We implemented a cross-sectional study in Tana River County, Kenya, a Rift Valley fever (RVF)-endemic area, to quantify the strength of association between RVF virus (RVFv) seroprevalences in livestock and humans, and their respective intra-cluster correlation coefficients (ICCs). The study involved 1932 livestock from 152 households and 552 humans from 170 households. Serum samples were collected and screened for anti-RVFv immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies using inhibition IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Data collected were analysed using generalised linear mixed effects models, with herd/household and village being fitted as random variables. The overall RVFv seroprevalences in livestock and humans were 25.41% (95% confidence interval (CI) 23.49–27.42%) and 21.20% (17.86–24.85%), respectively. The presence of at least one seropositive animal in a household was associated with an increased odds of exposure in people of 2.23 (95% CI 1.03–4.84). The ICCs associated with RVF virus seroprevalence in livestock were 0.30 (95% CI 0.19–0.44) and 0.22 (95% CI 0.12–0.38) within and between herds, respectively. These findings suggest that there is a greater variability of RVF virus exposure between than within herds. We discuss ways of using these ICC estimates in observational surveys for RVF in endemic areas and postulate that the design of the sentinel herd surveillance should consider patterns of RVF clustering to enhance its effectiveness as an early warning system for RVF epidemics.

A total of 17 isolates of Vibrio mimicus from patients, 29 from environment and 2 from food was examined for toxigenicity. Sixteen (94%) clinical isolates and one (50%) from food produced TDH-like toxin, whereas none of the environmental isolates did so. The food from which V. mimicus with TDH-like toxin production was isolated, was one which had caused food poisoning. Only one environmental strain produced CT-like toxin, whilst ST-like toxin was not detected from any strains tested.

It is paramount to understand the epidemiology of chronic hepatitis B to inform national policies on vaccination and screening/testing as well as cost-effectiveness studies. However, information on the national (Scottish) prevalence of chronic hepatitis B by ethnic group is lacking. To estimate the number of people with chronic hepatitis B in Scotland in 2009 by ethnicity, gender and age, the test data from virology laboratories in the four largest cities in Scotland were combined with estimates of the ethnic distribution of the Scottish population. Ethnicity in both the test data and the Scottish population was derived using a name-based ethnicity classification software (OnoMAP; Publicprofiler Ltd, UK). For 2009, we estimated 8720 [95% confidence interval (CI) 7490–10 230] people aged ⩾15 years were living with chronic hepatitis B infection in Scotland. This corresponds to 0·2% (95% CI 0·17–0·24) of the Scottish population aged ⩾15 years. Although East and South Asians make up a small proportion of the Scottish population, they make up 44% of the infected population. In addition, 75% of those infected were aged 15–44 years with almost 60% male. This study quantifies for the first time on a national level the burden of chronic hepatitis B infection by ethnicity, gender and age. It confirms the importance of promoting and targeting ethnic minority groups for hepatitis B testing.

The air of loose-boxes holding pigs affected with swine vesicular disease was sampled for virus. In the multistage impinger virus to a titre of 102·6 TCID50 was associated with particles greater than 6 μm., 101·6 with particles 3–6 μm. and 101·4 or less with particles less than 3 μm. In the noses of workers in contact with the pigs for periods not less than 5 min., virus to a titre of 102·4 TCID50 was found. Virus was recovered from the air for 2–3 days during the disease and maximum titre in pigs infected by injection or by contact occurred on the second to third day after generalization of the lesions. The amounts of virus were about 160-fold less than those recovered from pigs affected with foot-and-mouth disease, and the quantity and time of excretion suggest that the source of swine vesicular disease virus in the aerosol may be from the lesions and skin rather than from the respiratory tract.

The stool samples of 75 patients with gastroenteritis and/or loose and watery faeces at three hospitals and one clinic in Zaria were examined for Cryptosporidium. The stool samples were concentrated by the formol–ether method and stained with safranin–methylene blue. Sixteen (21%) samples were positive. The rate of detection was higher among females (27%) than males (17%) and among adults (29%) than children (8%). The study confirmed the presence and possible significance of Cryptosporidium, which is a known zoonotic protozoan, in the aetiology of human gastroenteritis in Zaria, Nigeria.

Samples of blended mutton tissue in small polyvinyl chloride sachets were incubated in water baths for different times and at varying temperatures. The temperature of each bath was recorded accurately throughout each experiment. Using equations previously derived for the lag and generation times of coliform organisms in blended mutton tissue, the expected increases of these bacteria were calculated from the time/temperature recordings. These were compared with the data obtained from plate counts made on the tissue samples in the sachets before and after incubation. The studies were done with a strain of Escherichia coli, one of Salmonella lyphimurium and the coliform organisms naturally present on sheep carcasses processed in a commercial abattoir. The calculated growth agreed closely with that measured. Therefore, if mutton, after overnight chilling, is warmed again to temperatures within the growth range of these bacteria, the possible increases in the numbers of cells present can be calculated directly from time and temperature measurements.

The implications for the present codes of practice in abattoirs are discussed.

1. When a solution of commercial peptone is substituted for antigen in a complement-fixation test with the unheated normal serum of certain species (man, ox, sheep, horse, rabbit, white rat), a definite fixation reaction occurs both at 37° C. and at 0° C. In the ox, sheep, horse and rabbit this property of serum is partially stable at 55° C., but normal human serum and the serum of the white rat are inactive after heating at this temperature. The property is resident mainly in the carbonic-acid-insoluble globulins of the serum.

2. The same results are obtained when ethyl alcohol diluted with several volumes of normal saline solution is substituted for antigen in a complement-fixation test with normal serum.

3. Analysis of these reactions shows a close correspondence with complement-fixation by the sera of normal animals plus the Wassermann “antigen”—the Wassermann reaction of normal animals.

4. Marked complement-fixation effects are also obtained with heated normal serum of the rabbit, ox, sheep, horse plus cholesterol suspension, and particularly cholesterolised-peptone, these effects occurring in parallel with those produced by serum plus alcohol-saline, peptone solutions and the Wassermann “antigen.” The heated normal serum of the pig, white rat and guinea-pig do not exhibit these reactions, and the same applies to heated normal human serum. Unheated pig serum fails to react. Such results also elicit a close relationship between these non-specific reactions and the Wassermann reactions of normal animals.

5. The reacting property is absent from the serum (heated and unheated) of young rabbits during the first 2 to 3 weeks of life, but appears soon after this (e.g. by the 37th day) and is progressive in development. Its development in early life runs parallel to that of the natural haemolytic property of the serum for sheep's blood (due to a natural antibody-like substance). The two properties are, however, independent as illustrated by absorption tests.

6. Besides the agents referred to above as capable of fixing complement along with normal sera, other substances possess a similar property, e.g. certain alcohols, sodium oleate, tissue proteins, certain amino-acids and sodium nucleate. Commercial peptone purified by precipitation with alcohol is equally active with the original material. Cholesterolisation of these agents may yield a product whose activity is greater than that due to summation of effects.

7. Wassermann-positive and -negative human sera have been tested in the complement-fixation reaction with certain of these “pseudo-antigens,” viz. alcohol-saline, peptone, cholesterol, and cholesterolised-peptone, but a uniform parallelism has not been demonstrated between the reactions with these agents and the Wassermann effect. Some Wassermann-positive sera react also with alcohol-saline, peptone, cholesterol and cholesterolised-peptone, while sera from selected normal persons are quite inactive. A considerable proportion of Wassermann-positive sera yields definite complement-fixation with cholesterol and cholesterolised-peptone; a small proportion of Wassermann-negative sera reacts with these agents.

8. The thermolability of the serum principles acting with various “pseudoantigens” has been studied by testing unheated serum and serum heated at temperatures ranging from 46° to 60° C. Two types of thermolability curve have been demonstrated with different specimens of rabbit serum: (1) a more or less progressive weakening of the various reactions with inactivation at 60° C.; (2) inactivation of the effects with Wassermann “antigen,” alcoholsaline and cholesterol at 50–52° C., activation of the effects with the Wassermann “antigen” and cholesterol at 54–56°C. and inactivation again above 60° C.; in this case the curves for peptone and cholesterolised-peptone do not show such double inactivation. Unheated normal human serum yields reactions with the various agents (including the Wassermann “antigen”) but inactivation occurs at 50° to 54° C. whereas certain syphilitic sera yield thermolability curves somewhat similar to type (1) of rabbit serum, with inactivation at 60° C. or over.

If a medium containing either 1 per cent. ammonium succinate or 1 per cent. ammonium fumarate together with certain inorganic salts be inoculated with B. pyocyaneus and incubated aerobically at 37° C. a vigorous growth of the organism will ensue, the rates of growth in both cases not being markedly different from each other. If the growth be allowed to proceed for a fortnight, analysis of the media shows that essentially similar products (mixtures of the lower fatty acids) have been produced in both cases. If the growth be allowed to proceed for not longer than three days, analysis shows that in the succinate medium over 80 per cent. of the succinic acid has not been utilised, whilst in the other medium the entire fumaric acid has disappeared, giving rise in its stead to pyruvic acid which is further utilised as growth proceeds(1). Quantitative data support the view that the breakdown of succinic acid occurs through the intermediate production of fumaric acid, the rate of fermentation of fumaric acid being greater than that of succinic acid, so that fumaric acid is not detected among the products of fermentation of succinic acid. If this view is true, it should be possible to show that B. pyocyaneus has the power of oxidising succinic acid to fumaric acid. It is clear that the proliferating organism cannot be used to demonstrate this experimentally, for the fumaric acid is utilised as quickly as it is formed. Hence it is necessary to use the organism in such a condition that proliferation is completely (or almost completely) eliminated. Under such circumstances the fumaric acid will accumulate and its detection will be made possible.

We used Western Australian emergency department data linked to hospital morbidity, death and microbiology data to describe the bacteriology of pneumonia according to age. The ‘atypical’ organisms and viruses were not assessed. A total of 6908 patients over a 3-year period were given an emergency department diagnosis of pneumonia, 76·9% were admitted and 6·3% died in hospital. Blood was cultured from 52·9% of patients with 6·4% growing potential pathogens. Streptococcus pneumoniae was the most common organism isolated and accounted for 92% of pathogens in those aged <15 years. Isolation of Enterobacteriaceae species tended to increase with age and accounted for around 25% of isolates from the elderly. Sputum was cultured from 25·3% of patients and bacteria were isolated from 30·3% of samples, commonly Haemophilus influenzae and S. pneumoniae. Isolates from sputum showed no distinct trend across age groups. These patterns question the value of routine blood and sputum cultures and have implications for empiric therapy for the elderly.

Campylobacteriosis is the most common notifiable disease in New Zealand. While the risk of campylobacteriosis has been found to be strongly associated with the consumption of undercooked poultry, other risk factors include rainwater-sourced drinking water, contact with animals and consumption of raw dairy products. Despite this, there has been little investigation of raw milk as a risk factor for campylobacteriosis. Recent increases in demand for untreated or ‘raw’ milk have also raised concerns that this exposure may become a more important source of disease in the future. This study describes the cases of notified campylobacteriosis from a sentinel surveillance site. Previously collected data from notified cases of raw milk-associated campylobacteriosis were examined and compared with campylobacteriosis cases who did not report raw milk consumption. Raw milk campylobacteriosis cases differed from non-raw milk cases on comparison of age and occupation demographics, with raw milk cases more likely to be younger and categorised as children or students for occupation. Raw milk cases were more likely to be associated with outbreaks than non-raw milk cases. Study-suggested motivations for raw milk consumption (health reasons, natural product, produced on farm, inexpensive or to support locals) were not strongly supported by cases. More information about the raw milk consumption habits of New Zealanders would be helpful to better understand the risks of this disease, especially with respect to increased disease risk observed in younger people. Further discussion with raw milk consumers around their motivations may also be useful to find common ground between public health concerns and consumer preferences as efforts continue to manage this ongoing public health issue.

The original scope of this investigation was the study of the passage of hydrocyanic acid vapour through the skin. We have partly repeated and confirmed the results of Walton and Witherspoon (1926). In view of the extensive use of hydrocyanic acid vapour in the destruction of vermin in ships the subject is of considerable practical interest. In the course of our work certain other matters were considered and these are referred to in the text.

We performed a spatial-temporal analysis to assess household risk factors for Ebola virus disease (Ebola) in a remote, severely-affected village. We defined a household as a family's shared living space and a case-household as a household with at least one resident who became a suspect, probable, or confirmed Ebola case from 1 August 2014 to 10 October 2014. We used Geographic Information System (GIS) software to calculate inter-household distances, performed space-time cluster analyses, and developed Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE). Village X consisted of 64 households; 42% of households became case-households over the observation period. Two significant space-time clusters occurred among households in the village; temporal effects outweighed spatial effects. GEE demonstrated that the odds of becoming a case-household increased by 4·0% for each additional person per household (P < 0·02) and 2·6% per day (P < 0·07). An increasing number of persons per household, and to a lesser extent, the passage of time after onset of the outbreak were risk factors for household Ebola acquisition, emphasizing the importance of prompt public health interventions that prioritize the most populated households. Using GIS with GEE can reveal complex spatial-temporal risk factors, which can inform prioritization of response activities in future outbreaks.

A questionnaire survey was undertaken to determine the exposure of a study population to campylobacteriosis source risk factors (environmental, water, food) and results were stratified by age, population density and deprivation. Data were gathered using an exposure assessment carried out by telephone in the Grampian region of Scotland. Univariate analysis showed that children aged 5–14 years, living in low population density (0–44·4 persons/km2) and affluent areas had elevated exposure to environmental and water risk factors. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that younger age groups and lower population density were significant indicators for most environmental risk factors. The results compared to reported disease incidence in Grampian showed that greater exposure to risk factors does not necessarily coincide with greater disease incidence for age groups, particularly for the 0–4 years age group. Further research is required to explain the relationship between exposure and disease incidence.

A high attack rate (17·3/100 000) of meningococcal disease in army recruits in Italy, with 95% of the cases due to serogroup C, constituted the motivating factors to make bivalent serogroup A + C meningococcal vaccination compulsory by law for army recruits starting January 1987. Because the vaccine was given only to the new recruits entering the army, full coverage was not achieved until January 1988. Nearly 900 000 subjects (300 000 yearly) were vaccinated between January 1987 and December 1989. There were no reports of any untoward reactions to the vaccine. Of the 300 000 recruits in service each year, 52, 21, 15, 5 and 4 cases of the disease occurred in 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989, respectively (P < 0·001).

Of the 24 cases occurring since the start of the vaccination, only two (due to serogroup C) were attributable to vaccine failure. The remaining cases were in unvaccinated recruits (15 cases) or were due to serogroups other than A or C (7 cases). The cumulative incidence of meningococcal serogroup C in the 600 000 vaccinated recruits during the period 1988–89 was 0·2/100 000 (1 case amongst 600 000 recruits), while the corresponding figure in the 600 000 unvaccinatred recruits during the period 1985–6 was 11·3/100000 (68 cases amongst 600 000 recruits) (P < 0·001). The protective efficacy of the vaccine in 1987 was 91·2% (12 cases of meningococcal serogroup A and C disease from an average of 150 000 unvaccinated recruits observed for 1 year, and 1 case from the corresponding average of 150 000 vaccinated ones). In 1988 and in 1989 this figure could not be calculated because all recruits were vaccinated.

The incidence of meningitis caused by other serogroups of meningococci remained low, both before and after the mass vaccination campaign.

Four groups of pregnant sows were inoculated with type O1 foot and mouth disease (FMD) oil emulsion vaccine at various times before farrowing and samples of the sow's serum, colostrum and milk, and piglet's serum, collected during the first week after farrowing, were analysed for FMD virus neutralizing activity.

No FMD neutralizing antibodies were detectable in the piglets serum at birth but they were present 1·5 h after suckling and peak titres were reached 1–3 days later. There was no significant difference between the antibody titres of colostrum samples collected from different teats at farrowing. However, similar samples collected 3 days later showed significant (P < 0·005) fore to hind variation. The principal FMD virus neutralizing antibody class present in the sow's serum at farrowing and in their 3-day-old piglets was governed by the inoculation schedule employed. When the last vaccinations were given ≃ 30 days before farrowing (dbf) the predominant FMD virus neutralizing class was IgG. However, when the sows were vaccinated only ≃ 12 dbf the predominant class was IgM. A significant correlation was observed between the sow's serum titres and colostrum titres at farrowing (r = 0·90), and also between sows colostrum titres at farrowing and their 3-day-old piglets serum titres (r = 0·99).

Two events concerned with echo virus 14 infection were reported.

The first, which occurred in Sendai in 1962, was that the intestinal infection with the attenuated poliovirus 1 vaccine was possibly suppressed by naturally occurring infection with echovirus 14. Echovirus 14 was isolated 10 days after the vaccine feeding in six out of nine cases, but poliovirus in only two cases. Six of the vaccinated babies did not exhibit antibody response to the poliovirus 1, while a significant rise of antibody titre against echovirus 14 was seen in as many as eight babies 7 weeks after the vaccination.

The second was a small outbreak of aseptic meningitis due to echovirus 14 in Aomori in 1963. During August to October, echovirus 14 was isolated from the faeces of seven patients with aseptic meningitis. The virus was also isolated from the CSF in one case. The antibody titre against echovirus 14 was detected in all the patients from whom the virus was isolated. In addition, echovirus 14 antibody was detected in four out of fourteen patients with aseptic meningitis from whom no virus was recovered. The onset of serologically positive patients was limited to the months of August to October.

Influenza surveillance in Danish intensive care units (ICUs) was performed during the 2009/10 and 2010/11 influenza seasons to monitor the burden on ICUs. All 44 Danish ICUs reported aggregate data for incidence and point prevalence, and case-based demographical and clinical parameters. Additional data on microbiological testing, vaccination and death were obtained from national registers. Ninety-six patients with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 were recorded in 2009/10; 106 with influenza A and 42 with influenza B in 2010/11. The mean age of influenza A patients was higher in 2010/11 than in 2009/10, 53 vs. 44 years (P = 0·004). No differences in other demographic and clinical parameters were detected between influenza A and B patients. In conclusion, the number of patients with severe influenza was higher in Denmark during the 2010/11 than the 2009/10 season with a shift towards older age groups in influenza A patients. Influenza B caused severe illness and needs consideration in clinical and public health policy.

Infection with potential bacterial enteropathogens was studied prospectively in 94 Swedish travellers. Three faecal samples were collected, regardless of diarrhoeal symptoms, after each of three 1-week stays in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. The specimens were analysed for salmonella, shigella, yersinia, campylobacter and different enterotoxin-producing bacteria. A potential enteropathogen was identified in 30% (28/94) of the participants, i.e. in 26% of the healthy and in 39% of the travellers with diarrhoea. The most common isolates were enterotoxigenic bacteria of different species (14%), salmonella (11%) and campylobacter (7%). By performing enterotoxin-tests on six different colonies from the primary culture of each specimen enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) as well as enterotoxin-producing Klebsiella sp., Citrobacter sp. and Morganella morganii were identified. The latter strains were as prevalent as ETEC. In the 33 participants with diarrhoea enterotoxigenic bacteria (18%) and campylobacter (18%) were the most common isolates. Campylobacter-infected travellers developed symptomatic disease (6/7) significantly (P>0·02) more often than those infected with salmonella (3/10) or enterotoxigenic bacteria (6/13; 2 ETEC, 4 other species).

Examination of a selection of serum samples from adults from two regions of England showed that 50 % of men in the 16–24 years and over 55 years age groups had high titres of antibody to diphtheria toxin (DT). In contrast, only 11% of women aged 16 to over 55 years had high titres of antibody to DT. All human antisera with high anti-DT titres reacted with a synthetic peptide (SP) corresponding to the amino acids 141–157 of DT fragment A, with sera from men aged 35 to over 55 years showing the highest titres. High antibody titres to fragment A paralleled those to SP in both sexes. Titres of antibody to DT fragment B were highest in individuals with high titres to DT. In sera from both sexes immunoglobulin G1 was the predominant subclass reactive with all three antigens. However, both IgG1 and IgG4 and to a lesser extent IgG2 and IgG3 were present in immunoglobulin concentrates.

A cross-sectional bacteriological survey of cattle in West Malaysia revealed 14·4% (32/222) had leptospiral infection. Isolates were obtained from all except one herd with prevalence of infection in herds ranging from 0–44·8%. A small number of buffalo urine samples were examined and all of them were found to be negative. A leptospiral isolate obtained from a bovine kidney proved to be n new scrovar of Leplospira interrogans and the name unipertama was assigned to it. Six other leptospiral serovars were isolated, namely canicola, australis, javanica, ballum, pomona and hardjo. All six serovars were isolated for the first time in cattle in Malaysia.

Cattle in Malaysia appear to be the maintenance host for serovar hardjo. The presence of the other serovars in cattle was probably duo to contact with the maintenance hosts, pigs for serovar pomona and rodents for the other three serovars. It appears that the epidemiology of leptospiral infection in cattle in Malaysia is similar to that reported overseas.