Senecavirus A seroprevalence and risk factors in United States pig farms

Senecavirus A (SVA) is a non-enveloped, single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus belonging to the Picornaviridae family. Senecavirus A is constantly associated with outbreaks of vesicular disease in pigs and has been reported in several countries since its first large-scale outbreak in 2014. Senecavirus A’s clinical disease and lesions are indistinguishable from other vesicular foreign animal diseases (FAD). Therefore, an FAD investigation needs to be conducted for every SVA case. For this reason, SVA has been attributed as the cause of an alarming increase in the number of yearly FAD investigations performed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The objectives of this study were to estimate the seroprevalence of SVA antibodies in breeding and growing pig farms in the United States and to determine the farm-level risk factors associated with seropositivity. A total of 5,794 blood samples were collected from 98 and 95 breeding and growing pig farms in 17 states. A farm characteristics questionnaire was sent to all farms, to which 80% responded. The responses were used to conduct logistic regression analyses to assess the risk factors associated with SVA seropositivity. The estimated farm-level seroprevalences were 17.3% and 7.4% in breeding and growing pig farms, respectively. Breeding farms had 2.64 times higher odds of SVA seropositivity than growing pig farms. One key risk factor identified in breeding farms was the practice of rendering dead animal carcasses. However, the adoption of a higher number of farm biosecurity measures was associated with a protective eect against SVA seropositivity in breeding farms.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Senecavirus A seroprevalence and risk factors in United States pig farms

Senecavirus A (SVA) is a non-enveloped, single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus belonging to the Picornaviridae family. Senecavirus A is constantly associated with outbreaks of vesicular disease in pigs and has been reported in several countries since its first large-scale outbreak in 2014. Senecavirus A's clinical disease and lesions are indistinguishable from other vesicular foreign animal diseases (FAD). Therefore, an FAD investigation needs to be conducted for every SVA case. For this reason, SVA has been attributed as the cause of an alarming increase in the number of yearly FAD investigations performed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The objectives of this study were to estimate the seroprevalence of SVA antibodies in breeding and growing pig farms in the United States and to determine the farm-level risk factors associated with seropositivity. A total of 5,794 blood samples were collected from 98 and 95 breeding and growing pig farms in 17 states. A farm characteristics questionnaire was sent to all farms, to which 80% responded. The responses were used to conduct logistic regression analyses to assess the risk factors associated with SVA seropositivity. The estimated farm-level seroprevalences were 17.3% and 7.4% in breeding and growing pig farms, respectively. Breeding farms had 2.64 times higher odds of SVA seropositivity than growing pig farms. One key risk factor identified in breeding farms was the practice of rendering dead animal carcasses. However, the adoption of a higher number of farm biosecurity measures was associated with a protective effect against SVA seropositivity in breeding farms

Longitudinal Surveillance of Porcine Rotavirus B Strains from the United States and Canada and In Silico Identification of Antigenically Important Sites

Citation: Shepherd, F.K.; Murtaugh, M.P.; Chen, F.; Culhane, M.R.; Marthaler, D.G. Longitudinal Surveillance of Porcine Rotavirus B Strains from the United States and Canada and In Silico Identification of Antigenically Important Sites. Pathogens 2017, 6, 64.Rotavirus B (RVB) is an important swine pathogen, but control and prevention strategies are limited without an available vaccine. To develop a subunit RVB vaccine with maximal effect, we characterized the amino acid sequence variability and predicted antigenicity of RVB viral protein 7 (VP7), a major neutralizing antibody target, from clinically infected pigs in the United States and Canada. We identified genotype-specific antigenic sites that may be antibody neutralization targets. While some antigenic sites had high amino acid functional group diversity, nine antigenic sites were completely conserved. Analysis of nucleotide substitution rates at amino acid sites (dN/dS) suggested that negative selection appeared to be playing a larger role in the evolution of the identified antigenic sites when compared to positive selection, and was identified in six of the nine conserved antigenic sites. These results identified important characteristics of RVB VP7 variability and evolution and suggest antigenic residues on RVB VP7 that are negatively selected and highly conserved may be good candidate regions to include in a subunit vaccine design due to their tendency to remain stable

The development of a decision aid for tinnitus

OBJECTIVE: To develop a decision aid for tinnitus care that would meet international consensus for decision aid quality. DESIGN: A mixed methods design that included qualitative in-depth interviews, literature review, focus groups, user testing and readability checking. STUDY SAMPLE: Patients and clinicians who have clinical experience of tinnitus. RESULTS: A decision aid for tinnitus care was developed. This incorporates key evidence of efficacy for the most frequently used tinnitus care options, together with information derived from patient priorities when deciding which choice to make. CONCLUSION: The decision aid has potential to enable shared decision making between clinicians and patients in audiology. The decision aid meets consensus standards

Antiviral responses by swine primary bronchoepithelial cells are limited compared to human bronchoepithelial cells following influenza virus infection

Swine generate reassortant influenza viruses because they can be simultaneously infected with avian and human influenza; however, the features that restrict influenza reassortment in swine and human hosts are not fully understood. Type I and III interferons (IFNs) act as the first line of defense against influenza virus infection of respiratory epithelium. To determine if human and swine have different capacities to mount an antiviral response the expression of IFN and IFN-stimulated genes (ISG) in normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) cells and normal swine bronchial epithelial (NSBE) cells was evaluated following infection with human (H3N2), swine (H1N1), and avian (H5N3, H5N2, H5N1) influenza A viruses. Expression of IFNλ and ISGs were substantially higher in NHBE cells compared to NSBE cells following H5 avian influenza virus infection compared to human or swine influenza virus infection. This effect was associated with reduced H5 avian influenza virus replication in human cells at late times post infection. Further, RIG-I expression was lower in NSBE cells compared to NHBE cells suggesting reduced virus sensing. Together, these studies identify key differences in the antiviral response between human and swine respiratory epithelium alluding to differences that may govern influenza reassortment

Cross-protection of commercial vaccines against Chilean swine influenza A virus using the guinea pig model as a surrogate

Influenza A virus poses a significant threat to public health and the swine industry. Vaccination is the primary measure for controlling the disease, but the effectiveness of vaccines can vary depending on the antigenic match between vaccine strains and circulating strains. In Chile, H1N1pdm09 and other lineages H1N2 and H3N2 have been detected in pigs, which are genetically distinct from the strains included in commercial vaccines. This study aimed to evaluate the cross-protection by commercial vaccines against strains circulating in Chile using the guinea pig model. For this study, four circulating strains [A/swine/Chile/H1A-7/2014(H1N2), A/swine/Chile/H1B-2/2014(H1N2), A/swine/Chile/H1P-12/2015(H1N1), and A/swine/Chile/H3-2/2015(H3N2)] were selected. Guinea pigs were divided into vaccinated and control groups. The vaccinated animals received either a multivalent antigenically heterologous or monovalent homologous vaccine, while the control animals remained unvaccinated. Following vaccination, all animals were intranasally challenged, and nasal wash samples were collected at different time points post-infection. The results showed that the homologous monovalent vaccine-induced hemagglutinin-specific antibodies against the Chilean pandemic H1N1pdm09 strain. However, the commercial heterologous multivalent vaccine failed to induce hemagglutinin-specific antibody titers against the H1N2 and H3N2 challenge strains. Furthermore, the homologous monovalent vaccine significantly reduced the duration of viral shedding and viral titers specifically against the Chilean pandemic H1N1pdm09 strain and heterologous multivalent vaccine only partial. These findings highlight the importance of regularly updating vaccine strains to match the circulating field strains for effective control of swine influenza. Further research is needed to develop vaccines that confer broader protection against diverse strains of swine influenza A virus

Ring test evaluation of the detection of influenza A virus in swine oral fluids by real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction and virus isolation

The probability of detecting influenza A virus (IAV) in oral fluid (OF) specimens was calculated for each of 13 assays based on real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) and 7 assays based on virus isolation (VI). The OF specimens were inoculated with H1N1 or H3N2 IAV and serially diluted 10-fold (10(-1) to 10(-8)). Eight participating laboratories received 180 randomized OF samples (10 replicates × 8 dilutions × 2 IAV subtypes plus 20 IAV-negative samples) and performed the rRT-PCR and VI procedure(s) of their choice. Analysis of the results with a mixed-effect logistic-regression model identified dilution and assay as variables significant (P \u3c 0.0001) for IAV detection in OF by rRT-PCR or VI. Virus subtype was not significant for IAV detection by either rRT-PCR (P = 0.457) or VI (P = 0.101). For rRT-PCR the cycle threshold (Ct) values increased consistently with dilution but varied widely. Therefore, it was not possible to predict VI success on the basis of Ct values. The success of VI was inversely related to the dilution of the sample; the assay was generally unsuccessful at lower virus concentrations. Successful swine health monitoring and disease surveillance require assays with consistent performance, but significant differences in reproducibility were observed among the assays evaluated

The Seventeenth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys: Complete Release of MaNGA, MaStar and APOGEE-2 Data

This paper documents the seventeenth data release (DR17) from the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys; the fifth and final release from the fourth phase (SDSS-IV). DR17 contains the complete release of the Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey, which reached its goal of surveying over 10,000 nearby galaxies. The complete release of the MaNGA Stellar Library (MaStar) accompanies this data, providing observations of almost 30,000 stars through the MaNGA instrument during bright time. DR17 also contains the complete release of the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2) survey which publicly releases infra-red spectra of over 650,000 stars. The main sample from the Extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (eBOSS), as well as the sub-survey Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey (TDSS) data were fully released in DR16. New single-fiber optical spectroscopy released in DR17 is from the SPectroscipic IDentification of ERosita Survey (SPIDERS) sub-survey and the eBOSS-RM program. Along with the primary data sets, DR17 includes 25 new or updated Value Added Catalogs (VACs). This paper concludes the release of SDSS-IV survey data. SDSS continues into its fifth phase with observations already underway for the Milky Way Mapper (MWM), Local Volume Mapper (LVM) and Black Hole Mapper (BHM) surveys

The entrepreneurial orientation -performance linkage in high -technology firms: An international comparative study

The study of firm-level or corporate entrepreneurship (CE) has created an interest in the posture of the firm to act entrepreneurial, leading some researchers to develop the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) construct, the dimensions of which are firm-level risk taking, proactiveness, and innovativeness (Miller & Friesen, 1982). Lumpkin and Dess (1996) subsequently expanded the construct to include competitive aggressiveness and autonomy. The results of empirical research on various antecedents and moderators to the EO-performance linkage have been mixed and a myriad of taxonomic and modeling approaches has not served to facilitate a CE paradigm. From the strategy literature, entrepreneurship scholars have borrowed the focus on alignment or fit between the organization and its environment and have introduced structural contingency and configuration frameworks to the EO modeling process. The relatively limited international research in EO includes primarily single-country studies, with some cross-cultural research based on Hoftsede\u27s (1980) dimensions. The majority of these studies have involved samples of small and medium-size, established firms across multiple manufacturing industries. Based on the Miller and Friesen (1982) and Lumpkin and Dess (1996) models, this study explores the intersection of three domains—entrepreneurship, strategy and comparative international research. A contingency approach is used to explore the impact of various combinations of EO, environmental forces and organizational factors on the performance of small and medium-sized firms in a single high-tech industry, systems integration, in the US and Germany. Challenging the strength of the EO-Performance linkage, the study looks as well at strategic process, organicity, national environment and turbulent industry environment and their impact on performance Survey data from 94 US and German executives is analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The results suggest that EO alone is not a significant determinant of firm performance, the latter being influenced significantly by country context and the interaction of a strong strategic process or an organic firm with a turbulent industry environment. The reliability of the dimensions within the EO construct for high-tech firms is questioned and the need to contextualize the construct with respect to turbulent industries and multi-national studies addressed

Elizabeth Rasmussen MS Thesis Appendix 1: Ring-billed and Franklin's Gull AIV rT-PCR and ELISA Results

Elizabeth Rasmussen's MS Thesis Appendix 1 includes full results from Franklin's and Ring-billed Gull rRT-PCR, ELISA, H5 and H7 subtype-specific rRT-PCRs, proportion tests, descriptive analyses, and serology analyses.The natural reservoirs for avian influenza virus (AIV) are wild waterbirds such as ducks and gulls. In Minnesota, gulls are abundant and known to visit poultry farms, yet are underrepresented in AIV wild bird surveillance efforts. The purpose of this research was to fill part of this surveillance gap by studying AIV in Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) (RBGU) and Franklin’s Gulls (Leucophaeus pipixcan) (FRGU) in August 2017. Results from previous work showed that RBGUs in Minnesota have the highest AIV prevalence levels in the fall, when gulls migrate from their breeding colonies, through areas with poultry farms, to their wintering grounds. This finding, coupled with the reported presence of gulls of all species loafing and foraging near poultry dense areas of Minnesota, warranted further targeted surveillance efforts of other related species, in particular the FRGU. Due to their slow and widely dispersed fall migration pattern, the FRGU may have even more opportunities than the RBGU to become infected with and transmit AIV to other species. This study evaluated 120 FRGU sera, oropharyngeal swabs and cloacal swabs from a wild bird surveillance project conducted in Minnesota in 2017. These samples were tested to determine the AIV sero- and viral prevalence of the FRGU, and subsequently compared their prevalence rates to RBGU. In addition to performing surveillance to determine AIV prevalence in FRGU and RBGU in Minnesota, the swabs that tested positive for AIV from the RBGU and FRGU samples were subjected to whole genome sequencing to determine subtype and lineage. Analyses of each virus segment showed there was no virus movement between the gulls in this study and the 2015 H5N2 highly pathogenic AIV that infected domestic poultry in Minnesota. In other words, the AIV from these gulls in Minnesota did not share a common ancestry with the domestic HPAI H5 viruses of 2014-2015. The RBGU and FRGU H13N2, H13N6, and H13N8 AIV detected were reassortants with AIV genes of North American and Eurasian lineage primarily from other gull species but also commonly containing gene segments from North American duck species. The implications for not finding H5 AIV by rRT-PCR could mean that gulls do not harbor or circulate H5 AIV or that the timing and geographic location are imperative for detection of H5 AIV in wild birds during outbreaks in domestic birds. Finally, to add support to the genetic evidence that AIV in RBGU are a result of RBGU mixing with other species from different geographic locations during migration, we explored the ecological drivers of these AIV infections to see how they affect viral genetic diversity. We investigated gull movements by collecting resighting events from banded RBGU and from satellite location tracking of a small subset of RBGU from one breeding colony on Interstate Island in Duluth, Minnesota. The predominant resightings and recorded movements of Minnesota RBGU were along the Great Lakes, crossing both the Mississippi and Atlantic flyways during fall migration, and overwintering along the Atlantic coast of the Eastern United States. This study determined that the geographic dissemination of the gulls and the geographic lineage of their viruses were in agreement with RBGU having ample opportunity during their life stages to interact and mix with other avian species and become infected with AIV from those other species. Overall, these studies determined that targeted surveillance of gulls over the migration and breeding seasons allows for the successful identification of AIV and estimates of AIV prevalence in gulls. Although there are populations of gulls in Minnesota with reassortant AIV containing gene segments from AIV of multiple avian species and of varying geographic lineage, there is no evidence that exchange of viruses or gene segments of viruses between domestic poultry and gulls has occurred in Minnesota. Through the satellite monitoring of RBGUs from a single breeding colony, we were able to investigate gull movement to and from Minnesota which will facilitate timing and location of future AIV surveillance efforts