A Review of Potential Public Health Impacts Associated With the Global Dairy Sector

The application of omics technologies for understanding tropical plants-based bioactive compounds in ruminants: a review

Finding out how diet impacts health and metabolism while concentrating on the functional qualities and bioactive components of food is the crucial scientific objective of nutritional research. The complex relationship between metabolism and nutrition could be investigated with cutting-edge "omics" and bioinformatics techniques. This review paper provides an overview of the use of omics technologies in nutritional research, with a particular emphasis on the new applications of transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and genomes in functional and biological activity research on ruminant livestock and products in the tropical regions. A wealth of knowledge has been uncovered regarding the regulation and use of numerous physiological and pathological processes by gene, mRNA, protein, and metabolite expressions under various physiological situations and guidelines. In particular, the components of meat and milk were assessed using omics research utilizing the various methods of transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and genomes. The goal of this review is to use omics technologies-which have been steadily gaining popularity as technological tools-to develop new nutritional, genetic, and leadership strategies to improve animal products and their quality control. We also present an overview of the new applications of omics technologies in cattle production and employ nutriomics and foodomics technologies to investigate the microbes in the rumen ecology. Thus, the application of state-of-the-art omics technology may aid in our understanding of how species and/or breeds adapt, and the sustainability of tropical animal production, in the long run, is becoming increasingly important as a means of mitigating the consequences of climate change.

Potential Common Mechanisms of Cytotoxicity Induced by Organophosphorus Pesticides via NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation

The Multi-Threat Medical Countermeasure (MTMC) technique is crucial for developing common biochemical signaling pathways, molecular mediators, and cellular processes. This study revealed that the Nod-like receptor 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome pathway may be a significant contributor to the cytotoxicity induced by various organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs). The study demonstrated that exposure to six different types of OPPs (paraoxon, dichlorvos, fenthion, dipterex, dibrom, and dimethoate) led to significant cytotoxicity in BV2 cells, which was accompanied by increased expression of NLRP3 inflammasome complexes (NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1) and downstream inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-18), in which the order of cytotoxicity was dichlorvos > dipterex > dibrom > paraoxon > fenthion > dimethoate, based on the IC50 values of 274, 410, 551, 585, 2,158, and 1,527,566 μM, respectively. The findings suggest that targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway could be a potential approach for developing broad-spectrum antitoxic drugs to combat multi-OPPs-induced toxicity. Moreover, inhibition of NLRP3 efficiently protected the cells against cytotoxicity induced by these six OPPs, and the expression of NLRP3, ASC, Caspase-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 decreased accordingly. The order of NLRP3 affinity for OPPs was dimethoate > paraoxon > dichlorvos > dibrom > (fenthion and dipterex) based on K D values of 89.8, 325, 1,460, and 2,690 μM, respectively. Furthermore, the common molecular mechanism of NLRP3-OPPs was clarified by the presence of toxicity effector groups (benzene ring, nitrogen/oxygen-containing functional group); =O, -O-, or =S (active) groups; and combination residues (Gly271, Asp272). This finding provided valuable insights into exploring the common mechanisms of multiple threats and developing effective therapeutic strategies to prevent OPPs poisoning.

The Impact of Metal and Heavy Metal Concentrations on Vancomycin Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus within Milk Produced by Cattle Farms and the Health Risk Assessment in Kurdistan Province, Iran

In today's food landscape, the paramount focus is on ensuring food safety and hygiene. Recognizing the pivotal role of the environment and its management in safeguarding animal products, this study explores vancomycin resistance in raw milk from livestock farms in the Kurdistan province and its correlation with metal and heavy metal. One hundred and sixty raw milk samples were collected from various locations, with heavy metal concentrations analyzed using ICP-MS. Identification of Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin resistance testing were conducted through culture and the Kirby-Bauer method. This study investigates the relationship between resistance and heavy metal levels, revealing that 8.75% of milk samples contained Staphylococcus aureus, with 28.58% exhibiting vancomycin resistance. Significant variations in arsenic, iron, zinc, sodium, and aluminum concentrations were observed between resistant and sensitive samples (p < 0.01). The increase in arsenic, iron, and aluminum, along with the decrease in zinc, demonstrated a significant association with vancomycin resistance (p < 0.001). Levels of lead, cadmium, mercury, zinc, and iron exceeded permissible limits (p < 0.05). The Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) for cadmium indicated a high non-carcinogenic risk, while the Target Risk (TR) for arsenic fell within the carcinogenic range. Accumulation of heavy metals has the potential to impact antibiotic resistance in milk, underscoring the imperative to control arsenic residues for national safety.

Eukaryotic Infections in Dairy Calves: Impacts, Diagnosis, and Strategies for Prevention and Control

Eukaryotic infections are common among dairy calves and can have significant impacts on their health and growth rates. Fungal infections caused by Aspergillus fumigatus, Trichophyton verrucosum, and Candida albicans can cause respiratory diseases, dermatophytosis, and diarrhea, respectively. Protozoan parasites, including Cryptosporidium parvum, Giardia duodenalis, and Eimeria spp., are also common in dairy calves. C. parvum is highly contagious and can cause severe diarrhea and dehydration, while Giardia duodenalis can lead to poor growth and is transmissible to humans through contaminated food or water. Eimeria spp. can cause coccidiosis and lead to reduced growth rates, poor feed conversion, and death. The common helminthic infections in dairy calves include Ostertagia ostertagi, Cooperia spp., Fasciola hepatica, and Strongyloides papillosus. These parasitic infections significantly impact calf health, growth, and dairy industry productivity. Diagnosis of these infections can be made through fecal samples using microscopy or molecular methods. However, diagnosis of the infections can be challenging and requires a combination of clinical signs and laboratory tests such as culture and PCR. Preventing and controlling eukaryotic infections in dairy calves requires several measures. Good hygiene and sanitation practices, proper management strategies, and timely treatment of affected animals are important. It is also necessary to avoid overcrowding and consider vaccination against ringworm. Further research is needed to better understand the epidemiology and characterization of eukaryotic infections in dairy calves, which will help in the development of more effective prevention and control strategies. In general, good hygiene practices, appropriate management strategies, and timely treatment of affected animals are crucial in preventing and controlling the infections, ensuring the health and well-being of dairy calves.

Differences in gut metagenomes between dairy workers and community controls: a cross-sectional study

Background

As a nexus of routine antibiotic use and zoonotic pathogen presence, the livestock farming environment is a potential hotspot for the emergence of zoonotic diseases and antibiotic resistant bacteria. Livestock can further facilitate disease transmission by serving as intermediary hosts for pathogens as they undergo evolution prior to a spillover event. In light of this, we are interested in characterizing the microbiome and resistome of dairy workers, whose exposure to the livestock farming environment places them at risk for facilitating community transmission of antibiotic resistant genes and emerging zoonotic diseases.

Results

Using shotgun sequencing, we investigated differences in the taxonomy, diversity and gene presence of the human gut microbiome of 10 dairy farm workers and 6 community controls, supplementing these samples with additional publicly available gut metagenomes. We observed greater abundance of tetracycline resistance genes and prevalence of cephamycin resistance genes in dairy workers' metagenomes, and lower average gene diversity. We also found evidence of commensal organism association with plasmid-mediated tetracycline resistance genes in both dairy workers and community controls (including Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Ligilactobacillus animalis, and Simiaoa sunii). However, we did not find significant differences in the prevalence of resistance genes or virulence factors overall, nor differences in the taxonomic composition of dairy worker and community control metagenomes.

Conclusions

This study presents the first metagenomics analysis of United States dairy workers, providing insights into potential risks of exposure to antibiotics and pathogens in animal farming environments. Previous metagenomic studies of livestock workers in China and Europe have reported increased abundance and carriage of antibiotic resistance genes in livestock workers. While our investigation found no strong evidence for differences in the abundance or carriage of antibiotic resistance genes and virulence factors between dairy worker and community control gut metagenomes, we did observe patterns in the abundance of tetracycline resistance genes and the prevalence of cephamycin resistance genes that is consistent with previous work.

Prediction of effect of wind speed on air pollution level using machine learning technique

Air pollution is one of the most challenging issues poses serious threat to human health and environment. The increasing influx of population in metropolitan cities has further worsened the situation. Quantifying the air pollution experimentally is quite a challenging task as it depends on many parameters viz., wind speed, wind temperature, relative humidity, temperature etc. It requires the investment of huge money and manpower for controlling air pollution. Machine learning technique-based computer modelling reduces both of the parameters. In the present work, the dependence of air pollution level on wind speed and temperature has been taken up using machine learning in the form of ANN and LSTM model. The recorded data of air pollution level (PM2.5) is collected from a measurement station of Lucknow city situated at Central School, CPCB. The data is used in an Artificial Neural based network and in an LSTM model to predict suitably the level of air pollution for a known value of average wind speed and temperature without experimental measurements. LSTM model is found to predict the pollution level better than ANN for the developed ANN networks.

Respiratory Findings in Herd Dairy Farmworkers from the Nile Delta Region

BACKGROUND

Dairy farmworkers are exposed to a variety of respiratory hazards, including organic and inorganic dust, allergens, disinfectants, and gases emitted by cows and their wastes resulting in a range of adverse health effects. In Egypt, large herd dairy farms (>1000 cattle) are growing in both size and number and thereby more workers are employed. However, there is a lack of studies on the respiratory health status of these workers. Accordingly, the present study aimed to determine the prevalence of respiratory problems, assess ventilatory functions, and highlight the predictors of abnormal spirometry patterns among Egyptian dairy farmworkers.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was carried out on 282 male workers, of whom 141 were dairy farmworkers and the other 141, not involved in livestock handling, were enrolled as controls. Full history, clinical examination, and ventilatory function measurements were done for both groups.

RESULTS

Dairy farmworkers had a significantly higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms (throat irritation and/or sore throat, cough, sputum production, and difficulty breathing) than controls as well as bronchitis, wheezes on chest auscultation, and obstructive ventilatory patterns. Older age (>37 years), longer smoking duration (>10 years), and longer working duration (>4 years) were independent predictors of abnormal spirometry patterns, particularly obstructive patterns, in dairy farmworkers.

CONCLUSIONS

Large herd dairy farms, despite being open and naturally ventilated, are hazardous to workers' respiratory health. Hence, the provision of personal protective equipment, periodic spirometry examinations as well as mandatory breaks and days off, are highly urged.

Combination of chemical coagulation and membrane-based separation for dairy wastewater treatment

An important factor resulted from the ascension of the milk and milk-based by-products production is many effluents directly released into the environment. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of the combination of the chemical coagulation, with ferric chloride as a coagulant, and the membrane separation processes (MSP) and reverse osmosis (RO) processes in the treatment of effluents from a powdered milk dairy industry. To evaluate the effectiveness of the integration of these mechanisms, the characterization of the effluents was carried out through Total Nitrogen (Ntotal), Total Organic Carbon (TOC), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), color, pH, and turbidity analysis. Regarding the treatments with ferric chloride, the Ntotal removal was up to 55.7% (concentration of 1.2 g L- 1) and the color up to 50% (0.7 g L- 1). For the MSP and RO treatments, the color removal was up to 100% (1st RO), turbidity up to 100% (1st RO), COD up to 98.7% (3rd RO), and TOC up to 96.7% (3rd RO). Finally, the integration of the chemical coagulation and MSP processes was efficient for the treatment of dairy industry wastewater and provides the return of water in appropriate characteristics according to legislation.

Quality and health dimensions of pulse-based dairy alternatives with chickpeas, lupins and mung beans

Health and environmental issues regarding dairy consumption have been highlighted in recent years leading to tremendous consumer demand for plant-based substitutes. In this review, we focused on quality and health dimensions of pulse-based dairy alternatives (PuBDA) using chickpeas, lupins and mung beans. Appraisal of existing documents show that there is limited information on PuBDA with the said pulses compared to similar materials such as soy and pea. Most of the studies focused on milk or fermented milks, either in full or partial substitution of the dairy ingredients with the pulses. Issues on stability, sensory properties, shelf life and nutritional quality were underlined by existing literature. Although it was emphasized in some reports the health potential through the bioactive components, there is scarce data on clinical studies showing actual health benefits of the featured PuBDA in this paper. There is also a scant number of these PuBDA that are currently available in the market and in general, these products have inferior nutritional quality compared to the animal-based counterparts. Technological innovations involving physical, biological and chemical techniques can potentially address the quality problems in the use of chickpeas, lupins, and mung beans as raw materials in dairy alternatives.

Metagenomic insights into the antibiotic resistomes of typical Chinese dairy farm environments

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the environment pose a threat to human and animal health. Dairy cows are important livestock in China; however, a comprehensive understanding of antibiotic resistance in their production environment has not been well clarified. In this study, we used metagenomic methods to analyze the resistomes, microbiomes, and potential ARG bacterial hosts in typical dairy farm environments (including feces, wastewater, and soil). The ARGs resistant to tetracyclines, MLS, β-lactams, aminoglycoside, and multidrug was dominant in the dairy farm ecosystem. The abundance and diversity of total ARGs in dairy feces and wastewater were significantly higher than in soil (P &lt; 0.05). The same environmental samples from different dairy have similar resistomes and microbiomes. A high detection rate of tet(X) in wastewater and feces (100% and 71.4%, respectively), high abundance (range from 5.74 to 68.99 copies/Gb), and the finding of tet(X5) challenged the clinical application of the last antibiotics resort of tigecycline. Network analysis identified Bacteroides as the dominant genus in feces and wastewater, which harbored the greatest abundance of their respective total ARG coverage and shared ARGs. These results improved our understanding of ARG profiles and their bacterial hosts in dairy farm environments and provided a basis for further surveillance.

Designing multi-epitope-based vaccine targeting surface immunogenic protein of Streptococcus agalactiae using immunoinformatics to control mastitis in dairy cattle

Background

Milk provides energy as well as the basic nutrients required by the body. In particular, milk is beneficial for bone growth and development in children. Based on scientific evidence, cattle milk is an excellent and highly nutritious dietary component that is abundant in vitamins, calcium, potassium, and protein, among other minerals. However, the commercial productivity of cattle milk is markedly affected by mastitis. Mastitis is an economically important disease that is characterized by inflammation of the mammary gland. This disease is frequently caused by microorganisms and is detected as abnormalities in the udder and milk. Streptococcus agalactiae is a prominent cause of mastitis. Antibiotics are rarely used to treat this infection, and other available treatments take a long time to exhibit a therapeutic effect. Vaccination is recommended to protect cattle from mastitis. Accordingly, the present study sought to design a multi-epitope vaccine using immunoinformatics.

Results

The vaccine was designed to be antigenic, immunogenic, non-toxic, and non-allergic, and had a binding affinity with Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and TLR4 based on structural modeling, docking, and molecular dynamics simulation studies. Besides, the designed vaccine was successfully expressed in E. coli. expression vector (pET28a) depicts its easy purification for production on a larger scale, which was determined through in silico cloning. Further, immune simulation analysis revealed the effectiveness of the vaccine with an increase in the population of B and T cells in response to vaccination.

Conclusion

This multi-epitope vaccine is expected to be effective at generating an immune response, thereby paving the way for further experimental studies to combat mastitis.

Shifts of Antibiotic Resistomes in Soil Following Amendments of Antibiotics-Contained Dairy Manure

Dairy manure is a nutrition source for cropland soils and also simultaneously serves as a contamination source of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). In this study, five classes of antibiotics including aminoglycosides, beta-lactams, macrolides, sulfonamides, and tetracyclines, were spiked in dairy manure and incubated with soil for 60 days. The high throughput qPCR and 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing were used to detect temporal shifts of the soil antibiotic resistomes and bacterial community. Results indicated dairy manure application increased the ARG abundance by 0.5-3.7 times and subtype numbers by 2.7-3.7 times and changed the microbial community structure in soils. These effects were limited to the early incubation stage. Selection pressure was observed after the addition of sulfonamides. Bacterial communities played an important role in the shifts of ARG profiles and accounted for 44.9% of the resistome variation. The incubation period, but not the different antibiotic treatments, has a strong impact on the bacteria community. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were the dominant bacterial hosts for individual ARGs. This study advanced our understanding of the effect of dairy manure and antibiotics on the antibiotic resistome in soils and provided a reference for controlling ARG dissemination from dairy farms to the environment.

Dairy Cattle Density and Temporal Patterns of Human Campylobacteriosis and Cryptosporidiosis in New Zealand

Public health risks associated with the intensification of dairy farming are an emerging concern. Dairy cattle are a reservoir for a number of pathogens that can cause human illness. This study examined the spatial distribution of dairy cattle density and explored temporal patterns of human campylobacteriosis and cryptosporidiosis notifications in New Zealand from 1997 to 2015. Maps of dairy cattle density were produced, and temporal patterns of disease rates were assessed for urban versus rural areas and for areas with different dairy cattle densities using descriptive temporal analyses. Campylobacteriosis and cryptosporidiosis rates displayed strong seasonal patterns, with highest rates in spring in rural areas and, for campylobacteriosis, summer in urban areas. Increases in rural cases often preceded increases in urban cases. Furthermore, disease rates in areas with higher dairy cattle densities tended to peak before areas with low densities or no dairy cattle. Infected dairy calves may be a direct or indirect source of campylobacteriosis or cryptosporidiosis infection in humans through environmental or occupational exposure routes, including contact with animals or feces, recreational contact with contaminated waterways, and consumption of untreated drinking water. These results have public health implications for populations living, working, or recreating in proximity to dairy farms.

Valorization of Concentrated Dairy White Wastewater by Reverse Osmosis in Model Cheese Production

Treatment of dairy white wastewater (WW) by reverse osmosis (RO) is usually performed to generate process water and to reclaim dairy components for their valorization. For this study, a mixture of pasteurized milk and WW from a dairy plant was concentrated by RO to achieve a protein concentration similar to that of skimmed milk. Retentates, which are concentrated WW, were used in the preparation of cheese milk. The effect of using model concentrated WW was evaluated on (1) the soluble–colloidal equilibrium between protein and salt, (2) the milk-coagulation kinetics, and (3) the cheese composition and yield. An economic assessment was also carried out to support the decision-making process for implementing a new RO system in a dairy plant for the valorization of dairy WW. The results showed that substituting more than 50% of the amount of cheese milk with model pasteurized WW concentrates decreased the moisture-adjusted cheese yield and impaired the coagulation kinetics. Excessive cheese moisture was observed in cheeses that were made from 50% and 100% model WW concentrates, correlating with a change in the soluble–colloidal equilibrium of salts, especially in calcium. To achieve sustainable and economic benefits, the ratio of added WW concentrates to cheese milk must be less than 50%. However, for such an investment to be profitable to a dairy plant within 0.54 years, a large-size plant must generate 200 m3 of WW per day with at least 0.5% of total solids, as the economic analysis specific to our case suggests.

Detection of Potential Microbial Contaminants and Their Toxins in Fermented Dairy Products: a Comprehensive Review

Fermented dairy products are dominant constituents of daily diets around the world due to their desired organoleptic properties, long shelf life, and high nutritional value. Probiotics are often incorporated into these products for their health and technological benefits. However, the safety and possible contamination of fermented dairy products during the manufacturing process could have significant deleterious health and economic impacts. Pathogenic microorganisms and toxins from different sources in fermented dairy products contribute to outbreaks and toxicity cases. Although the health and nutritional benefits of fermented dairy products have been extensively investigated, safety hazards due to contamination are relatively less explored. As a preventive measure, it is crucial to accurately identify and determine the associated microbiota or their toxins. It is noteworthy to highlight the importance of detecting not only the pathogenic microbiota but also their toxic metabolites so that putative outbreaks can thereby be prevented or detected even before they cause harmful effects to human health. In this context, this review focuses on describing techniques designed to detect potential contaminants; also, the advantages and disadvantages of these techniques were summarized. Moreover, this review compiles the most recent and efficient analytical methods for detecting microbial hazards and toxins in different fermented dairy products of different origins. Causative agents behind contamination incidences are also discussed briefly to aid in future prevention measures, as well as detection approaches and technologies employed. Such approach enables the elucidation of the best strategies to control contamination in fermented dairy product manufacturing processes.

Examining the Environmental Impacts of the Dairy and Baby Food Industries: Are First-Food Systems a Crucial Missing Part of the Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems Agenda Now Underway?

Food systems are increasingly being understood as driving various health and ecological crises and their transformation is recognised as a key opportunity for planetary health. First-food systems represent an underexplored aspect of this transformation. Despite breastfeeding representing the optimal source of infant nutrition, use of commercial milk formula (CMF) is high and growing rapidly. In this review, we examine the impact of CMF use on planetary health, considering in particular its effects on climate change, water use and pollution and the consequences of these effects for human health. Milk is the main ingredient in the production of CMF, making the role of the dairy sector a key area of attention. We find that CMF use has twice the carbon footprint of breastfeeding, while 1 kg of CMF has a blue water footprint of 699 L; CMF has a significant and harmful environmental impact. Facilitation and protection of breastfeeding represents a key part of developing sustainable first-food systems and has huge potential benefits for maternal and child health.

Dairy is Different: Latino Dairy Worker Stress in Vermont

Latino immigrant dairy workers face significant challenges. Dairy's employment of immigrants is recent compared to other sectors, though today immigrants account for over half of US dairy workers. This study applies the Migrant Farmworker Stress Inventory to dairy for the first time. Interviews of 173 workers were conducted using the MFWSI, augmented with dairy specific indictors. Bivariate analysis identified associations between dairy worker characteristics and stress. Findings were compared to other studies using the MFWSI. Average stress was 74.6/156 points, with 36.5% at risk for clinically significant stress. Vermont ranked eighth among 11 MFWSI studies, and fourth of seven studies for significant stress. Primary stressors differed from studies of fruit and crop workers. Over a third of Vermont immigrant dairy workers risk debilitating stress. The MFWSI underestimates dairy farmworker stress and should be modified for this sector. Identified stressors indicate Spanish-language, dairy safety training may be beneficial.

A Focus Group Study of Canadian Dairy Farmers' Attitudes and Social Referents on Antimicrobial Use and Antimicrobial Resistance

As part of broader actions to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR), health authorities have promoted the reduction of antimicrobial use (AMU) in food animals. Farmers' attitudes and receptivity to reduction of AMU appear to be variable and context specific. Our research objectives were to gain insight into Canadian dairy farmers' attitudes toward AMU, AMR, and AMU-reduction in the dairy industry, and to explore drivers and barriers to change AMU, including the influence of social referents. We conducted seven focus groups with 42 farmers in two provinces of Canada (New Brunswick and Ontario) and used thematic analysis to identify, analyze, and report patterns in the data. Our results indicate that farmers usually rely on their previous experience and judgement of individual cases of disease when making decisions related to AMU. External referents included other farmers, family members, and veterinarians. However, veterinarians were generally only consulted for unusual cases. Participants in this study expressed that maintaining cattle welfare is their responsibility, and that they were not willing to jeopardize animal welfare in order to reduce AMU. In addition, farmers regarded the cost of investment in improved facilities to prevent disease as an important barrier to reduce AMU. Finally, the majority of participants considered themselves to be low users of antimicrobials and perceived a small role of AMU on dairy farms in AMR. In conclusion, farmers from this study showed self-reliance to decide about AMU on their farms and considered animal-related and economic factors in these decisions. There was a general lack of knowledge of how to reduce AMU without investing in facilities, and there is an opportunity to motivate increased involvement of the veterinarian in AMU-related decisions. These results should be considered to design and refine antimicrobial stewardship programs for dairy farms.

Status of antibiotic residues and detection techniques used in Chinese milk: A systematic review based on cross-sectional surveillance data

Antibiotic residues (ARs) in food of animal origin are of worldwide concern, particularly in China, the world's largest producer and consumer of antibiotics. Aiming to provide a reference for the use of antibiotics in dairy cows, for supervision and management departments in the detection of related antibiotics, and for guiding the safe use of antibiotics in food, this systematic review was carried out to determine the prevalence of ARs and antibiotic detection techniques in Chinese milk over the past three decades. The systematic review follows the PRSIMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) guidelines. Both English (Cochrane, Embase, MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science) and Chinese databases (Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Science and Technology Journal Database, and WanFang Database) were systematically searched, from inception to 31 July 2020. Among the 3131 citations screened, 46 active surveillance cross-sectional studies published between 1988 and 2020 in 26 Chinese provinces were eligible, providing antibiotic levels for a total of 8788 milk samples. Although the AR rates in fresh and sterilized milk fluctuate, they have largely declined in recent years. Among the 18 evaluated antibiotics, sulfamethoxazole, chloramphenicol, and trimethoprim are primary antibiotics with high residual rates. The most frequently used technique to monitor antibiotic levels in milk is 2,3,5-Triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining. This review confirmed the importance of food safety monitoring and surveillance systems in preventing antibiotic exceedances in food. Several lessons learned from antibiotic surveillance and supervision in China were revealed. The provision of education to rural farmers should be strengthened to enhance their knowledge on antibiotic use in animal agriculture. Moreover, a standard operational protocol for screening and targeting antibiotics in dairy products should be considered to increase the comparability between cross-sectional active surveillance studies of AR in milk.

Biosensing approaches to detect potential milk contaminants: a comprehensive review

Accidentally present contaminants or intentionally added adulterants in milk lead potentially to delivering not only unhealthy but seriously hazardous products. Thorough, fast and sensitive analytical tools are essential for monitoring of milk quality, and for screening of any objectionable contaminants. Biosensors represent an innovative, time-efficient and on-site solution to assess milk quality in addition to their specificity towards target analytes alongside high accuracy within such complex matrices. Most biosensors use antibodies, aptamers or enzymes as the bio-receptor and rely on optical, electrochemical or thermometric transduction to generate a signal. The simplest biosensors appear to be those based on a colorimetric assay, being simple and having a signal that can be detected visually. Electrochemical sensors are more specific and sensitive, though with more complicated designs, whereas thermometric sensors have not been thoroughly explored concerning biosensing contaminants in milk. This review discusses recent advances in the field of biosensors and analyzes the various methods of bio-recognition and transduction with regard to their advantages, limitations, and application to milk products. Additionally, challenges facing further development of these strategies to fulfil the increasing demand for fast and on-line milk quality control are also presented.

Climate Change, Food Supply, and Dietary Guidelines

Food production is affected by climate change, and, in turn, food production is responsible for 20-30% of greenhouse gases. The food system must increase output as the population increases and must meet nutrition and health needs while simultaneously assisting in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Good nutrition is important for combatting infection, reducing child mortality, and controlling obesity and chronic disease throughout the life course. Dietary guidelines provide advice for a healthy diet, and the main principles are now well established and compatible with sustainable development. Climate change will have a significant effect on food supply; however, with political commitment and substantial investment, projected improvements will be sufficient to provide food for the healthy diets needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Some changes will need to be made to food production, nutrient content will need monitoring, and more equitable distribution is required to meet the dietary guidelines. Increased breastfeeding rates will improve infant and adult health while helping to reduce greenhouse gases.