to the fragmentation of these oligomers. The separation of 30.011 Da of numbers peaks, corresponding to the fragmentation into H2CO is characteristic of POM and we show that it could be highlight by mathematical treatment. POM lifetime on COSIMA targets have also been studied as POM is thermally instable. It can be concluded that the cometary grains analysis have to be planned not too long after their collection in order to maximize the chances to detect POM. This work was supported by the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).