Ovine footrot in Southern Portugal: Detection of Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum in sheep with different lesion scores.

The Mediterranean climate region of Alentejo in the Southern of Portugal is an important sheep production centre but little is known about the presence and characteristics of Dichelobacter nodosus in association with Fusobacterium necrophorum in the different footrot lesion scores. DNA from 261 interdigital biopsy samples, taken from 14 footrot affected flocks and from three non-affected flocks, were analysed for the presence of D. nodosus and F. necrophorum by real-time PCR. Both virulence and serogroup were determined for 132 and 53 D. nodosus positive biopsy samples, respectively. The co-infection with both bacteria was the commonest epidemiological finding associated with a greater disease severity. There was a statistically significant association (p = 0.002) between footrot-affected flocks and the presence of D. nodosus. Most D. nodosus positive samples were virulent (96.2 %) and belonged to serogroup B (90 %).

Preclinical randomized controlled trial of bilateral discectomy versus bilateral discopexy in Black Merino sheep temporomandibular joint: TEMPOJIMS - Phase 1- histologic, imaging and body weight results.

INTRODUCTION: The role of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) surgery is not well defined due to a lack of quality randomized controlled clinical trials, comparing different TMJ surgical treatments with medical and placebo interventions. The temporomandibular joint interposal study (TEMPOJIMS) is a rigorous preclinical trial divided in 2 phases. In phase 1 the authors investigated the role of the TMJ disc and in phase 2 the authors evaluated 3 different interposal materials. The present work of TEMPOJIMS - phase 1, aims to evaluate histopathologic and imaging changes of bilateral discectomy and discopexy in Black Merino sheep TMJ, using a high-quality trial following the ARRIVE guidelines. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This randomized, blinded and controlled preclinical trial was conducted in 9 Black Merino sheep to investigate histopathologic (primary outcome), imaging and body weight (secondary outcomes) changes after bilateral discectomy, discopexy and sham surgery. RESULTS: Significant changes were noticed in discectomy group, both in imaging and histopathologic analyses. Body weight changes were most pronounced in the discectomy group in the first 4 months after surgery with recovery to baseline weight 6 months after surgery. Discopexy induced nonsignificant changes in histopathologic, imaging and body weight analyses. CONCLUSIONS: This study reinforces the importance of developing an effective interposal material to substitute the TMJ disc and the need to explore the molecular mechanisms that underlie TMJ cartilage degeneration. The study design proposed in TEMPOJIMS represents an important progress towards future rigorous TMJ investigations.

Life cycle development of obesity and its determinants in six European countries.

This paper empirically examines the effect of parents' and individuals' own socioeconomic status on overweight and obesity, and investigates how this effect changes over the life cycle. The impact of individuals' health behaviours on their obesity status later in life is also studied. We use data from Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, the Netherlands and the U.K. in which 4595 individuals aged 50-65 are surveyed and where individuals' height and weight at different ages (25, 35, 45 and current age) are available. We perform "repeated cross-sections" analyses as well as dynamic probit analyses of the individuals' obesity histories. We contribute to the literature by examining the role of a variety of obesity determinants over the whole life cycle, not only over a certain portion of individuals' lives. Key findings are: (i) parents' socioeconomic status predicts obesity in early adulthood whereas the individual's own socioeconomic status as adult is more important in explaining obesity at later stages of the life cycle, (ii) changes in obesity status are associated with changes in health behaviours, (iii) obesity in late adulthood is strongly and positively correlated with overweight and obesity in younger ages, and (iv) cross-country differences in obesity and overweight largely remain after controlling for parental and childhood factors and individuals' health behaviours.