Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) E2 glycoprotein was expressed in an alphavirus based replicon expression system. Vaccinated pigs developed CSFV-specific antibodies. This is the first known use of this technology against CSFV.

Over 12,000 students have attended the Iowa Dairy Story presented at the Dairy Center on the Northeast Iowa Community College Campus, Calmar, Iowa. Targeting third, fourth, and fifth graders, up to eight lessons plus tours of the 250-cow operating dairy, and interactive nutritional information educates them on how milk is created and its’ importance in human growth and development. An average of 1,000+ students each year learn the origin of milk, proper dairy care and handling, milk quality and safety, dairy products, and nutrition. A total of 38 schools have participated in the program. A 2012 teacher survey was conducted to assess program (content, communications, and presenters) as well as 4 pre-trip and 3-post trip lessons (1–10 system; 1 = poor; 5 = avg.; 10 = excellent). Average overall teacher evaluation scores for these categories were: 9.83, 10, 9.92, 9.64, 9.3, 9.82, 9.82, 9.73, 9.73, and 9.64, respectfully. The program rates very high with teachers and students.

Double stranded RNA was synthesized in vitro and was delivered by reverse gavage (RG) compared to traditional intramuscular injection (IM) 3 days prior to challenge with a lethal dose of WSSV in both groups.

The objective of this study was to determine if 5-dog and 3-dog play groups had observable effects on-kennel arousal behavioral levels. This study was performed at the Animal Rescue League (ARL) of Iowa, located in Des Moines. A total of 36 dogs of mixed sex, breed, and age were observed. Two treatments were compared (1) 3-dog groups (n = 24) and (2) 5-dog groups (n = 12). All dogs included in this study had never been exposed to a play group before at the ARL-IA. Each dog was observed before play group (baseline) at 9 am and after play group (after) at 11 am respectively. Play sessions were held between 9 and10 am. Two dogs, one from each treatment, was removed for aggression issues and euthanized. Their data will not be presented. The observer watched one dog at a time, and stood in front of the kennel for 10 s, observing each dog and recording its behavior. Dogs allocated to both treatments during baseline all scored a recording level one, indicating a dog that was not displaying overt signs of behavioral anxiety in the kennel. When looking within categories, there were improvements within this category for in kennel behaviors between baseline and after. In the 5-dog play group, dogs displayed less barking (<30%) and jumping (<25%). The dogs in the 3-dog treatment showed improvements across all measures except for position in kennel, where no change was observed. In conclusion, both treatments showed improvement within recording level one for in-kennel behaviors and a decrease in in-kennel arousal levels post-play group. However, dogs displaying more severe in-kennel behavior(s) should be included in a future study to see if play groups improve in-kennel behavioral arousal levels resulting in improved adoptability and overall dog well-being.

Because some consumers have expressed reservations about the use of carbon monoxide for fresh meat packaging, we hypothesized that providing consumers with factual information about this packaging technology would alleviate consumer fears and biases concerning carbon monoxide, and improve consumer acceptance of carbon monoxide in meat packaging. Consumers were given opportunities to purchase ground beef with three choices of product color (bright red, light red or reddish brown), three hypothetical shelf life differences (3, 5 or 14 days) and three prices ($2.85, $3.05 or $3.25) both before and after information on packaging with carbon monoxide was provided. Following the initial purchasing experiment, the information on carbon monoxide describing the bright red color and extended shelf life achieved by this packaging technology was provided, and the purchasing experiment repeated to test the impact of communicating with consumers about carbon monoxide packaging. The results showed that consumers were willing to pay $0.16 per pound for each level of improved color of ground beef. There was no purchasing preference for 5-day shelf life over 3-day shelf life but consumers were willing to pay $0.36 per pound more for the 14-day shelf life. After information about carbon monoxide packaging as a means of providing improved color and shelf life was provided, willingness to pay declined to $0.05 per pound for color and $0.13 per pound for shelf life improvement. While the willingness to pay was less following information about carbon monoxide, it was still positive for those product attributes. These results suggest that strategies forimprovement of consumer attitudes concerning carbon monoxide packaging may need to do more than simply communicate the advantages of the technology. Extended efforts to educate consumers about the science of the technology may be necessary in order to significantly improve consumer attitudes about carbon monoxide packaging