Haemonchus contortus is a globally significant parasitic nematode in ruminants, with widespread resistance to benzimidazole due to its excessive and prolonged use. Given the extensive use of benzimidazole anthelmintics in Bosnia and Herzegovina, we hypothesized that resistance is prevalent. The aim of this study was to identify the presence of anthelmintic resistance to benzimidazole in H. contortus from naturally infected sheep, goats and cattle in Bosnia and Herzegovina through the detection of the Phe/Tyr polymorphism in the amino acid at position 200 of the β-tubulin protein. From 19 locations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a total of 83 adult H. contortus were collected from the abomasum of ruminants. Among these, 45 H. contortus specimens were isolated from sheep, 19 from goats and 19 from cattle. Results showed that 77.8% of H. contortus in sheep exhibited homozygous resistant genotypes at position 200 of the β-tubulin gene, with 15.5% being heterozygous. In goats, all tested H. contortus (100%) were homozygous resistant, and no heterozygous resistant or homozygous sensitive genotypes were found. Cattle had 94.7% homozygous resistant H. contortus, with no heterozygous resistant genotypes detected. In H. contortus from sheep and cattle, 6.7% and 5.3%, respectively, displayed homozygous sensitive genotypes. This study, for the first time, highlights the presence of a resistant population of H. contortus in sheep, goats and cattle in Bosnia and Herzegovina, using the rt-qPCR method. The resistance likely spread from sheep or goats to cattle, facilitated by shared pastures and the practice of transhumance, indicating a widespread and growing issue of anthelmintic resistance.

Gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) infections remain one of the most prevalent and important issue affecting ruminants worldwide. Until date, the majority of GIN control has relied on the administra-tion of chemical anthelmintic medications on a regular basis, in recent years, the problem of anthel-mintic resistance has reached new heights where it can no longer be ignored as a major issue in the control of parasites of livestock. Anthelmintics are generally used at farmers' discretion, with no restrictions to access to commercially available drugs and without any assistance from veterinarians. Thus, inadequate use of anthelmintics is not rare, animals are often treated excessively, interfering with production, accelerating selection of resistant parasites, and posing significant problems for the ruminant industry. The unusually high frequency of multi-drug resistance (MDR) in sheep and goat nematodes threatens the sustainability of small-ruminant enterprises in several parts of the world. Although resistance in horses and cattle nematodes has not yet reached the levels reported in small ruminants, data shows that resistance issues, particularly MDR worms, are rising in these hosts. Both innovative non-chemical parasite control methods and molecular tests capable of detecting resistant worms are urgently needed. Keywords: Anthelmintics; Multidrug resistance; Gastrointestinal nematodes; Ruminants; Preva-lence

The increase of global fish consumption brings with it the problem of fish mislabeling, which leads to economic losses for consumers or may even result in consumers’ health risk. Thus, continuous development of methods used in identification of exact fish species is essential. There are numerous modern identification methods, which use DNA or specific fish proteins as biomarkers, but they all come with various benefits and drawbacks. Protein-based methods include electrophoretic methods, ELISA, HPLC and MALDI-ToF Mass Spectrometry, while the methods that use DNA as a biomarker include PCR-RFLP, SSCP, qPCR, RAPD, FINS, DNA microarray, DNA barcoding, pyrosequencing and metabarcoding. There is a continuous development of new or improved methods. Most of the methods display a much better performance when analyzing raw or lightly processed fish, such as chilled or frozen, while heat treatment often leads to changes in the biomarker molecules, making the species identification difficult. The ideal method does not yet exist, but methods such as DNA barcoding, MALDI-ToF Mass Spectrometry and metabarcoding are the ones that show most potential.

Background: According to the WHO (2019), more than 1.5 billion people worldwide are infected with soil-transmitted parasites. Previous research in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FB&H) was mainly conducted in the area of the Sarajevo Canton. Therefore, the aim of the research was to explore contamination of soil and vegetation with developmental forms of parasites in the other cantons of FB&H. Methods: Between Apr and Oct 2018, a total of 1,618 soil and vegetation samples were taken from 386 different locations in the 9 cantons of the FB&H. Results: Positive samples were observed, 65/66 (98.48%) municipalities/cities and on 239/386 (61.92%) locations. Out of 1,618 samples taken in total (1,263 soil samples and 355 vegetation samples), 357 (22.06%) were positive, out of which 337 (26.68%) and 20 (5.63%) were soil and plant samples, respectively. In total, the following adult and developmental forms were identified: Taeniidae eggs (7.30%), Toxocara spp. eggs (62.08%), Ancylostomatidae eggs (25.00%), Trichuris spp. eggs (9.55%), Capillaria spp. eggs (3.37%), Toxascaris leonina eggs (1.40%), Nematodes larvae (19.38%), Giardia duodenalis cysts (5.06%), Cryptosporidium spp. oocysts (1.4%), oocysts and cysts of different species of Protozoa (3.93%). Conclusion: The identified developmental forms of parasites pose a permanent threat to human health. It is necessary to carry out measures to reduce the contamination of soil and vegetation in coordination with systematic solutions (legislation), paralelly with contribution of animal owners, veterinarians, physicians, ecologists, parents and all the others involved in this issue.

Introduction. Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a very dangerous infectious, acute, usually afebrile disease characterized by muscle spasms. The causative agent of the disease is bacteria Clostridium tetani. This bacteria produces a specific neurotoxin or tetanus toxin with two components: tetanospasmin and tetanolysin. Light chains of tetanospamine cleavage synaptobrevin, which in turn prevent release of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA into the synaptic cleft. The α - motor neurons are, therefore, under no inhibitory control, as a result of which they undergo sustained excitatory discharge causing the characteristic motor spasms of tetanus. Materials and Methods. In this research, we attempted to normalize disorders caused by tetanus toxin by using haloperidol (at doses of 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 mg/kg b.w.), alone and in combination with (-)-nuciferine (at dose of 5 mg/kg b.w.) and aminooxyacetic acid (at dose of 20 mg/kg b.w.). Experiments were conducted on albino mice. Experimental tetanus was induced by application of tetanus toxin. Results and Conclusions. Application of haloperidol (alone and in combination with (-)-nuciferine and aminooxyacetic acid) was carried out 24 hours following the application of tetanus toxin. It was found that haloperidol, given alone in a dose of 4 mg/kg, prolonged the survival time of mice with experimental tetanus, about 24.35 hour compared to the control group. Thus, application of haloperidol in this dose showed to be the only effective method. Additionally, combination of haloperidol with (-)-nuciferine slightly extend survival time, while combination with aminooxyacetic acid produced the best effect on the extension of this period (about 27.74 hour compared to the control group).

in broiler’s small intestine. Investigation were carried out on isolated smooth muscle of the circular and longitudinal layer of the broilers small intestine (strip dimension 3-4 mm x 2 cm). The muscle strips were placed in an isolated organ bath. The mechanical activity of the preparations were recorded via an isotonic force transducer coupled to a pen recorder. This was done following the addition of serotonin (nonselective 5-HT agonist), 2-Me-5HT (5-HT3B agonist) and Y-25130-hydrochloride (selective 5-HT3B antagonist). The research established a presence of serotonergic 5HT3B type receptors within the smooth musculature of the small intestines of broilers (COBB 500). The 5HT3B type receptors were present in smooth muscles of duodenum, jejunum and ileum, especially in longitudinal smooth muscles since this layer reacted even to low serotonin concentration (10-6). Statistical tests of obtained results showed significant differences (p< 0.001) in responses related to muscle layers, applied concentrations and intestinal parts which were observed. In the light of these findings, we suggest that investigated substances may have considerable physiological and therapeutic implications in disturbed function of small intestine of broiler’s.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the presence of Aspergillus species in Bosnian sudžuk, the most preferred dry sausage in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and evaluate their aflatoxigenic potential. A total of 145 bulk and vacuum packed samples of Bosnian sudžuk were collected from retail in the Sarajevo region; 105 samples from individual artisanal producers, and 40 samples were industrially produced Bosnian sudžuk. In total, four and seven A. flavus and A. parasiticus were isolated, respectively, while one or more genes responsible for biosynthesis of aflatoxins (nor-1, ver-1, omt-1 and apa-2) were detected in eight isolates. Aflatoxigenic strains were not found in the industrially produced samples. This is the first report about the presence of aflatoxigenic Aspergillus species in Bosnian sudžuk. Key words: A. flavus; A. parasiticus; aflatoxigenicity; Bosnian sudžuk, aflatoxin genes

Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a very dangerous infectious acute, usually afebrile disease characterized by muscle spasms, affecting humans and various animal species. The causative agent of the disease is bacteria Clostridium tetani. This bacteria produces a specific neurotoxin known as Tetanus toxin, which consists of two components: tetanospasmin and tetanolysin. Light (L) chains of tetanospamin cleavage synaptobrevin, an integral membrane component of the synaptic vesicles, which in turn prevent release of the inhibitory neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) into the synaptic cleft. The α- motor neurons are, therefore, under no inhibitory control as a result of which they undergo sustained excitatory discharge causing the characteristic motor spasms of tetanus. In this research, we attempted to normalize the disorders caused by tetanus toxin by using ketamine, a non-competitive antagonist of aspartate (at doses of 5, 10, 44 and 100 mg/kg of body weight – b.w.), alone and in combination with indol-2-carboxylic acid, a competitive antagonist of aspartate (at a dose of 10 mg/kg b.w.) and caroverine, a non-competitive antagonist of glutamate (at a dose of 1.2 mg/kg b.w.). Experiments were conducted on the albino mice of both sexes, weighing around 20-25 g. Experimental tetanus was induced by application of tetanus toxin. The administration of ketamine, alone and in combination with indol-2-carboxylic acid and caroverine was carried out 24 hours after administration of tetanus toxin once per day, until the mice died. It was found that ketamine had an effect only at a dose of 10 mg/kg b.w., which slightly prolonged the LD50 periodin experimental group of mice, compared to the control group of mice with experimental tetanus. Thus, it can be concluded that administration of ketamine in this dose proved to be only slightly effective. On the other hand, combination of ketamine with indol-2-carboxylic acid slightly extended the survival time of mice with experimental tetanus in the trial, as compared to the control group. Lastly, the combination of ketamine with caroverine had no effect whatsoever on the LD50period of mice with experimental tetanus.

The European Commission (EC) regulation no. 854/2004 requires a systematic monitoring of chemical and microbiological contaminants in live bivalve molluscs, live echinoderms, live tunicates and live marine gastropods for human consumption through surveillance plans to be implemented in all European Union (EU) countries.A consortium of five Adriatic countries was set up in the framework of the Instrument of Pre-accession Assistance Adriatic Cross-border Cooperation Programme (IPA Adriatic CBC) 2007- 2013 with the aim of collecting data and distribute information on harvesting and production in mollusc areas. A web-based geographical information system (GIS) application was developed to support the partners to manage data and to make these data available to final users, policy makers and to risk assessors. The GIS for the Strengthening of Centres for Aquaculture Production and Safety surveillance in the Adriatic countries (CAPS2) is divided into two levels, the national and the supranational one, and it distributes spatial and epidemiological information coming from various data acquisition and management sites. The great innovation is the possibility for each country to use online drawing, modifying and change of the geographic areas according to national surveillance needs. Currently it hosts data coming from about 230 production and relay areas with more than 29,478 laboratory tests performed on collected samples since August 2014. Data collected are used by each national competent authority to classify production or relay areas according to the EC regulation mentioned and to conduct risk assessment studies to evaluate the level of consumers' exposure to contaminants in the consumption of bivalve mollusc products.

The most common way of milk products adulteration is by adding undeclared types of milk such as cow milk, to sheep and goat milk and their products. To prevent any undeclared addition of cow milk and to ensure consumer protection, common practice nowadays is to check the authenticity of a food product by examining its contents. The aim of the research was to provide an insight in the current situation at the Bosnia and Herzegovina market regarding the presence of cow immunoglobulin G (IgG) as the indicator of adulteration of sheep cheese by undeclared addition of cow milk. A commercial ELISA test kit was used to detect cow IgG in sheep cheese. The presence of cow IgG was detected in 32 (80%) of 40 tested samples of sheep cheese. Among the 32 adulterated sheep cheese samples significantly (P=0.03) most prevalent (53.1%) were those with cow milk content between 1% and 10%. Our results indicate the necessity for official control of sheep cheese adulteration by the unlabeled use of cow milk.

Tetanus intoxication is a result of combined tetanus toxin binding in the organism: centrally in the spinal cord at the level of inhibitory synapses and peripherally at the level of the neuromuscular junction and muscle cell. Although acute intoxication is dominated by the central action of tetanus toxin, it is considered that, for the purpose of successful implementation of therapy, peripheral activity of the tetanus toxin should be also antagonized. Experimental tetanus was induced by intramuscular application of tetanus toxin. Application of substances on mice in experimental groups was performed after the occurrence of local tetanus in right leg, approximately 24 hours after administration of tetanus toxin. In this research, we attempted to normalize disorders caused by tetanus toxin using dizocilipine maleate (at doses of 0.01; 0.1; 1.0 and 2.0 mg/kg b.w.), alone and in combination with dantrolene (at dose of 2.0 mg/kg) and lisuride (at dose of 50.0 μg/kg) on the LD50 period in mice with experimental tetanus in the trial. Through our research, we found that dizocilipine had the best effect at a dose of 0.1 mg/kg b.w. Additionally, combination of dizocilipine and lizuride had no effect on the LD50 period, as compared to the control group.