Paving the way for quality assured, decentralised point-of-care testing for infectious disease in primary care - Real world lessons from remote Australia.

Introduction: Decentralized molecular testing for infectious disease diagnosis at the point-of-care (POC) is critical to address inequities in access to timely, informed health care. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the demand, development and adoption of POC tests for infectious diseases globally. This has provided opportunities to maximize the individual benefits and public health impact of POC testing, particularly in remote and resource-limited primary care settings.

Emerging Dilemmas in the Age of Resistance: The Case of Sexually Transmitted Infections.

The stage is set for a new era of precariousness in modern medicine, driven by the increasing failure of a key pharmaceutical pillar-antimicrobials. In the context of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), the rise of antimicrobial resistance is introducing urgent questions around what might constitute "best practice" in a rapidly evolving scene, including the value of asymptomatic screening (test and treat), and the consequent downstream collateral damage emerging from over-use of our diminishingly effective antimicrobial resources. Drawing on interviews with clinicians, experts, and industry representatives, we examine resistance as a site of emerging and co-constitutive moral, temporal, and economic dilemmas.

Pre-market health systems barriers and enablers to infectious diseases point-of-care diagnostics in Australia: qualitative interviews with key informants.

Background: There exist multiple regulatory layers for point-of-care (POC) testing to be implemented within Australia. This qualitative analysis sought to understand the pre-market barriers and facilitators to scale-up infectious diseases POC testing in primary care settings at the national level.

Methods: Key informant interviews were undertaken with people (n = 30) working in high- level positions relevant to infectious diseases POC testing in Australia.

Treatment 'cultures', sexually transmitted infections and the rise of antimicrobial resistance.

In this article, we examine the current management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), in the context of rising antimicrobial resistance (AMR), through the lens of 'treatment cultures'. Prevailing treatment cultures-including the prominence of syndromic care for STIs-foster certain possibilities and foreclose others, with important consequences for countering AMR. Drawing on qualitative interviews with STI professionals, experts and industry representatives, we unpack these stakeholders' accounts of STI treatment cultures, drawing out the importance of socio-historical (i.

Viability of Chlamydia trachomatis in different anatomical sites - a systematic review & meta-analysis.

Background: Modern assays for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) rely on nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) of DNA or ribosomal RNA. However, it is also known that both viable ("living") & non-viable ("dead") CT can be detected by NAAT. Multiple laboratory techniques to measure CT viability have emerged.

The cost-effectiveness of integrating simplified HCV testing into HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and treatment services among men who have sex with men in Taiwan.

Background: Simplified hepatitis C virus (HCV) testing integrated into existing HIV services has the potential to improve HCV diagnoses and treatment. We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of integrating different simplified HCV testing strategies into existing HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and treatment services among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Taiwan.

Methods: Mathematical modeling was used to assess the cost-effectiveness of integrating simplified HCV tests (point-of-care antibody, reflex RNA, or immediate point-of-care RNA) with HCV treatment into existing HIV prevention and care for MSM from a healthcare perspective.

External Quality Assessment (EQA) for SARS-CoV-2 RNA Point-of-Care Testing in Primary Healthcare Services: Analytical Performance over Seven EQA Cycles.

In April 2020, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander COVID-19 Point-of-Care (POC) Testing Program was initiated to improve access to rapid molecular-based SARS-CoV-2 detection in First Nations communities. At capacity, the program reached 105 health services across Australia. An external review estimated the program contributed to averting between 23,000 and 122,000 COVID-19 infections within 40 days of the first infection in a remote community, equating to cost savings of between AU$337 million and AU$1.

MicroRNAs: exploring their role in farm animal disease and mycotoxin challenges.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) serve as key regulators in gene expression and play a crucial role in immune responses, holding a significant promise for diagnosing and managing diseases in farm animals. This review article summarizes current research on the role of miRNAs in various farm animal diseases and mycotoxicosis, highlighting their potential as biomarkers and using them for mitigation strategies. Through an extensive literature review, we focused on the impact of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of several farm animal diseases, including viral and bacterial infections and mycotoxicosis.

Impact of simplified HCV diagnostic strategies on the HCV epidemic among men who have sex with men in the era of HIV oral pre-exposure prophylaxis in Taiwan: a modelling study.

Introduction: Simplified hepatitis C virus (HCV) diagnostic strategies have the potential to improve HCV diagnoses and treatment. We aimed to investigate the impact of simplified HCV diagnostic strategies on HCV incidence and its effect on HCV diagnosis and treatment among men who have sex with men (MSM) regardless of HIV status and use of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in Taiwan.

Methods: A compartmental deterministic model was developed to describe the natural history of HCV disease progression, the HCV care cascade and the HIV status and PrEP using among MSM.

Supplementing low protein diets with methionine or threonine during mixed Eimeria challenge.

We investigated the effects of supplementing low protein diets with methionine (Met) or threonine (Thr) during a mixed Eimeria (consisting of E. acervulina, E. maxima and E.

Effects of expeller soybean on growth performance, amino acid digestibility and intestinal integrity.

Expeller soybean (ESB) is a widely used protein source in broiler diets due to its high amino acid digestibility. However, improper heat processing of ESB can negatively affect nutrient digestion, absorption, and metabolism leading to decreased growth performance. The study aimed to investigate the impact of varying processing temperatures on growth performance, amino acid digestibility (AID), and intestinal integrity using 3 different commercial batches of ESB processed at distinct temperatures.

We have reached single-visit testing, diagnosis, and treatment for hepatitis C infection, now what?

Introduction: Progress toward hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination is impeded by low testing and treatment due to the current diagnostic pathway requiring multiple visits leading to loss to follow-up. Point-of-care testing technologies capable of detecting current HCV infection in one hour are a 'game-changer.' These tests enable diagnosis and treatment in a single visit, overcoming the barrier of multiple visits that frequently leads to loss to follow-up.

Research Note: Effect of dietary xylo-oligosaccharide on growth performance, intestinal histomorphology, and specific cecal bacteria in broiler chickens.

This study was conducted to evaluate the prebiotic effect of xylo-oligosaccharide (XOS) supplemented in a corn-soybean meal (SBM) based conventional diet on growth performance, intestinal histomorphology, and quantification of specific bacteria in the ceca of broilers. A total of 240 d of hatch Cobb 500 male broiler chicks were randomly assigned to 4 dietary treatments (corn-SBM-based control diet) containing 0, 0.05, 0.

Osteoimmunology: A Link between Gastrointestinal Diseases and Skeletal Health in Chickens.

Bone serves as a multifunctional organ in avian species, giving structural integrity to the body, aiding locomotion and flight, regulating mineral homeostasis, and supplementing calcium for eggshell formation. Furthermore, immune cells originate and reside in the bone marrow, sharing a milieu with bone cells, indicating a potential interaction in functions. In avian species, the prevalence of gastrointestinal diseases can alter the growth and the immune response, which costs a great fortune to the poultry industry.

Oral meloxicam given as an ancillary treatment at respiratory disease diagnosis was not associated with growth, clinical scores, or ultrasound scores in preweaned dairy calves.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of a single dose of oral meloxicam as an ancillary therapy to an antibiotic given at the time of respiratory disease identification on average daily gain (ADG), behavioral attitude, clinical respiratory, and lung ultrasound scores in preweaned dairy calves.

Animals: 215 male and female Holstein, Jersey, and crossbred preweaned calves enrolled between 1 and 14 days of age at study enrollment on a single commercial dairy in the western US.

Methods: The study took place from March 4, 2021, to November 21, 2021.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of the sources of Campylobacter in poultry production (preharvest) and their relative contributions to the microbial risk of poultry meat.

A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to idetnify the relative contributions of the sources of Campylobacter in poultry live production to Campylobacter prevalence of broiler meat. The keywords of Campylobacter, prevalence, live production, and broiler were used in Google Scholar to address the research interest. A total of 16,800 citations were identified, and 63 relevant citations were included in the meta-analysis after applying predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Reinfection incidence and risk among people treated for recent hepatitis C virus infection.

Objective: Reinfection poses a challenge to hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination. This analysis assessed incidence of, and factors associated with reinfection among people treated for recent HCV (duration of infection <12 months).

Methods: Participants treated for recent HCV (primary infection or reinfection) in an international randomized trial were followed at 3-monthly intervals for up to 2 years to assess for reinfection.

National Surveillance of Home-Based HIV Testing Among Australian Gay and Bisexual Men, 2018-2020: Uptake After Commercial Availability of HIV Self-Tests.

HIV self-testing allows people to collect samples and test themselves at home, addressing known barriers to facility-based testing. We aimed to measure the uptake of home HIV testing among Australian gay and bisexual men (GBM). Using national cross-sectional data from the Australian Gay Community Periodic Surveys, we assessed trends in home HIV testing among non-HIV positive GBM between 2018 and 2020.

Hepatitis C virus transmission between eight high-income countries among men who have sex with men: a whole-genome analysis.

Background: Microelimination of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) among men who have sex with men (MSM) could be complicated by continuous external introductions and the emergence of phylogenetic clusters harbouring clinically significant resistance-associated substitutions (RAS). To investigate international clustering and the prevalence and transmission of RAS, we aimed to analyse whole-genome HCV sequences from MSM with a recently acquired infection who participated in a large, international HCV treatment trial.

Methods: For this whole-genome analysis, we obtained HCV sequences from 128 MSM who had acquired HCV within the past 12 months and were participating in the REACT trial.

The effects of arginine and branched-chain amino acid supplementation to reduced-protein diet on intestinal health, cecal short-chain fatty acid profiles, and immune response in broiler chickens challenged with Eimeria spp.

We investigated the effects of supplementing arginine (Arg) and branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) in broilers fed reduced-protein diets and challenged with Eimeria spp. All birds were fed the same starter diet meeting Cobb 500 nutrient specifications from d 1 to 9. Four grower diets: positive control (PC) with 20.

Short-term exposure to fumonisins and deoxynivalenol, on broiler growth performance and cecal Salmonella load during experimental Salmonella Enteritidis infection.

Fumonisins (FUM) and deoxynivalenol (DON) are two common mycotoxins in poultry feed. Salmonella enterica ser. Enteritidis (S.

Subclinical doses of dietary fumonisins and deoxynivalenol cause cecal microbiota dysbiosis in broiler chickens challenged with .

Fusarium toxins are one of the most common contaminants in poultry diets. The co-occurrence of fumonisins (FUM) and deoxynivalenol (DON), even at a subclinical dose, negatively affects the growth performance, intestinal integrity and induce subclinical necrotic enteritis in broiler chickens. Loss of gut integrity can be expected to alter the intestinal microbiota's composition.