A study on bancroftian filariasis in Jakarta has indicated that one person in one year could be exposed to 223,000 bites of Culex pipens fatigans and to 1,941 infective-stage larvae of Wuchereria bancrofti. Blood surveys with 20 mm3 samples revealed a microfilaria rate of 6%. Although some cases of hydrocele (4% of 272 males examined) were found, there was little evidence of severe filarial disease in either males or females. Amongst wild-caught mosquitoes only 0.3% contained infective larvae, but much higher levels of vectorial competence were established under laboratory conditions. High daily vector mortality (30%) coupled with noticeable improvements in standards of living could have been important factors preventing an increase in endemicity.
Albendazole (methyl 5-propylthio-1 H-benzimidazol-2-yl carbamate) was used as an anthelmintic in a 3-yr study involving 578 beef cows and 438 nursing calves. Infection levels for nematodes, coccidia, and tapeworm were relatively low throughout the 3-yr period. Eggs per gram of feces in cows and calves were lower (P less than .01) 2 wk posttreatment but were not different 5 mo later, when calves were weaned. Cow weight gain, rate and time of conception, and adjusted calf weaning weights were not affected significantly by deworming of either cows or calves. Level of nematode infection measured as eggs per gram of feces was higher (P less than .01) in younger cows than in mature cows. Although deworming with Albendazole lowered (P less than .01) nematode infection levels, no responses were observed in cow or calf performance.
Small-scale, residential food gardens are arguably the most common form of urban agriculture (UA) in the world. Despite their ubiquity, we know relatively little about the characteristics of UA soils, in general, and of residential food gardens specifically. We thus sampled soils from 27 residential-scale vegetable gardens in two western Oregon cities to describe the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of residential-scale UA soils. We distinguished growing sites by bed type: in-ground beds (IGs) and raised beds (RBs). We assessed the proportion of soils that fell within published recommendations for vegetable production for various soil parameters. We found residential-scale UA soils frequently exceeded recommended ranges for many fertility parameters. We also found differences in carbon/nitrogen ratio, active carbon, and sulfur, with RBs significantly higher than IGs. The excesses likely are due to routine overapplication of compost, soil amendments, and fertilizers by growers across their intensively managed urban spaces. Such overapplication and excess is likely to be exaggerated in RBs compared with IGs.
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