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\"This book explains how animals shape our lives and our health, providing evidence that a \"One Health\" approach is the only logical methodology for advancing human health in the future\"--Provided by publisher.

Part 2 of this narrative review outlines the theoretical and practical bases for assessing the efficacy and effectiveness of conventional medicines and homeopathic products. Known and postulated mechanisms of action are critically reviewed. The evidence for clinical efficacy of products in both categories, in the form of practitioner experience, meta-analysis and systematic reviews of clinical trial results, is discussed. The review also addresses problems and pitfalls in assessing data, and the ethical and negative aspects of pharmacology and homeopathy in veterinary medicine.

For many years after its invention around 1796, homeopathy was widely used in people and later in animals. Over the intervening period (1796-2016) pharmacology emerged as a science from Materia Medica (medicinal materials) to become the mainstay of veterinary therapeutics. There remains today a much smaller, but significant, use of homeopathy by veterinary surgeons. Homeopathic products are sometimes administered when conventional drug therapies have not succeeded, but are also used as alternatives to scientifically based therapies and licensed products. The principles underlying the veterinary use of drug-based and homeopathic products are polar opposites; this provides the basis for comparison between them. This two-part review compares and contrasts the two treatment forms in respect of history, constituents, methods of preparation, known or postulated mechanisms underlying responses, the legal basis for use and scientific credibility in the 21st century. Part 1 begins with a consideration of why therapeutic products actually work or appear to do so.

Colostrum is the milk produced during the first few days after birth and contains high levels of immunoglobulins, antimicrobial peptides, and growth factors. Colostrum is important for supporting the growth, development, and immunologic defence of neonates. Colostrum is naturally packaged in a combination that helps prevent its destruction and maintain bioactivity until it reaches more distal gut regions and enables synergistic responses between protective and reparative agents present within it. Bovine colostrum been used for hundreds of years as a traditional or complementary therapy for a wide variety of ailments and in veterinary practice. Partly due to concerns about the side effects of standard Western medicines, there is interest in the use of natural-based products of which colostrum is a prime example. Numerous preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated therapeutic benefits of bovine colostrum for a wide range of indications, including maintenance of wellbeing, treatment of medical conditions and for animal husbandry. Articles within this Special Issue of Nutrients cover the effects and use bovine colostrum and in this introductory article, we describe the main constituents, quality control and an overview of the use of bovine colostrum in health and disease.

As white-nose syndrome spreads, researchers are trialling ways to stop colonies from collapsing.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small endogenous RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally by targeting either the 3′ untranslated or coding regions of genes. They have been reported to play key roles in a wide range of biological processes. The recent remarkable developments of transcriptomics technologies, especially next-generation sequencing technologies and advanced bioinformatics tools, allow more in-depth exploration of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), including miRNAs. These technologies have offered great opportunities for a deeper exploration of miRNA involvement in farm animal diseases, as well as livestock productivity and welfare. In this review, we provide an overview of the current knowledge of miRNA roles in major farm animal diseases with a particular focus on diseases of economic importance. In addition, we discuss the steps and future perspectives of using miRNAs as biomarkers and molecular therapy for livestock disease management as well as the challenges and opportunities for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of miRNAs related to disease pathogenesis.

Several studies have been conducted using fungi in the biological control of domestic animals and humans. In this respect, a large amount of research has been undertaken to understand the particularities of each fungus used. These fungi have been demonstrated to act on all classes of helminthes. Therefore, they should not only be called nematophagous but also helmintophagous. Evidence of enzymatic action has also revealed their mechanism of action, as well as potential metabolites that could be synthesized as bioactive molecules. Cultural barriers to the use of fungi should be broken down, since the impact on the environment is minimal. In this context, much is already known about the mechanism of interaction of these organisms with their ‘targets’. Recent research has pointed to the search for substances derived from nematophagous fungi that have demonstrated their ovicidal and/or larvicidal activity, thus being a global premise to be studied further. Crude extracts derived from nematophagous fungi of predator and ovicidal groups reduce the amount of larvae of gastrointestinal nematodes and prevent the hatching of their eggs, since they have been demonstrated to act with extracellular proteases and other enzymes. Furthermore, the activity of these enzymes has begun to be explored regarding their possible interaction with the exoskeleton of arthropods, which could emerge as an alternative method of tick control. Finally, it should be clear that nematophagous fungi in general are ‘old friends’ that are ready to the ‘fight with our old enemies’, the gastrointestinal helminth parasites harmful to human and animal health.

Dogs and cats in Brazil serve as primary hosts for a considerable number of parasites, which may affect their health and wellbeing. These may include endoparasites (e.g., protozoa, cestodes, trematodes, and nematodes) and ectoparasites (i.e., fleas, lice, mites, and ticks). While some dog and cat parasites are highly host-specific (e.g., Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Felicola subrostratus for cats, and Angiostrongylus vasorum and Trichodectes canis for dogs), others may easily switch to other hosts, including humans. In fact, several dog and cat parasites (e.g., Toxoplasma gondii , Dipylidium caninum , Ancylostoma caninum , Strongyloides stercoralis , and Toxocara canis ) are important not only from a veterinary perspective but also from a medical standpoint. In addition, some of them (e.g., Lynxacarus radovskyi on cats and Rangelia vitalii in dogs) are little known to most veterinary practitioners working in Brazil. This article is a compendium on dog and cat parasites in Brazil and a call for a One Health approach towards a better management of some of these parasites, which may potentially affect humans. Practical aspects related to the diagnosis, treatment, and control of parasitic diseases of dogs and cats in Brazil are discussed.

Ticks and tick-borne diseases pose a growing threat to human and animal health, which has brought great losses to livestock production. With the continuous expansion of human activities and the development of natural resources, there are more and more opportunities for humans to contract ticks and tick-borne pathogens. Therefore, research on ticks and tick-borne diseases is of great significance. This paper reviews recent progress on tick-borne bacterial diseases, viral diseases, and parasitic diseases in China, which provides a theoretical foundation for the research of tick-borne diseases.

Key Points Since the initial discovery, over a decade and a half ago, that genetically engineered DNA can be delivered in vaccine form and can elicit an immune response, there has been a great deal of progress in understanding the basic biology of this platform. Data from preclinical studies using DNA vaccine technology has generated a large amount of excitement, because protective immunity was induced by platforms against a broad range of virus families. The initial development of DNA vaccines in larger animals and human studies showed that DNA is well tolerated and has an excellent safety record. Clinical studies of first-generation vaccines, primarily consisting of naked DNA, showed that this platform induces only low levels of immunity. The status of these vaccines as a stand-alone platform was thus jeopardized, demonstrating the need for improvements in delivery technology and continued optimization of 'prime-boost' strategies. Recent studies have generated new leads from basic research on insert design, RNA structure, variation in codon usage, and leader-sequence optimizations — all of which improve the immune potency of DNA vaccines. New formulations, including lipids and polymers, and new delivery devices, including the gene gun, skin-delivery devices and, most recently, electroporation technology, seem to be promising in preclinical models and will be followed closely in the clinic. Strong molecular adjuvants that are included in plasmid formulations seem to be important and are particularly well suited for further improving immune potency of DNA vaccines and for controlling the phenotype of the induced immune response. In the past 3 years, four DNA vaccine or immune therapy products have been licensed in the veterinary arena for diverse species, including salmon, pigs, dogs and horses. These products are the first validation of the commercial viability of the DNA vaccine platform and illustrate strong progress in this area. Progress in the DNA platform will continue to be an exciting and highly productive adventure, illustrating the best in academic and translational science and cooperation between industry, the regulatory authorities, funding agencies and academicians. In the past 16 years, there has been much excitement in the area of DNA vaccine development for a range of medical conditions. The recent licensure of DNA vaccines for veterinary use bodes well for applications in humans, in which progress has been slower. Since the discovery, over a decade and a half ago, that genetically engineered DNA can be delivered in vaccine form and elicit an immune response, there has been much progress in understanding the basic biology of this platform. A large amount of data has been generated in preclinical model systems, and more sustained cellular responses and more consistent antibody responses are being observed in the clinic. Four DNA vaccine products have recently been approved, all in the area of veterinary medicine. These results suggest a productive future for this technology as more optimized constructs, better trial designs and improved platforms are being brought into the clinic.