Mycoplasma ovis is a small, pleiotropic bacterium, which parasitizes the external surface of erythrocytes of several species of artiodactyl mammals, especially sheep and goats. We here report an outbreak of ovine mycoplasmosis in a sheep flock of a private ranch (Universidad Veracruzana) in Veracruz, Mexico. For the identification of Mycoplasma and other hemoparasitic bacterial agents, we stained blood smears with the DiffQuick® technique and additionally amplified several fragments of 16S rDNA gene. We detected the presence of morulas in erythrocytes from 30 sick female adult sheep, and found Mycoplasma ovis DNA in all of them. Furthermore, three of these animals also tested positive for Anaplasma ovis. Our findings represent the first record of M. ovis and A. ovis in an outbreak of hemolytic anemia in a sheep flock, leading to severe livestock loss in a ranch of Mexico. This study highlights the importance of establishing an active surveillance of both pathogens in the country.

A reduction in serum HGF levels was associated with improved outcomes in patients treated with afatinib. These results suggest HGF might have a role as a mechanism of resistance to EGFR-TKIs. HGF could represent a potential therapeutic target to prevent or reverse resistance particularly in EGFR mutated patients.

The aim of this research was to determine fatty acid profiles in piglet brain, skin, and muscle, and in the milk of sows fed fat with different saturation grades during gestation and lactation. At 42 days of gestation, 50 multiparous sows were randomly allocated to one of two treatments, namely a diet containing pork lard (n = 25) and a diet containing soybean oil (n = 25). The fats were provided at 3.6% during gestation and at 4% during lactation. The experimental diets were offered through the weaning of the piglets. The fatty acid profile of the milk was determined fourteen days after parturition. At weaning (21 days postpartum) and seven days later, one of the piglets (n = 64) from 16 sows allocated to each treatment was selected at random to determine fatty acid profiles in brain, skin and muscle. Saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids were higher in the diet with pork lard than in that with soybean oil, in which the polyunsaturated fat content was higher. A higher saturation of fatty acids was found in milk from the sows that consumed pork lard, which contained more saturated fatty acids than the milk from sows that consumed soybean oil. The fatty acid profiles in muscle and skin of the piglets were affected by the diet of the sows. However, the fatty acid profile of the piglets’ brains was not affected by the diet of their mothers. Keywords: fat saturation, lard, piglet survival, sow feeding, soybean oil

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Background: Brain metastases (BM) are common among patients with adenocarcinoma, affecting treatment response, quality of life and overall survival (OS). We examine the impact of the main histological pattern and the genetic alterations in EGFR and ALK on the incidence of BM in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).