Animal Disease Management Research Articles

A Systematic Evaluation of Measures Against Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in Indonesia.

Over the past years, many different control measures have been implemented to prevent HPAI infection. The national plan with numerous measures lead to problems in terms of prioritization and budget allocation. Our study objectives are to (i) establish an inventory of measures on HPAI control in Indonesia since the first actions were taken in 2004, (ii) evaluate preferences for different HPAI control measures applied in the West Java province at the district level during 2013–2017, and (iii) establish a basis for further qualitative and quantitative research to improve control for an endemic HPAI in Indonesia. This research was carried out according to the following five steps (i) development of an HPAI management framework for an endemic state, (ii) inventorization of measures directed at HPAI and description of the development of HPAI in Indonesia, (iii) development of a questionnaire for the experts involved, (iv) systematic evaluation of preferences for short- and long-term HPAI strategies and measures applied in the West Java Province based on expert opinion, and (v) data analysis. The study systematically evaluated in total 27 measures. The results of this study show that the animal disease management framework is helpful as a systematic structure to distinguish and evaluate strategies and measures. In our framework, we defined the following strategies: prevention, monitoring, control, mitigation, eradication, and human protection. The findings of our research show that the primary aims of the government were to safeguard humans from HPAI transmission by mitigating HPAI disease in livestock. The measures with the highest priority were preventive vaccination of poultry, biosecurity, and stamping-out infected flocks. This showed that the government predominantly chose a vaccination-based HPAI mitigation strategy. However, the chosen strategy has a low implementation feasibility. A collaboration between the responsible stakeholders farmers may increase the feasibility of the chosen strategy in the future. Furthermore, our findings provide a basis for research into the motivation of farmers to implement different measures as well as into the expected impact of different measures to develop an effective and efficient mitigation approach.

Introduced deer and their potential role in disease transmission to livestock in Australia

Abstract The transmission of pathogens between wildlife and livestock is a globally recognised threat to the livestock industry, as well as to human and wildlife health. Wild cervids are susceptible to many diseases affecting livestock. This presents a challenge for wildlife and domestic animal disease management because the frequent use of agricultural areas by wild cervids may hamper the effectiveness of disease control strategies. Six deer species have established wild populations in Australia and are expanding in range and abundance. A comprehensive literature review of diseases impacting deer and livestock was undertaken, resulting in consideration of 38 pathogens. A qualitative risk assessment was then carried out to assess the overall risk posed by the pathogens to the livestock industry. Five diseases (bovine tuberculosis, foot and mouth disease, malignant catarrhal fever, surra, and screw‐worm fly infestation) ranked highly in our risk assessment. Of these five diseases, only one (malignant catarrhal fever) is currently present in Australia, but all five are notifiable diseases at a national level. Data on these diseases in deer are limited, especially for one of the most abundant species, the sambar deer Rusa unicolor, highlighting a further potential risk attributable to a lack of understanding of disease epidemiology. This paper provides a detailed review of the pathogens affecting both cervids and livestock in Australia, and applies a qualitative framework for assessing the risk posed by deer to the livestock industry. The qualitative framework used here could easily be adapted to assess disease risk in other contexts, making this work relevant to scientists and wildlife managers, as well as to livestock industry workers, worldwide.

Ayurveda Understanding of Mastitis in Diary Animals

Journal of Ayurveda Medical Sciences,2018,3,2,351-355.DOI:10.5530/jams.2018.3.15Published:October 2018Type:Review ArticleAuthors:Kumar Seethakempanahalli Kempanna, Balakrishna Nair Mannoor Narayanan, Natesan Punniamurthy, and Girish Kumar Venkateshappa Author(s) affiliations:Kumar Seethakempanahalli Kempanna, Balakrishna Nair Mannoor Narayanan, Natesan Punniamurthy, Girish Kumar Venkateshappa University of TransDisciplinary Health Sciences and Technology (TDU), Formerly FRLHT, #74/2, Jarakbande kaval, Attur post, via Yelahanka, Bengaluru 560064, India. Abstract:The evidence from archeological sciences states that many countries were having various methods and practices for management of animal diseases. Veterinary science in India has a documented history of around 5000 years. There exists codified veterinary knowledge in the form of medical texts, manuscripts on various aspects of veterinary care such as health management of cattle, horses, birds, and elephants. The veterinary and animal husbandry practices were present and grown in the Vedic, Puranic and extending beyond Epic periods. This knowledge is available in the form of manuscripts called Veterinary Ayurveda, viz Mrugayurveda (Ayurveda for Animals), Pashupakshishastra (Ayurveda for birds), Hasthyayurveda (Ayurveda for elephants), Ashwayurveda (Ayurveda for horses) etc. Understanding the etiopathogenesis and management of animal diseases through Ayurveda is need of the day. Mastitis is the economically devastating diseases of dairy animals. The loss due to one such disease annually goes up to 7500 crores INR. The saints of Ayurveda have explained in detail about mastitis as Sthanavidhradi. The management and treatment modalities have clearly mentioned in the classics of Ayurveda. In this article, an effort has been taken to explain ethno and Ayurvedic understanding of the most economic devastating disease mastitis. It is also tried to establish the link between Ayurveda and Veterinary Ayurveda. This traditional system of India called Mrugayurveda (Ayurveda for Animals) or Veterinary Ayurveda is robust and time tested. It has been in practice since age old. This robust system of medicine can address the current challenges of mainstream medicine. Many herbs and formulation from Ethno knowledge and Ayurveda were in practice in ancient India. So it is important to validate and reintroduce these time tested formulations and herbs for animal health. Keywords:Ethnoveterinary, Mastitis, Sthanavidhradi, Veterinary AyurvedaView:PDF (2.57 MB)

Immunity, immunomodulation, and antibiotic alternatives to maximize the genetic potential of poultry for growth and disease response

Multiple challenges confront the increasing demand for wholesome poultry food products, including governmental restrictions on the use of antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs), nutritional requirements to obtain maximum growth potential, understanding crosstalks among the immunity–microbiota–neuroendocrine system in the gut to maximize intestinal efficiency, high-density production conditions, waste management, and the emergence of infectious pathogens, particularly those that emerge in the antibiotic-free animal production environment. Although in-feed antibiotics have dramatically increased the efficiency of commercial poultry production over the last 50 years, we are now faced with an increasing global crisis concerning the heightened use of antibiotics in animal agriculture and the emergence of multidrug-resistant superbugs that threaten disease management in animals and humans. Therefore, much interest has focused on the development of alternative, antibiotic-free methods of commercial poultry production. Initially, alternatives to antibiotics included any strategies that replace AGPs, but now include any feed additives or treatment that will allow antibiotic-free animal production to prevent and/or treat diseases. These newer disease control strategies can be classified broadly into those that are directly cytotoxic against infectious agents or remove pathogenic toxins, including vaccines, hyperimmune antibodies, antimicrobial peptides, and bacteriophages, and those that augment non-specific host immunity and gut health, including phytochemicals, adjuvants, prebiotics, and probiotics. Furthermore, because the gut microbiota influences various physiological aspects of the immune response, brain function, and gut health, most antibiotic alternatives are expected to promote beneficial microbes that will benefit host physiological responses. However, there is a timely need to better understand the role of the microbiota in gut health if we want to use microbes to modulate the host response to enhance growth performance. This review will highlight current knowledge of host immunity in poultry, and various strategies to modulate host immunity, growth performance, and disease responses to guide the development of alternatives to reduce the use of antibiotics, using a few selected alternatives and a description of their efficacy and modes of action.

Increasing the Local Relevance of Epidemiological Research: Situated Knowledge of Cattle Disease Among Basongora Pastoralists in Uganda.

Cattle disease can have severe negative impacts on the livelihoods of the poor, but still, animal disease management and outreach often remain suboptimal in low-income settings. In a study on Basongora pastoralists in Uganda, we examined local priorities, perceptions and practices regarding cattle disease, in order to improve outreach and disease control advisory work in such contexts. We also investigated how participatory epidemiology can be better equipped for gathering situated knowledge. Empirical material obtained in focus group discussions, interviews, participatory mapping, and wealth-ranking was used to perform a thematic, bottom-up analysis. The concepts of situated knowledge and embodied objectivity and insights from participatory research and interdisciplinary dialogue were applied to better embrace local perspectives. Cowdriosis, trypanosomosis, contagious bovine pleuropneumonia, East Coast fever and anthrax were high-priority diseases for participants. Lack of control over the animal health situation and money invested in treatments that did not guarantee recovery were of general importance for disease prioritization. Participants' descriptions of diseases sometimes diverged from textbook definitions. Co-infections, chronic and recurring infections and lack of access to formal knowledge were identified as important factors for differences between formal and situated knowledge. Paying attention to situated knowledge and particular context-specific issues such as proximity to a national park proved to be of special relevance for local understanding and experiences with disease. Another factor was the local importance ascribed to number of cattle, rather than production levels. These factors need to be taken into consideration when formulating disease control advice, as does the complex disease landscape. The results reveal the importance of moving research and advice beyond curing “knowledge-gaps” and creating different ways of understanding disease so that situated knowledge can be considered, and disease control improved.

Vetinformatics: A New Paradigm for Quality Veterinary Services

Abstract Infectious disease management in animals is a tedious task in the developing world. Computational advancements in medical sciences play a crucial role in the drug development and research. Clinical trials may have the limitations due to the ethical issues, hence a new arena has been used to explore for minimization of animal modelling. “Vetinformatics” is the new approach which deals with databases, proteomics, genomics, drug designing, phylogenetics etc. in veterinary sciences. In-silico drug discovery in veterinary sciences is yet to develop up to the mark in developing countries like India. Application of vetinformatics needs to be focused in future to strengthen veterinary service, research and its development. Keywords: Vetinformatics, in-silico drug discovery, bioinformatics Cite this Article Sujatha PL, Kumarasamy P, Preetha SP et al. Vetinformatics: A New Paradigm for Quality Veterinary Services. Research & Reviews: Journal of Veterinary Science and Technology. 2016; 5(2): 16–19p.

The impact of national policies on animal disease reporting within selected Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs).

A semi-systematic literature review of national policies was carried out in relation to surveillance and disease reporting in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs). It also analysed the animal disease reporting structures in Fiji, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of those reporting structures were examined in relation to how they impacted the detection and management of animal diseases in PICTs. Field missions collected information on animal disease reporting structures and these were discussed in detail with country officials and documented. The findings from the literature review indicated that there is very little policy to support work in surveillance and disease reporting within national government structures of the countries studied. This increases the potential for disease transmission and the introduction of exotic diseases as the efficiency of disease reporting is low. The findings from the SWOT analysis of the reporting structures indicated that there were commonalities across the countries studied, i.e. reporting structures were long with multiple legs that were not functioning properly and this was worsened when positions were vacant in the reporting structure. The hierarchical nature of the reporting structure also reduced reporting efficiency as reports took a longer time to reach decision makers at the top of the structure. High officer turnover and the shortage of veterinarians in the countries studied also affected the efficiency of disease reporting as most in-county officials were inexperienced and could not recognise disease signs and there were no veterinarians to supervise them. Existing reporting structures need to be reviewed to remove duplication and shorten the chain. However, this could override existing command structures and would need to be documented and awareness created with the officers involved. There also needs to be more collaboration with FAO, OIE, academic institutions and national governments to create an environment conducive for the development of policies that support work on surveillance to improve disease reporting in PICTs. The shortage of veterinarians could be addressed by influencing national governments to create better policies to retain veterinarians in the animal health services; this should be supported by creating reasonable work conditions and remuneration packages. This should also be supported with policies to send young graduates to study veterinary science overseas and have a career path for them when they return. Engagement of retired veterinarians from developed countries and re-evaluating the criteria for veterinarian registration could be short-term solutions to address the shortage of veterinarians in PICTs.

Biosecurity and animal disease management in organic and conventional Swedish dairy herds: a questionnaire study

BackgroundGood animal health is a notion that is germane to organic dairy production, and it is expected that such herds would pay significant attention on the health of their animals. However, it is not known if the applied animal disease management is actually more adequate in organic dairy cattle herds than in conventional dairy herds. A questionnaire study on biosecurity and animal disease management activities was therefore conducted among Swedish farmers with organic and conventional dairy cattle herds.ResultsA total of 192 useable questionnaires were returned; response rates of 30.3 and 20.2% for organic and conventional farmers, respectively. Herd characteristics of the two herd types were very similar, except that pipeline/tie-stall systems were less common in organic farms and that organic farmers had a higher education level than their conventional counterparts. Also, very few systematic differences in general or specific disease management activities were observed between the two types of farms. The main exceptions being how milk from cows during antibiotic treatment was used, views on policy actions in relation to antibiotic use, and attitudes towards calling for veterinary support. Using milk from cows during antibiotic treatment was more common in conventional herds, although it was mainly given to bull calves. Farmers of organic herds were more positive to policy actions to reduce the use and need for antibiotics, and they reported waiting longer before contacting a veterinarian for calves with diarrhoea and cows with subclinical mastitis.ConclusionsThe stated biosecurity and animal disease management was relatively equal in Swedish organic and conventional dairy herds. Our results thus indicate that animal health is as important in conventionally managed dairy herds in Sweden as in organically managed herds.

High resolution LC-MS characterization of phenolic compounds and the evaluation of antioxidant properties of a tropical purple radish genotype

This study reports qualitative profiling of the phenolic compounds in an indigenously developed purple radish genotype VRRAD-151 using ultra performance liquid chromatography with quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry. The root and leaf samples were harvested at the horticultural maturity stage of the genotype. Roots were divided into the periderm, and xylem, and the leaf samples were divided into petiole, and lamina, and these were separately extracted with methanol before the LC-MS analysis. A total of 66 compounds, including 23 flavonols, 1 dihydroflavonols, 4 flavonones, 4 flavones, 28 anthocyanins, 2 isoflavonoids, 3 phenolic acids, and 1 hydroxybenzaldehyde were putatively identified based on high resolution accurate mass analysis with the data processing through UNIFI®, which is a comprehensive compound identification software solution. An in-house developed database comprising the secondary metabolites of polyphenols was used for the screening purpose, and each phenolic compound was identified based on the detection of the precursor ion, and at least one characteristic fragment ion, each with less than 5 ppm of mass error. Anthocyanins were the most abundant type of phenolics exhibiting 59% in leaf petiole, 80% in root periderm, and 90% in root xylem. The relative concentration of anthocyanins was lower (11%) in the leaf lamina. Cyanidins were the most predominant anthocyanins accounting for 54, 100, 90 and 65%, in leaf lamina, leaf petiole, root periderm and root xylem, respectively. Eight anthocyanins and 25 flavonols (except kaempferol-3-O-p-coumaryl-shophoroside-7-O-glucoside) are tentatively new identifications and reported for the first time in radish. Flavonols were found to be the predominant group of phenolic compounds in the leaf lamina, and interestingly, the gradient of antioxidant activity followed the (relative) concentration gradient of flavonols in the samples. The relative antioxidant activity of various fractions when compared with each other, followed the trend: leaf lamina > root periderm > leaf petiole ≈ root xylem. Based on the results it can be reflected that this genotype can be utilized as a functional food for management of various human and animal diseases. Since the detected anthocyanins were mostly present in acylated forms, this genotype can function as a potential source of stable natural colorants.

Ethnoveterinary health management practices using medicinal plants in South Asia - a review.

Animal rearing is the major occupation of most population of South Asian countries. Due to lack of resources and limited approach to modern medicine, most of the livestock raisers prefer to use plant-based traditional medicine also referred to as ethnoveterinary medicine (EVM). Indeed, the use of medicinal plants in South Asia dates back to several centuries with documented evidences. However, there is currently a dearth of documentation and compilation of use of medicinal plants for animal diseases in this part of the world. This review aims to provide an up-to-date compilation of common medicinal plants used for the treatment and/or management of common animal diseases in South Asian countries. Extensive literature search was conducted online and relevant data was retrieved from well-known scientific databases. A total of 276 plants belonging to 95 families have been documented to be in common use for managing 14 different categories of animal diseases. Solanaceae, Lamiaceae, Fabaceae, and Leguminosae were most common plant families in terms of their plant species used for EVM. Gastric diseases were commonly reported and accounted for 72 species of plants used for its treatment followed by the miscellaneous disorders category and skin diseases comprising of 65 and 39 plant species respectively. Herbs accounted for 46% of the total plant species, followed by trees (33%), and shrubs (18%). The EVM were applied through different routes of administration; oral administration accounted for 72% followed by topical application 27%, while burning of plant parts to create smoke around animals to repel insects was less common (1%). It is anticipated that the present review will stimulate further ethnoveterinary research among livestock disease management practices in South Asia.

Ethnobotanical Knowledge of Pastoral Community for Treating Livestock Diseases in Shinle Zone, Somali Regional State, Eastern Ethiopia

Background: Modern livestock health care is still at its lowest stage in Ethiopia and most modern veterinary services like drugs and veterinary professionals are not accessible and affordable to the majority of pastoral farmers. As a result, they are heavily relying on their traditional knowledge and practices on locally available materials mainly plants in the management of animal diseases. However, this traditional knowledge has not yet been well documented and analyzed. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify medicinal plants and examine factors that threaten ethno-veterinary. Methods: This study was conducted in Ethiopian Somaliland regional state, Shinle zone. Survey was conducted to gather information from 180 households on indigenous knowledge using a semi-structured questionnaire and filed guided observations. The data was collected and analyzed using SPSS. The variability of documented knowledge and the homogeneity of the information given by the respondents were estimated by informant consensus factor. Results: Thirty-one plant species belonging to eighteen families used against fourteen types of livestock health problems. Majority of plant identified fall under Fabaceae (22.5%) and Euphorbiaceae (16.1%) family that are largely shrubs. The most commonly used plant parts were roots (35.5%) followed by leaves (25.8%). Remedy preparation was mainly through chop and soak in concoction of water and salt. Oral, topical and nasal route were the common mode of administration with no standardized dosing and treatment duration. The principal threats of medicinal plants were invasive plants, drought, over grazing, agricultural activity and firewood collection. Indigenous knowledge on ethno-veterinary medicinal plants was accepted orally from healer’s forefathers and transmitted similarly. Conclusion: Awareness should be raised and ethno-veterinary medicine should be integrated in to livestock extension delivery systems for the need to exploit the possibility of discovering more medicinally viable plants. Further studies needed under controlled conditions on the efficacy of such plants.

Conceptual models underlying economic analysis of animal health and welfare with the inclusion of three components: people, products and resources.

Infectious animal diseases can spill across farm boundaries, so effective management requires coordinated responses. Costs and benefits from the management of infectious diseases are such that those who make the decisions have weak incentives to act, the levels of goods and services produced from animal agriculture are probably smaller than is socially optimal and resources are likely wasted. This work provides an overview of the existing literature on conceptual economic models in animal disease management, paying particular attention to inadequate incentives to make the required biosecurity efforts. A disease transmission model follows, emphasising policy and management issues which need to be addressed to enhance the benefits that consumers and producers obtain from animal protein markets. The article concludes with comments and suggestions on tackling infectious disease as a public good, and on directions for future research.

Navigating veterinary borderlands: ‘heiferlumps’, epidemiological boundaries and the control of animal disease in New Zealand

This paper analyses the importance of boundaries in the control of animal disease. On the one hand, establishing geographical and disciplinary boundaries is seen to be vital to the control of disease. In practice, however, boundaries are unstable, disrupted and frequently transgressed. Disease and its diagnosis vary in space, while disciplinary boundaries between epidemiology, laboratory and clinical practices can collapse from the non‐coherence of disease. Drawing on the concepts of ‘disciplinary borderlands’ and fluid space, the paper analyses how uncertainty over disease diagnosis establishes a veterinary borderland in which disciplines are merged and combined and difficult to tell apart. From archival research and interviews of key informants, the paper describes the history of the control of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in New Zealand. Focusing on disputes around the diagnosis of bTB in the West Coast region, the paper shows how the problem of non‐specificity (locally referred to as ‘heiferlumps’) undermined attempts to impose a universal version of disease and control policy. In this new veterinary borderland, attempts to manage the non‐coherence of disease shifted from denial to viewing disease as a moral problem in which farmers’ own knowledges were central to the definition and management of disease. In doing so, boundaries between traditional disease disciplines were broken down, and new hybrid veterinary practices established to create geographically variable disease control rules and procedures. In conclusion, the paper considers the wider consequences for the management of animal disease arising from greater farmer involvement in animal disease management.

Biosecurity and the management of emergency animal disease among commercial beef producers in New South Wales and Queensland (Australia)

Australia places great importance on the prevention and management of emergency animal diseases (EAD), with strict quarantine measures offshore and at the border. Livestock producers are crucial for disease control onshore; however, limited information is available on commercial livestock producers’ practices in relation to the management of disease risks. The aims of this paper are to investigate how commercial beef producers in Australia’s Northern and Southern beef zones manage EADs and to identify drivers for effective biosecurity and EAD prevention. This paper forms part of a broader mixed methods research project involving an analysis of literature and current policies, qualitative semi-structured interviews with government and industry stakeholders and a cross-sectional study among beef producers. The cross-sectional study used a postal survey (n=182) and face-to-face interviews (n=34) to gather data on beef producers’ knowledge and practices on biosecurity and EADs and their communication networks. Findings indicate that producers are uncertain about the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders involved in biosecurity and EAD management. This uncertainty may create confusion about EAD management and impact upon producers’ willingness to report animal disease, with over 20% reporting the last veterinary contact more than five years ago and an additional 8.5% who had never contacted a veterinarian. Producers had a generally high awareness of the key sources of animal disease risk and they prioritise herd health planning as part of their everyday practices. Over 40% of producers had limited knowledge of the meaning of EAD; and EAD and biosecurity planning was given a low priority, primarily due to the perceived limited likelihood of an EAD event in Australia and the belief that EAD prevention is primarily the role of government. Only a moderate implementation of biosecurity practices, such as isolating incoming animals, having a single property entry point or keeping visitors’ records was reported. If faced with an unusual disease event, most producers would contact their private or government veterinarian; however, in some instances most would also treat themselves and over a third would do nothing. Findings from this study suggest that there is a need for better coordination between stakeholders to encourage a shared biosecurity and EAD understanding and to communicate a consistent message to all stakeholders including producers. Further, there is a need for improving producer awareness of the importance of EAD prevention and biosecurity practices as well as the stakeholders’ roles within the broader animal health system.

D2R2: an evidence-based decision support tool to aid prioritisation of animal health issues for government funding

An evidence-based decision support tool, ‘D2R2’, has been developed by Defra. It contains a wide range of standardised information about exotic and endemic diseases held in ‘disease profiles’. Each profile...

A Comparative Assessment of the Risks of Introduction and Spread of Foot-and-Mouth Disease among Different Pig Sectors in Australia.

Small-scale pig producers are believed to pose higher biosecurity risks for the introduction and spread of exotic diseases than commercial pig producers. However, the magnitude of these risks is poorly understood. This study is a comparative assessment of the risk of introduction and spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) through different sectors of the pig industry: (1) large-scale pig producers; (2) small-scale producers (<100 sows) selling at saleyards and abattoirs; and (3) small-scale producers selling through informal means. An exposure and consequence assessments were conducted using the World Organization for Animal Health methodology for risk analysis, assuming FMD virus was introduced into Australia through illegal importation of infected meat. A quantitative assessment, using scenario trees and Monte Carlo stochastic simulation, was used to calculate the probabilities of exposure and spread. Input data for these assessments were obtained from a series of data gathering exercises among pig producers, industry statistics, and literature. Findings of this study suggest there is an Extremely low probability of exposure (8.69 × 10−6 to 3.81 × 10−5) for the three sectors of the pig industry, with exposure through direct swill feeding being 10–100 times more likely to occur than through contact with infected feral pigs. Spread of FMD from the index farm is most likely to occur through movement of contaminated fomites, pigs, and ruminants. The virus is more likely to spread from small-scale piggeries selling at saleyards and abattoirs than from other piggeries. The most influential factors on the spread of FMD from the index farm is the ability of the farmer to detect FMD, the probability of FMD spread through contaminated fomites and the presence of ruminants on the farm. Although small-scale producers selling informally move animals less frequently and do not use external staff, movement of pigs to non-commercial pathways could jeopardize animal traceability in the event of a disease outbreak. This study suggests that producers’ awareness on and engagement with legislative and industry requirements in relation to biosecurity and emergency animal disease management needs to be improved. Results from this study could be used by decision-makers to prioritize resource allocation for improving animal biosecurity in the pig industry.

Intranasal vaccination of mannan-decorated mucoadhesive HPMCP microspheres containing ApxIIA toxin effectively protected Actinobacillus pleuropneumoiaeinfection in mice

Event Abstract Back to Event Intranasal vaccination of mannan-decorated mucoadhesive HPMCP microspheres containing ApxIIA toxin effectively protected Actinobacillus pleuropneumoiaeinfection in mice Hui-Shan Li1, Min-Kyoung Shin2*, Bijay Singh1*, Han-Sang Yoo2*, Sushila Marharjan1*, Tae-Eun Park1*, Sang-Kee Kang3*, Zhong-Shan Hong4*, Yun-Jaie Choi1, 4* and Chong-Su Cho1 1 Seoul National University, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology & Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Korea 2 Seoul National University, Department of Infectious Disease, College of Veterinary Medicine, Korea 3 Seoul National University, Institute of Green-Bio Science & Technology, Korea 4 Tianjin Agricultural University, Department of Animal Science, China Introduction: The nasal route for vaccine delivery by microparticles has attracted considerable interest, although challenges such as the rapid mucociliary clearance in the respiratory mucosa and the low immunogenicity of subunit vaccine still remain[1]. Recently, a new generation of synthetic polymers known as thiolated polymers, such as thiolated hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose phthalate (HPMCP),have been shown to have strong mucoadhesive properties due to their binding with the cysteine-rich subdomains of mucus glycoprotein in the mucosal site[2]. Here, we applied thiolated HPMCP (TH) to make microspheres as a nasal vaccine carrier for prolonging the residence time in the respiratory mucosa to make interaction time of vaccine molecules and antigen presenting cells (APCs) longer. Moreover, another major hurdle in the development of intranasal vaccines is poor immunogenicity of vaccine subunits due to the lack of “danger signals” that can activate APCs[3]. To this end, we aimed to develop mannan-decorated mucoadhesive THM (Man-THM) as an adjuvant system for nasal vaccine. Mannan is one of the natural PAMPs (pathogen associated molecular patterns) of APCs and is a ligand of the mannose receptor (MR) widely expressed on APCs[4],[5]. Mannan can induce the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and up-regulate the expression of co-stimulatory molecules in these cells, thereby activating both innate and adaptive immunity[6],[7]. The aim of this work was to explore the potential of a novel Man-THM vehicle for the intranasal administration of ApxIIA as a vaccine against A. pleuropneumoniae which is known to cause contagious porcine pleuropneumoniae. Materials and Methods: ApxIIa-loaded Man-THM was prepared by the double emulsion solvent evaporation method and using the mixture of 0.25wt.-% PVA and 0.5wt.-% mannan (W2 phase) to decorate the surface of microspheres with mannan.After optimization of the preparation method and characterization of the obtained ApxIIA-loaded Man-THM, the physiochemical properties of the Man-THM as a nasal delivery carrier were evaluated by in vitro and in vivo assays. Results and Discussion: The surface of the Man-THM was homogeneously coated with mannan due to the mannan’s amphiphilic property, which functions as a stabilizer during the formation of microspheres through W1/O/W2 double emulsion. In a mechanistic study using APCs in vitro, it was found that Man-THM enhanced receptor-mediated endocytosis by stimulating the MR of APCs. In vivo, the nasal vaccination of ApxIIA-loaded Man-THM in mice resulted in higher levels of mucosal sIgA and serum IgG than mice in the ApxIIA and ApxIIA-loaded THM groups due to the specific recognition of the mannan in the Man-THM by the MRs of the APCs. Moreover, ApxIIA-containing Man-THM protected immunized mice when challenged with strains of A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 5.The number of bacteria measured in the lung tissue homogenates prepared from mice in the ApxIIA-loaded Man-THM group was approximately 100-fold lower than those from the ApxIIA and ApxIIA-loaded THM groups. Conclusion: We concluded that ApxIIA-loaded Man-THM enhanced the systemic and mucosal immune responses against ApxIIA, which enhanced the bacterial clearance ability of the mice challenged with A. pleuropneumoniae, thus improving survival. Our results strongly support the efficacy of Man-THM as an adjuvant carrier system for the effective induction of systemic and mucosal immune responses. This research was supported by the Animal Disease Management Technology Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Republic of Korea. (Project code 313014-03); We also acknowledge the National Instrumental Centre for Environmental Management (NICEM) and the National Center for Inter-University Research Facilities (NCIRF).; H.S. Li and S. Marharjan were supported by BK21 plus program.

Pattern of antimicrobial usage in livestock animals in south-western Nigeria: The need for alternative plans.

Resistance to antibiotics has continued to increase, placing future animal and human disease management in real danger. The developing countries characterised by widespread indiscriminate antibiotic use and in which ‘third-generation’ antibiotics are not readily available or affordable are the worst affected. A 3-year (2010–2012) retrospective survey of antibiotic usage in livestock production in three selected states of south-western Nigeria was conducted. Data obtained from eight purposively selected licensed veterinary pharmaceutical sales establishments in the area, based on keeping detailed sales records for the study period, were analysed using Stata Version 12. Results showed that tetracyclines (33.6%), fluoroquinolones (26.5%) and beta-lactams/aminoglycosides (20.4%) constituted the majority of the antibiotics used over the 3 years. The differences in the quantities of antibiotic types used within each antimicrobial class were statistically significant for tetracyclines (F = 59.87; p < 0.0001) and fluoroquinolones (F = 43.97; p < 0.0001) but not for beta-lactams/aminoglycosides (F = 3.21; p = 0.148). Furthermore, antibiotic consumption increased by 40.4% between 2010 and 2012. Although statistically insignificant (F = 0.277; p = 0.762), the increasing trend across the years was at rates of 23.5% between 2010 and 2011 and 13.8% between 2011 and 2012. In addition, the findings show a significantly higher consumption rate (t = 15.21; df = 5; p < 0.0001) during the rainy (52.5%) than the dry (47.5%) seasons. The current increasing trend in antibiotic usage holds a serious danger for the future and therefore calls for alternative plans to safeguard future livestock production, food security and human health. This becomes more imperative considering emerging resistance against tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones, the foremost remedies for livestock diseases in most developing countries.

Anthropology and Ecohealth Research in Control of Diseases for Pastorals in Tanzania

Employing anthropological and ecohealth approaches in research and management of human and animal diseases among pastoral and agro pastoral communities in Tanzania so as to provide scientific evidence for disease burden and drivers that can be attributed to environmental, economic and socio-ecological factors, enabling an innovative One Health approaches as a catalyst to develop and test a multi-sectoral community-based interventions to detect and control high-burden infectious diseases with high impact on food security

How biosecurity reframes animal surveillance

Several works have already looked at how the new biosecurity imperative has transformed public health policies. Although the new methods of preparing for health crises have been studied in relation to public health, in the field of animal disease management there has so far been little research to test the concept of biosecurity. To this end, this issue offers a three-dimensional approach. The first is a thematic orientation which concerns the central instrument of biosecurity policies in this era of zoonotic threat: the surveillance of animal disease. The second orientation is methodological; one needs to study surveillance practices “from the bottom up”. The third concerns the new forms of knowledge in relation to animal disease and the production and/or maintenance of ignorance.