commercial poultry farming is a rapidly growing sector. therefore, the study Aimed to evaluate the impact of stevia leaf powder on oxidative status and digestion and their reflection on meat quality parameters in broiler Chickens.Materials and methods From December 21, 2023, to January 17, 2024, 240 Ross broiler chicks were given different Stevia leaf powder dosages. Four groups of Babylon's Modern Al-Bakri Hatchery chicks received different treatments for 28 days. Group 1 (control) got a conventional diet, while Groups 2, 3, and 4 received diets supplemented with 10 g/kg, 20 g/kg, and 30 g/kg Stevia leaf powder. Locally ground stevia was added to the diet. The study examined digestive enzyme levels, antioxidant activity, and meat quality in broiler chickens treated with varied Stevia leaf powder (STV) concentrations. The STV-treated groups had significantly higher amylase levels (p≤ 0.05) than the control group, with no significant variations across STV concentrations. The 30g/kg STV group had slightly increase in lipase levels, but otherwise no changes. Compared to other groups, the 20g/kg STV group had considerably greater antioxidant enzyme activity, including SOD, CAT, and GLUpx. Chickens treated with 10g/kg had higher antioxidant activity, but the group did not vary from control. STV supplementation reduced meat pH, which improves tenderness and shelf life, and slightly increased cooking loss. The 20g/kg STV group showed decreased drip loss, indicating greater water retention and meat quality.

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No abstract available.

No abstract available.

Wild animals, sharing pathogens with domestic animals, play a crucial role in the epidemiology of infectious diseases. Sampling from wild animals poses significant challenges, yet it is vital for inclusion in disease surveillance and monitoring programmes. Often, mass surveillance involves serological screenings using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests, typically validated only for domestic animals. This study assessed the diagnostic specificity of commercially available ELISA tests on 342 wild ruminant serum samples and 100 from wild boars. We evaluated three tests for foot-and-mouth disease: two for Peste des petits ruminants, two for Rift Valley fever and one for Capripox virus. Diagnostic specificity was calculated using the formula True Negative/(False Positive + True Negative). Cohen’s kappa coefficient measured agreement between tests. Results showed high specificity and agreement across all tests. Specificity for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) ranged from 93.89% for Prionics to 100% for IDEXX, with IDvet showing 99.6%. The highest agreement was between FMD IDvet and IDEXX at 97.1%. Rift Valley fever (RVF) tests, Ingezim and IDvet, achieved specificities of 100% and 98.83%, respectively. The optimal specificity was attained by retesting single reactors and inactivating the complement. Contribution: Commercially available ELISA kits are specific for foot-and-mouth disease and similar transboundary animal diseases and can be used for highly specific wild animal testing.

Global aflatoxin contamination of agricultural commodities is of the most concern in food safety and quality. This study investigated the hepatoprotective effect of 80% methanolic leaf extract of Annona senegalensis against aflatoxin B1 (AFB1)-induced toxicity in rats. A. senegalensis has shown to inhibit genotoxicity of aflatoxin B1 in vitro. The rats were divided into six groups including untreated control, aflatoxin B1 only (negative control); curcumin (positive control; 10 mg/kg); and three groups receiving different doses (100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg, and 300 mg/kg) of A. senegalensis extract. The rats received treatment (with the exception of untreated group) for 7 days prior to intoxication with aflatoxin B1. Serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase, and creatinine were measured. Hepatic tissues were analysed for histological alterations. Administration of A. senegalensis extract demonstrated hepatoprotective effects against aflatoxin B1-induced toxicity in vivo by significantly reducing the level of serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase and regenerating the hepatocytes. No significant changes were observed in the levels of alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase, and creatinine for the AFB1 intoxicated group, curcumin+AFB1 and Annona senegalensis leaf extract (ASLE)+AFB1 (100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg, and 300 mg/kg body weight [b.w.]) treated groups. Annona senegalensis is a good candidate for hepatoprotective agents and thus its use in traditional medicine may at least in part be justified. Contribution: The plant extract investigated in this study can be used in animal health to protect the organism from toxicity caused by mycotoxins.

Trypanosomosis is a disease complex which affects both humans and animals in sub-Saharan Africa, transmitted by the tsetse fly and distributed within the tsetse belt of Africa. But some trypanosome species, for example, Trypanosoma brucei evansi, T. vivax, T. theileri and T. b. equiperdum are endemic outside the tsetse belt of Africa transmitted by biting flies, for example, Tabanus and Stomoxys, or venereal transmission, respectively. Trypanocidal drugs remain the principal method of animal trypanosomosis control in most African countries. However, there is a growing concern that their effectiveness may be severely curtailed by widespread drug resistance. A minimum number of six male cattle calves were recruited for the study. They were randomly grouped into two (T. vivax and T. congolense groups) of three calves each. One calf per group served as a control while two calves were treatment group. They were inoculated with 105 cells/mL parasites in phosphate buffered solution (PBS) in 2 mL. When parasitaemia reached 1 × 107.8 cells/mL trypanosomes per mL in calves, treatment was instituted with 20 mL (25 mg/kg in 100 kg calf) ascofuranone (AF) for treatment calves, while the control ones were administered a placebo (20 mL PBS) intramuscularly. This study revealed that T. vivax was successfully cleared by AF but the T. congolense group was not cleared effectively. Contribution: There is an urgent need to develop new drugs which this study sought to address. It is suggested that the AF compound can be developed further to be a sanative drug for T. vivax in non-tsetse infested areas like South Americas.

Anti-nutritive and toxic factors in plants adversely affect animal health and production. Hence, the aims of the study were to (1) carry out qualitative and quantitative analysis of these factors in Terminalia sericea that grows abundantly in Onderstepoort; (2) evaluate an affordable, efficient and reliable method that reduces these factors and (3) evaluate antioxidant properties of the phenolic compounds. Thus, sequential organic and aqueous extractions were carried out on T. sericea leaves and feed pellets. Extracts were subjected to qualitative analysis to confirm the presence of 11 phytochemicals. While quantitative analysis of nine phytochemicals was carried out on spectrophotometry, the phenolic extracts were further tested for antioxidant activity on 2,2-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay where gallic acid (GA), quercetin (Q) and ascorbic acid (AA) were used as standards. The contents of GA, Q and AA in the phenolic extracts were determined on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Aqueous extraction was an effective method as most phytochemicals were extracted. Nine phytochemicals were qualitatively analysed in T. sericea. The highest contents of 1.97% and 2.37 ± 0.077 mg/g gallic acid equivalent with a significant difference (p  0.05) were determined in oxalates and phenolics, respectively. Furthermore, 83.1% DPPH inhibition (IC50 = 0.0432 µg/mL) was determined relative to the standards (85.27% – 85.96%; IC50 = 0.000009 µg/mL – 0.00042 µg/mL). Subsequently, HPLC results showed that T. sericea contained high concentration of AA (62.5 ± 2.13 µg/mL) to confirm antioxidant properties of the leaves. Contribution: Though T. sericea leaves have antioxidant activities, the alkaloid contents may pose a threat to the livestock. Therefore, farmers around Onderstepoort should protect their livestock from feeding on these leaves.

Various zoonotic microorganisms cause reproductive problems such as abortions and stillbirths, leading to economic losses on farms, particularly within livestock. In South Africa, bovine brucellosis is endemic in cattle, and from 2013–2018, outbreaks of Brucella melitensis occurred in sable. Coxiella burnetii, the agent responsible for the zoonotic disease known as Q-fever and/or coxiellosis, also causes reproductive problems and infects multiple domestic animal species worldwide, including humans. However, little is known of this disease in wildlife. With the expansion of the wildlife industry in South Africa, diseases like brucellosis and coxiellosis can significantly impact herd breeding success because of challenges in identifying, managing and treating diseases in wildlife populations. This study investigated samples obtained from aborted sable and roan antelope, initially suspected to be brucellosis, from game farms in South Africa using serology tests and ruminant VetMAX™ polymerase chain reaction (PCR) abortion kit. The presence of C. burnetii was confirmed with PCR in a sable abortion case, while samples from both sable and roan were seropositive for C. burnetii indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (iELISA). This study represents the initial report of C. burnetii infection in sable and roan antelope in South Africa. Epidemiological investigations are crucial to assess the risk of C. burnetii in sable and roan populations, as well as wildlife and livestock in general, across South Africa. This is important in intensive farming practices, particularly as Q-fever, being a zoonotic disease, poses a particular threat to the health of veterinarians and farm workers as well as domestic animals. Contribution: A report of clinical C. burnetii infection in the wildlife industry contributes towards the limited knowledge of this zoonotic disease in South Africa.