H7N9 avian influenza has broken out in Chinese poultry 10 times since 2013 and impacted the industry severely. Although the epidemic is currently under control, there is still a latent threat. Epidemiological surveillance data for non-human H7N9 avian influenza from April 2013 to April 2020 were used to analyse the regional distribution and spatial correlations of positivity rates in different months and years and before and after comprehensive immunisation. In addition, positivity rate monitoring data were disaggregated into a low-frequency and a high-frequency trend sequence by wavelet packet decomposition (WPD). The particle swarm optimisation algorithm was adopted to optimise the least squares support-vector machine (LS-SVM) model parameters to predict the low-frequency trend sequence, and the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model was used to predict the high-frequency one. Ultimately, an LS-SVM-ARIMA combined model based on WPD was constructed. The virus positivity rate was the highest in late spring and early summer, and overall it fell significantly after comprehensive immunisation. Except for the year 2015 and the single month of December from 2013 to 2020, there was no significant spatiotemporal clustering in cumulative non-human H7N9 avian influenza virus detections. Compared with the ARIMA and LS-SVM models, the LS-SVM-ARIMA combined model based on WPD had the highest prediction accuracy. The mean absolute and root mean square errors were 2.4% and 2.0%, respectively. Low error measures prove the validity of this new prediction method and the combined model could be used for inference of future H7N9 avian influenza virus cases. Live poultry markets should be closed in late spring and early summer, and comprehensive H7N9 immunisation continued.

Turkey histomonosis poses a serious threat to poultry production due to the ban on the use of effective drugs. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of a phytoncidal feed supplement on the course of histomonosis. The preparation was also analysed for immunomodulatory properties. Clinical observations and production monitoring were conducted in a flock of turkeys with histomonosis from their 11ᵗʰ to 56ᵗʰ weeks of life which were treated with the adiCoxSᴼᴸPF soluble supplement in a dose of 2.5 mL/L water. Later the preparation was used in a preventive dose (1 mL/L). The influence on the immune system was evaluated in broiler turkeys having been given adiCoxSᴼᴸPF for 3 days in doses of 1 or 3 mL/L. The T and B lymphocyte percentages in turkey blood and spleen tissue were analysed with flow cytometry. ELISA was implemented to evaluate antibody titres after Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale vaccination, and biochemical analyses were performed to evaluate the supplement’s safety. AdiCoxSᴼᴸPF was found effective in therapy and prevention of histomonosis. Additionally, adiCoxSᴼᴸPF stimulated both humoral and cell-mediated immune mechanisms, without impairing the functions of internal organs. The treated turkeys also yielded better production results (eggs/hen, fertility, and hatchability). AdiCoxSᴼᴸPF possesses immunomodulatory properties and it can be used successfully in the prevention and therapy of histomonosis in turkeys.

Globally, genetically modified (GM) crops were grown on 191.7 million hectares in 2018, which were mostly sown with soybean, maize, cotton, oilseed rape, and rice. The most popular traits introduced through genetic modification include herbicide and pest insect resistance. The aim of this study was to identify and quantify genetically modified soybean used in animal feed in Poland. This research was based on the real-time PCR technique. All methods for GM soybean events were adopted from the EURL GMFF database of methods and previously verified to meet the minimum criteria of acceptance. Over 15 years of research, 665 samples were examined in total. The most common GM soybean event was MON40-3-2, tested for from the beginning of the investigation. Next, in decreasing order of frequency, were MON89788, MON87701, and A2704-12. In the majority of samples (606; 91%) GM soybeans were identified at a content level above the 0.9% GM content threshold for mandatory labelling. Only 59 soybean samples (9%) were identified as GM negative. GM negative results were mainly identified during the analyses in the last three years of the study, from 2017 to 2019. Our data clearly indicate that the majority of soybean used in Poland for animal feeding was genetically modified.

Due to the widely documented and diverse toxic effects of acrylamide, the authors decided to evaluate the impact of high and low doses of this compound on the process of granulopoiesis in porcine bone marrow. The experiment was conducted on 15 Danish Landrace pigs at the age of 8 weeks. The animals were randomly assigned into three equal groups (n = 5). Control animals received empty gelatine capsules as placebo. Animals in the first experimental group (the LD group) received a low dose of acrylamide of 0.5 μg/kg b.w./day, and animals in the second experimental group (the HD group) received a tenfold higher dose of acrylamide of 5 μg/kg b.w./day. Placebo and acrylamide capsules were administered with feed every morning for 28 days. Bone marrow was collected into tubes without an anticoagulant twice – before the first capsule administration (day 0) and on the 28ᵗʰ day of the study. After drying and staining, bone marrow smears were subjected to detailed cytological evaluation under a light microscope. Changes in cell morphology, i.e. degenerative changes in the cellular nuclei, were observed in both experimental groups. Both low and high doses of acrylamide decreased the number of segmented eosinophils, neutrophilic and segmented metamyelocytes, neutrophils, as well as basophils and basophilic metamyelocytes. Acrylamide at doses of 0.5 μg/kg b.w./day and 5 μg/kg b.w./day clearly influences porcine granulopoiesis.

Histamine is one of the most important and toxic biogenic amines which may be present in food and may cause food poisoning in humans when contained at a high level. It is produced during bacterial decarboxylation of histidine in fish muscles. The aim of the study was to investigate the presence of histamine in fish and fish products available in Poland during 2014–2018.

The pseudorabies virus (PRV) gene encoding thymidine kinase (tk) is an important virulence-associated factor. Attenuation of PRV in susceptible animals is a frequent result of tk deletion. The aim of the study was to assess the pathogenicity of tk-deleted PRV in rats.

Ovine interferon-tau (oIFN-τ) is a newly discovered type I interferon. This study used biochemical techniques to transform the oIFN-τ gene into Escherichia coli to obtain the mass and soluble expression of the recombinant protein.

The transfer of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from a contaminated environment into the food chain is a serious consumer safety problem. As part of the Polish National Surveillance Program of PCDD/Fs and PCBs in food of animal origin, a concentration of PCDD/Fs of 4.61 ± 0.75 pg WHO-TEQ/g fat was determined in a sample of free-range eggs, which exceeded the permitted limit of 2.5 pg WHO-TEQ/g. The aim of the study was to investigate the source of the egg contamination and the risk for the eggs’ consumers.

The Dag defect is one of the primary morphological defects in sperm correlating with reduced fertility. This defect is found in the spermatozoa of many livestock species. The aim of the study was to assess the morphometry of the heads of normal sperm and sperm with the Dag defect in the semen of Duroc breeding boars.

Canine brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) is a conformation-related respiratory disorder of dog breeds having congenitally flattened facial and skull anatomy. The aim of the study was to determine oxidative stress parameters, the lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde, and antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase in BOAS patients before and after surgical treatment and in healthy brachycephalic dogs.