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Description of the subject. The growth of new antibiotic-resistant strains of pathogens represents a huge problem in poultry rearing. There is evidence that dietary yeast could be effective in the protection against a variety of pathogens that can affect poultry health and cause foodborne diseases in humans. Since still few or contradictory information are available for this topic. Objectives. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of live yeast supplementation in broiler chickens on Salmonella enteritidis and Campylobacter jejuni content in feces, cecum, and skin. Method. Supplemented yeast consisted of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Levucell® SB20, type boulardii I-1079, Lallemand, France) and was administered at a rate of 1 x 106 CFU·g-1 of feed. On day ten of life, birds were orally challenged with S. enteritidis (1 x 105 CFU/bird) and C. jejuni (3 x 105 CFU/bird). Growth performance, and coliforms, yeasts and lactobacilli enumeration were evaluated on day 0, 10, 20 and 38. Ten and eighteen days post infection (PI), 10 animals per replicate were slaughtered and pooled ceca content were analyzed for yeast enumeration and Salmonella and Campylobacter frequency and enumeration. The presence and the enumeration of Salmonella and Campylobacter in neck and breast skin were performed on one subject per replicate. Results. Dietary S. cerevisiae increased yeast and lactobacilli (p = 0.01) count, while Salmonella enumeration and frequency significantly decreased in neck (p = 0.03) and tended to decrease in cecum (p = 0.06), feces (p = 0.06), and breast (p = 0.08). On 10d PI Campylobacter presence was decreased in cecum (p = 0.01), feces (p < 0.01), breast skin (p = 0.04) and neck skin (p < 0.01), while the enumeration was found to be lower in feces (p < 0.01) and neck skin (p = 0.05). At the end of the trial the frequency of this pathogen was decreased in feces (p < 0.01), and breast skin (p = 0.02), while the enumeration was diminished in cecum (p < 0.05) and feces (p < 0.05). Conclusions. The present study shows that the inclusion of Levucell® SB20 can significantly control Campylobacter carriage in chickens with some positive effects also on Salmonella presence, thus reducing the contamination of carcasses at slaughtering and preventing human foodborne diseases.

A number of issues have weakened the public's confidence in the quality and wholesomeness of foods of animal origin. As a result farmers, nutritionists, industry and governments have been forced to pay serious attention to animal feedstuff production processes, thereby acknowledging that animal feed safety is an essential prerequisite for human food safety. Concerns about these issues have produced a number of important effects including the ban on the use of processed animal proteins, the ban on the addition of most antimicrobials to farm animals diets for growth‐promotion purposes, and the implementation of feed contaminant regulations in the EU. In this context it is essential to integrate knowledge on feed safety and feed supply. Consequently, purchase of new and more economic sources of energy and protein in animal diets, which is expected to conform to adequate quality, traceability, environmental sustainability and safety standards, is an emerging issue in livestock production system.

Résumé L’amélioration des soins en réanimation néonatale a permis, dans les dernières décennies, une augmentation de survie des enfants nés prématurément. Une fois obtenue la stabilisation de la phase aiguë, l’acquisition de l’autonomie alimentaire est souvent la dernière étape à atteindre pour la sortie à domicile, mais, comme reconnu par l’ American Academy of Pediatrics , est une condition essentielle pour la décharge. L’acquisition d’une alimentation autonome exige une coordination entre la respiration, la succion et la déglutition, qui est présente normalement entre la 32 e et la 34 e semaine de gestation. Un retard d’acquisition d’une capacité alimentaire autonome, au biberon ou au sain, augmente le temps d’hospitalisation, le stress parental, les coûts pour la santé, et peut causer problèmes à long terme pour ce qui concerne la sphère péri-orale. Dans les dernières années, plusieurs études ont démontré l’efficacité des stimulations orales ou sensorimotrices pour améliorer la capacité de succion nutritive chez l’enfant prématuré, avec la réduction du temps de transition entre l’alimentation passive et active. Summary In the last decades, improvement of perinatal care increased the survival of preterm infants. After acute phase stabilization, the independent oral feeding is the last task prior to discharge at home, but, as the American Academy of Paediatrics recognizes, is essential for hospital discharge. Coordination of breathing–sucking–swallowing movements, usually present until 32 to 34 gestational weeks, is essential to attend full oral feeding in preterm infants. A delay in independent oral feeding, both breast and bottle-feeding, can lead to longer hospital stay, family stress, health costs and long-term language and feeding problems. In the last years, various oral and sensorimotor stimulations have been proved being effective to improve nutritive sucking in preterm infants and to reduce the time to attain a full oral feeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential for use of an electronic nose for rapid identification of maize samples contaminated with aflatoxins. Principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) were used to investigate whether the electronic nose was able to distinguish between contaminated and non-contaminated maize samples. The obtained results indicate that the electronic nose was able to distinguish between maize samples according to the presence and absence of total aflatoxins. LDA was 100% correct in making prediction. These results could be used in further studies aimed at development of a robust classification model, which could be useful to screen for aflatoxins at concentration limits proposed by the European legislation.

Electronic nose and olfactometry techniques represent a modern analytical approach in food industry since they could potentially improve quality and safety of food processing. The aim of this study was to evaluate possible application of electronic nose in PA P detection and recognition in feed. For this purpose 6 reference feedstuffs (CRA-W / UE STRAT F E E D Project) were used. The basis of the test samples was a compound feed for bovine fortified with processed animal proteins ( PAP) consisting of meat and bone meal (MBM) and/or fish meal at different concentrations. Each feed sample was tested in glass vials and the odour profile was determined by the ten MOS (metal oxide semi-conductor) sensors of the electronic nose. Ten different descriptors, representing each ten sensors of electronic nose, were used to characterise the odour of each sample. In the present study, electronic nose was able to discriminate the blank sample from all other samples containing PA P ( M B M , fish meal or both). Samples containing either 0.5% of MBM or 5% of fish meal were identified, while samples containing a high fish meal content (5%) associated with a low MBM content (0.5%) were not discriminated from samples containing solely fish meal at that same high level (5%). This latter indicates that probably the high fish meal level, in samples containing both MBM and fish meal, tended to mask MBM odour. It was also evident that two odour descriptors were enough to explain 72.12% of total variability in odour pattern. In view of these results, it could be suggested that electronic nose and olfactometry techniques can provide an interesting approach for screening raw materials in feed industry, even though further studies using a wider set of samples are needed.

Processed animal proteins (PAP) detection and identification in feedstuffs can be difficult in distinguishing among land animals, i.e. poultry and mammals. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the potential application of image analysis in PAP identification. For this purpose four reference samples containing poultry meals and four reference samples containing mammalian meat and bone meals were used. Each sample was analyzed using the microscopic method (98/88/EC). Bone fragments are characterized by similar morphological features (colours, shape, lacunae shape, lacunae distribution, etc.) that make it diff i c u l t to distinguish between poultry and mammals. Through a digital camera and an image analysis software a total of 30 bone fragment lacunae images at X400 were obtained. For each image 29 geometric parameters related to the lacunae and 3 geometric parameters related to the canaliculae of lacunae, were measured using the image analysis software obtaining 960 observations. Of the 32 descriptors used two, the area of the lacunae and their perimeter, were able to explain 96.15% of the total variability of the data, even though their contribution was different (83.97% vs. 12.18%, respectively). Through these two descriptors it was possible to distinguish between mammalian and poultry lacunae, except in two cases (6.6%), in which poultry lacunae were wrongly classified as mammalian. This latter can be related with higher variability in the lacunae area recorded for mammals compared to poultry. On the basis of the present study, it can be concluded that image analysis represents a promising potential tool in PAP identification, that may provide accurate and reliable results in feedstuffs characterisation, analysis and control.