Disease and welfare risk assessments for the reintroduction of Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) from Sweden to Kielder Forest, Northumberland, UK

This report was completed by a team of veterinary surgeons on behalf of the Lynx UK Trust, to support a licence application for a time limited, scientific trial reintroduction of lynx (Lynx lynx) to the Kielder Forest in Northumberland. The veterinary team has extensive experience of the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of infectious and non-infectious wildlife diseases. Additional information was sourced from the scientific literature using the academic search engines Web of Science and Google Scholar. Expert opinion was sought from an international network of veterinary pathologists, zoo veterinarians, ecologists and epidemiologists with experience of disease monitoring and management in lynx and their prey species. The disease and welfare risk assessment will inform the licensing authorities and the project team of the likelihood of disease associated with the reintroduction trial. Translocation affects host-pathogen communities in the donor and release environments. The primary aim of the risk assessment is to proactively minimize the likelihood of disease in the donor animals, other wildlife, domesticated species and humans, by identifying and assessing the likelihood of disease as a consequence of the reintroduction trial and recommending cost-effective disease mitigation

Detection of squirrel poxvirus by nested and real-time PCR from red (Sciurus vulgaris) and grey (Sciurus carolinensis) squirrels

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Squirrel poxvirus (SQPV) is highly pathogenic to red squirrels (<it>Sciurus vulgaris</it>), and is a significant contributing factor to the local extinction of the species in most parts of England and Wales, where infection is endemic in Eastern grey squirrel (<it>Sciurus carolinensis</it>) populations. Although a nested PCR assay has been used successfully to study the epidemiology of SQPV, samples have a long processing time and the assay is not quantifiable.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This project describes the design and optimization of a real-time PCR for SQPV. Comparison with the nested PCR showed the real-time assay to be more sensitive by one log and able to detect approximately 144 genome copies per mg of tissue.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The real-time PCR has been used to quantify viral genome load in tissues from diseased and apparently healthy red and grey squirrels, and suggests that the titre of virus in tissues from diseased red squirrels is considerably higher than that found even in a grey squirrel with cutaneous lesions.</p

Application of next-generation sequencing technologies in virology

The progress of science is punctuated by the advent of revolutionary technologies that provide new ways and scales to formulate scientific questions and advance knowledge. Following on from electron microscopy, cell culture and PCR, next-generation sequencing is one of these methodologies that is now changing the way that we understand viruses, particularly in the areas of genome sequencing, evolution, ecology, discovery and transcriptomics. Possibilities for these methodologies are only limited by our scientific imagination and, to some extent, by their cost, which has restricted their use to relatively small numbers of samples. Challenges remain, including the storage and analysis of the large amounts of data generated. As the chemistries employed mature, costs will decrease. In addition, improved methods for analysis will become available, opening yet further applications in virology including routine diagnostic work on individuals, and new understanding of the interaction between viral and host transcriptomes. An exciting era of viral exploration has begun, and will set us new challenges to understand the role of newly discovered viral diversity in both disease and health

Renal trematode infection due to Paratanaisia bragai in zoo housed Columbiformes and a Red Bird-of-Paradise (Paradisaea rubra)

Trematode infections affect a diverse range of avian species and the organs that are parasitised are also very varied. The family Eucotylidae contains seven genera of renal flukes that parasitise various birds. In birds, mild to severe lesions have been reported for species of the genus Paratanaisia, which was originally described from columbiform and galliform specimens collected in South America and has been identified in a number of wild avian species. This paper investigates eight cases of renal trematode infection at Chester Zoo in the UK due to Paratanaisia bragai in five previously unreported species: red bird-of-paradise, Socorro dove, Mindanao bleeding heart dove, laughing dove and emerald dove. Pathological changes, which varied between species, are discussed. A known intermediate snail host Allopeas clavulinum was present in the enclosures but there was no direct evidence of trematode infection. The size of the snails, possible low prevalence and the difficulty of visualising sporocysts contributed to this. Thus the development and application of further molecular diagnostic markers that can be applied to snail tissues is warranted. Parasite identification was confirmed utilizing DNA amplification from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues using PCR and trematode specific primers. Sequencing full ssrDNA and D1-D3 lsrDNA confirmed the identity in all cases as P. bragai. However, the short 310 bp fragment used provides insufficient variation or sequence length for wider application. The epidemiology, pathology and consequences for the management of these endangered species are discussed. Preliminary work on developing an effective ante mortem diagnostic PCR test kit is also highlighted

Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus 4 and Clostridium perfringens Type C Fatal Co-Infection in an Adult Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus)

Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus hemorrhagic disease (EEHV-HD) is an acute, often fatal, multisystemic hemorrhagic disease and one of the most significant causes of mortality of Asian elephants in captivity. Most fatal cases of EEHV-HD are associated with EEHV1A and EEHV1B in juveniles. This case report describes the clinical and pathological features of a fatal co-infection of Clostridium perfringens type C and EEHV-HD, caused by EEHV4, in an adult female Asian elephant. Although fatal clostridial enterotoxemia has been occasionally reported in elephants, this report highlights the importance of having both EEHV-HD and clostridial enterotoxemia as potential differential diagnoses in cases of widespread tissue necrosis and internal hemorrhage in elephants, regardless of the animal age group, due to their macroscopic similarities, frequent co-occurrence and cumulative morbid potential.</jats:p

Implications of squirrelpox virus for successful red squirrel translocations within mainland UK

Remnant red squirrel populations in the UK mainland are threatened by squirrelpox viral disease and the reservoir of the squirrelpox virus, the invasive grey squirrel, is expanding its range. Until this threat can be effectively mitigated, there is a high risk from disease outbreaks, following proposed conservation translocation of red squirrels

Characterisation of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium isolates from wild birds in northern England from 2005 – 2006

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several studies have shown that a number of serovars of <it>Salmonella enterica </it>may be isolated from wild birds, and it has been suggested that wild birds may play a role in the epidemiology of human and livestock salmonellosis. However, little is known about the relationship between wild bird <it>S. enterica </it>strains and human- and livestock- associated strains in the United Kingdom. Given the zoonotic potential of salmonellosis, the main aim of this study was to investigate the molecular epidemiology of <it>S. enterica </it>infections in wild birds in the north of England and, in particular, to determine if wild bird isolates were similar to those associated with disease in livestock or humans.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Thirty two <it>Salmonella enterica </it>isolates were collected from wild birds in northern England between February 2005 and October 2006, of which 29 were <it>S. enterica </it>serovar Typhimurium (<it>S</it>. Typhimurium); one <it>S</it>. Newport, one <it>S</it>. Senftenberg, and one isolate could not be classified by serotyping. Further analysis through phage typing and macro-restriction pulsed-field gel electrophoresis indicated that wild passerine deaths associated with salmonellosis were caused by closely-related <it>S</it>. Typhimurium isolates, some of which were clonal. These isolates were susceptible to all antimicrobials tested, capable of invading and persisting within avian macrophage-like HD11 cells <it>in vitro</it>, and contained a range of virulence factors associated with both systemic and enteric infections of birds and mammals. However, all the isolates lacked the <it>sopE </it>gene associated with some human and livestock disease outbreaks caused by <it>S</it>. Typhimurium.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The wild bird isolates of <it>S. enterica </it>characterised in this investigation may not represent a large zoonotic risk. Molecular characterisation of isolates suggested that <it>S</it>. Typhimurium infection in wild passerines is maintained within wild bird populations and the causative strains may be host-adapted.</p