The destructive tomato pest: TUTA ABSOLUTA on the move.

A scientist who has alerted world policymakers to the pest that destroyed 80 percent of Nigeria's tomatoes continues his outreach while scientists warn that the pest may reach California, "where it is likely to become a serious threat to tomato production." Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have issued a warning to master gardeners throughout the state that the tomato leafminer "will eventually establish in California, where it is likely to become a serious threat to tomato production." The U.C. Davis scientists say they are "working on potential quarantine issues" in anticipation of Tuta absoluta's incursion into California, mirroring prevention efforts worldwide spearheaded by Virginia Tech's Muni Muniappan. Scientists warn that the leafminer, which primarily threatens tomatoes but also devastates other crops, is a risk to food security and agricultural production in countries where it invades. The Virginia Tech-based Innovation Lab, which is funded by USAID, will hold awareness workshops in Cambodia and Malaysia in the next 30 days. The workshops are designed to help scientists recognize the leafminer and put preventive measures in place. Earlier this summer, Muniappan helped confirm the leafminer's presence in Bangladesh and Nepal after scientists and policymakers there became alert to the threat through on-site training programs of the Virginia Tech-led Integrated Pest Management Innovation Lab. Muniappan, who directs the lab, documents the tiny moth's advance as it creates millions of dollars of crop losses in Europe, Mediterranean countries, the Middle East, and North Africa. Last year, he convened a group of plant protection scientists at the International Plant Protection Congress in Berlin in August, after which the United States adopted stricter customs controls on foreign-grown tomatoes at U.S. ports of entry.

Rapid decline in male dog fertility linked to environmental contaminants.

A new study has found the fertility of dogs have suffered a sharp decline over the past three decades. . The research found that sperm quality in a population of stud dogs studied over a 26-year period had fallen significantly. The research, published in the academic journal Scientific Reports, found that sperm quality in a population of stud dogs studied over a 26-year period had fallen significantly.The work has shown a potential link to environmental contaminants, after they were able to demonstrate that chemicals found in the sperm and testes of adult dogs -- and in some commercially available pet foods -- had a detrimental effect on sperm function at the concentrations detected. The work centred on five specific breeds of dogs; Labrador retriever, golden retriever, curly coat retriever, border collie and German shepherd and between 42 and 97 dogs studied every year. Semen was collected from the dogs and analysed to assess the percentage of sperm that showed a normal forward progressive pattern of motility and that appeared normal under a microscope (morphology). Over the 26 years of the study, they found a striking decrease in the percentage of normal motile sperm. Between 1988 and 1998, sperm motility declined by 2.5 per cent per year and following a short period when stud dogs of compromised fertility were retired from the study, sperm motility from 2002 to 2014 continued to decline at a rate of 1.2% per year. In addition, the team discovered that the male pups generated from the stud dogs with declining semen quality, had an increased incidence of cryptorchidism, a condition in which the testes of pups fail to correctly descend into the scrotum. Sperm collected from the same breeding population of dogs, and testes recovered from dogs undergoing routine castration, were found to contain environmental contaminants at concentrations able to disrupt sperm motility and viability when tested. The same chemicals that disrupted sperm quality, were also discovered in a range of commercially available dog foods including brands specifically marketed for puppies. This is a vital key to breeding success,do not just assume the stud is fit with fertile sperm cells, a breeding soundness test is very necessary,so before you take an already screened bitch to the stud make sure the results of the test is positive. Breeders cannot afford to take the risk, visit your vet to test the bitch and stud before you mate.

Cooking stove that could save millions of lives.

Traditional wood cooking fumes kill more people globally than Malaria and TB. Cooking with wood in a confined space kills more people globally than malaria or tuberculosis. The World Health Organization estimates that more than four million people die prematurely every year from using solid fuels and open fires inside their homes. People in poor regions need a more affordable alternative thus a Mexican entrepreneur Carlos Glatt designed a cheap, efficient 15cm x 15cm stove powered by an alcohol-based fuel.This allows people to use it to cook inside their homes with no smoke issue. The Glatt Stove, looks like a simple camping stove, but the fuel is liquid, not gas. A one-litre bottle of Glatt Stove fuel costs $1, can cook for up to five hours and is as easy to transport as a bottle of Coca-Cola. It's the cheapest stove in the world, according to Glatt, and it's very efficient. culled from wired.co.uk

Veterinary doctors to be present at sale points, cattle markets for vaccination.

As many as 42 veterinary doctors will be present at 21 sale points in Rawalpindi to spray insecticide and inject vaccine to sacrificial animals. The spray and injection for sacrificial animals will be free of cost to minimise chances of spread of ‘Congo Virus’. The sale points at Girja Road, Adiala Road, Misriyal Road, KRL Road, Gulzar-e-Quaid, Chaklala Ground, Morgah Road, Gulistan Colony, Ghani Road, Bagh-e-Sardaran, Commercial Market, IJ Principal Road, Katarian, Dhoke Hassu, Pirwadhai, Khayaban-e-Sir Syed, Arshi Block, Rawal Road, Chungi No22, Muslim Town, Jhanda Chichi and Satellite Town. The concerned authority has established cattle markets at Rawat, Channi, Adiala and Chakri. Executive District Officer (EDO) Livestock Dr Arshad Latif told ‘The News’ that they have deputed 2 veterinary doctors at every sale point where they will provide spray and injection for sacrificial animals to stop spread of ‘Congo Virus’. He said that no doubt, ‘Congo Virus’ spreads through animals but public should not fear coming to sacrificial animals markets. They should take precautionary measures before coming in animal markets or sale points, he advised. Parents are requested not to bring children with them at sale points or markets, he advised. The buyers should wear gloves and cover face with masks before coming to sale points or markets, he warned. The deadly disease has claimed several lives in the last month, including a doctor from Bahawalpur. So far, there is no policy requiring the animals to be vaccinated before being granted entry into the markets.continue

First test of oral rabies vaccine brings hope to the world's rarest canid.

A new study reports on field trials of the oral vaccine SAG2 in Ethiopian wolves, Africa's most threatened carnivore and the world's rarest canid. The trials are the first ever conducted in wild populations of an endangered carnivore. Research published this week in the journal Vaccine reports field trials of the oral vaccine SAG2 in Ethiopian wolves, Africa's most threatened carnivore and the world's rarest canid. Researchers from Ethiopia and the UK tested various types of baits and ways to deliver the vaccine, trialling SAG2 in three wolf packs. Of 21 wolves trapped after vaccinations. 14 were positive for a biomarker indicating that the animal had ingested the bait; of these, half showed antibody titres in blood above the universally recognised threshold, and 86% had levels considered sufficient to provide protective immunity to wildlife. Wolves were closely monitored after the vaccination, and all but one of the wolves vaccinated were alive 14 months later (higher than average survival). Oral vaccination proved to be the answer to controlling rabies in wild populations of red foxes and northern raccoons in Europe and North America, but the approach has never been tested in wild populations of endangered carnivores such as Ethiopian wolves and African wild dogs, which are at risk of extinction because of outbreaks of infectious diseases. Rabies is a virus that kills people, domestic livestock and wild animals worldwide, and is particularly prevalent in the highlands of Ethiopia, where rabies recurrently jumps from domestic dogs into their wild relatives, the charismatic Ethiopian wolves. Ethiopian wolves are much rarer than giant pandas and unlikely to sustain the immediate and present threats rising from growing numbers of dogs and people living in and around their mountain enclaves. But with wolves living in a sea of domestic dogs, in shrinking habitat islands, there is no time left to waste. Oral vaccination offers a more cost-efficient, safe and proactive approach to protect Ethiopian wolves and other threatened canids from rabies.more

.New virus gets official name, influenza D.

A new influenza virus that affects cattle has an official name. influenza D. The executive committee of the International Committee of Taxonomy of Virus announced a new genus, Orthomyxovirdae, with a single species, Influenza D virus, because of its distinctness from other influenza types -- A, B and C. The executive committee of the International Committee of Taxonomy of Viruses approved naming a new virus, influenza D, as the South Dakota State University researchers who discovered it proposed, according to professor Feng Li. The committee officially announced a new genus, Orthomyxovirdae, with a single species, Influenza D virus, because of its distinctness from other influenza types -- A, B and C. Though SDSU alumnus Ben Hause isolated the virus from a diseased pig in 2011, he later found that cattle were the primary reservoir for influenza D. Hause identified and characterized the new virus as part of his doctoral research under Li's tutelage. This is the first influenza virus identified in cattle, Li explained. "This contribution was made in South Dakota and our theory has been confirmed independently by other research groups." Ultimately, the goal is to determine whether influenza D, which has 50 percent similarity to human influenza C, can cause problems in humans, according to Kaushik. However, he noted, "the virus has not been shown to be pathogenic in humans. No one should be afraid of this." The research group showed that influenza D is spread only through direct contact and proved a guinea pig can be used as an animal model to study the virus. Influenza D antibodies have been identified in blood samples from sheep and goats, but the virus does not affect poultry.

Scientists cut whiskers off rats to learn more about how the rodents hunt..

When the rats' whiskers were removed, their ability to hunt dropped by a third.From cats to rats, many animals follow the wind to find food and a mate, as well as avoiding predators, but exactly how they do this had remained a mystery. Now, researchers have found these animals likely use their whiskers for each of these tasks. Experts at the University of Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering set up an experiment to test the abilities of rats’ whiskers, comprising five equally-spaced fans arranged in a semicircle on a specially-made six-foot table. In each trial, one of the five fans was randomly selected to blow air towards a “start-door” holding a rat, located on the opposite side of the table. The rat was tasked with running from the door towards the fan blowing air, and go down a rat-sized hole directly in front of it. Each of the five holes led to a tunnel beneath the table, where the rat was rewarded for choosing the correct fan. Cameras positioned above the table recorded the rats’ performance.With five fans on the table, the rats could perform at 20 per cent just by chance, but learnt how to gain rewards. This led them to choose the right burrow 60 per cent of the time or more, for 10 days in a row. After this, the researchers cut off the rats’ whiskers – a painless procedure - and looked for changes in their behaviour. They found the rodents’ performance dropped by 20 per cent. This indicates the rats chose to use their whiskers to follow the wind and find food above other sensory cues. “We didn’t require the rats to use their whiskers for this task,” PhD student and co-author of the study, Yan Yu explained.They could use many other sources of information, including movement of the fur, mechanical cues from the skin, or thermal cues from the eyes, ears, or the snout.” The use of multiple cues explains why rats were still able to perform above-chance levels after whisker removal, while the drop in performance suggests whiskers play a big part in detecting the source of wind.continue