AWIC Special Reference Brief : Swine Anesthesia and Analgesia, 2000-2010

AWIC Special Reference Brief : Swine Anesthesia and Analgesia, 2000-2010 (PDF)
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library (Animal Welfare Information Center)

Selection of a proper anesthetic and analgesic regimen for swine used in biomedical research is one of the most important aspects of the experimental procedure. One key issue is ensuring that pain and distress associated with an experimental procedure, such as surgery, is adequately controlled. For example, the use of preemptive analgesia in surgical protocols has been shown to reduce the length of the postoperative recovery and the number of postoperative analgesic administrations that have to be performed in swine. But of equal importance is ensuring that the agents selected do not interfere with the goals of the research. Veterinarians and research personnel should consider the physiologic effects of the anesthetics and analgesics when designing the experimental protocol. An educated team based approach to the design of invasive research projects is a good way to ensure success. Ensuring that the protocol is adequate to control pain and distress and that a research complication does not occur requires knowledge of the effects of these agents within the porcine species. In many cases the effects of these pharmacologic agents will be different in other species when making comparisons. The selection of manuscripts in this section will provide guidance in adhering to these humane and scientific principles.

Environmental Enrichment For Nonhuman Primates Resource Guide

Environmental Enrichment For Nonhuman Primates Resource Guide
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library (Animal Welfare Information Center)

This publication updates AWIC’s Environmental Enrichment for Nonhuman Primates Resource Guide, June 2006. It covers literature published from 1999 to March 2011. This document includes links to the draft policy published in the Federal Register on July 15, 1999 by the United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Animal Care and the Final Report on Environment Enhancement to Promote the Psychological Well-being of Nonhuman Primates that was drafted by a committee of experts from areas of research, teaching, regulation, and exhibition and led to the draft policy. Relevant sections of United States Animal Welfare Act and regulations are also included as well as parts of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (NRC, 1996 and 2010).

The bibliographic chapters are divided into subject areas that cover the concept of environmental enrichment, enrichment for nonhuman primates overall, abnormal behavior exhibited by nonhuman primates, great apes and gibbons, macaques, old world monkeys other than macaques, marmosets and tamarins, other new world monkeys, lemurs, lorises, and tarsiers, animal training as an enrichment strategy, and books and proceedings from conferences focused on environmental enrichment or nonhuman primate management.

A Focus on Salmonella — Updated Version

A Focus on Salmonella — Updated Version
Source: National Agricultural Library, Food Safety Research Information Office

This technical review illustrates the following key points about Salmonella:

• Leading cause of bacterial foodborne illness which accounts for 31 percent of all food-related deaths.
• Has more than 2,400 serovars which are potentially pathogenic and are identified based on the types of antigens present.
• Causes three types of Salmonellosis: gastroenteritis, typhoid fever, and bacteremia, which are most commonly caused by consumption of contaminated food and water.
• Emergence of antimicrobial resistant strains has lead to an increase in the prevalence of human infections and has limited the possibility of effective treatment.
• Research is focused on determining resistance trends as well as identifying and controlling vehicles of transmission on the farm, during transportation, and in abattoirs and processing plants.