Last week’s. . .
. . . most read post
- More effective communications. Link.
. . . AHD Bulletin
- Animal Health Digest Bulletin, Sept 23, 2021. Link.
But for a genetic parasite, humans might have tails
Source: New Scientist, September 24, 2021. Link. Bo Xia’s tail bone injury led to a genetic investigation of why apes, and therefore humans, do not have tails. What Xia found in a tail gene called TBXT, an Alu element landed in the middle of an intron. While Alu elements are genetic parasites that copy and paste themselves all over the genome the presence of another Alu element nearby caused a look in the mRNA. Voila’ tails went away.
Microphotography of the foods that feed us
Source: National Geographic, September 23, 2021. Link. Robert Dash views common crops through a scanning electron microscope. He says the images can offer lessons on new techniques for making agriculture more sustainable.
Meat + Poultry podcast: Playin’ it safe
Source: Meat + Poultry, August 5, 2021. Link. An interesting listen for those interested in food safety and protein production in the U.S.
<BQ> . . . the actual ‘nuts and bolts’ that we work from at the Meat Institute is the same act from 1906.”
One Health strategic framework under development at USDA
Source: Federal News Network, via AVMA SmartBrief, September 27, 2021. Link. The USDA is working on what officials call a strategic surveillance framework to create an early warning system to catch potential Covid-19 and other zoonotically originating diseases by keeping on top of animals susceptible to them.
How to talk to clients about science (including bad science)
Source: AAHA NEWStat, September 1, 2021. Link. Deborah Thompson, DVM, emphasizes that it’s not a matter of the client being foolish, it’s a matter of the client not knowing the language, “and it’s our responsibility as clinicians to use the right words” or photo.