Wild Cloven-hoofed Animals Research Articles

The use of anxiolytic drugs for the correction of behavioral disorders in mammals

The issue of stress and behavioral disorders are growing significantly in the contemporary word in humans and animals alike. Various drugs are used to modify affected behavior, including psychotropic, anticonvulsant, antihistamines, hormones, analgesics, and neuroleptics. Psychotropic drugs are prescribed for animals with behavioral disorders, signs of anxiety or hypersensitivity. Improving the methods of diagnosing and treating behavioral disorders in animals can enhance animal welfare and optimize animal husbandry technology. Future research should be aimed at improving and optimizing the use of psychotropic drugs for behavioral disorders of various animal species. The main indication for the use of anxiolytic drugs is behavioral disorders associated with anxiety in wild and domestic animals. When anxiolytic drugs are used in mammals their pharmacological properties, the dependence of their action on the route of administration, age and species of the animal, and the ability to selectively affect the central nervous system should be taken into account. The most commonly used drugs for the treatment of behavioral disorders in animals are fluoxetine, amitriptyline, escitalopram, haloperidol, zuclopentixol and azaperone. Fluoxetine is an effective drug for the treatment of dogs with behavioral disorders associated with psychological changes. An important component of escitalopram's pharmacological effect is the psychomotor influence, when the animal's behavior changes are due to improved motor activity. Zuclopentixol has a wide range of anxiolytic, sedative and analgesic effects when used in wild cloven-hoofed animals. Amitriptyline along with antidepressant properties, has a local analgesic impact. Azaperone has a pronounced anxiolytic and sedative effect on animals. It is widely used as an anti-stress agent to overcome anxiety caused by weaning, regrouping or veterinary manipulations. Azaperone is often used to control aggressive behavior in group housing, especially in the pig industry. The psychotropic drugs surveyed in this paper, along with direct anxiolytic action, are able to manifest additional physiological effects, which should be taken into account when developing treatment protocols for animals with behavioral problems. Further targeted studies are required to assess the pharmacological effects of anxiolytic drugs in animals.

Enhancing random forest predictive performance for foot and mouth disease outbreaks in Uganda: a calibrated uncertainty prediction approach for varying distributions.

Foot-and-mouth disease poses a significant threat to both domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals, leading to severe economic losses and jeopardizing food security. While machine learning models have become essential for predicting foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks, their effectiveness is often compromised by distribution shifts between training and target datasets, especially in non-stationary environments. Despite the critical impact of these shifts, their implications in foot-and-mouth disease outbreak prediction have been largely overlooked. This study introduces the Calibrated Uncertainty Prediction approach, designed to enhance the performance of Random Forest models in predicting foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks across varying distributions. The Calibrated Uncertainty Prediction approach effectively addresses distribution shifts by calibrating uncertain instances for pseudo-label annotation, allowing the active learner to generalize more effectively to the target domain. By utilizing a probabilistic calibration model, Calibrated Uncertainty Prediction pseudo-annotates the most informative instances, refining the active learner iteratively and minimizing the need for human annotation and outperforming existing methods known to mitigate distribution shifts. This reduces costs, saves time, and lessens the dependence on domain experts while achieving outstanding predictive performance. The results demonstrate that Calibrated Uncertainty Prediction significantly enhances predictive performance in non-stationary environments, achieving an accuracy of 98.5%, Area Under the Curve of 0.842, recall of 0.743, precision of 0.855, and an F1 score of 0.791. These findings underscore Calibrated Uncertainty Prediction's ability to overcome the vulnerabilities of existing ML models, offering a robust solution for foot-and-mouth disease outbreak prediction and contributing to the broader field of predictive modeling in infectious disease management.

Biological properties of foot-and-mouth disease virus А 2205/G-IV strain

According to the World Organisation for Animal Health, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is regularly reported in domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals in Africa. G-I, G-IV, G-VI, G-VII, ASIA/Iran-05 genetic lineages of serotype А FMD virus are considered to be the most widespread on the African continent. Given the close economic and trade relations maintained by the Russian Federation with the countries of North Africa, of particular interest for us is studying the FMD virus of serotype A G-IV genetic lineage, which has been responsible for the infection outbreaks in the naturally susceptible animal population of the said region every year since 2012, and there is a risk of introduction of this virus genotype in to the Russian Federation. Therefore, the issues of FMD introduction risk assessment and timely diagnosis are relevant for the Veterinary Service of Russia. FMD virus A 2205/G-IV strain tested for its biological and antigenic properties in cell cultures and naturally susceptible animals (cattle and pigs) was adapted for its reproduction in initially trypsinized porcine kidney (PK) cell culture, continuous monolayer cell cultures (IB-RS-2, PSGK-30, YaDK-04, ВНК-21) by five serial passages. The virus was considered to be adapted when 90–95% cytopathic effect developed within 14–19 hours after the cell culture infection. The virus adapted to the cell cultures was tested for its infectivity with microtitration in IB-RS-2 cell culture. The virus strain tested for vaccine matching with microneutralization test (MNT) demonstrated significant difference from production A/Turkey/06, А22 No. 550/Azerbaijan/64, A22/Iraq/64, A/Iran/97, A No. 2155/Zabaikalsky/2013, A No. 2166/Krasnodarsky/2013, A No. 2269/ARRIAH/2015 strains of FMD virus.

A foot and mouth disease ranking of risk using cattle transportation.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly infectious condition that affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. This disease has substantial economic consequences. Livestock movement is one of the primary causes of disease dissemination. The centrality properties of the livestock mobilization transportation network provide valuable information for surveillance and control of FMD. However, the same transportation network can be described by different centrality descriptions, making it challenging to prioritize the most vulnerable nodes in the transportation network. This work considers the construction of a single network risk ranking, which helps prioritize disease control measurements. Results show that the proposed ranking constructed on 2016 livestock mobilization data may predict an actual outbreak reported in the Cesar (Colombia) region in 2018, with a performance measured by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.91. This result constitutes the first quantitative evidence of the predictive capacity of livestock transportation to target FMD outbreaks. This approach may help decision-makers devise strategies to control and prevent FMD.

Detection of foot-and-mouth disease virus in raw milk in Menofia Governorate and its effect on reproductive hormones and physiochemical properties of milk.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an extremely contagious viral disease that affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. In Egypt, FMD has been enzootic since the 1950s and caused great economic losses in cattle and buffalos over the past few years. This study aimed to detect FMD virus (FMDV) in serum and raw milk samples collected from infected and adjacent cattle and buffalos from different localities in El Menofia Governorate, Egypt. Blood and milk samples were collected from apparently diseased and adjacent 100 cows and 100 buffalos. Serum samples were prepared and used for the detection of FMDV using a non-structural protein enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, while real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) was used for the detection of FMDV in milk samples. Reproductive hormones were estimated using radioimmunoassay kits. Milk constituents were determined by Lactoscan. Of the 200 examined serum samples (100 cows and 100 buffalos), 56% and 44% were seropositive for FMDV non-structural protein antibodies in cattle and buffalo, respectively. Real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction results confirmed that all examined milk samples collected from seropositive animals were positive for FMDV. Estrogen and progesterone levels in the serum of seropositive and seronegative animals were measured, and FMDV was proven to significantly elevate estrogen and reduce progesterone levels in both non-pregnant and pregnant animals during different stages of pregnancy. The effect of the virus on milk composition and somatic cell count (SCC) was also studied, revealing that FMDV infection significantly decreased the level of milk fat, protein, and lactose but did not significantly affected minerals, pH, and conductivity. Moreover, it significantly increased the SCC. Data recorded in this study indicates a widespread occurrence of FMDV in cattle and buffalo all over Menofia Governorate, Egypt. Infected raw milk is of poor quality and, if put for commercial sale, may have health risks for consumers and play a significant role in spreading the virus. Moreover, FMDV may disturb some reproductive hormones, which could adversely affect cattle and buffalo productivity. Therefore, preventive programs and accurate diagnosis are essential for successful disease control.

Foot-and-mouth disease virus VP1 promotes viral replication by regulating the expression of chemokines and GBP1.

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is an acute, highly contagious, and economically destructive pathogen of vesicular disease that affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. The FMDV VP1 protein is an important part of the nucleocapsid and plays a significant role during FMDV infection. However, the signal pathways mediated by VP1 in the life cycle of FMDV and the related mechanisms are not yet fully understood. Here, we performed RNA-seq to compare gene expression profiles between pCAGGS-HA-VP1 transfected PK-15 cells and pCAGGS-HA (empty vector) transfected PK-15 cells. The results showed 5,571 genes with significantly different expression levels, of which 2,981 were up-regulated and 2,590 were down-regulated. GO enrichment analysis showed that 51 GO terms were significantly enriched in cell components including protein complex, membrane and organelle part. KEGG enrichment analysis showed 11 KEGG pathways were significantly enriched which were mainly related to the immune system, infectious viral disease, and signal transduction. Among the up-regulated genes, the chemokines such as CCL5, CXCL8, and CXCL10 in turn promoted FMDV replication. In contrast, GBP1, an interferon-stimulated gene that was suppressed by VP1 and FMDV, could effectively inhibit FMDV replication. Our research provides a comprehensive overview of the response of host cells to VP1 protein and a basis for further research to understand the roles of VP1 in FMDV infection including the genes involved in FMDV replication.

Amber codon is genetically unstable in generation of premature termination codon (PTC)-harbouring Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) via genetic code expansion

ABSTRACT The foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is the causative agent of FMD, a highly infectious and devastating viral disease of domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. FMD affects livestock and animal products’ national and international trade, causing severe economic losses and social consequences. Currently, inactivated vaccines play a vital role in FMD control, but they have several limitations. The genetic code expansion technology provides powerful strategies for generating premature termination codon (PTC)-harbouring virus as a live but replication-incompetent viral vaccine. However, this technology has not been explored for the design and development of new FMD vaccines. In this study, we first expanded the genetic code of the FMDV genome via a transgenic cell line containing an orthogonal translation machinery. We demonstrated that the transgenic cells stably integrated the orthogonal pyltRNA/pylRS pair into the genome and enabled efficient, homogeneous incorporation of unnatural amino acids into target proteins in mammalian cells. Next, we constructed 129 single-PTC FMDV mutants and four dual-PTC FMDV mutants after considering the tolerance, location, and potential functions of those mutated sites. Amber stop codons individually substituted the selected amino acid codons in four viral proteins (3D, L, VP1, and VP4) of FMDV. We successfully rescued PTC-FMDV mutants, but the amber codon unexpectedly showed a highly degree of mutation rate during PTC-FMDV packaging and replication. Our findings highlight that the genetic code expansion technology for the generation of PTC-FMD vaccines needs to be further improved and that the genetic stability of amber codons during the packaging and replication of FMDV is a concern.

Genetic variation and evolution of foot–and–mouth disease virus serotype A in relation to vaccine matching

Foot–and–mouth disease (FMD) is a severe, highly contagious viral disease that affects a wide variety of domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. FMD vaccines can play a vital role in disease control and are very widely used globally each year. However, due to the diversity of FMDV, the choice of FMD vaccine is still a huge challenge. In this study, 45 FMDV/A isolates were phylogenetically categorized into three topotypes: ASIA (n = 31), AFRICA (n = 10), and EURO–SA (n = 4). Three sera collected from vaccinated cattle with FMDV A22/IRQ/24/64, A/IRN/05, and A/ARG/01 were used to evaluate their antigenic relationship (r1) with the field isolates. The IRQ/24/64 serum demonstrated a 39% (17/44) match (r1 ≥ 0.3) to the field isolates, whereas IRN/05 serum and ARG/01serum showed an 18% (8/44) and a 2% (1/44) match (r1 ≥ 0.3) to the field isolates, respectively. The A22/IRQ/24/64 matched with isolates mainly from topotype ASIA, with limited cross–topotype match with isolates from topotypes AFRICA and EURO–SA. However, the A/IRN/05 did not show a cross–topotype match with topotype AFRICA isolates and A/ARG/01 failed to match any isolates from topotypes ASIA and AFRICA. After analyzing the amino acid variation of the known antigenic sites of 45 strains of FMDV/A, it was found that together antigenic sites 1 and 3 contributed about 71% of the amino acid changes to the vaccine evaluated. Based on the capsid sequences, the FMDV/A evolved unequally among topotypes. The topotypes of ASIA and AFRICA evolves faster than that of EURO–SA. The FMDV/A continues to show a high level of genetic diversity driven by a high substitution rate, purifying selection, and positive selection concentrated on antigenic sites or near antigenic sites. The current research shows the challenges of the FMDV/A vaccine selection and emphasizes the importance of continuous monitoring of antigenic evolution for the selection of effective vaccines.

Computational insights into RNAi-based therapeutics for foot and mouth disease of Bostaurus

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) endangers a large number of livestock populations across the globe being a highly contagious viral infection in wild and domestic cloven-hoofed animals. It adversely affects the socioeconomic status of millions of households. Vaccination has been used to protect animals against FMD virus (FMDV) to some extent but the effectiveness of available vaccines has been decreased due to high genetic variability in the FMDV genome. Another key aspect that the current vaccines are not favored is they do not provide the ability to differentiate between infected and vaccinated animals. Thus, RNA interference (RNAi) being a potential strategy to control virus replication, has opened up a new avenue for controlling the viral transmission. Hence, an attempt has been made here to establish the role of RNAi in therapeutic developments for FMD by computationally identifying (i) microRNA (miRNA) targets in FMDV using target prediction algorithms, (ii) targetable genomic regions in FMDV based on their dissimilarity with the host genome and, (iii) plausible anti-FMDV miRNA-like simulated nucleotide sequences (SNSs). The results revealed 12 mature host miRNAs that have 284 targets in 98 distinct FMDV genomic sequences. Wet-lab validation for anti-FMDV properties of 8 host miRNAs was carried out and all were observed to confer variable magnitude of antiviral effect. In addition, 14 miRBase miRNAs were found with better target accessibility in FMDV than that of Bostaurus. Further, 8 putative targetable regions having sense strand properties of siRNAs were identified on FMDV genes that are highly dissimilar with the host genome. A total of 16 SNSs having > 90% identity with mature miRNAs were also identified that have targets in FMDV genes. The information generated from this study is populated at http://bioinformatics.iasri.res.in/fmdisc/ to cater the needs of biologists, veterinarians and animal scientists working on FMD.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus 3B Protein Interacts with Pattern Recognition Receptor RIG-I to Block RIG-I-Mediated Immune Signaling and Inhibit Host Antiviral Response.

Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious disease of pigs, sheep, goats, bovine, and various wild cloven-hoofed animals caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) that has given rise to significant economic loss to global livestock industry. FMDV 3B protein is an important determinant of virulence of the virus. Modifications in 3B protein of FMDV considerably decrease virus yield. In the current study, we demonstrated the significant role of 3B protein in suppression of type I IFN production and host antiviral response in both human embryonic kidney HEK293T cells and porcine kidney PK-15 cells. We found that 3B protein interacted with the viral RNA sensor RIG-I to block RIG-I-mediated immune signaling. 3B protein did not affect the expression of RIG-I but interacted with RIG-I to block the interaction between RIG-I and the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM25, which prevented the TRIM25-mediated, Lys63-linked ubiquitination and activation of RIG-I. This inhibition of RIG-I-mediated immune signaling by 3B protein decreased IFN-β, IFN-stimulated genes, and proinflammatory cytokines expression, which in turn promoted FMDV replication. All of the three nonidentical copies of 3B could inhibit type I IFN production, and the aa 17A in each copy of 3B was involved in suppression of IFN-related antiviral response during FMDV infection in porcine cells. Together, our results indicate the role of 3B in suppression of host innate immune response and reveal a novel antagonistic mechanism of FMDV that is mediated by 3B protein.

Features of control measures and prevention of foot-and-mouth disease of large horned cattle of meat breeds

A large number of breeding heifers and bull-producers of meat breeds were brought to the Russian Federation from different countries of the world. Breeding heifers were imported to individual farms. Extensive and semi-intensive systems of large horned cattle keeping are used more often in the Russian Federation. The extensive system provides for free movement of animals and selection of pasture areas and access to watering and shelter areas. Large number of beef cattle have been imported to the Russian Federation from around the world in recent years. Timely epizootic and clinical diagnostics play a primary role in the system of measures for the control and prevention of foot-and-mouth disease. The existing system of measures for the control and prevention of foot-and-mouth disease in the Russian Federation provides for the prevention of the introduction of the virus, systematic vaccination of ruminants and revaccination of young animals and control of the level of post-vaccination antibodies. The risk of introduction of pathogens in extensive system for beef cattle is significantly higher than in intensive system. The highest risk of introduction of infectious agents exist with wild and domestic cloven-hoofed animals. Contaminated air, water and pastures can be pathway for the introduction of infectious agents into beef herds. According to the OIE Code beef-breed large horned cattle must be subject to daily inspection. All personnel working with beef-breed large horned cattle should have professional training in accordance with their job responsibilities and understand the technology of housing and behavior of animals, as well as biosecurity measures and general symptoms of diseases and signs of deterioration of the physiological state. The main features of large horned cattle breeding, distinguishing it from other areas of productivity, are early maturity and high quality meat. It is believed that professional training in these matters is acquired through specialized training and practical experience in working with beef cattle. Knowing the etiology of diseases and their syndromes is important in identifying potential animal welfare issues.

Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) among Animals in Nepal

Foot and Mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease, affecting all domestic as well as wild cloven-hoofed animals caused by Apthovirus of Picornaviride family. FMD is endemic in Nepal causing substantial economic losses to livestock industry mainly cattle and buffalo, directly by decreasing the production and change in herd structure, and indirectly losses by cost of FMD control. The predominant serotype responsible for endemic outbreak of FMD in Nepal is ‘O’ however serotypes ‘A’ and ‘Asia-1’ have also been detected. Peak level of occurrence is noticed during pre-monsoon (April - May) and post-monsoon (Oct-Nov) period, however it occurs throughout the year. Movement of animals within the country mainly during festival season, illegal trading of livestock between Nepal and India because of open border, poor knowledge about the disease among farmers, high cost of treatment and control, lack of strict quarantine practices are the major factors contributing to high frequency of outbreak. Cattles were most frequently affected followed by buffalo, goat, sheep and pig. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the current scenario of FMD in Nepal, its transmission, diagnostic approaches and prevention and control measures. This paper is based on review of different articles from various journals, magazines, epidemiological bulletin, and reports from government of Nepal. The present approach to control this disease is through the vaccination of animal by imported multivalent vaccines. Vaccinations based on the matching of a vaccine strain to a field strain can be a better approach.
 Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 8(1): 7-13

Seroprevalence of Foot and Mouth Disease Virus Infection in Some Wildlife and Cattle in Bauchi State, Nigeria.

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is an important transboundary viral disease of both domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals characterized by high morbidity with devastating consequence on the livestock worldwide. Despite the endemic nature of FMD in Nigeria, little is known about the epidemiology of the disease at the wildlife-livestock interface level. To address this gap, blood samples were collected between 2013 and 2015 from some wildlife and cattle, respectively, within and around the Yankari Game Reserve and Sumu Wildlife Park in Bauchi State, Nigeria. Wild animals were immobilized using a combination of etorphine hydrochloride (M99® Krüger-Med South Africa) at 0.5–2 mg/kg and azaperone (Stresnil®, Janssen Pharmaceuticals (Pty.) Ltd., South Africa) at 0.1 mg/kg using a Dan-Inject® rifle (Dan-Inject APS, Sellerup Skovvej, Denmark) fitted with a 3 ml dart syringe and for reversal, naltrexone (Trexonil® Kruger-Med South Africa) at 1.5 mg IM was used, and cattle were restrained by the owners for blood collection. Harvested sera from blood were screened for presence of antibodies against the foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) using the PrioCHECK® 3ABC NSP ELISA kit, and positive samples were serotyped using solid-phase competitive ELISA, (IZSLER Brescia, Italy). Out of the 353 sera collected from cattle and wildlife 197 (65.7%) and 13 (24.5%) (P < 0.05), respectively, tested positive for antibodies to the highly conserved nonstructural 3ABC protein of FMDV by the FMDV-NS blocking ELISA. Classification of cattle into breed and sex showed that detectable antibodies to FMDV were higher (P < 0.05) in White Fulani 157 (72.8%) than in Red Bororo 23 (39.7%) and Sokoto Gudali 17 (33.3%) breeds of cattle, whereas in females, detectable FMDV antibodies were higher (P < 0.05) 150 (72.8%) than in males 47 (50.0%). In the wildlife species, antibodies to FMDV were detected in the waterbucks 2 (28.6%), elephant 1 (25.0%), wildebeests 4 (33.3%), and elands 6 (25.0%). Four serotypes of FMDV: O, A, SAT 1, and SAT 2 were detected from the 3ABC positive reactors in waterbucks, elephants, wildebeests, and elands. The results showed presence of antibodies to FMDV in some wildlife and cattle and suggested that wildlife could equally play an important role in the overall epidemiology of FMD in Nigeria. FMD surveillance system, control, and prevention program should be intensified in the study area.

ГЕЛЬМИНТОЦЕНОЗЫ И ПРОТОЗООЦЕНОЗЫ ДИКИХ ЖИВОТНЫХ (СЕМ. ОЛЕНЬИ) В ПОДЗОНЕ ГРАБОВО-ДУБОВО-ТЕМНОХВОЙНЫХ ЛЕСОВ БЕЛАРУСИ

Losses, associated with the massive spread of parasitic diseases, influence greatly the possible progressive growth in the num-ber of hunting species of wild an-imals. The article provides an assessment of the epizo-otic situation of parasitoses of wild cloven-hoofed animals ( species Deers ) of the horn-beam-oak-dark forests sub-zone of Belarus. The comparative efficacy of anthelmintics of a wide spectrum of ac-tion, possessing im-munomodulatory activity, is given. Ecological and parasitological studies of wild cloven-hoofed animals were car-ried out (2015-2018) in hunting farms of 9 terri-torial districts of the central forest-growing subzone, where the highest density of ani-mals was recorded by the route method, as well as at stations - GLHU "Berezinsky for-estry", GLHU "Ivatsevichy forestry ", Roga-chevskaya, Uzdenskaya and Minskaya ROS RGOO" BOOR " In total, samples of organs and tissues from 55 shot animals were studied, us-ing methods of excrement samples, generally accepted in parasitology. During the statisti-cal processing of the collected material in order to assess the infestation of an-imals by parasites, the following indicators were used: the extent of invasion (EI) and the intensity of invasion (II). Experiments have shown that the class of nematodes is the most species-rich in the helminthoses of wild artiodactyl animals. Widespread helminthiases in elk and red deer are - mecystocirrhosis and strongyloi-dosis, and in European roe deer - tri-chostrongyloidosis. The focus of helminthic infestation in elk should be considered pine young stands, complex spruce forests, renewable felling, for red deer - a complex pine for-est, a com-plex spruce forest, and for European roe - broad-leaved plantations, black alder forests and agricultural fields. For deworming of wild animals high antiparasitic efficiency was shown by new complex remedies - "Polyparatsid" and "Tetrahelminthicide", which have an im-munostimulating effect.

First detection of foot-and-mouth disease virus O/ME-SA/ Ind2001e sublineage in Jordan.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious vesicular disease that is caused by the FMD virus (FMDV). This disease affects both wild and domestic cloven-hoofed animals, and the latter of which includes cattle, swine, sheep and goats. FMD is endemic to Jordan and has a severe impact on the productivity of domestic livestock. In January 2017, FMD outbreaks were detected in different animal species across Jordan, resulting in high mortality rates among young lamb and goat populations as well as causing classic FMD symptoms in cattle. In this study, clinical specimens were collected from animals affected by FMD. The results obtained from sequencing the VP1 gene place the studied FMDV isolate within the FMDV O/ME-SA/ Ind2001e sublineage. Phylogenetic analysis of VP1 suggests that the O/JOR/1/2017 isolate is very similar to that of viruses isolated from Saudi Arabia in 2016. The possible introduction of this strain to Jordan might occur through transboundary animal movement or other transmission routes from Saudi Arabia, a neighbouring country.

The DEAD-Box RNA Helicase DDX1 Interacts with the Viral Protein 3D and Inhibits Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus Replication.

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) can infect domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals. The non-structural protein 3D plays an important role in FMDV replication and pathogenesis. However, the interaction partners of 3D, and the effects of those interactions on FMDV replication, remain incompletely elucidated. In the present study, using the yeast two-hybrid system, we identified a porcine cell protein, DEAD-box RNA helicase 1 (DDX1), which interacted with FMDV 3D. The DDX1-3D interaction was further confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation experiments and an indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) in porcine kidney 15 (PK-15) cells. DDX1 was reported to either inhibit or facilitate viral replication and regulate host innate immune responses. However, the roles of DDX1 during FMDV infection remain unclear. Our results revealed that DDX1 inhibited FMDV replication in an ATPase/helicase activity-dependent manner. In addition, DDX1 stimulated IFN-β activation in FMDV-infected cells. Together, our results expand the body of knowledge regarding the role of DDX1 in FMDV infection.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s12250-019-00148-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The protective capacity of high payload FMDV A22 IRQ vaccine in sheep against direct-contact challenge with a heterologous, contemporary FMDV A strain from South East Asia.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an acute, highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals, caused by FMD virus (FMDV). An FMD outbreak can cause major production losses and have significant implications for trade. Vaccination can assist in controlling the disease, and emergency vaccination using high antigen payload vaccines (>6 PD50/dose) is considered an important control approach in the event of an outbreak. In recent years there has been a divergence of serotype A viruses in South East Asia (SEA) into several distinct genetic and antigenic clusters. Numerous variants were found to poorly match serotype A vaccines commonly included in international antigen banks. This study examined the ability of single vaccination with high-potency monovalent A22 IRQ vaccine to protect sheep following challenge with the A/VIT/15/2012 strain, just four days following vaccination. The vaccine proved effective at limiting clinical disease but did not prevent infection.

History of Foot-and-mouth disease in North African countries.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly infectious and contagious transboundary viral disease of domesticated and wild cloven-hoofed animals. Wide prevalence of FMD in Asia and Africa associated with huge economic losses to livestock farming and industry prompted global concern. The present review summarizes the state of the art research in epidemiology, diagnosis, and surveillance of FMD in the North African countries. Even if the situation varies across the North African states, FMD is still a key factor affecting livestock production in this part of the world. Historically, 4 serotypes have circulated in North Africa (O, A, SAT2, and C) with type O being the most prevalent serotype, followed by serotype A. However, the rapid spread of SAT2 lineages from Libya to Egypt in 2012 and the O lineages from Libya to Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco between 2014 and 2015 demonstrated the need for a robust surveillance system to detect and respond effectively to exotic infections. Emergence and re-emergence of FMD virus genotypes/lineages have been detected engendering the need to replace vaccine strains quite frequently.

Identification of a serotype-independent linear epitope of foot-and-mouth disease virus.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), is a highly contagious infectious disease that affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals worldwide. VP2 is a structural protein of FMDV. In this study, an FMDV serotype-independent monoclonal antibody (MAb), 10B10, against the viral capsid protein VP2 was generated, and a series of GST fusion proteins expressing a truncated peptide of VP2 was subjected to Western blot analysis using MAb 10B10. Their results indicated that the peptide 8TLLEDRILT16 of VP2 is the minimal requirement of the epitope recognized by MAb 10B10. Importantly, this linear epitope was highly conserved among all seven serotypes of FMDV in a sequence alignment analysis. Subsequent alanine-scanning mutagenesis analysis revealed that the residues Thr8 and Asp12 of the epitope were crucial for MAb-10B10 binding. Furthermore, Western blot analysis also revealed that the MAb 10B10-directed epitope could be recognized by positive sera from FMDV-infected cattle. The discovery that MAb 10B10 recognizes a serotype-independent linear epitope of FMDV suggests potential applications for this MAb in the development of serotype-independent tests for FMDV.

Identification of a conformational neutralizing epitope on the VP1 protein of type A foot-and-mouth disease virus

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), is a highly contagious infectious disease that affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed animals worldwide. In recent years, outbreaks of serotype A FMD have occurred in many countries. High-affinity neutralizing antibodies against a conserved epitope could provide protective immunity against diverse subtypes of FMDV serotype A and protect against future pandemics. In this study, we generated a serotype A FMDV-specific potent neutralizing monoclonal antibody (MAb), 6C9, which recognizes a conformation-dependent epitope. MAb 6C9 potently neutralized FMDV A/XJBC/CHA/2010 with a 50% neutralization titer (NT50) of 4096. Screening of a phage-displayed random 12-mer peptide library revealed that MAb 6C9 bound to phages displaying the consensus motif YxxPxGDLG, which is highly homologous to the 135YxxPxxxxxGDLG147 motif found in the serotype A FMDV virus-encoded structural protein VP1. To further verify the authentic epitope recognized by MAb 6C9, two FMDV A/XJBC/CHA/2010 mutant viruses, P138A and G144A, were generated using a reverse genetic system. Subsequent micro-neutralization assays and double-antibody sandwich (DAS) ELISA analyses revealed that the Pro138 and Gly144 residues of the conformational epitope that are recognized by 6C9 are important for MAb 6C9 binding. Importantly, the epitope 135YxxPxxxxxGDLG147 was highly conserved among different topotypes of serotype A FMDV strains in a sequence alignment analysis. Thus, the results of this study could have potential applications in the development of novel epitope-based vaccines and suitable a MAb-based diagnostic method for the detection of serotype A FMDV and the quantitation of antibodies against this serotype.