Torque teno virus i el porc espanyol : un relació d'antuvi

Investigadors de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona evidencien l'evolució de l'infecció pel Torque teno virus (TTV) en porcs espanyols, un virus del que n'hi ha múltiples espècies, inclosa la humana, malgrat no s'associa a cap malaltia en concret. Mitjançant una descripció retrospectiva (1985-2005) i aplicant la tècnica de reacció en cadena de polimerasa (PCR) dels dos genogrups de TTV coneguts en l'espècie porcina -TTV1 i TTV2-, l'estudi constata que a l'Estat Espanyol aquest agent víric ha estat present en els porcs, com a mínim, des de l'inici del període i sempre amb una alta prevalença. Donat que es tracta d'un agent específic, aquests resultats confirmen també que el TTV no és, aparentment, el causant d'una malaltia ni és potencialment zoonòtic. Però, encara s'ha anat més enllà. Demostren que, tot i que el genoma dels TTVs en el porc no ha experimentat un canvi evolutiu, certes regions del genoma de TTV esdevenen un bon filó per a futurs estudis filogenètics.Investigadores de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona evidencian la evolución de la infección del Torque teno virus (TTV) en cerdos españoles, un virus del que existen múltiples especies, incluída la humana, aunque no se asocia a ninguna enfermedad en concreto. Mediante una descripción retrospectiva (1985-2005) y aplicando la técnica de reacción en cadena de polimerasa (PCR) de los dos genogrupos de TTV conocidos en la especie porcina-TTV1 y TTV2-, el estudio constata que en el Estado español este agente vírico ha estado presente en los cerdos, como mínimo, desde el inicio del período y siempre con una alta prevalencia. Dado que se trata de un agente específico, estos resultados confirman también que el TTV no es aparentemente el causante de enfermedad ni es potencialmente zoonótico. Pero todavía se ha ido más allá. Demuestran que, aunque el genoma de los TTVs en el cerdo no ha experimentado un cambio evolutivo, ciertas regiones del genoma de TTV se convierten en una buena oportunidad para iniciar futuros estudios filogenéticos

Revisiting Porcine Circovirus Disease Diagnostic Criteria in the Current Porcine Circovirus 2 Epidemiological Context

Current knowledge on porcine circovirus diseases (PCVD) caused by Porcine circovirus 2 (PCV-2) includes the subclinical infection (PCV-2-SI), systemic (PCV-2-SD) and reproductive (PCV-2-RD) diseases, and porcine dermatitis and nephropathy syndrome (PDNS). Criteria to establish the diagnosis of these conditions have not changed over the years; thus, the triad composed by clinical signs, lesions and viral detection in lesions are still the hallmark for PCV-2-SD and PCV-2-RD. In contrast, PCV-2-SI diagnosis is not usually performed since this condition is perceived to be controlled by default through vaccination. PDNS is diagnosed by gross and histopathological findings, and PCV-2 detection is not recognized as a diagnostic criterion. Molecular biology methods as a proxy for PCVD diagnoses have been extensively used in the last decade, although these techniques should be mainly considered as monitoring tools rather than diagnostic ones. What has changed over the years is the epidemiological picture of PCV-2 through the massive use of vaccination, which allowed the decrease in infectious pressure paralleled with a decrease in overall herd immunity. Consequently, the need for establishing the diagnosis of PCVD has increased lately, especially in cases with a PCV-2-SD-like condition despite vaccination. Therefore, the objective of the present review is to update the current knowledge on diagnostic criteria for PCVDs and to contextualize the interest of using molecular biology methods in the overall picture of these diseases within variable epidemiological scenarios of PCV-2 infection

Cistomatosis Apocrina : primera descripción en la especie porcina

El estudio del Servicio de Diagnóstico de Patología Veterinaria (SDPV) de la UAB y el Servicio de Soporte a Mataderos (SESC) de IRTA-CReSA describe por primera vez la cistomatosi apocrina en la especie porcina, una enfermedad de las glándulas sudoríparas apocrinas ya estudiada en gatos y perros, entre otros, a partir de tres casos, en Cataluña. Aunque este estudio expone que la causa de la lesión es la misma, no se ha podido determinar sólo una en general (local o multifocal cutánea o sistémica) por falta de una muestra de análisis más amplia. Sin embargo, el origen congénito es una posibilidad abierta por todos los indicios encontrados.The study by the Veterinary Pathology Diagnostic Service (SDPV) of the UAB and the Slaughterhouse Support Network (SESC) of the IRTA-CReSA for the first time describes apocrine cystomatosis in the porcine species, a disease of the apocrine sweat glands already studied in other animal species such as cats and dogs. Based on three cases in Catalonia, this study states that although the cause of the condition is the same, it has not been possible to determine one single cause in general (local or multifocal cutaneous or systemic) due to the lack of a wider sample analysis. Nonetheless, all signs point to the possibility of a congenital origin

Circovirus porcí 3 : un nou virus que infecta al porc

Els circovirus porcins (PCV) són agents vírics que infecten tan porcs domèstics com salvatges i fins el 2015 se'n coneixien 2 tipus: PCV-1 i PCV-2, sent l'últim el patogènic i per tant, el de major rellevància econòmica. Recentment, s'ha descobert el PCV-3, el qual també es considera un agent víric infecciós. En aquest article es destaquen les característiques del virus, la seva epidemiologia, òrgans en els quals s'ha trobat, mètodes de diagnòstic i la seva potencial associació amb malaltia al porc domèstic. En general, s'hi defensa la importància de conèixer l'estat de la qüestió de PCV-3 ja que podria resultar útil a nivell pràctic i també per la comunitat científica.Los circovirus porcinos (PCV) son agentes víricos que infectan cerdos domésticos y salvajes. Hasta 2015 solo se conocían dos tipos: PCV-1 y PCV-2, siendo el último el patogénico y por tanto, el de mayor relevancia económica. Recientemente, se ha descubierto el PCV-3, el cual también es considerado un agente vírico infeccioso. En este artículo se destacan las características del virus, su epidemiología, órganos en los cuales se ha hallado, métodos diagnósticos y su potencial asociación con enfermedad en el cerdo doméstico. En general, se defiende la importancia de conocer el estado de la cuestión de PCV-3 ya que podría resultar útil a nivel práctico y también para la comunidad científica.Porcine circoviruses (PCVs) are small viral agents which infect members of the family Suidade. Until 2015, two species of PCVs were known: PCV-1 and PCV-2, being the last the pathogenic one, hence the most economically relevant. Recently, PCV-3 has been discovered and it is also considered as a new infectious viral agent. In this article, characteristics of the virus, its epidemiology, tissues in which has been found, diagnostic methods and its potential association with disease in the domestic pig are reviewed. In general, it defends the importance of knowing PCV3's state of the art since it could be useful for both the industry and the scientific community

Posada al dia del mètode de classificació taxonòmica del circovirus porcí tipus 2

Un equip internacional i multidisciplinar de científics ha publicat un estudi al Virology Journal on s'estudia la classificació taxonòmica del circovirus porcí tipus 2 (PCV2), un dels principals patògens que afecten el sector porcí a nivell mundial.Un equipo internacional y multidisciplinar de científicos han publicado un estudio en el Virology Journal donde se estudia la clasificación taxonómica del circovirus porcino tipo 2 (PCV2), uno de los principales patógenos que afectan al sector porcino a nivel mundial. El estudio ha contado con la participación destacada de dos investigadores del IRTA- CReSA, el profesor Joaquim Segalés, del Departamento de Sanidad y Anatomía Animales de la UAB, y el doctor Martí Cortey, del subprograma de enfermedades endémicas del IRTA-CReSA.A multidisciplinary international team of scientists have published a study in Virology Journal revisiting the taxonomic classification of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), one of the major pathogens affecting the pig industry worldwide. The study included the participation of two prominent researchers from the IRTA-CReSA, Professor Joaquim Segalés, from the Department of Animal Health and Anatomy at the UAB, and Dr. Martí Cortey, from the endemic diseases subprogram at IRTA-CReSA

Porcine circovirus 3 (PCV-3) as a causal agent of disease in swine and a proposal of PCV-3 associated disease case definition

Altres ajuts: Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnologia Agraria y Alimentaria RTA2017-00007-00-00Porcine circovirus 3 (PCV-3) was discovered in 2015 using next-generation sequencing (NGS) methods. Since then, the virus has been detected worldwide in pigs displaying several clinical-pathological outcomes as well as in healthy animals. The objective of this review is to critically discuss the evidence existing so far regarding PCV-3 as a swine pathogen. In fact, a significant number of publications claim PCV-3 as a disease causal infectious agent, but very few of them have shown strong evidence of such potential causality. The most convincing proofs of disease association are those that demonstrate a clinical picture linked to multisystemic lymphoplasmacytic to lymphohistiocytic perivascular inflammation and presence of viral nucleic acid within these lesions. Based on these evidence, individual case definitions for PCV-3-reproductive disease and PCV-3-systemic disease are proposed to standardize diagnostic criteria for PCV-3-associated diseases. However, the real frequency of these clinical-pathological conditions linked to the novel virus is unknown, and the most frequent outcome of PCV-3 infection is likely subclinical based on its worlwide distribution

Evaluation of the capability of the PCV2 genome to encode miRNAs : lack of viral miRNA expression in an experimental infection

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is a ssDNA virus causing PCV2-systemic disease (PCV2-SD), one of the most important diseases in swine. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a new class of small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. Viral miRNAs have recently been described and the number of viral miRNAs has been increasing in the past few years. In this study, small RNA libraries were constructed from two tissues of subclinically PCV2 infected pigs to explore if PCV2 can encode viral miRNAs. The deep sequencing data revealed that PCV2 does not express miRNAs in an in vivo subclinical infection

Use of H-Index and other bibliometric indicators to evaluate research productivity outcome on swine diseases

H-index is the most commonly applied tool to evaluate scientific productivity. In this study, the use of the H-index to evaluate scientific production in swine veterinary medicine was explored. A database of 137 pig infectious agents was constructed, including its taxonomic division, zoonotic potential, status as emerging pathogen and whether it was OIE-listed. The H-index and the total number of citations were calculated for those pathogens, the location of the affiliation of the first author of each paper included in the H-index core was registered and, for the ten pathogens with the highest H-index, evolution over time was measured. H-index values were compared to the M quotient, A-index, G-index, HG-index and the G/H ratio. H-indices were found to be severely affected by search accuracy and the database was hand curated. Swine pathogen H-indexes were highly dispersed ranging from 0 to 106 and were generally higher for pathogens causing endemic diseases in large pig producing countries. Indeed, the three top pathogens were Escherichia coli, Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus and Porcine circovirus type 2 with H-indices 106, 95 and 85, respectively. H-indices of viruses and bacteria were significantly higher (P 0.001) than other pathogen types. Also, non-zoonotic pathogens had higher H-indices than zoonotic pathogens (p 0.009) while no differences could be found for being listed by the OIE. For emerging diseases, only non-emerging viruses had higher H-index (p = 0.02). The study of H-indexes over time revealed three general patterns and that they had increased mainly after the 1980's. As expected, there were strong geographic patterns in terms of authorship and North America (38%) and Europe (46%) coped the majority of the papers. Finally, in order to quantify the contribution of a subject to a specific field, a new index "Deciphering Citations Organized by Subject" (Dcos) is proposed

Impact of maternally derived immunity on immune responses elicited by piglet early vaccination against the most common pathogens involved in porcine respiratory disease complex

Newborn piglets can trigger an elementary immune response, but the acquirement of specific antibodies and/or cellular immunity against pathogens before they get infected post-natally is paramount to preserve their health. This is especially important for the pathogens involved in porcine respiratory disease complex (PRDC) as they are widespread, fairly resistant at environment, and genetically variable; moreover, some of them can cause intrauterine/early life infections. Piglet protection can be achieved by either passive transfer of maternal derived immunity (MDI) and/or actively through vaccination. However, vaccinating piglets in the presence of remaining MDI might interfere with vaccine efficacy. Hence, the purpose of this work is to critically review the putative interference that MDI may exert on vaccine efficacy against PRDC pathogens. This knowledge is crucial to design a proper vaccination schedule. MDI transferred from sows to offspring could potentially interfere with the development of an active humoral immune response. However, no conclusive interference has been shown regarding performance parameters based on the existing published literature