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Contagious agalactia (CA), an infectious disease of small ruminants, caused by Mycoplasma agalactiae, is responsible for severe losses to dairy sheep production with substantial socioeconomic impacts on small-scale farmers. The diagnosis of CA is still problematic, time-consuming and requires well-equipped labs for confirmation of outbreaks. Therefore, rapid, accurate and cost-effective diagnostic tests are urgently needed. This work aims to validate a novel Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) test, based on the p40 target gene, for the detection of M. agalactiae in dairy sheep in order to confirm its potential practical use as a rapid and cheap field test. The LAMP system proposed in this study consists of a portable device composed of real-time fluorometer with the automatic interpretation of results displayed in a tablet. A total of 110 milk samples (90 positives and 20 negatives) were analysed to optimise the analysis procedure and to investigate the efficacy and robustness of the LAMP method. All samples were analysed using LAMP and conventional real-time PCR to compare the diagnostic sensitivity of the methods. The sensitivity of the LAMP was 10-fold higher than that of real-time PCR, with a detection limit up to 103 CFU/ml. The LAMP assay was able to detect M. agalactiae in 81 of 90 (90%, 95%CI 0.84-0.96) positive milk samples compared to 69 (77%, 95%CI 0.59-0.95) positive samples detected by real-time PCR; no positive signal occurred for any of the negative milk samples in either test. Therefore, the LAMP assay was found to be more sensitive than real-time PCR, low-cost, easy to perform, fast and not affected by contamination, indicating its potential as an effective diagnostic tool in the field level for the diagnosis of CA.Periodontal diseases are some of the most widespread oral afflictions, and they are labeled as chronic infections caused by the accumulation of bacteria in dental plaque that produces localized inflammation of the periodontium. The use of local drug delivery systems to treat periodontal diseases has received greater attention, because the active substance is targeted directly to the affected area, which minimizes its systemic side effects. Therefore, the purpose of the investigation was to develop and characterize different types of gel formulations-bigel, hydrogel and oleogel-as local delivery systems containing metronidazole (MET), which can be applied to the oral mucosa. The influence of the formulation type on the mechanical, rheological and mucoadhesive properties were examined. Moreover, in vitro release of metronidazole, its ex vivo permeation through buccal porcine mucosa and antimicrobial activity measured by the plate diffusion method were estimated. It was found that the gel formulations obtained were non-Newtonian systems, showing a shear-thinning behavior and thixotropic properties with good textural features such as firmness, compressibility and adhesiveness. Moreover, the preparations designed possessed beneficial mucoadhesive properties. The formulated hydrogels and bigels containing micronized MET were considered as better formulations in terms of drug release and antimicrobial activity compared to commercially available metronidazole ointment. An ex vivo permeation study with the use of porcine buccal mucosa demonstrated that the bigel formulation was characterized by higher initial permeability rate providing a fast therapeutic effect with simultaneous moderate retention in mucosal tissue to decrease the risk of local cytotoxicity.Despite improvements in the prevalence of dental caries, disparities are still observed globally and in the U.S. This study examined whether community water fluoridation (CWF) reduced dental caries disparities in permanent teeth of 10- to 19-year-old schoolchildren in North Carolina. We used cross-sectional data representing K-12 schoolchildren in North Carolina (NC) public schools. A poisson regression model was used to determine whether the association between children’s parental educational attainment and the prevalence of dental caries of children differed by children’s lifetime CWF exposure. We analyzed data on 2075 students. Among the children without any CWF exposure in their life, statistically significant caries disparities by parental educational attainment were observed. Compared to the children of parents with more than high school education, the relative risk for those with a parent with a high school education was 1.16 (95% CI = 1.01, 1.33) and those with less than a high school education was 1.27 (95% CI = 1.02, 1.60). In contrast, these disparities were not observed among children exposed to CWF throughout their lives. Socioeconomic disparities in dental caries were not observed among 10-19-year-old schoolchildren with lifetime CWF exposure. CWF seemed to reduce dental caries disparities.Cohesive and non-cohesive soils show a number of properties typical of a given category. Cohesive soils are characterized by cohesion, and the properties of compacted soils closely depend on moisture at compaction. However, many researchers have found the existence of so-called mixed or transitional soils. Compacted transitional soils, macroscopically recognized as non-cohesive, are characterized by mechanical properties and hydraulic conductivity which are strictly dependent on the moisture content at compaction. The aim of this work is to show the influence of the content of fine particles in fly ash on the variation of California Bearing Ratio (CBR) values as a parameter strictly dependent on initial compaction. The CBR values were interpreted in terms of moisture at compaction, void ratio and intergranular void ratio. selleck chemical Three different research samples were selected with fine contents of 45%, 55% and 70%; all samples corresponded in terms of grading with sandy silt. Fly ash containing only non-plastic fines behaved as cohesive soils despite the lack of plasticity. The CBR values decreased with increasing moisture at compaction or void ratio. The CBR values, plotted as a function of the intergranular void ratio, have lower penetration resistance together with fine content.