Progress 10/01/07 to 09/30/09
Outputs
OUTPUTS: This project has contributed to the training/mentoring of a graduate PhD student in Comparative Experimental Medicine with an emphasis in wildlife/domestic species interface disease. In addition, it has allowed disease surveillance training of 2 veterinary professional students. The training of the graduate student and veterinary students has included developing appropriate primers and probes for real-time PCR, development of sampling strategies, quality control of ELISA methodologies and conducting the sampling experimental protocols outlined in the original approach description of this project and analyzing relationship of the population densities to the detection of the agent. The graduate student has been involved in both statewide and regional activities. One of the veterinary students was focused on intrastate sampling and the other deployed to South Africa for international sampling/testing. A problem based learning activity module for professional veterinary students has been developed using the Malignant Catarrhal Fever virus as an example of an endemic cross species disease that must be differentiated from foreign animal diseases. Development of the module included input from clinical diagnostic and regulatory medicine collaborators. A video has been produced to instruct hunters and wildlife personnel in harvesting appropriate samples for the study. Based on the developed PCR methodologies diagnostic services for detection of MCF virus are now offered to local and regional clinical services. Based on the findings consultation to producers with identified viremic animals has been given on an as needed basis. Collaborative efforts have been established between the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, the UT Center for Wildlife Health, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, the University of Pretoria, South Africa and ARDS facility in Pullman WA. Included in sample collection packets distributed to hunters producers and wildlife management official cooperating with the study is summary information regarding the virus, target/affected species and clinical outcomes of the disease. Seminars regarding MCF have been presented to regional Veterinary Medical Associations and inter-college series. This year poster and/or oral presentations have been made at the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease, Chicago IL, Annual International Conference of the Wildlife Disease Association and Comparative & Experimental Medicine Research Symposium, Knoxville TN. The findings previously presented at the 8th International Veterinary Immunology Symposium (8IVIS) Ouro Preto, Brazil were published. PARTICIPANTS: PI Robert L. Donnell DVM, PhD, DipAVCP, Associate professor, Department of Pathobiology, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine Collaborators: Stephen A. Kania, MS, PhD. Associate professor, Department of Comparative Medicine University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine Edward Ramsay, DVM, DipACZM, Professor, Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine Fred Hopkins, MS, DVM, DipACT, Professor, Department of Animal Sciences, Extension, University of Tennessee Training: Robin Cissell, MS. Graduate Student, Comparative and Experimental Medicine Program, University of Tennessee, Department of Pathobiology Kate Carpenter, Veterinary student, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine Martha Cline, Veterinary student, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine Non-formal collaborators Hong Li, ARS Animal. Disease Research Unit, Pullman, WA Moritz van Vuuren, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort South Africa TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audiences for this study include beef/goat & sheep producers, wildlife managers and zoologic parks as well as veterinarians involved in the diagnostics and treatment of these species. Information developed from this study has also been applied to development of teaching modules for veterinary students. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Project resources have been used to produce specific testing methodologies, identify sampling sources and establish working relationships with those sources. To date we have developed and refined strain specific primer sets in real-time polymerase chain reaction for OHV-2, CpHV-2, and MCFV-WTD to examine tissue and blood from convenience ante-mortem and/or post-mortem collected samples of a mixed population of relevant species (sheep, goats, cattle, white-tail deer and elk). Select products from PCR identified positive cattle, sheep, goats and deer viral strain sequencing has been done by the UT DNA sequencing and gene analysis core facility. Analysis of the distribution of the virus is in the final stages and remains a vital aspect of the project in order to address management and educational concerns with this infectious agent. Our establishment of working collaborative / cooperative efforts with academic programs, zoologic garden managers, regional producers, regulatory agencies, national and international investigators and the public has laid the groundwork for dissemination of that information. Multiple oral and poster presentations of the preliminary findings have been presented at regional, national and international meetings.
Publications
- 1. Cissell RL, Wahab SA, Donnell RL, Kania SA: Detection of antibodies to ovine herpes virus-2 interleukin-10 homologue in sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever: Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology 2009; 128: 234 (Special Issue: The 8th International Veterinary Immunology Symposium (8th IVIS) 2. Cissell RL, Donnell RL, Kania SA: Prevalence of Malignant Catarrhal Fever virus White-tailed Deer variant in Tennessee Hunter Harvested Deer: Comparative & Experimental Medicine Research Symposium, Knoxville TN, June 17, 2008 3. Cissell RL, Kania SA, Donnell RL: Prevalence of Malignant Catarrhal Fever virus- White Tailed Deer variant in Tennessee Hunter Harvested Deer: Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease, Chicago IL, December 7- 9, 2008. The American College of Veterinary Microbiologists Award (InVivo) 4. Cissell RL, Kania SA, Donnell RL: Characterization of Malignant Catarrhal Fever viruses in Tennessee cervid populations utilizing real-time polymerase chain reaction: 58th Annual International Conference of the Wildlife Disease Association, Blaine, Washington Aug 2-3, 2009
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Progress 01/01/08 to 12/31/08
Outputs
OUTPUTS: This project has contributed to the training/mentoring of a graduate PhD student in Comparative Experimental Medicine with an emphasis in wildlife/domestic species interface disease. In addition, it has allowed disease surveillance training of 2 veterinary professional students. The training of the graduate student and veterinary students has included developing appropriate primers and probes for real-time PCR, development of sampling strategies, quality control of ELISA methodologies and conducting the sampling experimental protocols outlined in the original approach description of this project and analyzing relationship of the population densities to the detection of the agent. The graduate student has been involved in both statewide and regional activities. One of the veterinary students was focused on intrastate sampling and the other deployed to South Africa for international sampling/testing. A problem based learning activity module for professional veterinary students has been developed using the Malignant Catarrhal Fever virus as an example of an endemic cross species disease that must be differentiated from foreign animal diseases. Development of the module included input from clinical diagnostic and regulatory medicine collaborators. A video has been produced to instruct hunters and wildlife personnel in harvesting appropriate samples for the study. Based on the developed PCR methodologies diagnostic services for detection of MCF virus are now offered to local and regional clinical services. Based on the findings consultation to producers with identified viremic animals has been given on an as needed basis. Collaborative efforts have been established between the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, the UT Center for Wildlife Health, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture and the University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, South Africa. Currently the PhD graduate student is visiting the ARDS facility in Pullman WA in order to establish a collaborative effort. Included in sample collection packets distributed to hunters producers and wildlife management official cooperating with the study is summary information regarding the virus, target/affected species and clinical outcomes of the disease. Seminars regarding MCF have been presented to regional Veterinary Medical Associations and inter-college series. Poster presentations have been made at the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease, Chicago IL, and the 8th International Veterinary Immunology Symposium (8IVIS) Ouro Preto, Brazil. PARTICIPANTS: Not relevant to this project. TARGET AUDIENCES: Not relevant to this project. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Project resources have been used to produce specific testing methodologies, identify sampling sources and establish working relationships with those sources. To date we have developed and refined strain specific primer sets in real-time polymerase chain reaction for OHV-2, CpHV-2, and MCFV-WTD to examine tissue and blood from convenience ante-mortem and/or post-mortem collected samples of a mixed population of relevant species (sheep, goats, cattle, white-tail deer and elk). Select products from PCR identified positive cattle, sheep, goats and deer viral strain sequencing has been done by the UT DNA sequencing and gene analysis core facility. The results matched published sequences available for OvHV-2, CpHV-2 and MCFV-WTD but, with some evidence of sequence divergence. Results from well herds and flocks are consistent with published percentages of exposure to OHV-2. Follow up PCR on select samples is also consistent with reported rates of viremia. CI-ELISA tested serum samples obtained from cattle presented either for illness or death had a ten-fold increase in sero-prevalence (26 percent) compared to the sero-prevalence of well herds (2.5 percent). This finding suggests a greater role for subclinical MCF infection in morbidity and mortality in cattle and adds additional support to the potential importance of recrudescence, and previous reports of chronic/latent infections, raising the concern that MCF may play an unrecognized importance in morbidity and mortality in cattle. Based on work with the obtained samples, an ELISA for detection of OHV-1 in sheep based on the viral homologue to the inflammatory cytokine IL-10 has been developed and initially tested, both here and through international collaboration with investigators in South Africa. Analysis of the distribution of the virus is ongoing and remains a vital aspect of the project in order to address management and educational concerns with this infectious agent. Our establishment of working collaborative / cooperative efforts with regional producers, regulatory agencies, national and international investigators and the public has laid the groundwork for an efficient dissemination of that information.
Publications
- Presentations R.L. Donnell, S.A. Kania, R.L. Cissell, S.A. Wahab Ovine herpes virus-2 exposure and presence in cattle in eastern Tennessee, Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease, Chicago IL, December 2-4, 2007.
- Cissell RL, Kania SA, Donnell RL. Real-time polymerase chain reaction detection of White Tail Deer Variant-Malignant Catarrhal Fever Virus in wild White Tail Deer, Conference of Research Workers in Animal Disease, Chicago IL, December 2-4, 2007.
- Cissell RL, Wahab SA, Donnell RL, Kania SA. Detection of antibodies to ovine herpes virus-2 interleukin-10 homologue in sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever. 8th International Veterinary Immunology Symposium (8IVIS) Ouro Preto, Brazil. August 16-19, 2007
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