Avian influenza (AI), caused by the influenza A virus, has been a global concern for public health. AI outbreaks not only impact the poultry production, but also give rise to a risk in food safety caused by viral contamination of poultry products in the food supply chain. Distinctions in AI outbreak between strains H5N1 and H7N9 indicate that early detection of the AI virus in poultry is crucial for the effective warning and control of AI to ensure food safety. Therefore, the establishment of a poultry surveillance system for food safety by early detection is urgent and critical. In this article, methods to detect AI virus, including current methods recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (Office International des Epizooties, OIE) and novel techniques not commonly used or commercialized are reviewed and evaluated for feasibility of use in the poultry surveillance system. Conventional methods usually applied for the purpose of AI diagnosis face some practical challenges to establishing a comprehensive poultry surveillance program in the poultry supply chain. Diverse development of new technologies can meet the specific requirements of AI virus detection in various stages or scenarios throughout the poultry supply chain where onsite, rapid and ultrasensitive methods are emphasized. Systematic approaches or integrated methods ought to be employed according to the application scenarios at every stage of the poultry supply chain to prevent AI outbreaks.

The pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) is one of the most serious lepidopteran pests of cotton in the world. This pest invaded China at the onset of the 20th century, possibly through repeated introductions from several different locations worldwide. In this paper, we describe different behavioral parameters of this Hubei P. gossypiella strain under laboratory and field conditions. Using an infra-red video recorder, we observed (nocturnal) emergence, flight and mating activities, and oviposition patterns. Moth emergence started from 13:00 and continued up till 23:00. Under laboratory and field conditions, 2-7-d-old moths initiated flight around sunset, peaked 50 min later and gradually declined until 04:00. Although mating started immediately after darkness (i.e., 20:00), mating behavior was most intense from 23:00 to 03:40. Oviposition also showed distinct time-related patterns, with approx. 70% eggs laid between 20:00 and 22:00. In the studies of the relationship between flight and oviposition, the duration of flight had an effect on oviposition. The 1-d-old moths flown for 6 and 12 h began oviposition earlier than the unflown ones, and the 6-h flight had no effect on the egg production. However, the longevity of the flown moths was shortened after flight. In addition, the peaks of oviposition for the flown moths were advanced 2-3 d. The age when the moths flied affected the oviposition of adult moths. The earlier the moths started to fly after emergence, the greater the fecundity they had. The average egg production of moths flown for 24 h was less than that of non-flown moths which were of the same age. Both flight and delay in mating could advance the oviposition peak. Our study provides detailed insights in nocturnal activities and the reproductive biology of local P. gossypiella populations, which could be employed to fine-tune current pest management programs in China.

Known as the “king of spices”, black pepper (Piper nigrum), a perennial crop of the tropics, is economically the most important and the most widely used spice crop in the world. To understand its suitable bioclimatic distribution, maximum entropy based on ecological niche modeling was used to model the bioclimatic niches of the species in its Asian range. Based on known occurrences, bioclimatic areas with higher probabilities are mainly located in the eastern and western coasts of the Indian Peninsula, the east of Sumatra Island, some areas in the Malay Archipelago, and the southeast coastal areas of China. Some undocumented places were also predicted as suitable areas. According to the jackknife procedure, the minimum temperature of the coldest month, the mean monthly temperature range, and the precipitation of the wettest month were identified as highly effective factors in the distribution of black pepper and could possibly account for the crop’s distribution pattern. Such climatic requirements inhibited this species from dispersing and gaining a larger geographical range.

Two Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates (Kpc1 and Kpc2) were obtained from liver samples of seven dead chickens and identified with Vitek-32 automated identification system. Antimicrobial susceptibilities were determined by the microdilution broth method. Detection of genes encoding class A b-lactamases was performed by PCR amplification, and cloning of the ESBL gene was by plasmid restriction and fragments ligation. Conjugation assay, transformation experiments and plasmid profile analysis were performed. The incompatibility group of ESBL-carrying plasmid was determined by the PCR-based replicon typing method. Lastly, the genetic environment was analysed by direct sequencing of the DNA surrounding the ESBL gene. The genes associated with tetracycline and gentamicin resistance were also sought by PCR. The results revealed that the ESBL phenotype-negative strain Kpc2 only showed resistance to ampicillin, amoxicillin, tetracycline, and doxycycline and carried blaTEM-1 and tet(A) genes. The ESBL-producing strain Kpc1 exhibited multidrug resistant phenotype and harbored blaTEM-1, blaCTX-M-14, tet(A), tet(B), and rmtB genes. K. pneumoniae Kpc1 contained four plasmids with molecular sizes of approximately 59, 6.9, 2.8, and 1.6 kb, but only a 59-kb plasmid, carried blaTEM-1 and blaCTX-M-14 genes, was observed in its transconjugant. The incompatibility group of plasmid carrying blaCTX-M-14 gene could not be determined. The blaCTX-M-14 gene was flanked upstream by an ISEcp1 insertion sequence and downstream by an IS903 element. This work shows that CTX-M-14 is present in K. pneumoniae isolates from chickens in China. The blaCTX-M-14 gene was associated with an upstream ISEcp1 insertion sequence. Our results underline the need for continuous surveillance of the prevalence and evolution of this CTX-M-type b-lactamase in China.