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In response to the remote learning and teaching setup in science due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a lab at-home experiment was conducted where various plant materials were prepared and used as natural acid-base indicators for various household substances. The experiment is designed for the students to apply the fundamentals of intensive laboratory for science education: laboratory safety, laboratory apparatus, laboratory techniques, data documentation, and lab report writing. Presented herein are the results obtained during the experiments conducted at home that focused on the application of various plant extracts as natural indicator. Observable color changes showed that the tested plant extracts responded to the acidity and alkalinity of the various household substances. The science behind the color changes is attributed to the presence of various phytochemicals that change colors when protonated and deprotonated. The potential of the results obtained in the experiments is very promising as it can be further developed and optimized to an analytical procedure that can be applied in testing of acidity and alkalinity in various applications such as food safety and quality, environmental monitoring, materials testing, pharmaceutical analysis, and clinical diagnostics. Moreover, the experiment explored here presented lab teaching strategies that can be applied in the remote learning setup: formulate and design a home-based laboratory experiment that will cover the underlying scientific theories and skills and provide the students the opportunity to explore, improvise, apply, and present information that will holistically develop them as science educators for their current and prospective students., CITE AS: Reyes, D., Santos, M., Cruz, J., Ascaño, F., Baldovino, B., Camarillo, B., ... & Waje, S. (2022). 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The extent of Leptospira infection in large ruminants resulting to economic problems in livestock industry in a leptospirosis-endemic country like the Philippines has not been extensively explored. Therefore, we determined the prevalence and carrier status of leptospirosis in large ruminants using molecular techniques and assessed the risk factors of acquiring leptospirosis in these animals. Water buffalo and cattle urine samples (n=831) collected from 21 farms during 2013-2015 were subjected to flaB-nested PCR to detect pathogenic Leptospira spp. Leptospiral flaB was detected in both species with a detection rate of 16.1%. Leptospiral DNA was detected only in samples from animals managed in communal farms. Sequence analysis of Leptospira flaB in large ruminants revealed the formation of three major clusters with L. borgpetersenii or L. kirschneri. One farm contained Leptospira flaB sequences from all clusters identified in this study, suggesting this farm was the main source of leptospires for other farms. This study suggested that these large ruminants are infected with various pathogenic Leptospira species causing possible major economic loss in the livestock industry as well as potential Leptospira reservoirs that can transmit infection to humans and other animals in the Philippines.

Water buffalo is an indispensable livestock in Asia and other countries due to its high meat and milk quality, aside from draft power source. It adapts well to tropical climate and has significant contribution to the livestock industry, provided with improved breeding and good animal husbandry practices. Infectious diseases are hindrance to good reproductive performance of livestock, resulting in huge economic loss. In addition, most of these diseases are zoonotic, posing serious threats on human health. However, its degree of severity varies in each region and is often overlooked. This chapter reviews the common and current updates on emerging bacterial, viral, protozoal, fungal and endoparasitic pathogens that infect water buffaloes worldwide. All of the diseases directly affect the animals’ health condition except for schistosomiasis where water buffalo played an important role as shedder of infection to humans. Leptospirosis, brucellosis, Bovine Tb, BVDV and fasciolosis have projected economic impact to water buffalo industry as well as its effect as zoonoses. However, the data seem underquantified since most are neglected diseases and are highly prevalent in developing countries. Further studies are needed particularly in countries where water buffalo is the major livestock than cattle to fully utilize the potential of the animal.

(主査) 教授 鈴木 定彦, 教授 東 秀明, 准教授 磯田 典和, 准教授 中島 千絵, 獣医学研究科（獣医学専攻）

(主査) 教授 鈴木 定彦, 教授 東 秀明, 准教授 磯田 典和, 准教授 中島 千絵, 獣医学研究科（獣医学専攻）

The advent of molecular biology and biotechnology has given ease and comfort for the screening and detection of different animal diseases caused by bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogens. Furthermore, detection of antibiotics and its residues has advanced in recent years. However, most of the process of animal disease diagnostics is still confined in the laboratory. The next step to conduct surveillance and prevent the spread of animal infectious diseases is to detect these diseases in the field. Through the discovery and continuous development in the field of nanobiotechnology, it was found that incorporation of noble metal nanoparticles to biotechnology tools such as the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), lateral flow assays (LFAs) and dipsticks provided a promising start to conduct point-of-care diagnostics. Moreover, the modification and application of nanoparticle noble metals has increased the stability, effectiveness, sensitivity and overall efficacy of these diagnostic tools. Thus, recent advances in disease diagnostics used these noble metals such as gold, silver and platinum.