A dairy cow’s environment may influence the onset of laminitis and associated claw horn lesions by exacerbating changes in the hoof triggered by events at parturition, onset of subacute ruminal acidosis, or claw horn growth and wear and ground reaction forces on different walking surfaces. Environmental risk factors for laminitis and associated claw horn lesions include feed bunk space and desi...

A paradigm shift currently occurs in microbiology, with significant impacts in a variety of environmental, medical and industrial applications. The old misconception of free floating microbes is invalidated by a different knowledge pattern: the great majority of terrestrial microorganisms live in communities associated to surfaces, called biofilms (Costerton et al, 1987; Flemming, 2008; Muntean...

The space environment is a complex, orbit dependent phenomenon. Regardless of orbit, the external surfaces of a spacecraft will be exposed to photons, charged particles and solid particles such as micrometeoroids. Vehicles in low earth orbit (LEO) must be designed to withstand additional environmental hazards such as hyper-velocity impacts by man-made orbital debris and erosion of external surf...

BACKGROUND Pathogens in healthcare settings can be transmitted via skin contact and environmental media. This study investigates bacterial contamination rate on surfaces of mechanical ventilator systems and bedside equipment. An experimental study evaluates the effectiveness of 75% alcohol in killing bacteria on surfaces. METHODS Surface swab sampling was conducted on ventilator systems and ...

OBJECTIVE To determine the thoroughness of terminal disinfection and cleaning of patient rooms in hospital intensive care units and to assess the value of a structured intervention program to improve the quality of cleaning as a means of reducing environmental transmission of multidrug-resistant organisms within the intensive care unit. DESIGN Prospective, multicenter, and pre- and postinterv...

AIMS To quantify microbial contamination on kitchen and bathroom surfaces (fomites) in rural Cambodian homes and to compare these concentrations to similar data from the United States and Japan. METHODS AND RESULTS This study monitored the numbers of faecal coliforms (i.e. thermotolerant coliforms), total coliforms, Escherichia coli and heterotrophic plate count bacteria on household surfaces...

Arboreal habitats create diverse challenges for animal locomotion, but the numerical and phylogenetic diversity of snakes that climb trees suggest that their overall body plan is well suited for this task. Snakes have considerable diversity of axial anatomy, but the functional consequences of this diversity for arboreal locomotion are poorly understood because of the lack of comparative data. W...

BACKGROUND The use of disinfectant pre-soaked wipes (DPW) to decontaminate high-touch environmental surfaces (HTES) by wiping is becoming increasingly widespread in the healthcare environment. However, DPW are rarely tested using conditions simulating their field use, and the label claims of environmental surface disinfectants seldom include wiping action. AIM To evaluate the new E2967-15 sta...

ii This project is dedicated to my supportive and loving family; my husband who always had words of encouragement and motivated me to the end, my children who were understanding when I could not take them to the pool or when " Mom " just had to work, and my parents who lovingly cared for my children when I was in class, conducting research, or studying. Thank-you! iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would li...