Effects of restricted feed intake on blood constituent concentrations in Dorper, Katahdin, and St. Croix sheep from different regions of the USA.

Forty-six Dorper, 47 Katahdin, and 41 St. Croix female sheep (initial BW = 62, 62, and 51 kg, respectively, SEM = 1.43; 3.8 ± 0.18 yr) from farms in Midwest, Northwest, Southeast, and central Texas regions of the USA were used to evaluate effects of feed restriction on blood constituent levels. The amount of feed offered varied in the first 4 wk to achieve stable BW, and that in wk 5-10 was 55% of intake in wk 3-4. Blood was sampled at the end of wk 3, 4, 6, 8, and 10. There were relatively few effects and interactions involving region and no breed × time interactions. Breed affected the concentration of a small number of constituents, including urea N (14.0, 13.7, and 15.4 mg/dl; SEM = 0.31) and creatinine (0.945, 0.836, and 0.809 mg/dl for Dorper, Katahdin, and St. Croix, respectively; SEM = 0.0253). Also, the concentration of triglycerides in wk 4 and 10 was lowest for St. Croix (29.8, 29.5, and 26.7 mg/dl for Dorper, Katahdin, and St. Croix, respectively; SEM = 0.88). There was a trend for a difference (P = 0.051) between wk 4 and 10 in the glucose concentration (51.9 and 54.2 mg/dl; SEM = 0.90), and there were differences (P < 0.05) in lactate (23.9 and 20.3 mg/dl; SEM = 0.89), urea N (16.4 and 13.0 mg/dl; SEM = 0.25), creatinine (0.808 and 0.919 mg/dl; SEM = 0.0165), triglycerides (31.8 and 25.5 mg/dl; SEM = 0.63), and cholesterol (67.5 and 74.7 mg/dl, respectively; SEM = 1.66). In conclusion, similar responses in blood constituent levels of different hair sheep breeds to feed restriction is in accordance with comparable effects on the maintenance energy requirement.

Prevalence of enteric bacteria and enteroparasites in human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals with diarrhoea attending antiretroviral treatment clinic, Arba Minch General Hospital, southern Ethiopia.

In Ethiopia, only limited data are available regarding the prevalence of enteric bacterial pathogens and enteroparasites in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) -infected individuals with diarrhoea. Hence, this study aims to assess the prevalence of enteric bacteria and enteroparasites, and also the antibiotic susceptibility patterns of bacteria in them. An institution-based cross-sectional study was performed in HIV patients with diarrhoea, who visited the Anti-Retroviral Therapy Clinic of the Arba Minch General Hospital between 1 March and 31 August 2019. Data pertaining to sociodemographic characteristics and other factors were collected using a structured questionnaire. Stool culture is of utmost importance in the case of HIV-infected individuals with diarrhoea. Stool samples were collected and examined for bacterial and parasitic pathogens following standard procedures. The antibiotic susceptibility test was performed as per the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion technique. Data were analysed using SPSS software. A total of 180 individuals were included in the stool collection process. The prevalence rates of enteric bacteria and enteroparasites were 8.3% and 36.1%, respectively. Parasitic infections were more frequent than bacterial infections in these HIV-infected individuals; commonly identified enteroparasites were Giardia lamblia (8.9%) and Cryptosporidium parvum (8.3%). Campylobacter sp. was the most predominant enteric bacterial isolate (4.4%), followed by Salmonella (2.1%) and Shigella (1.1%) species. CD4 counts <200 cells/µL was significantly associated with both bacterial infections (adjusted OR 9.55, 95% CI 1.54-59.3, p 0.015) and parasitic infections (adjusted OR 3.53, 95% CI 1.3-17.9, p 0.03). Multidrug resistance was also detected in 100%, 75% and 60% of Shigella, Campylobacter and Salmonella sp., respectively. We found that enteroparasitic infections were more frequent than bacterial infections. Statistical analysis revealed that CD4 T-cell counts <200 cells/µL, quality of drinking water sources, hand washing habits after toilet and the presence of domestic animals were significantly associated with the prevalence of enteric pathogens.

Knowledge, attitude, practice and psychological response toward COVID-19 among nurses during the COVID-19 outbreak in northern Ethiopia, 2020.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is not only a deadly disease outbreak but also affects the mental status of the population, including nurses. Nurses play a vital role in dealing with individuals with COVID-19. Nurses' infection control measures are affected by their knowledge, attitude, practice and psychological responses towards COVID-19. This study aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude, practice and psychological response among nurses toward the COVID-19 outbreak in northern Ethiopia. A hospital-based cross-sectional study design was employed. The data were collected from March to April 2020. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. The data were entered into Epi-data manager version 4.2 and exported to SPSS v.23 for analysis. Descriptive analysis was reported to describe the demographic, mean knowledge, attitude practice and psychological response score of nurses. A total of 415 nurses participated in this study, resulting in a 100% response rate. Of the participants, 241 (58.1%) were female. Of the 415 nurses, 307 (74%), 278 (67%), 299 (72%) and 354 (85.3%) had good knowledge, good infection prevention practice, a favourable attitude and disturbed psychological response towards COVID-19, respectively.

Effects of water restriction on feed intake, digestion, and energy utilization by mature female St. Croix sheep.

Eleven St. Croix ewes (46.9 ±â€¯1.59 kg BW and 3.6 ±â€¯0.67 yr age) were used in a crossover design to evaluate effects of restricted drinking water availability on intake of a 50% concentrate diet, digestion, and energy utilization. After 2 wk to determine ad libitum water consumption, there were two 4-wk periods, with measures in metabolism cages during wk 4. One treatment was water offered at the ad libitum level (CONT) and the other entailed a 25% reduction in wk 1 and 50% thereafter (REST). Although, some water was refused in wk 4, with intake of 2556 and 1707 g/day for CONT and REST, respectively (SEM=170.9). Digestibility of gross energy was greater (P = 0.034) for REST than for CONT (66.5 vs. 62.4%; SEM=1.16); however, because of a numerical difference (P = 0.448) in energy intake (15.79 and 14.66 MJ/day for CONT and REST, respectively; SEM=1.426 MJ/day), digested energy intake was similar between treatments (P = 0.870). Urinary energy was greater (P = 0.023) for CONT vs. REST (0.62 and 0.52 MJ/day; SEM=0.038) and methane energy did not differ (P = 0.213) between treatments (0.76 and 0.89 MJ/day; SEM=0.084), resulting in similar (P = 0.665) ME intake (8.50 and 8.01 MJ/day for CONT and REST, respectively; SEM=0.855). Both heat (8.60 and 8.33 MJ/day; SEM=0.437) and recovered energy (-0.10 and -0.30 MJ/day for CONT and REST, respectively; SEM=0.623) were similar between treatments (P ≥ 0.880). In conclusion, increased digestibility appears an important adaptive response to limited availability of drinking water.

Irrigation Practices and Intestinal Helminth Infections in Southern and Central Zones of Tigray

Background: Irrigation practices have impact on the distribution of schistosomiasis; so; identifying newly established schistosomiasis transmission foci allows for designing prevention and control strategy. Objective: To establish schistosomiasis prevalence and intensity in relation to development of water bodies for irrigation. Methods: A survey of Results: Among the 1012 males and 998 females examined; 29males and 27.5females were found positive for one or more parasite. The prevalence of S. mansoni was 27in longstanding irrigated; 10.8in recently constructed irrigation schemes and 1.8in the non-irrigated rural localities. In the urban setting; its prevalence was 15.5in areas with water body nearby and 0.5in areas with no water body nearby (P0.0001). New S. mansoni infection foci were detected in Tumuga with a prevalence of 87; Dibdibo (41); Mariam Shewito (25); Adiha (23) and Lekia (9). Conclusion: The increasing risk of schistosomiasis mansoni in the irrigation sites is high. Hence; designing preventive and control strategies concurrent with the development of the irrigation projects will be required to reduce prevalence of schistosomiasis

Rational design of novel, potent piperazinone and imidazolidinone BACE1 inhibitors.

Guided by structure-based design, we synthesized two novel series of potent inhibitors of BACE1 and generated extensive SAR around both the prime and non-prime side binding pockets. The key feature of both series is a cyclic amine motif specifically crafted to achieve interactions with both the flap and with the S2' pocket.