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Previous studies have indicated that high piglet blood hemoglobin concentration (HbC) at birth lead to better performance later in life. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the association between sow and piglet blood HbC at farrowing. A secondary objective was to investigate the relationship between sow HbC and probability of stillbirths. Farrowings were observed in 22 sows in a Danish commercial herd. Maternal blood HbC was measured 1-3 days before farrowing using a HemoCue 201 + Hb device. Similarly, HbC was measured from 144 offspring piglets before colostrum intake. Total number of born piglets per litter and parity of the sow were recorded and stillborn piglets were identified using a lung flotation technique. The association between HbC in sows and piglets was determined using a linear mixed model. The relationship between sow HbC and probability of stillbirths was determined using a generalized linear model. The mean HbC of the sows and piglets were 106.9 ± 12.2 and 124.4 ± 19.9 g/L, respectively. A tendency towards a positive association between HbC of the piglets and HbC of the sow around farrowing was found (P = 0.058). Additionally, the probability of stillbirths was negatively associated with the sow HbC (P = 0.021). These results indicate that HbC in newborn piglets may be increased by increasing the sow HbC. Furthermore, stillbirth rates might be reduced by increasing the HbC of the sow.

Background: Anemia characterized by low hemoglobin concentration (HbC) is common in indoor housed pregnant sows. Iron is essential for hemoglobin synthesis and a number of metabolic processes including DNA synthesis and regulation of enzyme systems. In sows, anemia has been linked to lower HbC in piglets and increased occurrence of stillbirths. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of iron injection on hematology of pregnant sows and their offspring. Other objectives were to evaluate the effect of this injection on the probability of stillbirths and to study the tolerability of injected iron., Results: A sow herd with bi-weekly batch farrowing was selected for the study and 100 sows at mid-gestation were randomly assigned to either a treatment (FeT) or a control (FeC) group. At the time of recruitment to the study (baseline), 46% of the sows in the herd were anemic with a HbC less than 103 g/L. However, none of the anemic sows had iron deficiency anemia on erythrocyte characterization. HbC decreased numerically during gestation in both the FeT (- 2.48 g/L) and FeC (- 2.99 g/L) groups but the decrease was insignificant between the groups (P = 0.79). Likewise, the change from baseline to farrowing and from baseline to post-farrowing in other hematologic variables was similar for both groups. The percentage of transferrin saturation was not statistically different between groups (P = 0.14). There was a batch effect (week of breeding) in most of the hematologic variables. The probability of stillbirth in the two groups did not differ (P = 0.94). None of the hematologic variables in piglets was significantly different between the two groups. The sows tolerated the iron injection well., Conclusions: Intramuscular injection of two doses of 2500 mg iron 2 weeks apart at mid-gestation did neither change hematologic variables in sows nor in the piglets at farrowing. Similarly, iron treatment did not reduce the probability of stillbirths among the offspring. The sows recruited in this study tolerated the iron injections well. Further characterization of erythrocytes did not support that sows had iron deficiency anemia at baseline. Therefore, further studies on animals with well-defined anemia and with focus on the iron regulating hormone hepcidin are recommended.

Background: Rickettsia bacteria are responsible for diseases in humans and animals around the world, however few details are available regarding its ecology and circulation among wild animals and human populations at high transmission risk in Brazil. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of ticks and Rickettsia spp. in wild boars, corresponding hunting dogs and hunters., Methods: Serum samples and ticks were collected from 80 free-range wild boars, 170 hunting dogs and 34 hunters from southern and central-western Brazil, from the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado biomes, respectively, between 2016 and 2018. Serum samples were tested by indirect immunofluorescent-antibody assay (IFA) to detect IgG antibodies against Rickettsia rickettsii, Rickettsia parkeri, Rickettsia bellii, Rickettsia rhipicephali and Rickettsia amblyommatis. Tick species were identified by morphological taxonomic keys, as previously described. A total of 164 ticks including A. sculptum, A. brasiliense and A. aureolatum were tested in PCR assays for Spotted Fever Group (SFG) Rickettsia spp., Results: A total of 58/80 (72.5%) wild boars, 24/170 (14.1%) hunting dogs and 5/34 (14.7%) hunters were positive (titers ≥ 64) to at least one Rickettsia species. A total of 669/1,584 (42.2%) ticks from wild boars were identified as Amblyomma sculptum, 910/1,584 (57.4%) as Amblyomma brasiliense, 4/1,584(0.24%) larvae of Amblyomma spp. and 1/1,584 (0.06%) nymph as Amblyolmma dubitatum. All 9 ticks found on hunting dogs were identified as Amblyomma aureolatum and all 22 ticks on hunters as A. sculptum. No tested tick was positive by standard PCR to SFG Rickettsia spp., Conclusions: The present study was the concomitant report of wild boar, hunting dog and hunter exposure to SFG rickettsiae agents, performed in two different Brazilian biomes. Wild boar hunting may increase the risk of human exposure and consequently tick-borne disease Wild boars may be carrying and spreading capybara ticks from their original habitats to other ecosystems. Further studies can be required to explore the ability of wild boars to infecting ticks and be part of transmission cycle of Rickettsia spp., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Among livestock, domestic pig (Sus scrofa) is a species, in which iron metabolism has been most intensively examined during last decade. The obvious reason for studying the regulation of iron homeostasis especially in young pigs is neonatal iron deficiency anemia commonly occurring in these animals. Moreover, supplementation of essentially all commercially reared piglets with iron entails a need for monitoring the efficacy of this routine practice followed in the swine industry for several decades. Since the discovery of hepcidin many studies confirmed its role as key regulator of iron metabolism and pointed out the assessment of its concentrations in biological fluids as diagnostic tool for iron-related disorder. Here we demonstrate that urine hepcidin-25 levels measured by a combination of weak cation exchange chromatography and time-of-flight mass spectrometry (WCX-TOF MS) are highly correlated with mRNA hepcidin expression in the liver and plasma hepcidin-25 concentrations in anemic and iron-supplemented 28-day old piglets. We also found a high correlation between urine hepcidin level and hepatic non-heme iron content. Our results show that similarly to previously described transgenic mouse models of iron disorders, young pigs constitute a convenient animal model to explore accuracy and relationship between indicators for assessing systemic iron status.

As feral swine (Sus scrofa) populations expand their range and the opportunity for feral swine hunting increases, there is increased potential for disease transmission that may impact humans, domestic swine, and wildlife. From September 2007 to March 2010, in 13 North Carolina, USA, counties and at Howell Woods Environmental Learning Center, we conducted a serosurvey of feral swine for Brucella suis, pseudorabies virus (PRV), and classical swine fever virus (CSFV); the samples obtained at Howell Woods also were tested for porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV-2). Feral swine serum was collected from trapped and hunter-harvested swine. For the first time since 2004 when screening began, we detected B. suis antibodies in 9% (9/98) of feral swine at Howell Woods and <1% (1/415) in the North Carolina counties. Also, at Howell Woods, we detected PCV-2 antibodies in 59% (53/90) of feral swine. We did not detect antibodies to PRV (n=512) or CSFV (n=307) at Howell Woods or the 13 North Carolina counties, respectively. The detection of feral swine with antibodies to B. suis for the first time in North Carolina warrants increased surveillance of the feral swine population to evaluate speed of disease spread and to establish the potential risk to commercial swine and humans.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary inclusion levels of spray-dried porcine plasma (SDPP) on postweaning (PW) intestinal barrier function, mucosal inflammation, and clinical indices of gut health in pigs. Ex vivo Ussing chamber studies were conducted to measure Ileal and colonic barrier function in terms of transepithelial electrical resistance and paracellular flux of (3)H-mannitol and (14)C-inulin. Intestinal inflammation was assessed by histological analysis and mucosal levels of proinflammatory cytokines. Dietary inclusion of 2.5 and 5% SDPP reduced colonic paracellular permeability of (14)C-inulin compared with controls (0% SDPP) on d 7 PW. Both 2.5 and 5% dietary SDPP reduced ileal (3)H-mannitol and (14)C-inulin permeability on d 14 PW. The 5% SDPP diet reduced colonic short-circuit current, an index of net electrogenic ion transport, and fecal scores when measured on d 7 and 14 PW compared with the control and 2.5% SDPP groups (P < 0.05). Histological analysis revealed fewer lamina propria cells in ileum and colon from pigs fed diets containing 2.5 and 5% SDPP on d 7 and 14 PW. Levels of the proinflammatory cytokine TNFα were reduced in the colon but not ileum from pigs fed the 5% SDPP on d 7 and 14 PW compared with controls (P < 0.05). IFNγ levels were lower than in controls in both of the SDPP-fed groups in the ileum and colon on d 7 but not on d 14 PW. Overall, this study demonstrated that dietary inclusion of SDPP had beneficial effects on intestinal barrier function, inflammation, and diarrhea in weaned pigs.

Little information is available on the prevalence of swine enteropathogens in Cuba where diarrheic diseases are responsible for 31% and 37% of the total mortality during the neonatal and postweaning periods. F4+ and F18+ enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli and F18+ verotoxigenic E. coli induce diarrhea and edematous disease in pigs, but their distribution has never been thoroughly studied in the Cuban swine population. Therefore, the present study estimated the prevalence of F4- and F18-specific antibodies in sera of 1,044 6-month-old gilts distributed in 34 piggeries spread over the Cuban territory. For the data analysis, which included the optical density of individual samples tested by ELISA, random-effects models and a mixture model in R (package "mixAK"; Komárek, Computational Statistics and Data Analysis 53:3932-3947, 2009) were fitted. Low, moderate, and high levels of F4-specific antibodies were found in 67.6%, 26.8%, and 5.6% of the gilts, while 66.4% and 33.6% of gilts showed low and high levels of F18-specific antibodies. Hereby, we show that F4+ and F18+ E. coli are highly prevalent as potential enteropathogens in Cuban piggeries.

Serum samples collected from 178 shot wild boars (Sus scrofa) were tested for the presence of antibodies against classical swine fever virus, Aujeszky's disease virus (ADV), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, porcine respiratory coronavirus (PRCV), transmissible gastroenteritis virus, swine influenza virus, porcine parvovirus (PPV), swine vesicular disease virus, Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (APP), Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, Salmonella spp., Brucella spp. and Haemophilus parasuis (HPS) throughout Slovenia during the hunting season 2003/2004. The number of samples corresponds to 3% of the total hunting bag. By enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) antibodies against ADV were detected in 55 sera (31%), against PRCV in five sera (3%), PPV in 87 sera (49%), APP in 93 sera (52%), M. hyopneumoniae in 38 sera (21%), Salmonella spp. in 85 sera (47%) and HPS in 33 sera (18%).

For the surveillance of trichinellosis, the digestion method is reliable but also labour intensive. The serological methods for the detection of Trichinella-specific antibodies using ELISA offer a sensitive and relatively specific alternative. For serological studies, sera or plasma from blood samples are the most common source of antibodies, but although the concentration of antibodies is approximately 10-fold lower, muscle fluid can be a good alternative particularly for testing of wildlife samples. In the present study, an indirect ELISA technique was evaluated on both sera and muscle fluids from experimentally infected foxes, pigs, and wild boars using both excretory/secretory (E/S) antigens and a synthetic glycan antigen, beta-tyvelose. Although the synthetic antigen appears to be less sensitive than the E/S antigens, Trichinella-specific IgG antibodies were detected in both serum samples and muscle fluid samples from pigs, wild boars and foxes infected at levels which would be important for food safety or represent a significant reservoir for further transmission.

Serologic surveys for evidence of exposure to pseudorabies virus (PRV) in feral swine were conducted from November 2001 to April 2002 at 10 sites in the southeastern United States, where evidence of previous PRV exposure had been documented during 1979-89. Sera were tested in the field on the day of collection by latex agglutination. Maximum sample size per site was to be 30 animals, but sampling was discontinued before reaching this number when positive results were obtained. Positive results were obtained at all of the study sites, demonstrating long-term persistence of PRV in feral swine populations. Overall, 38 of 100 (38%) animals were positive for antibodies. Consistent results from latex agglutination tests conducted in the field and laboratory demonstrated that this test was useful as a rapid and reliable diagnostic tool when used in the field.