The gross and histological appearances of the lesions of tuberculosis in 36 wild badgers found to be infected with Mycobacterium bovis are described. These badgers were examined over a period of two years during an investigation into the possible epidemiological association of tuberculosis in badgers and cattle. The possible significance of the lesions in transmission of M bovis to cattle and other badgers is discussed. The histological appearance of the lesions was considered to be indicative of a lesser hypersensitivity reaction than is seen in the bovine.

To assess the appropriateness and understanding of the revised, draft South African Paediatric Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (SA-PFBDGs) amongst mothers/caregivers of children aged 0-12 months. Exposure to guidelines with similar messages, barriers and enablers to following of the guidelines were also assessed. Design: Qualitative data were collected from 14 focus-group discussions (FGDs), conducted in isiXhosa (n = 5), English (n = 4) and Afrikaans (n = 5), totalling 73 mother/caregiver participants. Setting: Worcester, Breede Valley sub-district, Western Cape province. Subjects: The study population included mothers/caregivers who were older than 18 years. Results: The majority of participants had previous exposure to variations of messages similar to the revised, draft SA-PFBDGs. Health platforms and practitioners (community health centres, antenatal classes, nurses, doctors) and social networks and platforms (family, magazines, radio) were mentioned as primary sources of information. Barriers to following the messages included: inconsistent messages (mainly communicated by healthcare workers), contrasting beliefs and cultural/family practices, limited physical and financial access to resources, poor social support structures and the psycho-social and physical demands of raising a child. Conclusion:The revised, draft SA-PFBDGs for the age range 0-12 months have been field-tested in English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa. The messages in some of the revised, draft SA-PFBDGs were not understood by the participants, indicating that a degree of rewording should be considered to facilitate understanding of the guidelines by the public. The National Department of Health should consider the findings of this study, and use these standardised messages to optimise infant and young child feeding.

Lymphadenitis of pigs caused by Mycobacterium intracellulare is widely recognised in continental Europe but this is the first report of it in England. No disease was seen on the farm but condemnations of tissues and organs at the slaughterhouse were often than 100 a week and in one week were in excess of 200. The loss was greater to the slaughterhouse than to the farmer because of the constant disruption to the production line. There was no evidence that diseased pigs performed less well than healthy pigs. M intracellulare types 4 and 6 and M xenopi were isolated from diseased pigs. The source of the infection was traced to the sawdust bedding supplied by a local sawmill set in the middle of a forest. Changing the bedding to straw halted the outbreak. From the sawdust M avium types 1 and 4, M fortuitum and M intracellulare type 4 were isolated. The wildlife round the sawmill was investigated as a source of infection. Although M intracellulare type 4 and M avium were isolated from moles and a hedgehog, it was concluded that the wildlife was not involved. There was no evidence of pig to pig transmission.

A tuberculin testing trial in cattle was carried out in the Republic of Ireland to compare the specificity for bovine tuberculosis of a human purified protein derivative (PPD) tuberculin (Weybridge) with that of a bovine PPD (Rotterdam), and to determine whether discrimination between specific and non-specific reactions to mammalian tuberculin is better with doses of tuberculins smaller than those traditonally used for testing cattle. Tests were carried out in 510 cattle, 395 of which were shown by post mortem examination to be tuberculous and 115 non-tuberculous. Three dilutions at five-fold intervals of both mammalian tuberculins were used together with two dose levels of avian tuberculin PPD (Weybridge), and all reactions were measured both by increase in skin fold thickness and by diameter of induration. In the environment of this trial, the bovine PPD was shown to be more specific for bovine tuberculosis than the human PPD, and particularly in differentiating from "skin tuberculosis". There was no indication of greater specificity at lower doses of tuberculin. Measurement of induration diameter proved a satisfactory alternative method of reading tuberculin reactions in cattle under field conditions.

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