Jay Prakash Yadav

Effect of Nigella sativa seed extract on lipid and protein oxidation in raw ground pork during refrigerated storage

Purpose Black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) is well known for its strong, hot, peppery taste and has many nutritional, pharmaceutical and traditional therapeutic uses. The aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidant effect of different solvent extracts of black cumin seed to retard lipid and protein oxidation in raw ground pork meat during refrigerated storage (4 ± 1°C) for nine days. Design/methodology/approach Black cumin extracts (BCEs) were prepared using different solvents, namely, ethanol, water, ethanol:water (60:40) and methanol:hot water (60:40). Extracts were analysed for total phenolic content (TPC), 1,1 diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazil (DPPH) radical scavenging activity and reducing power. Based on the results, water extract (WE) and ethanol–water extract (EHWE) of black cumin were selected and incorporated at 1.5 per cent into freshly minced pork meat and compared with a synthetic antioxidant, butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT; 100 ppm), in retarding lipid and protein oxidation. Treated and control samples were aerobically packed in low-density polyethylene bags for analysis of various parameters (pH, colour and odour score, peroxide, lipid and protein oxidation) during nine-day refrigerated storage study. Findings Results showed that BCEs had a good amount of TPC (4.4-7.4 mg gallic acid equivalents/g) and also DPPH scavenging activities (33.96-44.23 per cent), with WE and EHWE extracts showing highest reducing power and promising antioxidant capacity. Hence, BCEs (WE and EHWE) incorporated at 1.5 per cent into freshly minced pork meat was tested, compared to BHT (100 ppm) and control samples, in retarding lipid and protein oxidation during storage. In BCE-treated samples, thiobarbituric acid reacting substances, free fatty acids, peroxide, formation of protein carbonyls and off-odour or rancid odour development were lower than control and values were comparable with BHT. Incorporation of BCE did not negatively affect the colour of ground pork. Originality/value BCEs (WE and EHWE) at 1.5 per cent inhibited protein and lipid oxidation and it could be exploited commercially as an effective alternative in retarding oxidative deterioration of meat products.

Seroprevalence and molecular detection of coxiellosis among cattle and their human contacts in an organized dairy farm

BACKGROUND The present investigation of Coxiella burnetii infection in cattle and farm workers on an organized cattle dairy farm, which appears to be the first of its kind in India, was undertaken to assess the status of this largely neglected and masked zoonosis. METHODS A total of 665 samples comprising of serum (n=224), milk (n=217) and vaginal swabs (n=224) collected from milch animals (n=224) with a history of reproductive disorders were screened. Besides these, ticks (n=114); animal feed (n=4) and environmental samples (n=13) as well as serum (n=19) of farm workers were also collected. The animal sera and milk samples as well as human sera were tested for antibodies against C. burnetii by commercial ELISA kit, whereas, all the collected samples were subjected to trans-PCR targeting the IS1111 gene of C. burnetii. RESULTS A high positivity for coxiellosis was detected in sera (29.91%) and milk (26.73%) samples of dairy cattle as well as sera from human contacts (84.21%) by ELISA. The trans-PCR detected the pathogen in 12.94% sera, 14.73% vaginal swabs and 5.53% milk samples of cattle, and in one soil sample, however, the sera of the farm workers and tick were tested negative. CONCLUSIONS The high positivity for coxiellosis among cattle and farm workers highlight the need to undertake extensive epidemiological studies to unravel the trends of C. burnetii infection in India.

ZIKA VIRUS / ZIKA FEVER : A COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE

Zika virus (ZIKV) has attracted global attention after its first large-scale outbreak in Pacific, Micronesian island of Yap (Year 2007). The virus spreads rapidly and owes increased virulence than the ZIKV which appeared nearly six decades ago, where it was associated with sporadic cases and mild illness. The World Health Organization declared ZIKA as a „Public Health Emergency of International Concern” due to severe illness and associated several complications such as neurological disorders, autoimmune disorder, fetal anomalies, impaired central nervous system (CNS) of the fetus, microcephaly * Corresponding author KEYWORDS

Pathology and polymerase chain reaction detection of ovine progressive pneumonia (maedi) cases in slaughtered sheep in India

Aim: The small ruminant lentiviruses are known to cause maedi-visna (MV) and caprine arthritis - encephalitis in sheep and goats, typically affecting joints, udder, lungs, and the central nervous system. The diagnosis usually involves serology, clinical signs, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In the present study, the histopathologically positive pneumonia cases of MV were confirmed by PCR in lung tissue probably for the first time in India. Materials and Methods: A total of 888 lungs of adult sheep, aged between 2 and 5 years, were screened during slaughter, of which 121 were found to have pneumonic lesions. The tissues from each pneumonic lung including associated lymph nodes were collected in 10% neutral buffered formalin for histopathology. The frozen tissues of the same were also collected and stored at −20°C for PCR confirmation. Results: Three of 121 cases of pneumonic lungs of sheep revealed gross and histopathological lesions suggestive of maedi or ovine progressive pneumonia infection. These 3 cases were further confirmed by PCR technique that amplified 291-base pair DNA in the long terminal repeat sequence of MV provirus. Conclusion: This study suggests the low occurrence of MV virus (MVV) infection in India in naturally affected sheep based on pathomorphological lesions and using the molecular tool of PCR detection of the virus in tissues. Further, a combination of pathomorphology or/and PCR testing might be optimal for detecting the animals infected with MVV.

Seroscreening of lactating cattle for coxiellosis by TRANS-PCR and commercial ELISA in Kerala, India

The sero-epidemiology of Coxiella burnetii infection in domestic ruminants, which are considered as prime reservoirs, remains largely neglected and underreported in various states of India. The present study was aimed to assess coxiellosis among lactating cattle (n=134) based on their seroscreening at household level in Malappuram district of Kerala, India. On testing the cattle sera by trans-PCR targeting IS1111 gene of C. burnetii for the pathogen detection as well as by a commercial ELISA kit for the detection of antibodies against C. burnetii, the acute infection was noticed in 01 out of 134 animals (0.75%) that tested positive in trans-PCR assay while 06/134 (4.5%) animals indicated a persistent focalised infection based on their positivity in ELISA. Therefore, we conclude and recommend that the use of trans-PCR along with a serological assay like ELISA on serum samples is indispensable for early diagnosis of acute cases of coxiellosis in animals as well as to get a realistic assessment of the disease burden based on seroprevalence. This study seems to be the first epidemiological survey to highlight the hidden threat of coxiellosis among cattle population in Kerala, a southern state of India. However, other domestic and wild animals including cattle as well as their human contacts at high-risk need to be investigated through a large scale and multicentric epidemiological study for making a realistic assessment of the associated risk factors and to unmask the zoonotic potential of C. burnetii infection in the country. KEYWORDS

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of enterotoxic Clostridium perfringens type A isolates recovered from humans and animals in Kolkata, India

Abstract Clostridium perfringens is one of the most important globally recognised gastroenteric pathogen in humans as well as animals. The present study was aimed to know the similarities/divergence among C. perfringens type A isolates of human and animal origin using the pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) as a molecular tool. The enterotoxic isolates obtained by screening of human diarrhoeal cases (n = 130), diarrhoeal cases of pig (n = 52) and goat (n = 50), meat samples viz., pork (n = 59) and chevon (n = 57) were characterized by standard cultural and biochemical methods followed by PCR Assays. Accordingly, a total of 11 C. perfringens type A characterized isolates (16S rRNA+, cpa+, cpb2+ and cpe+) recovered from human diarrhoeal cases (n = 3); diarrhoeal cases of pig (n = 2) and goat (n = 2); meat samples viz. pork (n = 2) and chevon (n = 2) were examined employing PFGE. The observed clustering pattern in PFGE analysis showed the relatedness between isolates from diarrhoeal goat and chevon (90–100%); diarrhoeal pig and pork (65–68%); moreover, isolates from human diarrhoeal cases were exhibiting lineage to cases from goat and pig diarrhoea as well pork and chevon by 62–68% relatedness. The outcome of the present study indicates the probable contamination of this pathogen to the human food chain through faeces from suspected food animals viz. goat and pig and their improperly cooked meat.

Spontaneously occurring lung lesions in sheep and goats

The present study was aimed for documenting various pathological conditions affecting the lungs of sheep and goats. A total of 1350 lungs were screened, out of which, 270 lungs (20%) exhibited pneumonic lesions; 121 in sheep (44.1%) and 149 in goats (55.1%). Out of 270 lungs selected for the study, 111/270 cases (41.1%) belonged to sheep and 55/270 cases (20.3%) to goats from slaughtered cases, and 10/270 cases (3.70%) to sheep and 95/270 cases (35.18%) to goats from fallen animals. The pneumonic lesions were classified as: acute bronchopneumonia (90 cases, 33.33%), sub-acute bronchopneumonia (18 cases, 6.66%), fibrinous bronchopneumonia (30 cases, 11.1%), suppurative bronchopneumonia (10 cases, 3.70%), chronic bronchopneumonia (15 cases, 5.5%), Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) (25 cases, 9.25%), broncho-interstitial pneumonia (5 cases, 1.85%), Maedi or ovine progressive pneumonia (3 cases, 1.11%), ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma (31 cases, 11.48%), Hydatidosis (20 cases, 7.40%), atelectasis and emphysema (7 cases, 2.60%) and other nonspecific lesions (16 cases, 5.92%).

Suppurative Pneumonia and Lymphadenitis in a Goat Associated with Infection by Corynebacterium Pseudotuberculosis – A Case Study

| A case of suppurative pneumonia with inflammation of lung-associated lymph node (mediastinal and bronchial) caused by Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis was described in a 2-year-old Shirohi breed, the female goat which presented clinical sign, respiratory distress, nasal discharge with fever followed by sudden death. The suppurative inflammation was detected in lung parenchyma and lymph node was characterized by formation of caseo-calcified nodules of multiple abscesses which were scattered throughout lung lobes and even in the chest wall. The prominent enlargement of mediastinal and bronchial lymphnodes were sectionedand analysis revealed laminated calcified granules and semi-solid fluid with greenish yellow inspissated pus giving the spherical onion-skin appearance (pathognomonic signs) respectively. Histopathologically,the lung section was characterized by a central caseo-necrotic core admixed bacterial colonies and infiltration of polymorpho nuclear cells, few mononuclear cells, lymphocytes, plasma cell and macrophages. The bacterial culture examination showed the presence of bacterial growth forming cream white, dry, waxy colonies with a narrow zone of β-haemolysis. They were stained gram positive cocco-bacilli arranged in Chinese pattern. The extracted DNA from tissue was further confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay for amplified pld gene specific for goat. Present casestudy detail described the pathognomonic gross, histopathological lesions ofC. pseudotuberculosis in a goat with bacteria isolation and finally confirmed by PCR.

Isolation, Genotyping and Antibiogram Profile of Clostridium perfringens Isolates Recovered from Freshwater Fish and Fish Products from Kolkata Region

1Division of Veterinary Public Health, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar-243122, India. 2Veterinary Public Health Laboratory, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Belgachia road, Kolkata 700 037, India. 3Department of Veterinary Public Health, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy, Kerala 680 651, India. 4Division of Livestock Products Technology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute,Izatnagar-243122, India. 5Division of Pathology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar 243 122, India.