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Cattle producers were surveyed to evaluate the use and potential of trees and shrubs in 60 livestock farms from the municipalities of Tlapacoyan, Misantla and Martínez de la Torre, Veracruz, Mexico. The study identified, located, and described the use of promising woody species as fodder in three animal production systems. Surveys recorded information about: animal production systems, pasture management, main agricultural products of the farm, identification, management and use of trees and shrubs in the farm. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Three animal production systems were characterized: dual-purpose (57%), cow-calf operation (30%), and pasture-based finishing (13%); where 145 tree species were identified, with Bursera simaruba, Gliricidia sepium and Cedrela odorata as the most common. The main use of trees species were, fuelwood and charcoal, lumber, and live fence posts. Also, the first two, from the 12 species were the most eaten by cattle as fodder material, mainly as branching (38.80%) or cut-and-carry use (3.50%). The study showed a high diversity of woody species, with multiple functions in within the farms, highlighting some woody species as fodder, which adds value to the animal production systems when are used at critical times of the year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three land preparation management experiments were conducted in a hot and humid climate, in order to evaluate the establishment of Arachis pintoi CIAT 17434: 1) reduced and zero tillage, with fertilisation (P, K, Mg, Ca, Zn, Cu and B) or without fertilisation; 2) control of native pasture growth with herbicide or slashing, burned or not, with or without P fertiliser; and 3) planting of three Arachis pintoi CIAT accessions: 17434, 18744 and 18748, using seed pods. Soils at the experimental sites are acid Ultisols (Durustults), with a range in pH from 4.1 to 5.2, and an impermeable hardpan between 0 and 25 cm deep. The following variables were measured: Plant number, plant height and soil covered by the legume at 4, 8 and 12 weeks after planting. Experiment I was an unreplicated trial with treatments applied over an area larger than usual in agronomic experiments. Several fixed quadrants were sampled within each treatment plot. In experiments 2 and 3 the design was a randomised complete block design with 3 blocks as replicates. Analyses of variance were done with linear additive models in accordance to the experimental design. In experiment I, the main effect of treatment on plant number was highly significant in winter, rainy and dry seasons. The time taken to reach 50% cover was 21 weeks for T2 (reduced tillage, no fertilisation) in winter; 21 weeks for T4 (zero tillage, no fertilisation) in dry season; and 20 weeks for T1 (reduced tillage) with fertilisation) and T4 in rainy season. In experiment 2, the main effect of time after planting was highly significant on all response variables. The treatment herbicide + burning produced taller plants (21.0±1.6 cm) than herbicide-no burning (14.5 ±1.1 cm). P fertilisation did not increase legume cover. The treatment including slashing without burning and without fertiliser had significantly less legume cover than the herbicide+burning+fertilisation treatment. In experiment 3, legume cover increased linearly with time (4, 8 and 12 weeks), although without differences in slope among accessions. August planting took 45, 46 and 56 days to cover 5% of the soil to accessions CIAT 17434, CIAT 18744 and CIAT 18748, respectively, The results offer a range of practices to cattle producers from which they could select the best one according to their specific conditions. However, the best practice was the use of herbicides, which was more effective in improving establishment than the slashing technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In México obesity rates have been increasing in the last years. Food addiction (FA) has been considered a factor that could explain processes or behaviors associated with obesity. Objectives: The aim of this study was the identification of risk patterns of FA and it association with other variables in healthy Mexican population. Methods: We hypothesized that a higher risk of FA will be higher levels of impulsivity, emotion dysregulation, and emotional and external eating styles. The sample consisted of 81 female (61) and male (20) volunteers universitary students from Pachuca city in México, with an average age of 20.0 years old (SD = 1,7). The questionnaires EDI-2, YFAS 2.0, DERS, UPPS-P, and DEBQ were applied. Results: Figure 1: Radar-chart (z-standardized means are plotted) (n=81) Three groups were defined by the FA severity (Figure 1). The presence of FA was more strongly associated to higher scores in the threeDEBQscales, in the DERS impulse control, emotion regulation and total score, and in the UPPS-P lack of premeditation and negative urgency. Compared with the group without FA, the FA-probable scoring was related to higher levels in the DEBQ external and restrained scales, and in the DERS total; FA-probable group also registered the highest mean score in the DERS non acceptance scale compared with the other groups. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study that explores FA in Mexican population. Considering that, the identification of different patterns of FA that could be associated with obesity, could lead to better prevention and treatment approaches. Disclosure: The present work was supported by a grant to the presenter author from the Mexican Institution: "Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología" (CONACYT). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four accessions of Cratylia argentea CIAT 18516, 18666, 18668 and 18676, were evaluated during an uninterrupted growth period of 12 months, to assess forage yield of leaves (LF), edible (ES) and non edible (NS) stem and nutritive quality of LF and ES, in the State of Veracruz, México. Forage yield of the plant components was similar between accessions: 2580±212, 33±5 and 2444±233 kg DM/ha, for LF, ES and NS, respectively. The accessions were similar in crude protein (19.10%), neutral detergent fiber (61.10%), acid detergent fiber (42.20%), and lignin (14.20%). LF had more crude protein than ES, but was lower with respect to NDF, ADF, and higher in LIG. For in situ DM disappearance, accessions differed in the highly soluble component (a) of the dry matter proportion; but all had a similar fractional rate of degradation (c) and a slow degradable dry matter (b). The in vitro gas production of the leaf component was the same for all accessions. It was concluded that in the present evaluation the accessions were similar between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the humid tropic of Veracruz state the productive response of a native pasture under intensive rotational grazing was estimated, using Zebu Brahman cattle, during the period of June 1994 to May 1997, with variable grazing (1-3 days) and recovery (10-151 days) periods. Six paddocks, (3.0 ± 0.5 ha/division) were sampled. The standing DM before and after grazing for the dry season (March-June; 2,135 and 1402 kg/ha) were lower than those of the northern wind (November-February; 2,846 and 1,909 kg/ha) and rainy (July-October; 2,844 and 1,864 kg/ha) seasons, which did not differ between them. The live weight of the calf differed between seasons: 71 (dry), 142 (rainy) and 161 (northern wind) kg/ head. The stocking rate in the dry season (2.0 animal units [AU = 450 kg of LW]/ha) was lower than those of northern wind (2.4 UA/ha) or rainy (2.3 UA/ha) seasons, which did not differ among them. The season did not affect crude protein of the standing DM before grazing (9.3 ± 1.7%), days of recovery per division (50 ± 26), live weight of the cow (397 ± 11 kg/head), absolute crop growth rate (41 ± 33 kg DM/ha/ day), available DM (5.8 ± 2.6 kg DM/100 kg LW), dry matter intake (2.3 ± 1.5 kg DM/100 kg LW), and degree of use of available DM (40 ± 22%). The mean stocking rate of the present study was twice the traditional (1.0 AU/ha), suggesting a higher productive potential for native grass pastures in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mecistocirrus digitatus is a hematophagous abomasal nematode which causes significant blood and production losses in cattle. The objectives of the present study were to: (1) report the reappearance of M. digitatus in cattle from the Mexican tropics using microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and molecular identification, and (2) determine the prevalence of M. digitatus in slaughtered adult cattle from the Mexican tropics. Gastroinestinal nematodes (GIN) were recovered from the abomasum of an 8-yr-old cow (Holstein × Zebu) previously diagnosed with Johne's disease. Of 1,254 GIN, 98.8% were identified as M. digitatus and 1.2% as Haemonchus sp. SEM was used to identify ultrastructure features of M. digitatus (oral cavity, cervical papillae, bursa, bursa lobes papillae, male spicules, anus, and female vulva). A conventional PCR method was used to corroborate the morphological findings. The prevalence of adult cattle infected with M. digitatus and Haemonchus sp., determined from 68 adult cattle from different grazing tropical herds, was 38.2% and 8.8%, respectively. Ninety-eight percent of animals infected with M. digitatus presented lesions in their abomasum such as mucosal inflammation, hemorrhage, and ulcers; some of them had necrosis. The current reappearance of M. digitatus in a Mexican herd suggests the possibility of an underestimated prevalence of this nematode amongst grazing cattle.

Produce is responsible for an increasingly larger proportion of foodborne disease outbreaks. In particular, the globalization of the food supply may introduce new food safety risks and allow widespread distribution of contaminated food, particularly produce. The objectives of this study were to: (i) compare the overall quality of domestic and Mexican produce throughout the packing process; (ii) examine changes in microbiological quality of both domestic and Mexican produce at each stage of production and processing; and (iii) evaluate the prevalence of select pathogens on fresh produce, including leafy green, herbs, melons, and vegetables. Furthermore, we also sought to characterize the antibiotic resistance profiles of Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis strains isolated from fresh produce. A total of 466 produce and matching environmental swab samples was collected from various locations in packing sheds in the southern US from November 2002 through December 2003. These samples were assayed by enumerative tests for total aerobic bacteria (APC), total coliforms, total Enterococcus, and E. coli. Produce samples were also analyzed for the presence of Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, Shigella, and E. coli O157:H7. A total of 112 E. faecium and E. faecalis isolates were further screened for antibiotic resistance using a panel of seventeen antibiotics. Overall, the microbiological quality of fresh produce ranged from 4.0 to 7.9 log(10) CFU/g (APC); less than 1.0 log(10) to 4.5 log(10) CFU/g (coliforms); less than 1.0 log(10) to 4.0 log(10) CFU/g (E. coli); and less than 1.0 log(10) to 5.4 log(10) CFU/g (Enterococcus). No Salmonella, Shigella, or E. coli O157:H7 were detected from the 466 25-g produce samples tested. However, three domestic cabbage samples were found to be positive for L. monocytogenes. Of the Enterococcus isolates, E. faecium had a higher degree of resistance to antibiotics in general, while Enterococcus spp. isolated from Mexican produce had a higher degree of antibiotic resistance when compared to strains isolated from produce samples of domestic origin. Despite increased attention to the role of imported produce in foodborne disease, this study does not support the assumption that domestic produce is of higher microbial quality than Mexican produce.

Toxicity and uptake data for Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri generated by nickel in systems using three natural sediments (trout farms: El Oyamel, El Truchón, and El Potrero), are presented. Nickel uptake and hemoglobin concentration were studied in L. hoffmeisteri exposed to spiked sediments. Nickel concentration and its toxic effect on hemoglobin were used as indicators of exposure. Sediment texture was also considered. Hemoglobin concentration decreased after treatment with nickel. The hemoglobin concentration test indicated a response to the bioavailability of nickel. This investigation clearly documents that sediments of El Truchón, El Oyamel, and El Potrero exhibit a toxicity potential. These results suggest the usefulness of diversity of bioassays for evaluating the toxicity of sediments polluted with heavy metals., (Copyright 1999 Academic Press.)

Considering that Ankistrodesmus falcatus is very sensitive to different pollutants, in this work the effect of lead, carbaryl and a mixture of both pollutants on protein, chlorophyll and phenols concentration in this microalga have been studied. At different lots of Ankistrodesmus falcatus in the middle of the log growth phase, different concentrations of lead, carbaryl and a mixture of both pollutants were added, during 24, 48 and 72 h. Chlorophyll, proteins and phenols concentration was measured. The results show that the mixture of lead-carbaryl produces a major toxic effect than the xenobiotics by themselves, so it has been suggested that to establish permissible limits it is necessary to consider the synergism presented in simultaneous exposure to both xenobiotics. It is suggested to use phenols determination as a primary indicator of environmental impact in an aquatic ecosystem.