This study aimed to develop a predictive model to investigate the effect of temperature, pH, NaCl concentration, initial inoculum concentration and time on enterotoxin A (SEA) production by Staphylococcus aureus. Combinations of three levels of temperature (10, 15 and 25°C ), five levels of pH (5.3, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5 and 6.7), five levels of NaCl (0.8, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.2%), three levels of inoculum concentration (0, 3 and 5 log CFU/mL) in brain heart infusion (BHI) broth were studied. Colonies were counted and SEA production was assessed at 24 h intervals for up to 240 h. A probabilistic logistic regression model was used to describe the production of SEA by Staphylococcus aureus. SEA production was influenced by all factors, except NaCl concentration. S. aureus produced SEA in all samples at 25°C, while the temperature of 10°C delayed the growth and SEA production of S. aureus at initial contamination levels of 3 log CFU/mL and 5 log CFU/mL and prevented it at 0 log CFU/mL. The model was statistically and experimentally validated, demonstrating a good fit, with a high percentage agreement, Nagelkerke's R2 and the Hosmer and Lemeshow test for the SEA production model. The experimental validation confirmed the effectiveness of the models for predicting the probability of SEA production by S. aureus in Minas Frescal cheese.

Throughout its range, the Eurasian spoonbill Platalea leucorodia is migratory, but there is a well-documented exception in a population living in the Parc National du Banc d’Arguin in Mauritania. Based on their smaller body size, absence of a yellowish breast band during breeding, and fully black bills, they were assigned subspecies status (Platalea leucorodia balsaci) in 1974. Despite obvious threats (small numbers, and their low-lying breeding islets being under pressure from sea level rise), the Mauritanian spoonbill has not been assessed for inclusion on the IUCN Red List. The nominate subspecies P. leucorodia leucorodia, which joins the Mauritanian subspecies at Banc d’Arguin during the non-breeding season, is categorized as Least Concern. There is genetic and behavioural evidence of gene flow between balsaci and leucorodia, and in December 2023 and 2024, we observed that over half of the spoonbills born at Banc d’Arguin (identifiable by their colour-rings) had the yellow-tipped bill characteristic of leucorodia. As the increase in the marked balsaci population has not resulted in resightings away from Banc d’Arguin in the well-monitored flyway of leucorodia from West Africa to Europe, the introgression of leucorodia genes into balsaci seems to have left the isolating character of residency of the Banc d’Arguin-breeding spoonbills intact. We propose that the subspecies balsaci should be categorized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. We recommend continued monitoring of the breeding population of balsaci, with the inclusion of new studies of morphology and genetics.

The hospitality industry’s commercial activities contribute to many negative environmental impacts; hence, promoting green restaurants is necessary. Considering the prevalent dining-out culture, green restaurants also bear the responsibility of changing people’s dietary habits to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study examines how to increase people’s demand for green restaurants while changing their dietary habits to include more GHG-mitigating ingredients. Using the Attention, Interest, and Desire (AID) model and questionnaire survey, this study found that individuals exhibit a negative correlation between label attention and desire when interest is not considered. This may be attributed to the absence of sustainable social norms and values. In light of this, this study suggests that relevant government authorities could enhance subsidies for green restaurants, enabling them to compete with regular restaurants in terms of pricing, thereby accelerating the integration of green restaurants and GHG-mitigating ingredients into people’s daily lives.

This nationwide retrospective study in Japan aimed to identify risk factors and diagnostic indicators for congenital syphilis (CS) and improve diagnostic accuracy. Data were collected from 230 pregnant women diagnosed with syphilis and their infants between 2015 and 2024. Of these, 49 infants were diagnosed with definite or highly probable CS, while 73 infants with excluded CS served as the control group. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed two significant risk factors for CS: maternal treatment not completed more than 4 weeks before delivery (odds ratio [OR]: 7.20; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.38–37.56; p = 0.02) and elevated total IgM levels in the infant (>20 mg/dL) (OR: 65.31; 95% CI: 4.53–941.39; p = 0.002). When using infant rapid plasma reagin (RPR) ≥1 as a diagnostic indicator, sensitivity was 93.8% (n = 48). In contrast, the infant-to-mother RPR ratio ≥1 showed a lower sensitivity of 34.3%, with fewer cases available for analysis (n = 35) due to limited maternal data. These findings indicate that delayed maternal treatment and high total IgM levels in the infant are significant risk factors, while the infant’s RPR titre serves as a useful diagnostic indicator for CS.

Globally, millions of animals transition through wildlife rehabilitation facilities annually. Data recorded at these facilities can be used to quantitatively assess factors which result in the animals’ admittance, treatment, release, and survival, and how impacts such as high pathogen avian influenza (HPAI) has altered these parameters. Twenty-five years of records of herring gull (Larus argentatus) admittances into RSPCA Mallydams Wood Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, Hastings, UK (between 1999 and 2024) were reviewed to determine admission factors and their impacts on the number of days in care and the likelihood of release. Additionally, for the years 1999 to 2010, data were collected on days of post-release survival and distances from the centre travelled from ringed and released birds. During that 25-year period, 17,334 herring gulls were admitted into the Mallydams Centre with 9,013 released, and 2,796 ringed and released between 1999 and 2010. Release rates varied significantly with the category of problem identified at admission. Wild nesting herring gulls, even without the impact of HPAI, have been declining throughout the UK, and the additional anthropogenic pressures on urban gull populations have resulted in a documented national decline in the species. Rehabilitating and returning birds to the wild has shown to be important both for their animal welfare and population, as well as helping identify the impact of HPAI on local urban populations of all relevant species. Results from this research can be utilised to adapt training and resources at rehabilitation centres and determine euthanasia protocols to optimise animal welfare along with release and survival success.

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, Denmark launched COVIDmeter, a national participatory surveillance platform collecting real-time, self-reported symptoms from a community cohort, aimed to support early signal detection of COVID-like illness. This study describes the community cohort, the reported symptoms among persons testing positive and evaluates COVIDmeter’s performance in detecting trends compared to other established surveillance indicators. A total of 143000 individuals registered as participants, of whom 98% completed at least one weekly questionnaire, resulting in approximately 5.8 million responses over the period from March 2020 to March 2023. Of those who tested positive, the most commonly reported symptoms overall were headache, fatigue, muscle or body aches, cough and fever. Trends in COVID-like illness followed similar patterns to other indicators, with COVID-like illness peaks often preceding increases in incidence and hospital admissions, suggesting early detection potential. The study demonstrated that participatory surveillance can serve as an early detection tool for tracking infection trends, particularly in the early stages of a pandemic. While subject to limitations such as selection bias and self-reporting inaccuracies and participatory symptom surveillance proved to be a rapid, scalable and cost-effective complement to traditional surveillance independent of virus testing, this highlights its relevance for future pandemic preparedness.

The current study represents the second phase of developing the Yangtze Finless Porpoise Welfare Assessment Protocol (YFP-WAP), guided by the Five Domains model (FDM). Based on previously validated indicators, it aimed to create a scoring system to quantify welfare states. Application of the FDM grading system to the YFP-WAF revealed that indicators with higher scores influenced overall outcomes disproportionately, highlighting limitations in the original approach. As a result, a new scoring system was developed to ensure a more balanced contribution from all indicators across domains. The scoring system allows the separate quantification of welfare enhancement and compromise to prevent compensation between positive and negative experiences. It employs the sum of numerical values for each indicator, along with a percentage-based normalisation system to account for variations in indicator numbers across domains, ensuring balanced contributions to final welfare scores. In addition, a preliminary ‘Critical Scoring’ tool was created, which prioritises key indicators to identify urgent welfare issues before full assessment. Through the implementation of a standardised, transparent, and adaptable scoring method, the YFP-WAP aims to support individual-level welfare monitoring to improve the living conditions of captive porpoises and facilitate interventions for ex situ breeding programmes of YFP, and other closely related species. Despite challenges associated with fully capturing the complexity of welfare dynamics, this framework offers a practical and scientifically grounded approach for the assessment of the welfare of Yangtze finless porpoises (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis asiaeorientalis) under human care, that can also be applied or adapted to other cetacean species.

The study systematically investigated the key biological and ecological characteristics of Cyamophila willeti, a major pest of the tree species Styphnolobium japonicum. We focused on its circadian mating rhythm, oviposition preference, and the effects of temperature on population parameters. Using the age-stage, two-sex life table approach, we compared the development, reproduction, and population growth potential under different temperature conditions. Results showed that mating activity peaked at 12:00 and 17:00, with females significantly preferring shoot tips for oviposition. At 25°C, female and male adult longevities were 39.88 ± 0.93 and 46.71 ± 1.69 days, respectively, and the mean fecundity per female was 647.75 ± 52.94 eggs. At 29°C, longevity was significantly reduced to 11.88 ± 4.10 days for females and 13.89 ± 4.31 days for males, while fecundity decreased to 47.63 ± 4.26 eggs. Most nymphs did not develop beyond the fifth instar at 33°C. These findings indicate that the optimal temperature for population growth of C. willeti is around 25°C, whereas high temperatures (≥29°C) significantly suppress survival and reproduction. This study establishes a foundation for monitoring C. willeti and developing effective control strategies.