Vaccination is an important disease prevention and control measure; however, vaccine adoption by livestock farmers in Tanzania is still low. This cross-sectional study examined the challenges to vaccine use faced by livestock owners and animal health professionals (AHPs) in Tanzania. A questionnaire was administered to 216 households that kept small ruminants and poultry and 19 AHPs' data were collected electronically via the survey platform Qualtrics, and descriptive statistics were performed. Households with poultry reported vaccinating mostly against Newcastle disease (91.7%), fowl pox (48.1%) and Gumboro disease (37.0%), whilst households with small ruminants reported contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (62.2%), sheep and goat pox (17.1%), foot-and-mouth disease (7.3%) and peste des petits ruminants (7.3%). The households' decision to vaccinate was mostly influenced by knowledge of diseases (82.4%), disease history on the farm (69.4%) and vaccine price (63.4%). Most households (54.6%) experienced challenges when purchasing vaccines, including high vaccine cost (78.0%), long distance from vaccine source (61.0%) and vaccine unavailability (21.2%). The findings suggest that improving the knowledge of livestock owners regarding the priority diseases and the benefits of vaccination, establishing more vaccine suppliers, improving vaccine distribution and access and training AHPs and households on appropriate vaccine storage and handling are necessary to improve vaccine adoption and ensure vaccine quality and effectiveness.

Vaccination is an important disease prevention and control measure; however, vaccine adoption by livestock farmers in Tanzania is still low. This cross-sectional study examined the challenges to vaccine use faced by livestock owners and animal health professionals (AHPs) in Tanzania. A questionnaire was administered to 216 households that kept small ruminants and poultry and 19 AHPs’ data were collected electronically via the survey platform Qualtrics, and descriptive statistics were performed. Households with poultry reported vaccinating mostly against Newcastle disease (91.7%), fowl pox (48.1%) and Gumboro disease (37.0%), whilst households with small ruminants reported contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (62.2%), sheep and goat pox (17.1%), foot-and-mouth disease (7.3%) and peste des petits ruminants (7.3%). The households’ decision to vaccinate was mostly influenced by knowledge of diseases (82.4%), disease history on the farm (69.4%) and vaccine price (63.4%). Most households (54.6%) experienced challenges when purchasing vaccines, including high vaccine cost (78.0%), long distance from vaccine source (61.0%) and vaccine unavailability (21.2%). The findings suggest that improving the knowledge of livestock owners regarding the priority diseases and the benefits of vaccination, establishing more vaccine suppliers, improving vaccine distribution and access and training AHPs and households on appropriate vaccine storage and handling are necessary to improve vaccine adoption and ensure vaccine quality and effectiveness.

Carvacrol is an essential oil derived from oregano that is used as a natural additive to improve the efficiency of livestock nutrition. Residues of natural additives such as carvacrol should be monitored in food of animal origin to ensure consumer safety. The aim of this study was to appraise the quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe (QuEChERS) approach coupled with liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry as a means of carvacrol analysis in chicken tissue.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreaks caused by the Gs/Gd lineage of H5Nx viruses occur in Poland with increased frequency. The article provides an update on the HPAI situation in the 2020/2021 season and studies the possible factors that caused the exceptionally fast spread of the virus.

Carvacrol is an essential oil extracted from oregano which can be used as a natural additive in poultry litter and could have a positive impact not only on production rates but also on the quality of poultry meat. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the addition of carvacrol to litter on weight gain and the occurrence of residues in chicken tissues.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreaks caused by the Gs/Gd lineage of H5Nx viruses occur in Poland with increased frequency. The article provides an update on the HPAI situation in the 2020/2021 season and studies the possible factors that caused the exceptionally fast spread of the virus. Samples from poultry and wild birds delivered for HPAI diagnosis were tested by real-time RT-PCR and a representative number of detected viruses were submitted for partial or full-genome characterisation. Information yielded by veterinary inspection was used for descriptive analysis of the epidemiological situation. The scale of the epidemic in the 2020/2021 season was unprecedented in terms of duration (November 2020–August 2021), number of outbreaks in poultry (n = 357), wild bird events (n = 92) and total number of affected domestic birds (approximately ~14 million). The major drivers of the virus spread were the harsh winter conditions in February 2020 followed by the introduction of the virus to high-density poultry areas in March 2021. All tested viruses belonged to H5 clade 2.3.4.4b with significant intra-clade diversity and in some cases clearly distinguished clusters. The HPAI epidemic in 2020/2021 in Poland struck with unprecedented force. The conventional control measures may have limited effectiveness to break the transmission chain in areas with high concentrations of poultry.

Carvacrol is an essential oil derived from oregano that is used as a natural additive to improve the efficiency of livestock nutrition. Residues of natural additives such as carvacrol should be monitored in food of animal origin to ensure consumer safety. The aim of this study was to appraise the quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe (QuEChERS) approach coupled with liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry as a means of carvacrol analysis in chicken tissue. A 5 ± 0.05 g portion of plasma, lung, muscle and liver was mixed for 15 min with 5 mL of 1-butanol and 20 mL of water, then centrifuged. A 0.5 mL volume from the top layer was transferred, then 60 mg of octadecylsilane sorbent, 30 mg of primary and secondary amine and 200 mg of MgSO₄ were added. The extract was mixed and centrifuged. The top layer was filtered and then transferred to an autosampler vial for analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. The limit of detection was calculated at 0.06 μg g⁻¹ and the limit of quantification was 0.2 μg g⁻¹, with relative standard deviation repeatability and reproducibility below <20%. The validation results showed that this method could be a good alternative to determination of carvacrol by gas chromatography and is suitable for carvacrol analysis in different matrices.

Up to now, there has been limited information regarding the circulation of pathogenic Listeria species in poultry and their contact handlers. The present study was, therefore, planned to evaluate the potential existence of Listeria spp. in different poultry species and their products as well as their contact workers at Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt and to address the antimicrobial profile of Listeria isolates using classical microbiological techniques and multiplex PCR targeting three virulence-associated genes (iap, hlyA, and actA). The study included cloacal swabs from different poultry species (n =200), poultry carcasses (n = 25), poultry products (25 samples each of chicken luncheon and frozen chicken breast fillets), chicken eggs (n = 50) and stool specimens from the contact workers (n = 25). Findings showed that 60 samples out of 350 (17.14%) were found to be positive to Listeria spp., which were identified as follow: L. innocua (28.3%), L. ivanovii (28.3%), L. monocytogenes (15%) and L. grayi (15%), L. seeligeri (10%) and L. welshimeri (3.3%). L. monocytogenes showed high resistance to nalidixic acid (100%) followed by neomycin (85.1%), streptomycin (80%), cefotaxime (65%) and penicillin g (58.3%). Results could likely suggest that poultry and poultry products had a significant role in dissemination and transmission of virulent and multidrug resistant L. monocytogenes which represent a potential risk particularly in the absence of strict hygienic practices and preventive measures. A constant monitoring of pathogenic L. monocytogenes is thus urgently needed to avoid the dissemination of such pathogenic strains in food production chains.

Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT) is a bacterium that causing respiratory problems, growth retardation, high mortality, and drop in egg productions in poultry. The aim of the present investigation was to determine the seroprevalence and potential risk factors associated with the ORT infection in commercial poultry flocks in selected areas of Bangladesh. A total of 1920 serum samples were collected from 270 poultry farms including broiler (n=397), broiler breeder (n=430), layer (n=738), and a local breed namely Sonali (n=355) in Bangladesh were collected during 2017-2018 and the samples were tested for ORT antibodies using indirect Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (iELISA). At individual level, the prevalence of ORT antibodies in examined samples was 39.05% (95% CI: 36.87-41.29) and at farm level, it was 50.74% (95% CI: 44.61-56.85). In multivariate Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) analysis, sampling area, farm category, types of chicken biosecurity condition and types of drinker used were identified as positively correlated with potential risk factors (p<0.05) for the seroprevalence of ORT in poultry farms. Therefore, it could be concluded that ORT is prevalent among commercial poultry of Bangladesh. Proper biosecurity measures at farm level and vaccination of birds against the ORT are highly recommended.