Recombinant Newcastle disease viral vector expressing hemagglutinin or fusion of canine distemper virus is safe and immunogenic in minks.

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Jinying; Wang, Xijun; Tian, Meijie; Gao, Yuwei; Wen, Zhiyuan; Yu, Guimei; Zhou, Weiwei; Zu, Shulong; Bu, Zhigao

2015-05-15

Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) infects many carnivores and cause several high-mortality disease outbreaks. The current CDV live vaccine cannot be safely used in some exotic species, such as mink and ferret. Here, we generated recombinant lentogenic Newcastle disease virus (NDV) LaSota expressing either envelope glycoproyein, heamagglutinine (H) or fusion protein (F), named as rLa-CDVH and rLa-CDVF, respectively. The feasibility of these recombinant NDVs to serve as live virus-vectored CD vaccine was evaluated in minks. rLa-CDVH induced significant neutralization antibodies (NA) to CDV and provided solid protection against virulent CDV challenge. On the contrast, rLa-CDVF induced much lower NA to CDV and fail to protected mink from virulent CDV challenge. Results suggest that recombinant NDV expressing CDV H is safe and efficient candidate vaccine against CDV in mink, and maybe other host species. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Molecular characterization of H9N2 influenza virus isolated from mink and its pathogenesis in mink.

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Li; Chen, Chen; Kai-yi, Han; Feng-xia, Zhang; Yan-li, Zhu; Zong-shuai, Ling; Xing-xiao, Zhang; Shi-jin, Jiang; Zhi-jing, Xie

2015-03-23

In mid-August 2013, two H9N2 influenza viruses, named A/mink/Shandong/F6/2013 (Mk/SD/F6/13) and A/mink/Shandong/F10/2013 (Mk/SD/F10/13), were isolated from lung samples of 2 of 45 farmed mink exhibiting respiratory signs in mideastern Shandong province, China. The seroprevalence of antibodies to H9N2 in mink was 20% (53/265). Based on sequence analysis, the eight nucleotide sequences showed 99.7-100% identity between Mk/SD/F6/13 and Mk/SD/F10/13. The HA, NP and NS genes of Mk/SD/F6/13 and Mk/SD/F10/13 were close to A/chicken/Zhejiang/329/2011 (H9N2), the NA and PB1 genes to A/duck/Hunan/S4111/2011 (H9N2), the PA and M genes to A/chicken/Shanghai/C1/2012 (H9N2). However, the PB2 genes had a close relationship with A/Turkey/California/189/66 (H9N2). Based on Sialic acid (SA) receptor detection, a range tissues of the mink demonstrated staining for MAA and/or SNA, and mink could serve as an intermediate host for influenza viruses with pandemic potential for the other animals. Experimental infection of mink demonstrated that mink could be infected by H9N2 influenza viruses and presented mild clinical signs, virus shedding and seroconversion, but no animals died of the disease. It implied that mammalian host-adapted avian H9N2 strains infected mink. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Molecular diagnostics of aleutian mink disease virus: applied use of next generation sequencing and phylogenetics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hagberg, Emma Elisabeth

based either on partial or entire genes, or on pure epidemiological data. Thus, when initiating this project, little was known about AMDV’s total genomic diversity and how the virus was spread between farms. Recent advances in the field of molecular diagnostics have made high throughput tools...... could contribute to the elucidation of AMDV transmission between farms and improve molecular diagnostics. During the first phase of this project a method for performing whole genome sequencing of AMDV was developed. This protocol enabled the sequencing of a large number of in vivo infectious AMDV......-estimates. Altogether, the work presented in this thesis provides a contribution to the molecular diagnostics of AMDV, enables us better to understand the virus’ evolutionary behaviour in the context of mink farming, and is anticipated to be of value for more accurately tracing back in time the emergence of future...

9 CFR 113.204 - Mink Enteritis Vaccine, Killed Virus.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Mink Enteritis Vaccine, Killed Virus..., DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE VIRUSES, SERUMS, TOXINS, AND ANALOGOUS PRODUCTS; ORGANISMS AND VECTORS STANDARD REQUIREMENTS Killed Virus Vaccines § 113.204 Mink Enteritis Vaccine, Killed Virus. Mink Enteritis Vaccine...

Outbreaks of influenza A virus in farmed mink (Neovison vison) in Denmark: molecular characterization of the viruses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Lars Erik; Breum, Solvej Østergaard; Trebbien, Ramona

2012-01-01

that the virus was a human/swine reassortant, with the H and N gene most related to human H3N2 viruses circulating in 2005. The remaining 6 genes were most closely related to H1N2 influenza viruses circulating in Danish swine. This virus had not previously been described in swine, mink or humans. PCRs assays...... specifically targeting the new reassortant were developed and used to screen influenza positive samples from humans and swine in Denmark with negative results. Thus, there was no evidence that this virus had spread to humans or was circulating in Danish pigs. In 2010 and 2011, influenza virus was again...... diagnosed in diseased mink in a few farms. The genetic typing showed that the virus was similar to the pandemic H1N1 virus circulating in humans and swine. The H3N2 virus was not detected in 2010 and 2011. Taken together, these findings indicate that mink is highly susceptible for influenza A virus of human...

Outbreaks of Influenza A Virus in Farmed Mink (Neovison vison) in Denmark: Molecular characterization of the involved viruses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Lars Erik; Breum, Solvej Østergaard; Trebbien, Ramona

mink farms with respiratory symptoms. Full-genome sequencing showed that the virus was a human/swine reassortant, with the H and N gene most related to human H3N2 viruses circulating in 2005. The remaining 6 genes were most closely related to H1N2 influenza viruses circulating in Danish swine....... This virus had not previously been described in swine, mink nor humans. PCRs assays specifically targeting the new reassortant were developed and used to screen influenza positive samples from humans and swine in Denmark with negative results. Thus, there was no evidence that this virus had spread to humans...... or was circulating in Danish pigs. In 2010 and 2011, influenza virus was again diagnosed in diseased mink in a few farms. The genetic typing showed that the virus was similar to the pandemic H1N1 virus circulating in humans and swine. The H3N2 virus was not detected in 2010 and 2011. Taken together, these findings...

Hepatitis E Virus Variant in Farmed Mink, Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krog, Jesper Schak; Breum, Solvej Østergaard; Jensen, Trine Hammer

2013-01-01

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a zoonotic virus for which pigs are the primary animal reservoir. To investigate whether HEV occurs in mink in Denmark, we screened feces and tissues from domestic and wild mink. Our finding of a novel HEV variant supports previous findings of HEV variants in a variety...

Wildlife Reservoirs of Canine Distemper Virus Resulted in a Major Outbreak in Danish Farmed Mink (Neovison vison)

Science.gov (United States)

Trebbien, Ramona; Chriel, Mariann; Struve, Tina; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane; Larsen, Gitte; Larsen, Lars Erik

2014-01-01

A major outbreak of canine distemper virus (CDV) in Danish farmed mink (Neovison vison) started in the late summer period of 2012. At the same time, a high number of diseased and dead wildlife species such as foxes, raccoon dogs, and ferrets were observed. To track the origin of the outbreak virus full-length sequencing of the receptor binding surface protein hemagglutinin (H) was performed on 26 CDV's collected from mink and 10 CDV's collected from wildlife species. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses showed that the virus circulating in the mink farms and wildlife were highly identical with an identity at the nucleotide level of 99.45% to 100%. The sequences could be grouped by single nucleotide polymorphisms according to geographical distribution of mink farms and wildlife. The signaling lymphocytic activation molecule (SLAM) receptor binding region in most viruses from both mink and wildlife contained G at position 530 and Y at position 549; however, three mink viruses had an Y549H substitution. The outbreak viruses clustered phylogenetically in the European lineage and were highly identical to wildlife viruses from Germany and Hungary (99.29% – 99.62%). The study furthermore revealed that fleas (Ceratophyllus sciurorum) contained CDV and that vertical transmission of CDV occurred in a wild ferret. The study provides evidence that wildlife species, such as foxes, play an important role in the transmission of CDV to farmed mink and that the virus may be maintained in the wild animal reservoir between outbreaks. PMID:24454897

Wildlife reservoirs of canine distemper virus resulted in a major outbreak in Danish farmed mink (Neovison vison.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramona Trebbien

Full Text Available A major outbreak of canine distemper virus (CDV in Danish farmed mink (Neovison vison started in the late summer period of 2012. At the same time, a high number of diseased and dead wildlife species such as foxes, raccoon dogs, and ferrets were observed. To track the origin of the outbreak virus full-length sequencing of the receptor binding surface protein hemagglutinin (H was performed on 26 CDV's collected from mink and 10 CDV's collected from wildlife species. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses showed that the virus circulating in the mink farms and wildlife were highly identical with an identity at the nucleotide level of 99.45% to 100%. The sequences could be grouped by single nucleotide polymorphisms according to geographical distribution of mink farms and wildlife. The signaling lymphocytic activation molecule (SLAM receptor binding region in most viruses from both mink and wildlife contained G at position 530 and Y at position 549; however, three mink viruses had an Y549H substitution. The outbreak viruses clustered phylogenetically in the European lineage and were highly identical to wildlife viruses from Germany and Hungary (99.29% - 99.62%. The study furthermore revealed that fleas (Ceratophyllus sciurorum contained CDV and that vertical transmission of CDV occurred in a wild ferret. The study provides evidence that wildlife species, such as foxes, play an important role in the transmission of CDV to farmed mink and that the virus may be maintained in the wild animal reservoir between outbreaks.

Two avian H10 influenza A virus strains with different pathogenicity for mink (Mustela vison).

Science.gov (United States)

Englund, L; Hård af Segerstad, C

1998-01-01

We compared two strains of avian influenza A viruses of subtype H10 by exposing mink to aerosols of A/mink/Sweden/3,900/84 (H10N4) naturally pathogenic for mink, or A/chicken/Germany/N/49, (H10N7). Lesions in the respiratory tract during the first week after infection were studied and described. Both virus strains caused inflammatory reactions in the lungs and antibody production in exposed mink but only mink/84 virus was reisolated. The lesions caused by mink/84 virus were more severe with higher area density of pneumonia, lower daily weight gain, and more virus in the tissues detected by immunohistochemistry. The results indicate that mink/84 (H10N4), but not chicken/49 virus (H10N7), established multiple cycle replication in infected cells in the mink.

Comparison of canine parvovirus with mink enteritis virus by restriction site mapping.

OpenAIRE

McMaster, G K; Tratschin, J D; Siegl, G

1981-01-01

The genomes of canine parvovirus and mink enteritis virus were compared by restriction enzyme analysis of their replicative-form DNAs. Of 79 mapped sites, 68, or 86%, were found to be common for both types of DNA, indicating that canine parvovirus and mink enteritis virus are closely related viruses. Whether they evolved from a common precursor or whether canine parvovirus is derived from mink enteritis virus, however, cannot be deduced from our present data.

Outbreak tracking of Aleutian mink disease virus (AMDV) using partial NS1 gene sequencing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryt-Hansen, Pia; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane; Hagberg, E. E.

2017-01-01

. However, in 2015, several outbreaks of AMDV occurred at mink farms throughout Denmark, and the sources of these outbreaks were not known. Partial NS1 gene sequencing, phylogenetic analyses data were utilized along with epidemiological to determine the origin of the outbreaks. The phylogenetic analyses...... not be excluded. This study confirmed that partial NS1 sequencing can be used in outbreak tracking to determine major viral clusters of AMDV. Using this method, two new distinct AMDV clusters with low intra-cluster sequence diversity were identified, and epidemiological data helped to reveal possible ways...

Analysis of experimental mink enteritis virus infection in mink: in situ hybridization, serology, and histopathology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Uttenthal, Åse; Larsen, S; Lund, E

1990-01-01

Strand-specific hybridization probes were used in in situ hybridization studies to localize cells containing mink enteritis virus (MEV) virion DNA or MEV replicative-form DNA and mRNA. Following the experimental MEV infection of 3-month-old unvaccinated mink, a significant increase in serum antib...

Canine distemper virus DNA vaccination of mink can overcome interference by maternal antibodies.

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Trine Hammer; Nielsen, Line; Aasted, Bent; Pertoldi, Cino; Blixenkrone-Møller, Merete

2015-03-10

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is highly contagious and can cause severe disease against which conventional live vaccines are ineffective in the presence of maternal antibodies. Vaccination in the presences of maternal antibodies was challenged by vaccination of 5 days old and 3 weeks old mink kits with CDV DNA vaccines. Virus neutralising (VN) antibody responses were induced in mink kits vaccinated with a plasmid encoding the haemaglutinin protein (H) of CDV (n=5, pCDV-H) or a combination of the H, fusion (F) and nucleoprotein (N) of CDV (n=5, pCDV-HFN). These DNA vaccinated kits were protected against virulent experimental infection with field strains of CDV. The pCDV-H was more efficient in inducing protective immunity in the presence of maternal antibodies compared to the pCDV-HFN. The results show that DNA vaccination with the pCDV-H or pCDV-HFN (n=4) only given once at 5 days of age induces virus specific immune response in neonatal mink and protection against virulent CDV exposure later in life. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Infection studies in mink with seal-derived morbillivirus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Blixenkrone-Møller, M; Svansson, V; Have, P.

1989-01-01

Morbillivirus derived from diseased harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) has characteristics of acute virulent canine distemper virus infection in mink. The infection induced a disease resembling the acute systemic and nervous form of canine distemper.......Morbillivirus derived from diseased harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) has characteristics of acute virulent canine distemper virus infection in mink. The infection induced a disease resembling the acute systemic and nervous form of canine distemper....

Consequences of outbreaks of influenza A virus in farmed mink (Neovison vison) in Denmark in 2009 and 2010

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chriél, Mariann; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane

2012-01-01

Influenza in mink (Neovison vison) is assumed to be rare, but outbreaks have previously been reported in farmed mink. The first report was from Swedish mink farms in 1984 which was caused by influenza A virus H10N4 of avian origin. In 2009 and 2010 outbreaks of respiratory disease were seen...... in several Danish mink farms. In all of the farms, the clinical symptoms were upper respiratory tract symptoms with sneezing and coughing as the most dominant symptoms. Peracute deaths were seen in mink without any clinical symptoms. Influenza H3N2 was found detected by PCR in the lungs from diseased mink...... and four of these farms used feed medication in three weeks. The farmers, however, noted that the medication had little or no effect. The most plausible way of transmission of the influenza is from the raw untreated pig waste containing lungs used in the production of mink feed. Because the first clinical...

Consequences of outbreaks of influenza A virus in farmed mink (Neovison vison) in Denmark in 2009 and 2010

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chriél, Mariann; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane

2012-01-01

and four of these farms used feed medication in three weeks. The farmers, however, noted that the medication had little or no effect. The most plausible way of transmission of the influenza is from the raw untreated pig waste containing lungs used in the production of mink feed. Because the first clinical......Influenza in mink (Neovison vison) is assumed to be rare, but outbreaks have previously been reported in farmed mink. The first report was from Swedish mink farms in 1984 which was caused by influenza A virus H10N4 of avian origin. In 2009 and 2010 outbreaks of respiratory disease were seen...... in several Danish mink farms. In all of the farms, the clinical symptoms were upper respiratory tract symptoms with sneezing and coughing as the most dominant symptoms. Peracute deaths were seen in mink without any clinical symptoms. Influenza H3N2 was found detected by PCR in the lungs from diseased mink...

Canine distemper virus DNA vaccination of mink can overcome interference by maternal antibodies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Trine Hammer; Nielsen, Line; Aasted, Bent

2015-01-01

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is highly contagious and can cause severe disease against which conventional live vaccines are ineffective in the presence of maternal antibodies. Vaccination in the presences of maternal antibodies was challenged by vaccination of 5 days old and 3 weeks old mink kits...

Pathogenesis of canine distemper virus in experimentally infected raccoon dogs, foxes, and minks.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Jianjun; Shi, Ning; Sun, Yangang; Martella, Vito; Nikolin, Veljko; Zhu, Chunsheng; Zhang, Hailing; Hu, Bo; Bai, Xue; Yan, Xijun

2015-10-01

Canine distemper virus (CDV) infects a broad range of carnivores and causes a highly contagious disease with severe immunosuppression. The disease severity markedly varies in different species. To investigate the pathogenesis of CDV in raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides), fox (Vulpes vulpes) and mink (Neovison vison) species, three groups of CDV sero-negative animals were infected with CDV strain LN(10)1. This CDV strain belongs to the Asia-1 genotype, which is epidemiologically predominant in carnivores in China. CDV infection provoked marked differences in virulence in the three species that were studied. Raccoon dogs developed fever, severe conjunctivitis, and pathological lesions, with 100% (5/5) mortality and with high viral RNA loads in organs within 15 days post infection (dpi). In infected foxes, the onset of the disease was delayed, with 40% (2/5) mortality by 21 dpi. Infected minks developed only mild clinical signs and pathological lesions, and mortality was not observed. Raccoon dogs and foxes showed more severe immune suppression (lymphopenia, decreased lymphocyte proliferation, viremia and low-level virus neutralizing antibodies) than minks. We also observed a distinct pattern of cytokine mRNA transcripts at different times after infection. Decreased IFN-γ and IL-4 mRNA responses were evident in the animals with fatal disease, while up-regulation of these cytokines was observed in the animals surviving the infection. Increased TNF-α response was detected in animals with mild or severe clinical signs. Based on the results, we could distinguish three different patterns of disease after experimental CDV infection, e.g. a mild form in minks, a moderate form in foxes and a severe disease in raccoon dogs. The observed differences in susceptibility to CDV could be related to distinct host cytokine profiles. Comparative evaluation of CDV pathogenesis in various animal species is pivotal to generate models suitable for the evaluation of CDV

Investigation of the presence of human or bovine respiratory syncytial virus in the lungs of mink (Neovison vison) with hemorrhagic pneumonia due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Salomonsen, Charlotte Mark; Breum, Solvej Østergaard; Larsen, Lars Erik

2012-01-01

Background Hemorrhagic pneumonia is a disease of farmed mink (Neovison vison) caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The disease is highly seasonal in Danish mink with outbreaks occurring almost exclusively in the autumn. Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been shown to augment infection with...

9 CFR 113.302 - Distemper Vaccine-Mink.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Distemper Vaccine-Mink. 113.302... Virus Vaccines § 113.302 Distemper Vaccine—Mink. Distemper Vaccine—Mink shall be prepared from virus... follows: (1) To detect virulent canine distemper virus, each of two distemper susceptible mink or ferrets...

Wildlife Reservoirs of Canine Distemper Virus Resulted in a Major Outbreak in Danish Farmed Mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trebbien, Ramona; Chriél, Mariann; Struve, Tina

2014-01-01

A major outbreak of canine distemper virus (CDV) in Danish farmed mink (Neovison vison) started in the late summer period of 2012. At the same time, a high number of diseased and dead wildlife species such as foxes, raccoon dogs, and ferrets were observed. To track the origin of the outbreak virus...

Humoral and cell-mediated immune responses in DNA immunized mink challenged with wild-type canine distemper virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Line; Søgaard, Mette; Karlskov-Mortensen, Peter; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Jensen, Tove Dannemann; Aasted, Bent; Blixenkrone-Møller, Merete

2009-07-30

The aim of the study was to investigate the different phases of the immune response after DNA immunization with the hemagglutinin and nucleoprotein genes from canine distemper virus (CDV). Although attenuated live CDV vaccines have effectively reduced the incidence of disease, canine distemper is still a problem worldwide. The broad host range of CDV creates a constant viral reservoir among wildlife animals. Our results demonstrated early humoral and cell-mediated immune responses (IFN-gamma) in DNA vaccinated mink compared to mock-vaccinated mink after challenge with a Danish wild-type CDV. The DNA vaccine-induced immunity protected the natural host against disease development.

Genetic characterization of canine distemper virus involved in outbreaks in farmed mink in Denmark 2012

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trebbien, Ramona; Struve, T.; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane

Danish farmed mink herds experienced a large outbreak of canine distemper virus in 2012. Full-length sequence analysis (1824 nucleotides) of the variable hemagglutinin (H) gene were performed on 27 viruses collected from mink and on 7 viruses collected from wild foxes. Results of the study showed...... with other European canine distemper viruses and showed the highest level of similarity (99.3 - 99.6 %) to viruses isolated from wild foxes in Germany. The fox should therefore be considered as an important wild life reservoir of canine distemper virus and may also contribute to the transmission of the virus...

Investigations into shaking mink syndrome: an encephalomyelitis of unknown cause in farmed mink (Mustela vison) kits in Scandinavia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gavier-Widen, Dolores; Brojer, Caroline; Dietz, Hans Henrik

2004-01-01

diseases (canine distemper, Borna disease, Louping ill, West Nile virus infection, tick-borne encephalitis, Aleutian disease), tests for protozoa (Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum, Encephalitozoon cuniculi), bacteria (general culture, listeria, Clamydophila psittaci), and intracerebral inoculation...

Influenza A Virus Surveillance in the Invasive American Mink (Neovison vison) from Freshwater Ecosystems, Northern Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Gholipour, H; Busquets, N; Fernández-Aguilar, X; Sánchez, A; Ribas, M P; De Pedro, G; Lizarraga, P; Alarcia-Alejos, O; Temiño, C; Cabezón, O

2017-08-01

Influenza A viruses (IAVs) are negative-sense, single-stranded and segmented RNA viruses of the Orthomyxoviridae family that may cause acute respiratory disease in a wide range of birds and mammals. Susceptibility of several species within the family Mustelidae to IAVs has been reported as a result of natural or experimental infections. The objectives of this study were to assess whether free-ranging American mink populations from Northern Spain were infected with IAV and try to define the role of this species in the epidemiology of IAV. Sera from 689 American mink from Northern Spain captured between 2011 and 2014 were tested for the presence of antibodies against IAVs using a commercial competition cELISA. Positive sera were further analysed with haemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay. Fifteen of the 689 (2.2%, 1.3-3.6 CI 95% ) of the American minks analysed were ELISA positive. No significant differences were observed between years of capture, provinces, river basins, sexes or ages of the animals. All seropositive sera resulted negative to the panel strains used in the HI assay, showing that the most relevant strains circulating in swine, the most relevant avian subtypes (H5 and H7) and the H10N4 subtype isolated in minks have not been circulating in this free-ranging exotic carnivore from Spain. In the light of these results, the free-range American mink from Northern Spain do not seem to have an important role in the epidemiology of IAVs. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Mink kan også have influenza

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane; Krog, Jesper Schak; Larsen, Gitte

2017-01-01

, hvis der opstår mistanke om influenza ved obduktionen, eller hvis der er alvorlige langvarige udbrud. For at kunne iværksætte foranstaltninger, der begrænser forekomsten af influenza hos mink, er det nødvendigt at kende udbredelsen af influenzavirus blandt farmede mink i Danmark. Formålet med denne...... minkobduktionskursus, samt vilde mink. Der blev påvist influenza A virus i mink fra otte farme. Genetiske analyser indikerede, at disse virus stammede fra både danske svin og mennesker. For at forebygge udbrud af influenza i farmede mink anbefales det, at undgå kontakt mellem mink og influenzasyge personer, samt sikre...

Evidence for natural recombination between mink enteritis virus and canine parvovirus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Jianke

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract A virus was isolated from mink showing clinical and pathological signs of enteritis in China. This virus, designated MEV/LN-10, was identified as mink enteritis virus (MEV based on its cytopathic effect in the feline F81 cell line, the hemagglutination (HA and hemagglutination inhibition (HI assay, electron microscopy (EM and animal infection experiments. The complete viral genome was cloned and sequenced. Phylogenetic and recombination analyses on the complete MEV/LN-10 genome showed evidence of recombination between MEV and canine parvovirus (CPV. The genome was composed of the NS1 gene originating from CPV while the VP1 gene was of MEV origin. This is the first demonstration of recombination between a CPV and MEV in nature. Our findings not only provide valuable evidence indicating that recombination is an important genetic mechanism contributing to the variation and evolution of MEV, but also that heterogeneous recombination can occur in the feline parvovirus subspecies.

Characterization of deoxyribonucleic acid from cells infected with Aleutian disease virus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hahn, E.C.; Ramos, L.; Kenyon, A.J.

1983-01-01

Viral DNA was extracted from Crandell feline kidney (CRFK) cells infected with Aleutian disease virus (ADV) and labeled with [ 3 H]thymidine. The sedimentation coefficient in alkaline sucrose gradients was 16S corresponding to a molecular weight of 1.5 X 10(6). The buoyant densities of DNA from infected and control cells were determined by isopyknic sedimentation in CsCl and NaI gradients. Two additional peaks of [ 3 H]DNA were found in infected cells, but not in control cell extracts. Fractionation of this DNA on hydroxylapatite indicated that the new peaks represented a single-stranded component, density 1.728 g/cm3, and a double-stranded component, presumed to be a viral replicative intermediate, density 1.718 g/cm3. The target antigen formation in CRFK cells was measured by gamma-irradiation of ADV and assayed for focus formation. The calculated size of ADV based on these measurements was 1.1 X 10(6). The H-1 parvovirus also was shown to have a size of 1.5 X 10(6) daltons for both antigen and plaque formation. The data indicated similarities existed between ADV and other autonomously replicating parvoviruses in most properties, except that less-than-unit length genome of ADV may be transcribed

Coronavirus infection in mink (Mustela vison). Serological evidence of infection with a coronavirus related to transmissible gastroenteritis virus and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Have, P; Moving, V; Svansson, V

1992-01-01

Antibodies to a transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV)-related coronavirus have been demonstrated in mink sera by indirect immunofluorescence, peroxidase-linked antibody assays and immunoblotting. This is the first serological evidence of a specific coronavirus infection in mink. The putative...

Parvovirus-associated syndrome (Aleutian disease) in two ferrets.

Science.gov (United States)

Palley, L S; Corning, B F; Fox, J G; Murphy, J C; Gould, D H

1992-07-01

There is a paucity of information regarding natural Aleutian disease, caused by a parvovirus in ferrets. With the increasing popularity of ferrets as household pets and laboratory animals, and with the advent of a USDA-approved rabies vaccine, the occurrence and the etiopathogenesis of naturally acquired diseases in ferrets needs to be documented. We present the clinical and laboratory findings associated with Aleutian disease in 2 domestic ferrets, one with the chronic wasting form of the disease and one with the central nervous system form.

Disease-associated prion protein in neural and lymphoid tissues of mink (Mustela vison) inoculated with transmissible mink encephalopathy.

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, D A; Harrington, R D; Zhuang, D; Yan, H; Truscott, T C; Dassanayake, R P; O'Rourke, K I

2012-11-01

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are diagnosed by immunodetection of disease-associated prion protein (PrP(d)). The distribution of PrP(d) within the body varies with the time-course of infection and between species, during interspecies transmission, as well as with prion strain. Mink are susceptible to a form of TSE known as transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME), presumed to arise due to consumption of feed contaminated with a single prion strain of ruminant origin. After extended passage of TME isolates in hamsters, two strains emerge, HY and DY, each of which is associated with unique structural isoforms of PrP(TME) and of which only the HY strain is associated with accumulation of PrP(TME) in lymphoid tissues. Information on the structural nature and lymphoid accumulation of PrP(TME) in mink is limited. In this study, 13 mink were challenged by intracerebral inoculation using late passage TME inoculum, after which brain and lymphoid tissues were collected at preclinical and clinical time points. The distribution and molecular nature of PrP(TME) was investigated by techniques including blotting of paraffin wax-embedded tissue and epitope mapping by western blotting. PrP(TME) was detected readily in the brain and retropharyngeal lymph node during preclinical infection, with delayed progression of accumulation within other lymphoid tissues. For comparison, three mink were inoculated by the oral route and examined during clinical disease. Accumulation of PrP(TME) in these mink was greater and more widespread, including follicles of rectoanal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue. Western blot analyses revealed that PrP(TME) accumulating in the brain of mink is structurally most similar to that accumulating in the brain of hamsters infected with the DY strain. Collectively, the results of extended passage in mink are consistent with the presence of only a single strain of TME, the DY strain, capable of inducing accumulation of PrP(TME) in the lymphoid

Novel Amdovirus in Gray Foxes

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Linlin; Pesavento, Patricia A.; Woods, Leslie; Clifford, Deana L.; Luff, Jennifer; Wang, Chunlin

2011-01-01

We used viral metagenomics to identify a novel parvovirus in tissues of a gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus). Nearly full genome characterization and phylogenetic analyses showed this parvovirus (provisionally named gray fox amdovirus) to be distantly related to Aleutian mink disease virus, representing the second viral species in the Amdovirus genus. PMID:22000359

Full protection in mink against mink enteritis virus with new generation canine parvovirus vaccines based on synthetic peptide or recombinant protein

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Langeveld, J. P.; Kamstrup, Søren; Uttenthal, Åse

1995-01-01

Two recently developed vaccines—one based on synthetic peptide and one based on recombinant capsid protein—fully protected dogs against heavy experimental canine parvovirus (CPV) infection. The high sequence homology (>98%) and antigenic similarity between CPV and mink enteritis virus (MEV), feline...... on inactivated virus. Surprisingly, this protection was obtained after only a single injection. Furthermore, the vaccinal dose of 150 μg of conjugated peptide or 3 μg of recombinant VP2 particles per animal, are sufficiently low to be cost-effective and applicable on a large scale....

Investigation of the pathogenesis of transplacental transmission of Aleutian mink disease parvovirus in experimentally infected mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Broll, S.; Alexandersen, Søren

1996-01-01

DNA and viral mRNA were detected in cells in the mesenchymal stroma of the placental labyrinth and hematoma but only occasionally in the cytotrophoblast of the placental hematoma. Placentae of animals infected during pregnancy showed in addition very high levels of virus and also viral replication...... in a large number of cytotrophoblast cells in the placental hematoma, which exhibited distinct inclusion bodies. In both groups, neither virus nor virus replication could be detected in maternal endothelial cells or fetal syncytiotrophoblast of the placental labyrinth. Fetuses were positive for virus...

[The growth of attenuated strains of canine parvovirus, mink enteritis virus, feline panleukopenia virus, and rabies virus on various types of cell cultures].

Science.gov (United States)

Zuffa, T

1987-10-01

The growth characteristics were studied in the attenuated strains of canine parvovirus CPVA-BN 80/82, mink enteritis virus MEVA-BN 63/82 and feline panleucopenia virus FPVA-BN 110/83 on the stable feline kidney cell line FE, and in the attenuated canine distemper virus CDV-F-BN 10/83 on chicken embryo cell cultures (KEB) and cultures of the stable cell line VERO. When the FE cultures were infected with different parvoviruses in cell suspension at MOI 2-4 TKID50 per cell, the first multiplication of the intracellular virus was recorded 20 hours p. i. In the canine parvovirus, the content of intracellular and extracellular virus continued increasing parallelly until the fourth day; then, from the fourth to the sixth day, the content of extracellular virus still increased whereas that of intracellular virus fell rapidly. In the case of the mink enteritis virus the release of the virus into the culture medium continued parallelly with the production of the cellular virus until the sixth day. In the case of the feline panleucopenia virus the values concerning free virus and virus bound to cells were lower, starting from the second day p. i. When KEB or VERO cultures were infected in cell suspension with the canine distemper virus at MOI about 0.004 per 1 cell, the replicated intracellular virus was first recorded in the KEB cultures five hours after infection but in the VERO cultures only 20 hours after infection, with a timely release of the virus into the culture medium in both kinds of tissue. In the KEB and VERO cultures the highest values of infection titres were recorded on the fourth day p. i., the course of virus multiplication on the cells being parallel with its release into the culture medium.

Friend and Moloney murine leukemia viruses specifically recombine with different endogenous retroviral sequences to generate mink cell focus-forming viruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, L H; Cloyd, M W

1985-01-01

A group of mink cell focus-forming (MCF) viruses was derived by inoculation of NFS/N mice with Moloney murine leukemia virus (Mo-MuLV 1387) and was compared to a similarly derived group of MCF viruses from mice inoculated with Friend MuLV (Fr-MuLV 57). Antigenic analyses using monoclonal antibodies specific for MCF virus and xenotropic MuLV envelope proteins and genomic structural analyses by RNase T1-resistant oligonucleotide finger-printing indicated that the Moloney and Friend MCF viruses arose by recombination of the respective ecotropic MuLVs with different endogenous retrovirus sequences of NFS mice.

Canine distemper of vaccine origin in European mink, Mustela lutreola--a case report.

Science.gov (United States)

Ek-Kommonen, C; Rudbäck, E; Anttila, M; Aho, M; Huovilainen, A

2003-04-02

Cases of canine distemper (CD) related to vaccination of exotic carnivores extend over three decades and have been described in at least nine different species. Our report describes a case of acute CD in a European mink, Mustela lutreola, vaccinated with live attenuated CD vaccine licensed for use in fur-farmed mink. The male mink died of an acute grey matter disease with an unusually long incubation period. A female vaccinated at the same time showed no obvious signs of illness. The diagnosis was confirmed by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and by subsequent sequencing of the PCR products. The sequenced products of the virus isolated from the mink and of the vaccine batch showed 100% identity. This is the first report in which molecular methods were used to confirm that the disease was caused by the vaccine strain. Based on our findings, it is clearly evident that current CD vaccines cannot be safely used in exotic species.

Characterization of the env gene and long terminal repeat of molecularly cloned Friend mink cell focus-inducing virus DNA.

OpenAIRE

Adachi, A; Sakai, K; Kitamura, N; Nakanishi, S; Niwa, O; Matsuyama, M; Ishimoto, A

1984-01-01

The highly oncogenic erythroleukemia-inducing Friend mink cell focus-inducing (MCF) virus was molecularly cloned in phage lambda gtWES.lambda B, and the DNA sequences of the env gene and the long terminal repeat were determined. The nucleotide sequences of Friend MCF virus and Friend spleen focus-forming virus were quite homologous, supporting the hypothesis that Friend spleen focus-forming virus might be generated via Friend MCF virus from an ecotropic Friend virus mainly by some deletions. ...

Application of qPCR assays for diagnosing causes of viral mink diarrhea. Preliminary results

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartby, Christina Marie; Kvisgaard, Lise Kirstine; Larsen, Lars Erik

to diarrhea in mink. Rotavirus is poorly described in mink, but has previously been demonstrated in feces from mink pups with and without clinical signs (Jorgensen et al. 1996). The pathogenicity of these viruses could be related to viral load, virulence and the age of the mink. Therefore, there is a need...

Production of mink enteritis parvovirus empty capsids by expression in a baculovirus vector system: a recombinant vaccine for mink enteritis parvovirus in mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, J; Alexandersen, Søren; Bloch, B.

1994-01-01

The VP-2 gene of mink enteritis parvovirus (MEV) was amplified by the polymerase chain reaction using MEV DNA isolated from the faeces of a naturally infected mink. Subsequently the VP-2 gene was cloned into a baculovirus expression vector. Recombinant baculo-viruses were isolated and the MEV VP-2...... protein was able to form parvovirus-like particles, which had haemagglutinating properties comparable with the wild-type MEV. The cloned VP-2 gene was sequenced and only five nucleotide differences were found after alignment with the known sequences of the MEV type 1 and type 2 isolates. Surprisingly...

Global phylogenetic analysis of contemporary aleutian mink disease viruses (AMDVs)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryt-Hansen, Pia; Hagberg, E. E.; Chriél, Mariann

2017-01-01

a strain originating from Sweden. In contrast, we did not identify any potential source for the other and more widespread outbreak strain. To the authors knowledge this is the first major global phylogenetic study of contemporary AMDV partial NS1 sequences. The study proved that partial NS1 sequencing can...

[Evaluation of the immune response after vaccination against distemper at a mink (Mustela vison) farm in Argentina].

Science.gov (United States)

Jar, A M; Ramayo, L G; Stempler, A; Goldman, L H; Mundo, S L

2010-01-01

Distemper virus causes a disease affecting minks with respiratory, gastrointestinal, neurological and skin symptoms and showing high morbidity and mortality, mainly among puppies. It is controlled through immunization, using vaccines that are supplied for mink use. The aim of this work was to determine the seroneutralization titer against the distemper virus at a mink farm in Argentina. The antibody kinetics obtained after vaccination in 27 adult animals, as well as the duration of colostrum-transferred antibodies in 10 puppies were determined. All vaccinated adult minks showed protective titers up to at least 3 months after vaccination, and 37.5% significantly reduced their antibody levels, 12 months after vaccination. Only 20% of the puppies showed protective levels of colostrum-transferred antibodies at the age of 7 weeks, while non-detectable levels of antibodies were found when puppies reached 11 weeks old. Vaccination performed in these puppies at the age of 13 weeks, elicited protective seroneutralization titers. These results show that vaccination induces a satisfactory humoral immune response in our environment, and support the convenience of vaccinating dams annually before the beginning of the breeding season. The vaccination plan in puppies is also discussed.

Postvaccination wounds associated predominantly with Arcanobacterium phocae in mink (Neovison vison) at three mink farms.

Science.gov (United States)

Molenaar, Robert J; Buter, Rianne; Sroka, Agnieszka

2017-04-01

The emerging skin disease fur animal epidemic necrotic pyoderma (FENP) has been attributed to infection with Arcanobacterium phocae (ABP). The exact pathogenesis and risk factors of FENP have yet to be elucidated. Three mink from each of three different mink farms (A-C) with postvaccination skin wounds at the vaccination site and six mink from an unaffected mink farm (D) that had used the same vaccine batch and vaccination site (hind leg). All mink from farms A-C had severe necrotizing to necropurulent dermatitis where they were vaccinated intramuscularly in the hind leg. ABP was the sole bacterium cultured from six of nine wounds. Using 16S-23S rDNA intergenic spacer region and BOX-PCR, the ABP isolates from these wounds were indistinguishable from isolates originating from several cases of FENP. This is the first report of FENP-like lesions at the site of vaccination, in the days following the procedure, associated with ABP. At farms with FENP vaccination, procedures should be considered carefully. © 2016 ESVD and ACVD.

Asthma among mink workers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grøntved, Berit; Carstensen, Ole; Petersen, Rolf

2014-01-01

We report two cases of asthma among mink workers. The first case is about a mink farmer who had asthma that was difficult to treat. In the medical history there was no clear relation to work, and no conclusive work relation with peak flow monitoring. He had a positive histamine release test to mink...... urine. The second case is about a mink farm worker, who had an asthma attack when handling mink furs. Peak flow monitoring showed a clear relation to this work, but there were no signs of allergy. We conclude that these two cases suggest an increased risk of asthma among mink workers....

Amdoparvoviruses in small mammals: expanding our understanding of parvovirus diversity, distribution, and pathology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta eCanuti

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Many new viruses have been discovered recently, thanks in part to the advent of next-generation sequencing technologies. Among the Parvoviridae, three novel members of the genus Amdoparvovirus have been described in the last four years, expanding this genus that had contained a single species since its discovery, Aleutian mink disease virus. The increasing number of molecular and epidemiological studies on these viruses around the world also highlights the growing interest in this genus. Some aspects of amdoparvoviruses have been well characterized, however many other aspects still need to be elucidated and the most recent reviews on this topic are outdated. We provide here an up-to-date overview of what is known and what still needs to be investigated about these scientifically and clinically relevant animal viruses.

The failure of an inactivated mink enteritis virus vaccine in four preparations to provide protection to dogs against challenge with canine parvovirus-2.

OpenAIRE

Carman, S; Povey, C

1982-01-01

Four experimental vaccine preparations comprising a strain of mink enteritis virus inactivated by either formalin or beta-propiolactone, and either adjuvanted or nonadjuvanted, failed to stimulate a consistent serum antibody response in 20 vaccinated dogs and failed to protect all but one of these dogs against oral challenge with canine parvovirus-2.

Recombinant proteins as vaccines for protection against disease induced by infection with mink astrovirus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2012-01-01

and polypeptides of the capsid protein of a novel mink astrovirus strain denoted DK7627. Such polynucleotides and polypeptides may be used for the production of vaccines against mink astrovirus which may induce pre-weaning diarrhoea in minks. The invention furthermore relates to vectors, host cells, compositions...

Quantitative Analysis of Cellular Proteome Alterations in CDV-Infected Mink Lung Epithelial Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mingwei Tong

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Canine distemper virus (CDV, a paramyxovirus, causes a severe highly contagious lethal disease in carnivores, such as mink. Mink lung epithelial cells (Mv.1.Lu cells are sensitive to CDV infection and are homologous to the natural host system of mink. The current study analyzed the response of Mv.1.Lu cells to CDV infection by iTRAQ combined with LC–MS/MS. In total, 151 and 369 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs were markedly up-regulated or down-regulated, respectively. Thirteen DEPs were validated via real-time RT-PCR or western blot analysis. Network and KEGG pathway analyses revealed several regulated proteins associated with the NF-κB signaling pathway. Further validation was performed by western blot analysis and immunofluorescence assay, which demonstrated that different CDV strains induced NF-κB P65 phosphorylation and nuclear translocation. Moreover, the results provided interesting information that some identified DEPs possibly associated with the pathogenesis and the immune response upon CDV infection. This study is the first overview of the responses to CDV infection in Mv.1.Lu cells, and the findings will help to analyze further aspects of the molecular mechanisms involved in viral pathogenesis and the immune responses upon CDV infection.

WelFur - mink: development of on-farm welfare assessment protocols for mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Steen Henrik; Hansen, Steffen W; Rousing, Tine

2012-01-01

European Fur Breeder's Association initiated the "WelFur" project in 2009 in order to develop a welfare assessment protocol for mink and fox farms after the Welfare Quality® standards. The assessment is based on four welfare principles (Good feeding, good housing, good health and appropriate beha...... mink production seasons: Winter, spring, and autumn, in order to cover the life cycle of mink and proved feasible for a one-day visit.......European Fur Breeder's Association initiated the "WelFur" project in 2009 in order to develop a welfare assessment protocol for mink and fox farms after the Welfare Quality® standards. The assessment is based on four welfare principles (Good feeding, good housing, good health and appropriate...

Mink's adaptation to group housing in practice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Steffen W; Møller, Steen Henrik

2012-01-01

In this project, we test the hypothesis whether mink populations with a higher social tolerance have been developed in practice and thus are better adapted to housing in stacked cages. The hypothesis has been tested by comparing the level of bite damages and bit marks in mink kept in pairs...... and in mink kept in social groups. In total, the project included 1,191 brown mink housed on four farms in up to five different types of social groups. The result showed that mink in groups had significantly more bite marks than mink kept in pairs, and that mink with bite wounds had significantly more bite...... marks than mink that did not haev bite wounds. Thus, based upon bite mark results, we cannot confirm the hypothesis that mink populations adapted to group housing have been developed. The number of mink that had died or had been removede during the test period, or that had bite wounds at the time...

Development of a PCR-RFLP assay for the detection and differentiation of canine parvovirus and mink enteritis virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chuanmei; Yu, Yongle; Yang, Haiyan; Li, Guimei; Yu, Zekun; Zhang, Hongliang; Shan, Hu

2014-12-15

A polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) assay has been developed to detect and differentiate between canine parvovirus (CPV) and mink enteritis virus (MEV). Eight CPV and three MEV epidemic strains isolated from 28 pathological samples from dogs and minks suspected of being infected with parvovirus were amplified by PCR using a pair of specific primers designed based on the CPV-N strain (M19296). PCR amplified a fragment of 1016bp from the genomic DNA of both MEV and CPV. The MEV-derived fragment could be digested with the restriction enzyme BSP1407I into three fragments of 102bp, 312bp and 602bp, while the fragment amplified from the CPV genomic DNA was digested into only two fragments of 414bp and 602bp. The lowest DNA concentration of CPV and MEV that could be detected using this assay was 0.004μg/ml and 0.03μg/ml, respectively. The PCR-RFLP assay developed in the present study can, therefore, be used to detect and differentiate MEV from CPV with high specificity and sensitivity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Zoonotic Aspects of Hepatitis E Virus in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krog, Jesper Schak

circulating in minks for years. The virus did not seem to cause clinical disease in mink, however, this should be investigated further. Manuscript II describes the leaching of HEV along with rotavirus (RV), porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), somatic coliphages, E. coli and Enterococcus spp. through field soil...... reservoirs in connection with the untreated drainage runoff. Rotavirus was detected in deeper groundwater screen indicating the possibility of groundwater contamination of viruses originating from manure, posing a risk for the contamination of important drinking water reservoirs in Denmark. Manuscript III...... focuses on the viral contamination of mussels farmed in Denmark. The mussels was assayed for HEV and Rotavirus, known to occur in shellfish and cause disease. Furthermore, PCV2was also assayed as an indicator of porcine waste contamination. All samples analyzed were negative for HEV and RV, however...

Associations between biosecurity and outbreaks of canine distemper on Danish mink farms in 2012-2013.

Science.gov (United States)

Gregers-Jensen, Louise; Agger, Jens Frederik; Hammer, Anne Sofie Vedsted; Andresen, Lars; Chrièl, Mariann; Hagberg, Emma; Jensen, Mette Kragh; Hansen, Mette Sif; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane; Struve, Tina

2015-09-30

During 8 months from July 2012 to February 2013, a major outbreak of canine distemper involving 64 mink farms occurred on the Danish peninsula of Jutland. The canine distemper outbreak was associated with exposure of farmed mink to infected wild carnivores and could represent a deficit in biosecurity on the mink farms. The aim of this study was to investigate the extent and association of specific biosecurity measures with the outbreak. The study was carried out in an epidemiological case-control design. The case group consisted of the 61 farms, which had a confirmed outbreak of canine distemper from July 2012 to February 2013. The control group included 54 farms without an outbreak of canine distemper in 2012 or 2013, selected as the closest geographical neighbour to a case farm. The results showed that significantly more control than case farms had vaccinated their mink against canine distemper virus. Mortality was only assessed on the case farms, and there was a non-significantly lower mortality on vaccinated farms than on the non-vaccinated farms. Furthermore, the proportion of farms with observations of wild red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) inside the farm enclosures were larger for case farms, indicating that the control farms had a better biosecurity or were not equally exposed to canine distemper virus. Generally, all farms had very few specific precautions at the gate entrance in respect to human visitors as well as animals. The use of biosecurity measures was very variable in both case and control farms. Not using plastic boot covers, presence of dogs and cats, presence of demarcated area for changing clothes when entering and leaving the farm area and presence of hand washing facilities significantly lowered the odds of the farm having a canine distemper virus outbreak. The results of the study indicate that consistent use of correct vaccination strategies, implementation of biosecurity measures and limiting human and animal access to the mink farm can be

Amdoparvovirus Infection in Red Pandas ( Ailurus fulgens).

Science.gov (United States)

Alex, Charles E; Kubiski, Steven V; Li, Linlin; Sadeghi, Mohammadreza; Wack, Raymund F; McCarthy, Megan A; Pesavento, Joseph B; Delwart, Eric; Pesavento, Patricia A

2018-01-01

Aleutian mink disease virus is the type species in the genus Amdoparvovirus, and in mink and other Mustelidae can cause either subclinical disease or fatal chronic immune stimulation and immune complex disease. The authors describe a novel amdoparvovirus in the endangered red panda ( Ailurus fulgens), discovered using viral metagenomics. The authors analyzed the prevalence, tissue distribution, and disease association by PCR, in situ hybridization, electron microscopy, and histology in a group of 6 red pandas from a single zoological collection. The study incorporates a fecal shedding survey and analysis of tissues from 4 necropsied animals over a 12-year span. The tentatively named red panda amdoparvovirus (RpAPV) was detected in the feces and/or tissues of all animals tested. At necropsy of 1 geriatric animal, infection was associated with pyogranulomatous peritonitis, pancreatitis, and myocarditis. Other animals had detectable low-level viral nucleic acid in lymph nodes and both oral and intestinal epithelium at the time of necropsy. Full-length genome sequences of RpAPV strains from 2 animals had 12% sequence divergence, demonstrating genetic diversity even among in-contact animals. RpAPV is a persistent infection in this cohort of red pandas, and has variable clinical expression.

Acoustic Ecology of Minke Whales

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Costa, Daniel

1998-01-01

Calls of minke whales, Balaenoptera acutorostrata, off the coast of NE Australia in July of 1997 were recorded utilizing a newly described population, where minke whales maintain long contacts with vessels...

Måling af stress hos mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens

2010-01-01

Sammendrag Stress indgår som et element ved vurdering af dyrevelfærd. Endvidere kan stress mål anvendes i undersøgelser, hvor forskellige typer af avl, burmiljø og pasning af mink sammenlignes. Men hvad er stress egentlig og hvordan måles det? Er unormal adfærd koblet til stress hos mink? På...... temadagen præsenteres nye resultater og metoder til at vurdere stress hos mink. I en metode måles koncentrationen af nedbrydningsprodukter af hormonet cortisol i gødning fra mink. Der er en række fordele ved denne metode, frem for blodprøvetagning. Forsøg viste, at hovedparten af cortisol udskilles i fæces...... (83 %) frem for i urin (17 %), samt at omsætningen af radioaktivt mærket cortisol ikke er forskellig mellem mink med hhv. lav og høj forekomst af stereotypi. Denne viden kan bruges til bedre at forstå koblingen f.eks. unormal adfærd og stress hos mink....

Genomics using the Assembly of the Mink Genome

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Guldbrandtsen, Bernt; Cai, Zexi; Sahana, Goutam

2018-01-01

The American Mink’s (Neovison vison) genome has recently been sequenced. This opens numerous avenues of research both for studying the basic genetics and physiology of the mink as well as genetic improvement in mink. Using genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) generated marker data for 2,352 Danish farm...... mink runs of homozygosity (ROH) were detect in mink genomes. Detectable ROH made up on average 1.7% of the genome indicating the presence of at most a moderate level of genomic inbreeding. The fraction of genome regions found in ROH varied. Ten percent of the included regions were never found in ROH....... The ability to detect ROH in the mink genome also demonstrates the general reliability of the new mink genome assembly. Keywords: american mink, run of homozygosity, genome, selection, genomic inbreeding...

Associations between biosecurity and outbreaks of canine distemper on Danish mink farms in 2012-2013

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gregers-Jensen, Louise; Agger, Jens Frederik; Hammer, Anne Sofie Vedsted

2015-01-01

During 8 months from July 2012 to February 2013, a major outbreak of canine distemper involving 64 mink farms occurred on the Danish peninsula of Jutland. The canine distemper outbreak was associated with exposure of farmed mink to infected wild carnivores and could represent a deficit...... distemper from July 2012 to February 2013. The control group included 54 farms without an outbreak of canine distemper in 2012 or 2013, selected as the closest geographical neighbour to a case farm. The results showed that significantly more control than case farms had vaccinated their mink against canine...... distemper virus. Mortality was only assessed on the case farms, and there was a non-significantly lower mortality on vaccinated farms than on the non-vaccinated farms. Furthermore, the proportion of farms with observations of wild red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) inside the farm enclosures were larger for case...

Detection of intracellular canine distemper virus antigen in mink inoculated with an attenuated or a virulent strain of canine distemper virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Blixenkrone-Møller, M

1989-09-01

Using an indirect immunofluorescence technique, the distribution of viral antigen in various tissues and blood mononuclear leukocytes was studied in wild mink, either vaccinated with an attenuated vaccine strain of canine distemper virus (CDV) or experimentally inoculated with the virulent Snyder-Hill strain of CDV. Viral antigen was detected in cells of the lymphoid system 6 to 12 days after vaccination. From 2 to 3 days after inoculation with the virulent strain, CDV antigen was demonstrated in cells of the lymphoid system and, during the incubation period, the antigen had spread to the epithelia and brain at days 6 and 12, respectively. In clinical cases of acute fatal canine distemper, the viral antigen was detected in a wide variety of tissues, including the cells of the lymphoid system, epithelial cells of skin, mucous membranes, lung, kidney, and cells of the CNS. The diagnostic importance of CDV antigen detection is discussed on the basis of these findings.

Expression of mink cell focus-forming murine leukemia virus-related transcripts in AKR mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, A.S.; Laigret, F.; Rodi, C.P.

1987-01-01

The authors used a synthetic 16-base-pair mink cell focus-forming (MCF) env-specific oligomer as radiolabeled probe to study MCF murine leukemia virus (MuLV)-related transcripts in brain, kidney, liver, spleen, and thymus tissues of AKR mice ranging from 5 weeks to 6 months (mo) of age. Tissue-specific expression of poly(A) + RNAs was seen. In addition, all the tissues tested contained 3.0-kb messages. The transcription of these MCF-related mRNAs was independent of the presence of ecotropic and xenotropic MuLVs. In general, expression of the MCF env-related transcripts appeared to peak at 2 mo of age; these messages were barely detectable in brain, kidney, liver, and spleen tissues after 2 mo and in thymus tissue after 4 mo of age. All of the subgenomic MCF env-related mRNAs appeared to contain the 190-base-pair cellular DNA insert, characteristic of the long terminal repeats associated with endogenous MCF env-related proviruses. No genomic-size (8.4-kb) transcripts corresponding to endogenous MCF-related proviruses were detected. An 8.4-kb MCF env-related mRNA was first seen at 3 mo of age, exclusively in thymus tissue. This species most likely represents the first appearance of a recombinant MCF-related MuLV genome. The transcripts which were detected in thymus tissue might be involved in the generation of leukemogenic MCF viruses

Radiation pasteurization of mink feed

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Passey, C.A.; Roy, D.; Savoie, L.; Wilson, J.

1990-01-01

No significant differences were observed in the net birth rate of mink kits/female between the 7 breeding groups. However, there was reduced incidence (P=0.05) of kit deaths among the females receiving irradiated feed, and larger kit size (P<0.0001) at birth particularly for the litter size of 5-8 kits. The second generation minks born to parents receiving feed irradiated to a planned dose of 1 kGy weighed on average about 2.5% more, and their fur was on average about 1±0.26 cm longer (12% more males making the top length grade). Moreover, there was no effect of irradiated feed on fur quality. Irradiation of mink feed with subsequent frozen storage of the meat component improved the microbiological quality by decreasing the incidence of Pseudomonas sp. and Salmonella sp. Radiation pasteurization of mink feed (frozen meat to 1 kGy, and dry feed to 2 kGy or more) should therefore help improve feed utilization, keep animals healthier, and reproducing better without affecting fur quality. (author)

On-farm biosecurity practices and causes of preweaning mortality in Canadian commercial mink kits.

Science.gov (United States)

Compo, Nicole; Pearl, David L; Tapscott, Brian; Storer, Amanda; Hammermueller, Jutta; Brash, Marina; Turner, Patricia V

2017-09-08

Mink are an important animal commodity group in Canada and excessive kit mortality represents a significant loss to production. National biosecurity standards have been developed for Canadian mink farms, but it is unclear how well these standards have been implemented as there are no studies correlating management practices of mink producers with causes of death in mink kits. To that end, we surveyed Ontario mink producers on their biosecurity and management practices and conducted almost 5660 post mortem examinations on found-dead, preweaned kits to characterize mink farm biosecurity practices and causes of death in preweaned kits. We found that very few biosecurity and management practices were uniformly used by producers, despite good awareness of appropriate practices. Use of personal protective equipment was implemented by fewer than 50% of respondents, while control of mink shed access, disinfection of feed containers after use, and use of a rodent control program were the only practices implemented by greater than 70% of respondents. Only 18% of producers reported regular use of antimicrobials in feed or water, although 91% stated they used antimicrobials for treatment of bacterial diseases on a regular basis. On post mortem examination, no gross abnormalities were noted in 71% of the kits, 45% were thought to be stillborn or aborted, 27% had some form of abnormal fluid distribution in the body, and 2% had a congenital malformation. A subset of 69 gastrointestinal tract samples was submitted for bacterial culture, of which 45 samples yielded sufficient growth. Most interesting was the identification of Salmonella enterica serovar Heidelberg in 11% of samples. The results of this study will provide a benchmark for Canadian mink producers and their veterinarians, defining the areas to which greater attention should be given to ensure more rigorous biosecurity practices are in place. Ultimately, these improvements in practices may contribute to increased mink

Lead poisoning in mink

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Purdy, J G

1962-03-01

This paper describes a case of lead poisoning in minks. The mink were housed in pens which had been painted with a bridge paint containing lead. They had chewed on the pen and ingested the paint. The animals that did not die were moved to new pens, and vitamin D and calcium gluconate were added to their diets. In three days, a marked improvement was seen in the food and water consumption, and convolutions became less frequent.

The draft genome sequence of the American mink (Neovison vison) opens new opportunities of genomic research in mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cai, Zexi; Panitz, Frank; Petersen, Bent

2016-01-01

The American mink (Neovison vison) is a semiaquatic mustelid native to North America. It is an important animal for the fur industry. Although many efforts have been made to locate genes influencing fur quality and color, the lack of a reference genome impedes the search. American mink has...... of Carnivora. Here we present the draft genome sequence of American mink. In our study, a male inbred pearl mink was sequenced by Illumina paired-end and mate pair sequencing. The reads were assembled, which lead to 22,419 scaffolds with an N50 (shortest sequence length at 50% of the genome) of 646,304 bp...

Mastitis in the lactating mink female (Mustela vison S.) and the development of "greasy kits"

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clausen, T.N.; Dietz, Hans H.

2000-01-01

"Greasy kits" is the result ufa multifactorial disease complex with few known definitive aetiological factors. Mastitis has been hypothesized as a triggering factor although classical clinical signs of mastitis (rubor, tumor, dolor, calor) are rarely seen in lactating Danish mink Females. In this......"Greasy kits" is the result ufa multifactorial disease complex with few known definitive aetiological factors. Mastitis has been hypothesized as a triggering factor although classical clinical signs of mastitis (rubor, tumor, dolor, calor) are rarely seen in lactating Danish mink Females...

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in Danish farmed mink (Mustela vison S.)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henriksen, P; Dietz, H. H.; Uttenthal, Åse

1994-01-01

One hundred and ninety-five mink sera randomly selected from 17 Danish mink farms were evaluated for the presence of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in the latex agglutination test. Six (3%) sera contained T. gondii antibodies in titres of 1:64 or more. The estimated 3% prevalence means that 300 000...... mink out of a total mink population of ten million might be infected with Toxoplasma gondii. This large number of possible sero-positive mink in Denmark indicates that there exists a potential risk of acquiring toxoplasmosis by pelting mink....

Stress influencing production and welfare in farmed mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens

2012-01-01

Results linking stress, production and welfare in farmed mink, with special focus on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis, are presented. Interpretation of stress responses are discussed, combining context, neuroendocrine and behavioural indicators. Results from the development and valid......Results linking stress, production and welfare in farmed mink, with special focus on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis, are presented. Interpretation of stress responses are discussed, combining context, neuroendocrine and behavioural indicators. Results from the development...... animals and whether fur-chewing/stereotypic behaviour is associated with hippocampal neurogenesis in mink. Perspectives and suggested future research aiming to improve production and welfare in farmed mink are given....

WelFur-mink: on-farm welfare assessment of mink (Neovision vision) - effect of sample size on animal based measures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rousing, Tine; Møller, Steen Henrik; Hansen, Steffen W

2012-01-01

European Fur Breeder's Association initiated the "WelFur project" in 2009 which is aiming at developing an applicable on farm welfare assessment protocol for mink based on the Welfare Quality® principles. Such a welfare assessment system should possess the following qualities: It should be "high...... measures such as "stereotypy", "tremperament" and "body condition". These measures were in each fo 9 Danish mink farms on approximately 250 adult mink on each farm collected during the nursing season 2011 by a total of 8 observers working in pairs. Descriptive result showed a large between herd variations...

Hemorrhagic pneumonia in mink caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Salomonsen, Charlotte Mark

research has been performed in this field and most published work is more than 25 years old. The studies presented in this thesis aim at elucidating varying aspects of the disease: Article I investigates the relationships of P. aeruginosa isolated from mink hemorrhagic pneumonia using pulsed field gel...... electrophoresis (PFGE) and a commercial typing system based on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) on chosen strains. The results presented in this article show that 70% of P. aeruginosa isolated from outbreaks of hemorrhagic pneumonia in mink consist of unique strains, while the remaining 30% belongs to either...... in hemorrhagic pneumonia caused by P. aeruginosa and E. coli in diagnostic material. The distribution of the two pathogens is visualized using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Two histological patterns were observed in the work presented in Article II; one was very hemorrhagic with few bacteria while...

Abortion and mortality in farm mink (Neovison vison) associated with feed-born Clostridium limosum

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hammer, Anne Sofie; Andresen, Lars; Aalbaek, Bent

2017-01-01

Disease in mink clinically characterized by abortion and increased mortality among pregnant female mink on 28 Danish farms was observed during April and May 2015. Most of these farms suffered extensive disease problems, including a significant increase in the number of mated females without litters....... Pathological, microbiological and molecular biological methods were applied to investigate the cause of disease. Necropsies of animals found dead revealed fragile and partially dissolved (liquefying) uterine tissue, with the presence of Gram positive rod-shaped bacteria. These slow growing bacteria were...... isolated by anaerobic culturing and identified as Clostridium limosum by both MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. All the performed tests for relevant differential diagnoses were negative. Foodborne disease was indicated because all the affected farms were served by the same...

Immunization with plasmid DNA encoding the hemagglutinin and the nucleoprotein confers robust protection against a lethal canine distemper virus challenge.

Science.gov (United States)

Dahl, Lotte; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Gottschalck, Elisabeth; Karlskov-Mortensen, Peter; Jensen, Tove Dannemann; Nielsen, Line; Andersen, Mads Klindt; Buckland, Robin; Wild, T Fabian; Blixenkrone-Møller, Merete

2004-09-09

We have investigated the protective effect of immunization of a highly susceptible natural host of canine distemper virus (CDV) with DNA plasmids encoding the viral nucleoprotein (N) and hemagglutinin (H). The combined intradermal and intramuscular routes of immunization elicited high virus-neutralizing serum antibody titres in mink (Mustela vison). To mimic natural exposure, we also conducted challenge infection by horizontal transmission from infected contact animals. Other groups received a lethal challenge infection by administration to the mucosae of the respiratory tract and into the muscle. One of the mink vaccinated with N plasmid alone developed severe disease after challenge. In contrast, vaccination with the H plasmid together with the N plasmid conferred solid protection against disease and we were unable to detect CDV infection in PBMCs or in different tissues after challenge. Our findings show that DNA immunization by the combined intradermal and intramuscular routes can confer solid protective immunity against naturally transmitted morbillivirus infection and disease.

Isolation and characterization of a "phiKMV-like" bacteriophage and its therapeutic effect on mink hemorrhagic pneumonia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhenhui Cao

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of using phages as a therapy against hemorrhagic pneumonia in mink both in vitro and in vivo. Five Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa strains were isolated from lungs of mink with suspected hemorrhagic pneumonia and their identity was confirmed by morphological observation and 16S rDNA sequence analysis. Compared to P. aeruginosa strains isolated from mink with hemorrhagic pneumonia in 2002, these isolates were more resistant to antibiotics selected. A lytic phage vB_PaeP_PPA-ABTNL (PPA-ABTNL of the Podoviridae family was isolated from hospital sewage using a P. aeruginosa isolate as host, showing broad host range against P. aeruginosa. A one-step growth curve analysis of PPA-ABTNL revealed eclipse and latent periods of 20 and 35 min, respectively, with a burst size of about 110 PFU per infected cell. Phage PPA-ABTNL significantly reduced the growth of P. aeruginosa isolates in vitro. The genome of PPA-ABTNL was 43,227 bp (62.4% G+C containing 54 open reading frames and lacked regions encoding known virulence factors, integration-related proteins and antibiotic resistance determinants. Genome architecture analysis showed that PPA-ABTNL belonged to the "phiKMV-like Viruses" group. A repeated dose inhalational toxicity study using PPA-ABTNL crude preparation was conducted in mice and no significantly abnormal histological changes, morbidity or mortality were observed. There was no indication of any potential risk associated with using PPA-ABTNL as a therapeutic agent. The results of a curative treatment experiment demonstrated that atomization by ultrasonic treatment could efficiently deliver phage to the lungs of mink and a dose of 10 multiplicity of infection was optimal for treating mink hemorrhagic pneumonia. Our work demonstrated the potential for phage to fight P. aeruginosa involved in mink lung infections when administered by means of ultrasonic nebulization.

Host response during acute canine distemper virus infections in naive and DNA immunized mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Line

SAMMENDRAG (DANISH SUMMARY) Mink blev inokuleret med to forskellige vildtype hundesygevirus (CDV) stammer fra forskellige genotyper. DK91 stammen repræsenter de europæiske genotyper isoleret efter 1990, mens Snyder Hill stammen repræsenter de gamle amerikanske genotyper isoleret før 1960. De to C...

Radiation pasteurization of mink feed; Effect of irradiated feed on reproductive performance, growth and fur quality of mink

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Passey, C A; Roy, D; Savoie, L [St. Hyacinthe Food Research Centre, Agriculture (Canada); Malo, R [AgriZo Vet Consultants, St. Hyacinthe, QA (Canada); Wilson, J [J.J. Wilson et Fils, Inc., St. Hyacinthe, QA (Canada)

1990-01-01

No significant differences were observed in the net birth rate of mink kits/female between the 7 breeding groups. However, there was reduced incidence (P=0.05) of kit deaths among the females receiving irradiated feed, and larger kit size (P<0.0001) at birth particularly for the litter size of 5-8 kits. The second generation minks born to parents receiving feed irradiated to a planned dose of 1 kGy weighed on average about 2.5% more, and their fur was on average about 1{plus minus}0.26 cm longer (12% more males making the top length grade). Moreover, there was no effect of irradiated feed on fur quality. Irradiation of mink feed with subsequent frozen storage of the meat component improved the microbiological quality by decreasing the incidence of Pseudomonas sp. and Salmonella sp. Radiation pasteurization of mink feed (frozen meat to 1 kGy, and dry feed to 2 kGy or more) should therefore help improve feed utilization, keep animals healthier, and reproducing better without affecting fur quality. (author).

Experimental Pseudomonas aeruginosa mediated rhino sinusitis in mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kirkeby, S.; Hammer, A. S.; Høiby, N.

2017-01-01

The nasal and sinus cavities in children may serve as reservoirs for microorganisms that cause recurrent and chronic lung infections. This study evaluates whether the mink can be used as an animal model for studying Pseudomonas aeruginosa mediated rhino-sinusitis since there is no suitable...... in the infected mink shows features of carbohydrate expression comparable to what has been described in the respiratory system after Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in humans. It is suggested that the mink is suitable for studying Pseudomonas aeruginosa mediated rhino-sinusitis....

A cross-sectional field study on potential associations between feed quality measures and usage of antimicrobials in commercial mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Vibeke Frøkjær; Sommer, Helle Mølgaard; Struve, Tina

2017-01-01

Feed quality is generally assumed to affect health status in animal production. In previous studies, the feed producer has been found to affect the occurrence of gastrointestinal disease and antimicrobial use in Mink (Neovison vison). Mink are fed with moist, freshly produced feed, based...... on perishable ingredients. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential effect of specific feed parameters on antimicrobial use on herd level. The study was cross-sectional, including 1472 mink herds, responsible for 97% of oral antimicrobials prescribed for Danish mink during the study period......, 2012-2014. Data were obtained from the national veterinary prescription database (VetStat), Kopenhagen Fur database, and the Voluntary Feed Control (Mink producers Organization). All feed batches subject to feed control were included. A multi-variable variance analysis was carried out analysing...

Intestinal remodelling in mink fed with reduced protein content

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, Pengmin; Zhao, Jingbo; Nielsen, Vivi Hunnicke

2009-01-01

Low protein intake occurs in humans in relation to diseases, starvation and post-operatively. Low-protein diets may affect the gastrointestinal structure and mechanical function. The aim was to study the passive biomechanical properties and tissue remodelling of the intestine in minks on reduced...... protein diets. Twenty-seven male minks were divided into three groups receiving different protein level in the diet for 6 weeks: High protein level (group H, 55% energy from protein), moderate protein level (group M, 30% energy from protein) and low protein level (group L, 15% energy from protein) (n=9...... groups. Feeding the low-protein diet shifted the stress-strain curves to the right for the circumferential direction, indicating the wall become softer in the circumferential direction. However, no significant difference was observed in the longitudinal direction for any of the intestinal segments...

Coccidia infections in Danish farmed mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Heidi Huus; Hansen, Mette Sif; Chriél, Mariann

day (April-October 2016) from bitches and cups on 30 farms (n=335 mink) from South- or North Jutland, or Zealand. Minimum once, 60.9% (n=204) mink excreted Eimeria, 56.7% (n=190) Isospora and 20.9% (n=70) excreted both coccidia. Positive mink were identified on all farms. Eimeria prevalence was higher...... on the Zealand farms (25.4±2.2%, PEimeria prevalence peaked in June-July (12.6%-24.9%), while Isospora prevalence peaked in July-August (12.......1%-27.6%). More cups (19.5%) than bitches (4.6%) were Isospora positive, while Eimeria prevalence was similar for cups (15.7%) and bitches (10.5%). For cups, Eimeria prevalence peaked when cups were 7-11 weeks old and again when 18-24 weeks old. Isospora prevalence peaked in cups 13-15 weeks old. Three Eimeria...

Nature and Significance of the High-Sr Aleutian Lavas

Science.gov (United States)

Yogodzinski, G. M.; Arndt, S.; Turka, J. R.; Kelemen, P. B.; Vervoort, J. D.; Portnyagin, M.; Hoernle, K.

2011-12-01

Results of the Western Aleutian Volcano Expedition and German-Russian KALMAR cruises include the discovery of seafloor volcanism at the Ingenstrem Depression and at unnamed seamounts 300 km west of Buldir, the westernmost emergent volcano in the Aleutian arc. These discoveries indicate that the surface expression of active Aleutian volcanism goes below sea level just west of Buldir, but is otherwise continuous along the full length of the arc. Many lavas dredged from western Aleutian seamounts are basalts, geochemically similar to basalts from elsewhere in Aleutians and other arcs (La/Yb 4-8, Sr/Y700 ppm Sr), which are mostly plagioclase-hornblende andesites and dacites with low Y and middle-heavy rare-earth elements, fractionated trace element patterns (Sr/Y=50-200, La/Yb=9-25) and MORB-like isotopes (87Sr/86Sr 0.65) with 1250-1700 ppm Sr, 4-7 ppm Y, low abundances of all rare-earth elements (LaMexico. [1] Zimmer et al., 2010, J. Petrology, v. 51, p. 2411

Prevalence of giant kidney worm (Dioctophyma renale) in wild mink (Mustela vison) in Minnesota

Science.gov (United States)

Mech, L. David; Tracy, Shawn P.

2001-01-01

Of 138 wild mink (Mustela vison) from eastern Minnesota, 27% contained Dioctophyma renale, primarily in the right kidney. No significant difference between prevalence in adult male and immature male mink was found, nor between the prevalence in males versus female mink. Thirteen worms were found in one male mink, representing the highest documented infection intensity of a single wild mink.

Material culture across the Aleutian archipelago.

Science.gov (United States)

Hatfield, Virginia L

2010-12-01

The material evidence from sites across the Aleutian Islands reflects colonization events, subsequent adaptations, and influxes of ideas and/or people from the east. The occurrence in the eastern Aleutians of bifacial technology around 7000 BP, of artifacts similar to the Arctic Small Tool tradition between 4000 and 3500 BP, and of slate and jet objects around 1000 BP reflects repeated surges of influence or movement of peoples from further east into the eastern end of the chain. In the central and western Aleutians, influence or perhaps colonization from east of the Aleutians is also marked by the occurrence of bifacial technology about 6500 BP and the appearance of slate artifacts after 1000 BP, suggesting the movement of ideas or people from further east. Basic trends across the archipelago include a decrease in formal chipped-stone tools, an increase in the use and the complexity of bone technology, and the increase in use and variety of ground-stone tools. In addition, increasing village site sizes and denser midden deposits are seen later in time throughout the archipelago. The similarity in sites and assemblages, albeit with regional variations, reflects trends that are seen across the chain and indicates that these island communities were not isolated from one another or from mainland Alaska.

Can spectroscopy in combination with chemometrics replace minks in digestibility tests?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahl, P.L.; Christensen, B.M.; Munck, L.

2000-01-01

One of the most relevant but expensive methods of assessing the quality of fish meal is the physiological digestibility test with minks. The purpose of this study was to determine whether spectroscopic and chemical analyses evaluated with chemometrics can replace minks in digestibility tests....... The spectroscopic methods used were the two complementary techniques of fluorescence emission and near-infrared reflectance. The investigation included 54 samples of high-quality fish meal ranging from 89.6 to 93.9 on the mink digestibility index. The investigation also included determination of seven quality...... parameters in the fish meal to substantiate the spectroscopic models on the mink digestibility. These quality parameters include the content of protein, oil, water, water-soluble protein, ash and the biogenic substance cadaverine as well as the titration value. The study demonstrates that the mink...

Molecular characterization of the Himalayan mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Benkel, Bernhard F.; Rouvinen-Watt, Kirsti; Farid, Hossain

2009-01-01

A rare color variant of the American mink (Neovison vison), discovered on a ranch in Nova Scotia and referred to as the "marbled" variety, carries a distinctive pigment distribution pattern resembling that found in some other species, e.g., the Siamese cat and the Himalayan mouse. We tested...... the hypothesis that the color pattern in question-light-colored body with dark-colored points (ears, face, tail, and feet)-is due to a mutation in the melanin-producing enzyme tyrosinase (TYR) that results in temperature-sensitive pigment production. Our study shows that marbled mink carry a mutation in exon 4...... of the TYR gene (c.1835C > G) which results in an amino acid substitution (p.H420Q). The location of this substitution corresponds to the amino acid position that is also mutated in the TYR protein of the Himalayan mouse. Thus, the marbled variant is more aptly referred to as the Himalayan mink....

Cranial suture biology of the Aleutian Island inhabitants.

Science.gov (United States)

Cray, James; Mooney, Mark P; Siegel, Michael I

2011-04-01

Research on cranial suture biology suggests there is biological and taxonomic information to be garnered from the heritable pattern of suture synostosis. Suture synostosis along with brain growth patterns, diet, and biomechanical forces influence phenotypic variability in cranial vault morphology. This study was designed to determine the pattern of ectocranial suture synostosis in skeletal populations from the Aleutian Islands. We address the hypothesis that ectocranial suture synostosis pattern will differ according to cranial vault shape. Ales Hrdlicka identified two phenotypes in remains excavated from the Aleutian Island. The Paleo-Aleutians, exhibiting a dolichocranic phenotype with little prognathism linked to artifacts distinguished from later inhabitants, Aleutians, who exhibited a brachycranic phenotype with a greater amount of prognathism. A total of 212 crania representing Paleo-Aleuts and Aleutian as defined by Hrdlicka were investigated for suture synostosis pattern following standard methodologies. Comparisons were performed using Guttmann analyses. Results revealed similar suture fusion patterns for the Paleo-Aleut and Aleutian, a strong anterior to posterior pattern of suture fusion for the lateral-anterior suture sites, and a pattern of early termination at the sagittal suture sites for the vault. These patterns were found to differ from that reported in the literature. Because these two populations with distinct cranial shapes exhibit similar patterns of suture synostosis it appears pattern is independent of cranial shape in these populations of Homo sapiens. These findings suggest that suture fusion patterns may be population dependent and that a standardized methodology, using suture fusion to determine age-at-death, may not be applicable to all populations. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Cadmium, mercury and selenium concentrations in mink (Mustela vison) from Yukon, Canada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gamberg, Mary [Gamberg Consulting, Box 10460, Whitehorse, Yukon, Y1A 7A1 (Canada)]. E-mail: mary.gamberg@northwestel.net; Boila, Gail [Freshwater Institute, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 501 University Crescent, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N6 (Canada); Stern, Gary [Freshwater Institute, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 501 University Crescent, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N6 (Canada); Roach, Patrick [Department of Indian and Northern Affairs, Suite 300, 300 Main Street, Whitehorse, Yukon, Y1A 2B5 (Canada)

2005-12-01

Mercury (total and methyl), cadmium and selenium concentrations were measured in liver, kidney and brain tissue from mink trapped from the Yukon Territory from 2001-2002. None of these metals was found at levels of toxicological concern. Total mercury averaged 0.66, 0.92 and 0.22 {mu}g g{sup -1} in mink kidney, liver and brain tissue respectively, while methyl mercury averaged 0.77, 0.85 and 0.21 {mu}g g{sup -1} in the same tissues. Selenium averaged 2.07, 1.40 and 0.39 {mu}g g{sup -1} in mink kidney, liver and brain tissue, while cadmium was only measured in kidneys and averaged 0.22 {mu}g g{sup -1}. All element concentrations are presented on a wet weight basis. Concentrations of total mercury in all tissues were significantly higher in female than male mink, possibly reflecting proportionally greater food consumption by the smaller females. Total mercury concentrations were inversely related to the proportion of mercury present as methylmercury, and positively related to concentrations of selenium, consistent with increasing demethylation of methylmercury, and the formation of mercuric selenide as total concentrations of mercury increased. This relationship was seen most strongly in mink liver, less so in kidneys and not at all in brains where most of the mercury was maintained in the methyl form. There did not appear to be any geographical areas in which mink had obviously higher concentrations of mercury, and there was frequently a relatively large range of mercury levels found in mink from a given trapline. Mink diet may be a factor in this variation. Local environmental levels of cadmium were not reflected in cadmium concentrations in mink tissues. Mercury, cadmium and selenium do not appear to constitute environmental hazards to mink in the Yukon.

Cadmium, mercury and selenium concentrations in mink (Mustela vison) from Yukon, Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gamberg, Mary; Boila, Gail; Stern, Gary; Roach, Patrick

2005-01-01

Mercury (total and methyl), cadmium and selenium concentrations were measured in liver, kidney and brain tissue from mink trapped from the Yukon Territory from 2001-2002. None of these metals was found at levels of toxicological concern. Total mercury averaged 0.66, 0.92 and 0.22 μg g -1 in mink kidney, liver and brain tissue respectively, while methyl mercury averaged 0.77, 0.85 and 0.21 μg g -1 in the same tissues. Selenium averaged 2.07, 1.40 and 0.39 μg g -1 in mink kidney, liver and brain tissue, while cadmium was only measured in kidneys and averaged 0.22 μg g -1 . All element concentrations are presented on a wet weight basis. Concentrations of total mercury in all tissues were significantly higher in female than male mink, possibly reflecting proportionally greater food consumption by the smaller females. Total mercury concentrations were inversely related to the proportion of mercury present as methylmercury, and positively related to concentrations of selenium, consistent with increasing demethylation of methylmercury, and the formation of mercuric selenide as total concentrations of mercury increased. This relationship was seen most strongly in mink liver, less so in kidneys and not at all in brains where most of the mercury was maintained in the methyl form. There did not appear to be any geographical areas in which mink had obviously higher concentrations of mercury, and there was frequently a relatively large range of mercury levels found in mink from a given trapline. Mink diet may be a factor in this variation. Local environmental levels of cadmium were not reflected in cadmium concentrations in mink tissues. Mercury, cadmium and selenium do not appear to constitute environmental hazards to mink in the Yukon

Nairobi sheep disease virus/Ganjam virus.

Science.gov (United States)

M D, Baron; B, Holzer

2015-08-01

Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV) is a tick-borne virus which causes a severe disease in sheep and goats, and has been responsible for several outbreaks of disease in East Africa. The virus is also found in the Indian subcontinent, where it is known as Ganjam virus. The virus only spreads through the feeding of competent infected ticks, and is therefore limited in its geographic distribution by the distribution of those ticks, Rhipicephalus appendiculata in Africa and Haemaphysalis intermedia in India. Animals bred in endemic areas do not normally develop disease, and the impact is therefore primarily on animals being moved for trade or breeding purposes. The disease caused by NSDV has similarities to several other ruminant diseases, and laboratory diagnosis is necessary for confirmation. There are published methods for diagnosis based on polymerase chain reaction, for virus growth in cell culture and for other simple diagnostic tests, though none has been commercialised. There is no established vaccine against NSDV, although cell-culture attenuated strains have been developed which show promise and could be put into field trials if it were deemed necessary. The virus is closely related to Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus, and studies on NSDV may therefore be useful in understanding this important human pathogen.

Animal prevalence of livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infive Danish mink (Neovison vison) farms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fertner, Mette Ely; Pedersen, Karl; Hansen, Julie Elvekjær

/50) of screened healthy Danish mink farms were found positive. LA-MRSA in mink is believed to originate from contaminated slaughter-offal in the mink feed. Objective. The objective of the present study was to identify the animal-prevalence of LA-MRSA in five Danish minkfarms. Materials and Methods. We collected 1......,500 mink carcasses from five Danish mink farms. Farmers were asked to collect 100 mink for each of the three consecutive months following the whelping period (May-July 2017). From each carcass, the right forepaw and a pharyngeal-swab was collected for investigation of MRSA by enrichment, followed...... may be explained by an overall low animal-prevalence in the farm. Another explanation could be the high proportion of young mink kits (15/20) tested. All mink kits were

Evaluation of the choline status in mink fed different levels and sources of choline

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hedemann, Mette Skou; Damgaard, Birthe Marie; Clausen, T.N.

2012-01-01

Choline is an essential nutrient but the daily need for choline in mink has never been determined. Two experiments were performed to evalutate the choline status in mink kits and full-grown mink fed different levels of choline. In the first experiment mink kits were fed a synthetic diet with chol...

Bacterial protein meal in diets for pigs and minks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hellwing, Anne Louise Frydendahl; Tauson, Anne-Helene; Skrede, Anders

2007-01-01

The effect of increasing the dietary content of bacterial protein meal (BPM) on protein turnover rate, and on nucleic acid and creatinine metabolism in growing minks and pigs was investigated in two experiments. In each experiment, 16 animals were allocated to four experimental diets. The diets...... containing no BPM served as controls, i.e. for minks diet M1, for pigs P1; the experimental diets contained increasing levels of BPM to replace fish meal (minks) or soybean meal (pigs), so that up to 17% (P2), 20% (M2), 35% (P3), 40% (M3), 52% (P4), and 60% (M4) of digestible N was BPM derived. Protein...... turnover rate was measured by means of the end-product method using [15N]glycine as tracer and urinary nitrogen as end-product. In minks, protein flux, synthesis, and breakdown increased significantly with increasing dietary BPM. In pigs, diet had no observed effect on protein turnover rate. The intake...

Stress and stereotypic behaviour in mink (Mustela vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens; Jeppesen, Leif Lau; Palme, R.

2011-01-01

We examined whether female mink with low (LS) and high (HS) occurrence of stereotypic behaviour differ in their adrenocortical activity in baseline conditions or in response to immobilisation (Experiment 1), handling, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) challenge (Experiment 2) and excretion...... 4-20 h after the handling (P = 0.001). In Experiment 3 (n = 16), the excretion of infused (3)H-cortisol did not differ between LS and HS mink. Stereotypic behaviour is concurrent with higher baseline concentrations of FCM, which cannot be explained by a greater adrenocortical reactivity...... or a different excretion of the circulating cortisol. Instead, we conclude that mink with a high level of stereotypic behaviour have a greater perception of stress, or increased sensitivity to stressors at the pituitary level....

Mink predation on brown trout in a Black Hills stream

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Jacob L.; Wilhite, Jerry W.; Chipps, Steven R.

2016-01-01

In the early 2000’s, declines in the brown trout (Salmo trutta) fishery in Rapid Creek, South Dakota, caused concern for anglers and fisheries managers. We conducted a radio telemetry study in 2010 and 2011 to identify predation mortality associated with mink, using hatchery-reared (2010) or wild (2011) brown trout. Estimated predation rates by mink (Mustela vison) on radio-tagged brown trout were 30% for hatchery fish and 32% for wild fish. Size frequency analysis revealed that the size distribution of brown trout lost to predation was similar to that of other, radio-tagged brown trout. In both years, a higher proportion of predation mortality (83–92%) occurred during spring, consistent with seasonal fish consumption by mink. Predation by mink appeared to be a significant source of brown trout mortality in our study.

Serogroups and antimicrobial susceptibility among Escherichia coli isolated from farmed mink (Mustela vison Schreiber) in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vulfson, L.; Pedersen, Karl; Chriel, M.

2001-01-01

Escherichia coli is commonly found in outbreaks of diarrhoea in mink during the production season although its role as a primary causal organism remains unclear. The present study was undertaken to determine the serogroups and antimicrobial susceptibility of E. coli isolates from healthy and diar......Escherichia coli is commonly found in outbreaks of diarrhoea in mink during the production season although its role as a primary causal organism remains unclear. The present study was undertaken to determine the serogroups and antimicrobial susceptibility of E. coli isolates from healthy...... diseased. All isolates were serotyped and MICs were determined for nine antimicrobial compounds. Non-haemolytic isolates numbered 147, whereas 63 were haemolytic. Both haemolytic and non-haemolytic isolates were isolated from both healthy and diseased animals. A wide range of serogroups was detected...... among the six mink farms, for tetracycline (0-16.4%. average 21.9), ampicillin (2.9-50.0%. average 23.3), spectinomycin (8.0-35.7%. average 21.9), sulfamethoxazole (8.6-57.7%. average 30.0) and trimethoprim (0-35.7%. average 9.5). Resistance to tetracycline was statistically more prevalent among...

Comparison of histological lesions in acute hemorrhagic pneumonia in mink associated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Escherichia coli

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Salomonsen, Charlotte Mark; Boye, Mette; Høiby, N.

2013-01-01

also occurred in farmed mink. The purpose of this study was to compare histological lesions of acute hemorrhagic pneumonia associated with both P. aeruginosa and E. coli in mink, including a description of tissue distribution of pathogens, in an attempt to differentiate between the 2 disease entities......, as P. aeruginosa was most often found surrounding blood vessels and lining the alveoli, while E. coli showed a more diffuse distribution in the lung tissue. Furthermore, P. aeruginosa often elicited a very hemorrhagic response in the lung, while infection with E. coli was associated with a higher......Hemorrhagic pneumonia can be a major cause of mortality in farmed mink in the fall. In its classic form, hemorrhagic pneumonia is caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In recent years, however, outbreaks of this type of pneumonia that are associated with hemolytic Escherichia coli have...

Identifying QTL and genetic correlations between fur quality traits in mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thirstrup, Janne Pia; Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Guldbrandtsen, Bernt

2014-01-01

Mapping of QTL affecting fur quality traits (guard hair length, guard hair thickness, density of wool, surface of the fur and quality) and skin length was performed in a three-generation mink population (F2 design). In the parental generation, Nordic Brown mink were crossed reciprocally with Amer......Mapping of QTL affecting fur quality traits (guard hair length, guard hair thickness, density of wool, surface of the fur and quality) and skin length was performed in a three-generation mink population (F2 design). In the parental generation, Nordic Brown mink were crossed reciprocally...... with American Black short nap mink. In all, 1082 mink encompassing three generations were used for the analyses. The mink were genotyped for 104 microsatellites covering all 14 autosomes. The QTL analyses were performed by least-square regression implemented in gridqtl software. Genetic and phenotypic...

Antimicrobial resistance among pathogenic bacteria from mink (Neovison vison) in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nikolaisen, Nanett Kvist; Lassen, Desireé Corvera Kløve; Chriél, Mariann

2017-01-01

of antimicrobial resistance among pathogenic bacteria isolated from Danish mink during the period 2014-2016. The aim of this investigation was to provide data on antimicrobial resistance and consumption, to serve as background knowledge for new veterinary guidelines for prudent and optimal antimicrobial usage...... and macrolides. Conclusions: The study showed that antimicrobial resistance was common in most pathogenic bacteria from mink, in particular hemolytic E. coli. There is a need of guidelines for prudent use of antimicrobials for mink....

Pre-slaughter bodyweight and daily gains in mink are independent ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Natasza

2017-03-13

Mar 13, 2017 ... larger space and low density of animals might result in increased use of .... Heritability of body length and weight in mink, and the effects of time of birth and litter ... slaughterhouse offal and supplementary folic acid in mink diet.

Acoustic Ecology and Remote Acoustic Monitoring of a Minke Whale Population

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Gedamke, Jason

2000-01-01

Sound is the most effective means of communication in the ocean. A uniquely inquisitive minke whale population on the northern Great Barrier Reef presents an unprecedented research opportunity to study minke acoustics...

Phylogenetic analysis of the haemagglutinin gene of canine distemper virus strains detected from breeding foxes, raccoon dogs and minks in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Jian-Jun; Yan, Xi-Jun; Chai, Xiu-Li; Martella, Vito; Luo, Guo-Liang; Zhang, Hai-Ling; Gao, Han; Liu, Ying-Xue; Bai, Xue; Zhang, Lei; Chen, Tao; Xu, Lei; Zhao, Chun-Fei; Wang, Feng-Xue; Shao, Xi-Qun; Wu, Wei; Cheng, Shi-Peng

2010-01-06

Canine distemper virus (CDV) infects a variety of carnivores, including wild and domestic Canidae. Genetic/antigenic heterogeneity has been observed among the various CDV strains, notably in the haemagglutinin (H) gene, that appears as a good target to gather epidemiological information. Based on sequence analysis of the H gene, wild-type CDV strains cluster into distinct geographic lineages (genotypes), irrespective of the species of isolation. The sequence of the H gene of 28 CDV strains detected from both vaccinated and non-vaccinated breeding foxes, raccoon dogs and minks from different geographical areas of China during the years 2004-2008 was determined. All the CDV strains but two (strains HL and HLJ2) were characterized as Asia-1 genotype and were highly similar to each other (96.2-99.7% at the amino acid [aa] level) and to other Asia-1 strains (96.1-99.5% aa) previously detected in China. The CDV strains HL and HLJ2 were both collected from foxes in Heilongjiang province in 2005. Strain HL resembled CDVs of the Arctic genotype (GR88-like) and displayed high aa identity (98.0%) to the Chinese canine strain Liu. By converse, strain HLJ2 was barely related to CDVs of the Asia-2 genotype (88.7-90.3% aa identity), and could represent a novel CDV genotype, tentatively proposed as Asia-3. These results suggest that at least three different CDV genotypes, distantly related (81.8-91.6% aa identity) to the vaccine strains, Onderstepoort-like (America-1 genotype), are currently circulating in breeding foxes, raccoon dogs and minks in China, and that the genotype Asia-1 is predominant. Whether the diversity between wild-type CDVs and the vaccine strains may affect, to some extent, the efficacy of the vaccines deserves further investigations.

The American mink (Neovison vison) is a competent host for native European parasites.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Rondán, F J; Ruiz de Ybáñez, M R; Tizzani, P; López-Beceiro, A M; Fidalgo, L E; Martínez-Carrasco, C

2017-11-30

The American mink (Neovison vison) is a mustelid native to North America that was introduced in Europe and the former USSR for fur farming. Throughout the last century, accidental or deliberate escapes of mink from farms caused the establishment of stable feral populations. In fact, the American mink is considered an invasive alien species in 28 European countries. The present study evaluates the gastrointestinal and cardiopulmonary helminth fauna of the American mink in Galicia (NW Spain) to understand its role as a potential reservoir for parasites affecting other autochthonous mustelids. In the period 2008-2014, fifty American mink (35 males and 15 females) of different ages (22 immature and 28 adults) from the provinces of Lugo, Ourense and Pontevedra were captured and sacrificed. Eight parasite species were found (6 nematodes and 2 trematodes) with the following prevalences: Molineus patens (68%), Aonchotheca putorii (54%), Crenosoma melesi (10%), Aonchotheca annulosa (8%), Angiostrongylus daskalovi (6%), Aelurostrongylus spp. (2%), Troglotrema acutum (2%) and an unidentified trematode (2%). Eighty-two per cent of the mink harboured helminths, including 15 animals (30%) infected by only one parasite species, 19 (38%) by two species, 5 (10%) by three species and 2 mink (4%) by four species. All helminth species identified are native to European mustelids. Statistical models were used to evaluate if animal characteristics (age, sex and weight), date and capture area influenced the prevalence, intensity or parasite richness. Statistical differences were detected only in models for intensity of M. patens, A. putorii and C. melesi. This is the first report of Angiostrongylus daskalovi, a cardiopulmonary nematode, and A. annulosa, a gastrointestinal nematode specific of rodents, in American mink. Moreover, although the fluke T. acutum has already been cited in American mink, to our knowledge, the present study represents the first report of this trematode in the

Development of vocalization and hearing in American mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brandt, Christian; Malmkvist, Jens; Nielsen, Rasmus L.

2013-01-01

-tested (P=0.004). Large numbers of mink are kept in fur industry farms, and our results are important to the understanding of sound communication, which is part of their natural behaviour. Our results also suggest mink as an interesting model for studying the development of mammalian hearing and its......American mink (Neovison vison) kits are born altricial and fully dependent on maternal care, for which the kits’ vocalizations appear essential. We used auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) to determine: (1) hearing sensitivity of adult females from two breeding lines known to differ in maternal...... behaviour and (2) development of hearing in kits 8–52days of age. We also studied sound production in 20 kits throughout postnatal days 1 to 44. Adult female mink had a broad hearing range from 1kHz to above 70kHz, with peak sensitivity (threshold of 20dB SPL) at 8–10kHz, and no difference...

Responses of mink to auditory stimuli: Prerequisites for applying the ‘cognitive bias’ approach

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svendsen, Pernille Maj; Malmkvist, Jens; Halekoh, Ulrich

2012-01-01

The aim of the study was to determine and validate prerequisites for applying a cognitive (judgement) bias approach to assessing welfare in farmed mink (Neovison vison). We investigated discrimination ability and associative learning ability using auditory cues. The mink (n = 15 females) were...... farmed mink in a judgement bias approach would thus appear to be feasible. However several specific issues are to be considered in order to successfully adapt a cognitive bias approach to mink, and these are discussed....

Mortality and some biochemical changes in mink (Mustela vison) given sublethal doses of aflatoxin each day.

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, C C; Marth, E H; Shackelford, R M

1976-10-01

Two feeding trials were done to study the susceptibility of mink (Mustela vison) to multiple sublethal doses of aflatoxins. In the 1st trial, twenty 3-month-old male mink were divided equally among groups. Each mink in groups 1, 2, 3, and 4 was given a meatball daily that contained 15, 30, 45, or 0 mug of aflatoxins (B1:G1, 40:60), respectively. All mink in group 3 died between the 25th and the 30th days of the feeding trial. Each mink had ingested 1,035 to 1,480 mug of aflatoxins. Four of the mink in group 2 died almost as soon as did mink in group 3. Four mink in group 1 died between 40 and 59 days after the start of the feeding trial. Generally, a marked increase in plasma cholesterol and alkaline phosphatase activity appeared before mink died. The liver from animals that died of aflatoxicosis showed prominent pathologic changes which included hemorrhages and appearance of pink yellow spots. Histopathologic examination of liver from dead mink revealed fatty infiltration, bile duct proliferation, bile stasis, pseudotubular formation, congestion, and fibrosis. The feeding trial was repeated with 20 mink (8 males and 12 females) that were 1.5 to 2 years old. In this instance, 0, 20, 40, and 60 mug of aflatoxins were administered each day. All treated animals, except 1, were dead within 37 days after the experiment started. The survivor was given the lowest dosage of toxins and died after 52 days by which time 960 mug of aflatoxins were consumed. Plasma cholesterol content and alkaline phosphatase activity generally were similar to those observed in younger mink of the 1st feeding trial.

Environmental enrichment reduces signs of boredom in caged mink.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca K Meagher

Full Text Available Animals housed in impoverished cages are often labelled 'bored'. They have also been called 'apathetic' or 'depressed', particularly when profoundly inactive. However, these terms are rarely operationally defined and validated. As a negative state caused by under-stimulation, boredom should increase interest in stimuli of all kinds. Apathy (lack of interest, by contrast, should manifest as decreased interest in all stimuli, while anhedonia (loss of pleasure, a depressive symptom should specifically decrease interest in normally rewarding stimuli. We tested the hypotheses that mink, a model carnivore, experience more boredom, depression-like apathy, or anhedonia in non-enriched (NE cages than in complex, enriched (E cages. We exposed 29 subjects (13 E, 16 NE to ten stimuli categorized a priori as aversive (e.g. air puffs, rewarding (e.g. evoking chasing or ambiguous/neutral (e.g. candles. Interest in stimuli was assessed via latencies to contact, contact durations, and durations oriented to stimuli. NE mink contacted all stimuli faster (P = 0.003 than E mink, and spent longer oriented to/in contact with them, albeit only significantly so for ambiguous ones (treatment*type P<0.013. With stimulus category removed from statistical models, interest in all stimuli was consistently higher among NE mink (P<0.0001 for all measures. NE mink also consumed more food rewards (P = 0.037. Finally, we investigated whether lying down while awake and stereotypic behaviour (both increased by NE housing predicted these responses. Lying awake positively co-varied with certain measures of increased exploration. In contrast, stereotypic 'scrabbling' or locomotion (e.g. pacing did not. Overall, NE mink showed no evidence of apathy or depression, but instead a heightened investigation of diverse stimuli consistent with boredom. This state was potentially indicated by spending much time lying still but awake (although this result requires replication. Boredom can

Comparison of biological and genomic characteristics between a newly isolated mink enteritis parvovirus MEV-LHV and an attenuated strain MEV-L.

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Yaping; Wang, Jigui; Hou, Qiang; Xi, Ji; Zhang, Xiaomei; Bian, Dawei; Yu, Yongle; Wang, Xi; Liu, Weiquan

2016-06-01

A virus isolated from mink showing clinical signs of enteritis was identified as a high virulent mink enteritis parvovirus (MEV) based on its biological characteristics in vivo and in vitro. Mink, challenged with this strain named MEV-LHV, exhibited severe pathological lesions as compared to those challenged with attenuated strain MEV-L. MEV-LHV also showed higher infection and replication efficiencies in vitro than MEV-L. Sequence of the complete genome of MEV-LHV was determined and analyzed in comparison with those in GenBank, which revealed that MEV-LHV shared high homology with virulent strain MEV SD12/01, whereas MEV-L was closely related to Abashiri and vaccine strain MEVB, and belonged to a different branch of the phylogenetic tree. The genomes of the two strains differed by insertions and deletions in their palindromic termini and specific unique mutations (especially VP2 300) in coding sequences which may be involved in viral replication and pathogenicity. The results of this study provide a better understanding of the biological and genomic characteristics of MEV and identify certain regions and sites that may be involved in viral replication and pathogenicity.

Toxaphene in minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from the North Atlantic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gouteux, B.; Muir, D.C.G.; Backus, S.; Born, E.W.; Dietz, R.; Haug, T.; Metcalfe, T.; Metcalfe, C.; Oien, N.

2008-01-01

Toxaphene contamination of minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from North Atlantic waters was examined for the first time. Total toxaphene and ΣCHB (sum of 11 chlorobornanes) concentrations in blubber samples ranged from 170 ± 110 and 41 ± 39 ng/g lipid weight (l.w.) for female minke whales from southeastern Greenland to 5800 ± 4100 and 1100 ± 780 ng/g l.w. for males from the North Sea, respectively. Very large variations in toxaphene concentrations among sampling areas were observed suggesting a spatial segregation of minke whales. However, much of the apparent geographical discrimination was explained by the seasonal fluctuation of animal fat mass. Patterns of CHBs in males revealed that recalcitrant CHBs were in higher proportions in animals from the more easterly areas than in animals from the more westerly areas. This trend may be influenced by the predominance of the US, over the European, input of toxaphene to North Atlantic waters. - High levels of toxaphene were found in different sub-populations of minke whales from North Atlantic waters

Toxaphene in minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from the North Atlantic

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gouteux, B. [Aquatic Ecosystem Protection Research Division, Environment Canada, Burlington, ON, L7R 4A6 (Canada); Muir, D.C.G. [Aquatic Ecosystem Protection Research Division, Environment Canada, Burlington, ON, L7R 4A6 (Canada)], E-mail: Derek.Muir@ec.gc.ca; Backus, S. [Aquatic Ecosystem Protection Research Division, Environment Canada, Burlington, ON, L7R 4A6 (Canada); Born, E.W. [Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, P.O. Box 570, DK-3900 Nuuk, Greenland (Denmark); Dietz, R. [National Environmental Research Institute, Department of Arctic Environment, Frederiksborgvej 399, P.O. Box 358, DK-4000 Roskilde (Denmark); Haug, T. [Institute of Marine Research, P.O. Box 6404, N-9294 Tromso (Norway); Metcalfe, T.; Metcalfe, C. [Worsfold Water Quality Centre, Trent University, Peterborough, ON, K9J 7B8 (Canada); Oien, N. [Institute of Marine Research, P.O. Box 1870, N-5817 Bergen (Norway)

2008-05-15

Toxaphene contamination of minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from North Atlantic waters was examined for the first time. Total toxaphene and {sigma}CHB (sum of 11 chlorobornanes) concentrations in blubber samples ranged from 170 {+-} 110 and 41 {+-} 39 ng/g lipid weight (l.w.) for female minke whales from southeastern Greenland to 5800 {+-} 4100 and 1100 {+-} 780 ng/g l.w. for males from the North Sea, respectively. Very large variations in toxaphene concentrations among sampling areas were observed suggesting a spatial segregation of minke whales. However, much of the apparent geographical discrimination was explained by the seasonal fluctuation of animal fat mass. Patterns of CHBs in males revealed that recalcitrant CHBs were in higher proportions in animals from the more easterly areas than in animals from the more westerly areas. This trend may be influenced by the predominance of the US, over the European, input of toxaphene to North Atlantic waters. - High levels of toxaphene were found in different sub-populations of minke whales from North Atlantic waters.

DNA vaccines encoding proteins from wild-type and attenuated canine distemper virus protect equally well against wild-type virus challenge.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Line; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Kristensen, Birte; Jensen, Tove Dannemann; Karlskov-Mortensen, Peter; Lund, Morten; Aasted, Bent; Blixenkrone-Møller, Merete

2012-10-01

Immunity induced by DNA vaccines containing the hemagglutinin (H) and nucleoprotein (N) genes of wild-type and attenuated canine distemper virus (CDV) was investigated in mink (Mustela vison), a highly susceptible natural host of CDV. All DNA-immunized mink seroconverted, and significant levels of virus-neutralizing (VN) antibodies were present on the day of challenge with wild-type CDV. The DNA vaccines also primed the cell-mediated memory responses, as indicated by an early increase in the number of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ)-producing lymphocytes after challenge. Importantly, the wild-type and attenuated CDV DNA vaccines had a long-term protective effect against wild-type CDV challenge. The vaccine-induced immunity induced by the H and N genes from wild-type CDV and those from attenuated CDV was comparable. Because these two DNA vaccines were shown to protect equally well against wild-type virus challenge, it is suggested that the genetic/antigenic heterogeneity between vaccine strains and contemporary wild-type strains are unlikely to cause vaccine failure.

Bite marks in mink—Induced experimentally and as reflection of aggressive encounters between mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Steffen W; Møller, Steen Henrik; Damgaard, Birthe Marie

2014-01-01

of the brown colour type (N = 140) and the white colour type (N = 60). Twentybrown and 20 white mink (housed in pairs since weaning) were housed individually at theage of 16 weeks. Every second week (at the age of 20, 22, 24, 25 and 28 weeks), four brownand four white mink were subjected to pressure......: (1) experimentally applied pressure on the skin can be recog-nized as bite marks in brown mink at pelting, (2) bite marks are easier to detect on brownmink than on white coloured mink (P ...tFor many years, bite marks have been used as an indicator for aggression in mink productionsystems. However, the validity of bite marks as indicator of aggression has recently beenquestioned. We therefore tested the following hypotheses: (1) experimentally applied pressure to, or penetration of...

The ventricles of the brain in the N. American mink (Mustela vison (Brisson, 1756))

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goscicka, D; Stankiewicz, W; Szpinda, M [Akademia Medyczna, Bydgoszcz (Poland)

1994-12-31

Using anatomical as well as radiographic and tomographic methods, sixty brains of the N. American mink were examined. It was found that the brain consists of four ventricles. Also, it was noted that the posterior horn was missing and that there was the olfactory recess present in the lateral ventricle, a large-size interthalamic connection present in the third ventricle, and a flat, necklace-like bottom in the fourth ventricle. Only recently, this ins and outs of the mink`s anatomical structure have begun to absorb anatomists. Apparently, it is related to the fact that furry animals, among them the mink, are being domesticated as if ``before our eyes``. For this reason and because of the easy access to material, examining of the brain ventricles in the mink was taken up. (author). 14 refs, 13 figs.

Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease)

Science.gov (United States)

... Controls Cancel Submit Search the CDC Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease) Note: Javascript is disabled or is not ... gov . Recommend on Facebook Tweet Share Compartir Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a rare and deadly disease ...

Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease): Diagnosis

Science.gov (United States)

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Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease): Transmission

Science.gov (United States)

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Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease): Treatment

Science.gov (United States)

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The first draft reference genome of the American mink ( Neovison vison )

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cai, Zexi; Petersen, Bent; Sahana, Goutam

2017-01-01

The American mink (Neovison vison) is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America. It’s an important animal for the fur industry. Many efforts have been made to locate genes influencing fur quality and color, but this search has been impeded by the lack of a reference genome. Here we...... present the first draft genome of mink. In our study, two mink individuals were sequenced by Illumina sequencing with 797 Gb sequence generated. Assembly yielded 7,175 scaffolds with an N50 of 6.3 Mb and length of 2.4 Gb including gaps. Repeat sequences constitute around 31% of the genome, which is lower...

Observaciones sobre el plan de vacunación contra el distemper en visones (Mustela vison en un criadero de Argentina Evaluation of the immune response after vaccination against distemper at a mink (Mustela vison farm in Argentina

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. M. Jar

2010-09-01

Full Text Available El virus del distemper produce una enfermedad en los visones que cursa con síntomas respiratorios, gastrointestinales, neurológicos y cutáneos y presenta alta morbilidad y mortalidad, principalmente en los cachorros. La enfermedad se controla mediante la aplicación de vacunas destinadas a esta especie. El objetivo del trabajo fue determinar el título de anticuerpos neutralizantes contra el virus del distemper en visones vacunados y no vacunados de un criadero de Argentina. Se analizó la cinética de anticuerpos obtenidos posvacunación en 27 animales adultos y de anticuerpos calostrales en 10 cachorros. Todos los visones adultos vacunados mostraron títulos protectores hasta por lo menos 3 meses después de la vacunación. El 37,5% redujo significativamente sus niveles de anticuerpos a los 12 meses de la vacunación. En los cachorros, sólo un 20% mostró niveles protectores de anticuerpos calostrales a las 7 semanas de edad, que se negativizaron hacia las 11 semanas. La vacunación a las 13 semanas de edad produjo títulos protectores en todos estos animales. Estos resultados muestran que la vacunación induce respuesta humoral satisfactoria en el medio estudiado e indican la conveniencia de revacunar a las madres anualmente antes del servicio. Se discute el plan de vacunación en cachorros.Distemper virus causes a disease affecting minks with respiratory, gastrointestinal, neurological and skin symptoms and showing high morbidity and mortality, mainly among puppies. It is controlled through immunization, using vaccines that are supplied for mink use. The aim of this work was to determine the seroneutralization titer against the distemper virus at a mink farm in Argentina. The antibody kinetics obtained after vaccination in 27 adult animals, as well as the duration of colostrum-transferred antibodies in 10 puppies were determined. All vaccinated adult minks showed protective titers up to at least 3 months after vaccination, and 37

Radiographic evaluation of destructive periodontal disease in blue mink in relation to age and blood morphology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hammer, Anne Sofie; Andersen, Thomas Holmen; Eriksen, Thomas

2005-01-01

In this study, blood samples and jaws were collected from 2 genotypes of blue mink (n = 289) in order to examine phenotypic expression of specific characteristics of Chediak-Higashi Syndrome (C-HS). Blood samples were subjected to differential counts to assess the proportion of abnormal polymorph...

Are Antarctic minke whales unusually abundant because of 20th century whaling?

Science.gov (United States)

Ruegg, Kristen C; Anderson, Eric C; Scott Baker, C; Vant, Murdoch; Jackson, Jennifer A; Palumbi, Stephen R

2010-01-01

Severe declines in megafauna worldwide illuminate the role of top predators in ecosystem structure. In the Antarctic, the Krill Surplus Hypothesis posits that the killing of more than 2 million large whales led to competitive release for smaller krill-eating species like the Antarctic minke whale. If true, the current size of the Antarctic minke whale population may be unusually high as an indirect result of whaling. Here, we estimate the long-term population size of the Antarctic minke whale prior to whaling by sequencing 11 nuclear genetic markers from 52 modern samples purchased in Japanese meat markets. We use coalescent simulations to explore the potential influence of population substructure and find that even though our samples are drawn from a limited geographic area, our estimate reflects ocean-wide genetic diversity. Using Bayesian estimates of the mutation rate and coalescent-based analyses of genetic diversity across loci, we calculate the long-term population size of the Antarctic minke whale to be 670,000 individuals (95% confidence interval: 374,000-1,150,000). Our estimate of long-term abundance is similar to, or greater than, contemporary abundance estimates, suggesting that managing Antarctic ecosystems under the assumption that Antarctic minke whales are unusually abundant is not warranted.

Modelling growth of five different colour types of mink | Liu | South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The objective of this study was to estimate and compare the growth curve parameters for live weight of standard black, brown, mahogany, Hedlund white and sapphire minks. The data were collected from five colour types in the period from seven days to 24 weeks of age. Three hundred mink (about 60 of each colour types) ...

Identifying QTL for fur quality traits in mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thirstrup, Janne Pia; Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Guldbrandtsen, Bernt

2012-01-01

Mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting fur quality traits (guard hair length, guard hair thikness, and density of woll) was performed in a 3-generation population (F2-design). In the parental generation, Nordic wild mink were crossed reciprocally with American short nap mink. Twenty o...

Mortality in farmed mink: Systematic collection versus arbitrary submissions for diagnostic investigation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rattenborg, Erik; Dietz, Hans-Henrik; Andersen, T.H.

1999-01-01

The distribution of diagnoses of mortality in mink submitted to the Danish Veterinary Laboratory (DVL) for diagnostic investigation in the calendar year 1997 was compared with the diagnoses of mortality in all dead mink collected at 4 selected farms (project farms) during the same period. A total...

Morfologisk og molekylær karakterisering af en eimeriaart fra danske mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Heidi Huus; Chriél, Mariann; Hansen, Mette Sif

2017-01-01

I perioden april til oktober 2016, blev fæces fra mink (Neovison vison) på 30 danske minkgårde undersøgt med henblik på at fastlægge forekomsten og arterne af Eimeria hos danske mink (Neovison vison). På basis af morfologisk undersøgelse af sporulerede oocyster, blev oocyster som lignede tidligere...... beskrevet art, kaldet E. vison identificeret. Den fundne art var dog en smule mindre end E. vison. Efterfølgende blev oocysterne forsøgt identificeret molekylært og sammenlignet med sekvenser i Genbank. Desværre var der ikke tilgængelige mink sekvenser i GenBank, og den nyligt fundne Eimeria art kaldes...... derfor for Eimeria vison-like. I alt fandtes 2,6% (108/4.141) af de underøgte fæcesprøver positive for E. vison-like oocyster ved mikroskopi, svarende til at 23,9% (78 mink) af minkene udskilte E. vison-like oocyster mindst én gang i undersøgelsesperioden....

Biochemical characterization of cells transformed via transfection by feline sarcoma virus proviral DNA.

OpenAIRE

Rosenberg, Z F; Sahagan, B G; Snyder, H W; Worley, M B; Essex, M; Haseltine, W A

1981-01-01

Murine fibroblasts transformed by transfection with DNA from mink cells infected with the Snyder-Theilen strain of feline sarcoma virus and subgroup B feline leukemia virus were analyzed for the presence of integrated proviral DNA and the expression of feline leukemia virus- and feline sarcoma virus-specific proteins. The transformed murine cells harbored at least one intact feline sarcoma virus provirus, but did not contain feline leukemia virus provirus. The transformed murine cells express...

Serum amyloid A protein (SAA) from mink, horse, and man: a comparative study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marhaug, G.; Husby, G.; Husebeck, A.; Sletten, K.

1986-01-01

Serum amyloid A protein (SAA) was isolated from mink, horse, and human serum by ultracentrifugation and gel filtration and characterized by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, Western blotting followed by autoradiography and N-terminal amino acid analysis. SAA was found in similar quantities in the high density lipoprotein (HDL) fraction of serum from a patient suffering from systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) and mink stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and in somewhat smaller quantities in serum from horses stimulated with Escherichia coli cultures. Only very small quantities were present in normal human controls and not detectable in normal mink and horse. Striking similarities were found between human and mink SAA with respect to molecular weight, isolectric point and degree of heterogeneity, while the molecular weight, isolectric point and degree of heterogeneity, while the molecular weight of horse SAA seemed to be somewhat lower, and no obvious heterogeneity could be demonstrated in this protein using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Immunologic cross-reactivity between SAA from the three species was not found. In contrast to human and horse HDL, mink HDL was found not to contain apoA-II and only minute amounts of apoC proteins. Normal horse HDL also contained additional apoproteins not present in HDL from the other species. N-terminal amino acids analysis of SAA from mink and horse demonstrated the same similarity with the corresponding AA protein as previously reported for human SAA/AA

Site fidelity of female minke whales in the Gulf of. St Lawrence, Canada

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Moreira Lopes, Xenia; Bérubé, Martine; Berrow, Simon D.; Larsen, Finn; Haug, Tore; Hoekendijk, Jeroen; Hoelzel, A. Rus; Kot, Brian; Øien, Nils; Oosting, Tom; Pampoulie, Christophe; Ramp, Christian; Robbins, Jooke; Ryan, Conor; Sears, Richard; Simon, Malene; Skaug, H. J.; Verkuil, Yvonne; Vikingsson, G.A.; Witting, Lars; van der Zee, Jurjan; Palsboll, Per

2017-01-01

The minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) is a globally-distributed species whose population ecology is poorly understood. Most knowledge about minke whale populations, including gender differences, originates from historical data collected during commercial harvests. Here we present results from

Effects of group size on behaviour, growth and occurrence of bite marks in farmed mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Axelsson, Helene M. K.; Hansen, Steffen W.; Loberg, Jenny

2017-01-01

The aims of this study were to investigate the occurrence of stereotypic behaviours and the activity level in farmed mink when group housed in climbing cages and if group housing increase aggression by assessing the prevalence of bite marks. This was studied in juvenile mink of the colour types...... sunset during six periods of five days each from August-October. After pelting, the leather side of the undried skins were visually inspected for bite marks. Stereotypic behaviours were infrequent (0.1% of observations). Pair housed mink in climbing cages were more "inactive out in cage" than pair housed...... mink in standard cages (p 0.0001), but cage type had no effect on the behaviours "being in nest box", "active out in cage", "interactions with enrichments" or "social interactions" (n.s.). Group sizes of three or four mink increased the behaviours "active out in cage" (P 0.0001) and decreased "being...

Emergency towing systems for the Aleutian Islands, Alaska

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pearson, L.A.; Brown, J.; Folley, G.; Robertson, T.; Bryant, B.

2009-01-01

Several incidents related to distressed or stricken vessels have occurred in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, where vessel groundings have caused environmental and economic impacts. A disabled vessel workgroup was formed to discuss local emergency response solutions in the region, particularly for larger tramper or cargo vessels carrying fuel in bottom tanks. The Aleutian emergency towing system (ETS) group developed emergency towing capabilities for disabled vessels in the Aleutian Island sub-area using tugboats in conjunction with ETS equipment stationed in the town of Unalaska. Emergency towing systems were also purchased to serve a wider range of vessels. The ETS consisted of a lightweight towline, a messenger line to assist in deploying the towline, a line-launcher, a lighted buoy, and chafing gear. The components can be configured to deploy a disabled ship from the stern of a tugboat, or air-dropped via helicopter to a ship's deck. A procedures manual and training DVD has been published, and mobilization and deployment exercises are conducted annually. 1 ref., 2 figs

AFSC/RACE/GAP/Zimmermann: Aleutians Sediments

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — We assembled 2.1 million National Ocean Service (NOS) bathymetric soundings extending 1,900 km along the Aleutian Islands from Unimak Island in the east to the...

An extended anchored linkage map and virtual mapping for the american mink genome based on homology to human and dog

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Ansari, S.; Farid, A.

2009-01-01

hybridization (FISH) and/or by means of human/dog/mink comparative homology. The average interval between markers is 8.5 cM and the linkage groups collectively span 1340 cM. In addition, 217 and 275 mink microsatellites have been placed on human and dog genomes, respectively. In conjunction with the existing...... comparative human/dog/mink data, these assignments represent useful virtual maps for the American mink genome. Comparison of the current human/dog assembled sequential map with the existing Zoo-FISH-based human/dog/mink maps helped to refine the human/dog/mink comparative map. Furthermore, comparison...... of the human and dog genome assemblies revealed a number of large synteny blocks, some of which are corroborated by data from the mink linkage map....

Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum)-Virus Diseases

Science.gov (United States)

At least six viruses have been found in highbush blueberry plantings in the Pacific Northwest: Blueberry mosaic virus, Blueberry red ringspot virus, Blueberry scorch virus, Blueberry shock virus, Tobacco ringspot virus, and Tomato ringspot virus. Six other virus and virus-like diseases of highbush b...

A study of tobacco carcinogenesis XLVIII. Carcinogenicity of N'-nitrosonornicotine in mink (Mustela vison).

Science.gov (United States)

Koppang, N; Rivenson, A; Reith, A; Dahle, H K; Evensen, O; Hoffmann, D

1992-11-01

During tobacco processing and smoking, nicotine and nornicotine give rise to N'-nitrosonornicotine (NNN), a highly abundant, strong carcinogen. NNN is known to exert carcinogenic activity in mice, rats and hamsters. Major target organs for NNN carcinogenicity in the rat are the esophagus and the nasal mucosa, and in the Syrian golden hamster trachea and nasal mucosa. In comparison with the rat, the mink (Mustela vison) has a markedly expanded nasal mucosa. Therefore, we explored in this study whether the mink could serve as a non-rodent model for nasal carcinogenesis using NNN as the carcinogen. Twenty random-bred mink, beginning at the age of 3 weeks, received twice weekly s.c. injections of NNN, a total dose of 11.9 mM per animal over a 38 week period. All of the 19 mink at risk developed malignant tumors of both the respiratory and the olfactory region of the nose within 3.5 years. In most animals the malignant tumors, primarily esthesioneuroepithelioma, invaded the brain. Remarkably, NNN induced no other tumors in the mink. None of the control animals developed nasal tumors nor tumors at other sites during the 3.5 years of the assay. The historical data from the farm did not reveal any spontaneous occurrence of nasal tumors in mink at any age. This study supports the concept that NNN is a proven carcinogen for multiple species of mammals and that the mink can serve as a non-rodent, non-inbred animal model for nasal carcinogenesis, especially since NNN induces only tumors in the nasal cavity in this species and not at other sites, as it does in mice, rats and hamsters.

Spatial and temporal differences in giant kidney worm, dictophyma renale, prevalence in Minnesota Mink, Mustela vison

Science.gov (United States)

Mech, L.D.

2008-01-01

Examination of 110 Mink (Mustela vison) carcasses from 1998 through 2007 indicated that the giant kidney worm, Dioctophyma renale, occurred in Pine and Kanabec Counties of eastern Minnesota with annual prevalences of 0-92%. Worm prevalence increased from 20% in 1999 to 92% in 2001 and decreased to 6% in 2005. During 2000 to 2007, no worms were found in Mink from Anoka and Chisago Counties (n = 54), and in 2000, none in 107 Mink from LeSeur, Freeborn, Redwood, Brown and Watonwan Counties. Changes in kidney worm prevalence were positively related to trapping success, considered an index of Mink density.

Energy metabolism in young mink kits (Neovison vison) affected by protein and carbohydrate level in the diet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hellwing, Anne Louise Frydendahl; Hansen, Niels Enggaard; Tauson, Anne-Helene

2010-01-01

The mink is a strict carnivore and mink diets usually have a high content of protein. The energy metabolism in young minks in the transition period from milk to solid food is not investigated in detail, and the protein requirement is poorly defined. The substrate oxidation can give useful...

Running in a running wheel substitutes for stereotypies in mink (Mustela vison) but does it improve their welfare?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Steffen W; Damgaard, Birthe Marie

2009-01-01

This experiment investigated whether access to a running wheel affects the development of stereotypies during restricted feeding and whether selection for high or low levels of stereotypy affects the use of the running wheel. Sixty-two female mink kept in standard cages and selected for high or low...... levels of stereotypy were used. Thirty of these females had access to a running wheel whereas thirty-two female mink had no access to running wheels. The number of turns of the running wheel, behaviour, feed consumption, body weight and the concentration of plasma cortisol were measured during the winter...... period. Mink with access to a running wheel did not perform stereotypic behaviour and mink selected for a high level of stereotypies had more turns in the running wheel than mink selected for low levels of stereotypies. Mink with access to a running wheel used the running wheel for the same amount...

Diurnal activity patterns of farm mink (Mustela vison) subjected to different feeding routines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Steffen W; Møller, Steen H

2008-01-01

synchronize their daily activity rhythm to the expected time of feeding. In addition, a high feeding motivation appears to be a precondition for circadian anticipatory activity in mink whereas anticipatory activity of mink fed ad libitum or close to ad libitum may be provoked by stimuli from the actual...

Albinism in the american mink (Neovison vison) is associated with a tyrosinase nonsense mutation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Fredholm, Merete; Christensen, Knud

2008-01-01

Albino phenotypes are documented in various species including the American mink. In other species the albino phenotypes are associated with tyrosinase (TYR) gene mutations; therefore TYR was considered the candidate gene for albinism in mink. Four microsatellite markers were chosen in the prodicted...

Cross-species transmission of canine distemper virus-an update.

Science.gov (United States)

Beineke, Andreas; Baumgärtner, Wolfgang; Wohlsein, Peter

2015-12-01

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a pantropic morbillivirus with a worldwide distribution, which causes fatal disease in dogs. Affected animals develop dyspnea, diarrhea, neurological signs and profound immunosuppression. Systemic CDV infection, resembling distemper in domestic dogs, can be found also in wild canids (e.g. wolves, foxes), procyonids (e.g. raccoons, kinkajous), ailurids (e.g. red pandas), ursids (e.g. black bears, giant pandas), mustelids (e.g. ferrets, minks), viverrids (e.g. civets, genets), hyaenids (e.g. spotted hyenas), and large felids (e.g. lions, tigers). Furthermore, besides infection with the closely related phocine distemper virus, seals can become infected by CDV. In some CDV outbreaks including the mass mortalities among Baikal and Caspian seals and large felids in the Serengeti Park, terrestrial carnivores including dogs and wolves have been suspected as vectors for the infectious agent. In addition, lethal infections have been described in non-carnivore species such as peccaries and non-human primates demonstrating the remarkable ability of the pathogen to cross species barriers. Mutations affecting the CDV H protein required for virus attachment to host-cell receptors are associated with virulence and disease emergence in novel host species. The broad and expanding host range of CDV and its maintenance within wildlife reservoir hosts considerably hampers disease eradication.

Phenozan Influence on the Physiological-Biochemical Parameters of the Young Minks Leading to Their Advanced Properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nikolai A. Balakirev

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The antioxidant influence on the physiological-biochemical parameters of productive animals is one of the most important directions in modern animal science. Phenozan is a synthetic antioxidant with high biological activities including those for animals. The positive effects of phenozan on the physiological-biochemical parameters of the mink blood were found. These effects are leading to the intensive growth, strong health, enhancement of the mink fur quality, and so forth. The total amount of the erythrocytes in the mink blood increased by about 4-5% due to phenozan inclusion in the mink diet. Even a more significant increase was found in hemoglobin content in the mink blood and erythrocytes (by about 9.5% and 8.8%, resp. due to phenozan inclusion of 100 mg/day, whereas it was found only by about 6.1–5.3% or 5.5–0.3%, owing to phenozan inclusion of 50 or 150 mg/day. For many other parameters the optimal phenozan concentration was about 100 mg/day per head according to the result obtained for all studied animal groups. Thus, phenozan can be successfully used as a biologically active compound for mink nutrition and is recommended for other farm animals.

Early life DNA vaccination with the H gene of Canine distemper virus induces robust protection against distemper

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Trine Hammer; Nielsen, Line; Aasted, Bent

2009-01-01

Young mink kits (n = 8)were vaccinated withDNA plasmids encoding the viral haemagglutinin protein (H) of a vaccine strain of Canine distemper virus (CDV). Virus neutralising (VN) antibodieswere induced after 2 immunisations and after the third immunisation all kits had high VN antibody titres...

AFSC/RACE/GAP/Zimmermann: Aleutians Bathymetry Grid

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — We assembled 2.1 million National Ocean Service (NOS) bathymetric soundings extending 1,900 km along the Aleutian Islands from Unimak Island in the east to the...

Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease): Prevention

Science.gov (United States)

... Search Form Controls Cancel Submit Search the CDC Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease) Note: Javascript is disabled or is ... message, please visit this page: About CDC.gov . Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease) About Ebola Questions & Answers 2014- ...

Virus like particle-based vaccines against emerging infectious disease viruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jinliang; Dai, Shiyu; Wang, Manli; Hu, Zhihong; Wang, Hualin; Deng, Fei

2016-08-01

Emerging infectious diseases are major threats to human health. Most severe viral disease outbreaks occur in developing regions where health conditions are poor. With increased international travel and business, the possibility of eventually transmitting infectious viruses between different countries is increasing. The most effective approach in preventing viral diseases is vaccination. However, vaccines are not currently available for numerous viral diseases. Virus-like particles (VLPs) are engineered vaccine candidates that have been studied for decades. VLPs are constructed by viral protein expression in various expression systems that promote the selfassembly of proteins into structures resembling virus particles. VLPs have antigenicity similar to that of the native virus, but are non-infectious as they lack key viral genetic material. VLP vaccines have attracted considerable research interest because they offer several advantages over traditional vaccines. Studies have shown that VLP vaccines can stimulate both humoral and cellular immune responses, which may offer effective antiviral protection. Here we review recent developments with VLP-based vaccines for several highly virulent emerging or re-emerging infectious diseases. The infectious agents discussed include RNA viruses from different virus families, such as the Arenaviridae, Bunyaviridae, Caliciviridae, Coronaviridae, Filoviridae, Flaviviridae, Orthomyxoviridae, Paramyxoviridae, and Togaviridae families.

Properties of murine leukemia viruses produced by leukemic cells established from NIH Swiss mice with radiation-induced leukemia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okumoto, Masaaki; Nishikawa, Ryosuke; Takamori, Yasuhiko; Iwai, Yoshiaki; Iwai, Mineko [Radiation Center of Osaka Prefecture, Sakai (Japan); Imai, Shunsuke; Morimoto, Junji; Tsubura, Yoshihiko

1984-06-01

Three leukemic cell lines, designated NIH-RL1, NIH-RL2 and NFS-RL1, were established from spleen and thymuses of NIH Swiss and NFS mice with radiation-induced leukemia. The culture fluids of these cell lines contained RNA-dependent DNA polymerase (RDDP) activities associated with particles of buoyant density of 1.15-1.17 (g/cm/sup 3/). The divalent cation reqirement of these enzymes was characteristic for that of murine leukemia viruses. In competition radioimmunoassay, a major core protein, p30, was detected in culture fluid of each leukemic cell line. Competition curves of viral p30 produced by these cell lines revealed that these viruses were very similar to those of xenotropic viruses of NZB mice. These viruses were undetectable both by XC plaque assay using SC-1 cells as an indicator cell, and by mink S/sup +/L/sup -/ focus induction assay. These viruses also lacked productive infectivity to mink lung cells (CCL-64), and were nononcogenic in syngeneic mice when the viruses were intrathymically inoculated.

Comparison of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from mink by serotyping and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hammer, Anne Sofie; Pedersen, Karl; Andersen, Thomas Holmen

2003-01-01

Isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa from clinical infections in mink were subjected to serotyping and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) using SpeI. A total of 212 isolates of P aeruginosa from the year 1998 to 2001 were included in this study: 168 isolates from mink obtained from 74 farm out...

Parasites of the mink frog (rana septentrionalis) from Minnesota, U.S.A.

Science.gov (United States)

Schotthoefer, Anna M.; Bolek, M.G.; Cole, Rebecca A.; Beasley, Val R.

2009-01-01

Twenty-two mink frogs, Rana septentrionalis, collected from two locations in Minnesota, United States, were examined for helminth and protozoan blood parasites in July 1999. A total of 16 parasite taxa were recovered including 5 larval digenean trematodes, 7 adult digenean trematodes, 3 nematodes, and I Trypanosorna species. Infracommunities were dominated by the digeneans in terms of richness and abundance. In particular, echinostomatid metacercariae in the kidneys of frogs were the most common parasites found, infecting 100% of the frogs and consisting of about 90% of all helminth individuals recovered. Gorgodera amplicava, Gorgoderina multilohata, Haernaroloechus pan'iplexus, Haernatoloechus breviplexus, Cosnwcercoides dukae, and Oswaldocruzia pipiens represent new host records. The survey presented here represents the second known helminth survey of mink frogs conducted in North America. A summary of metazoan parasites reported from mink frogs is included.

DON-induced changes in bone homeostasis in mink dams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomaszewska Ewa

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The aim of the study was to investigate the mechanical and geometric properties as well as bone tissue and mineral density of long bones in mink dams exposed to deoxynivalenol (DON since one day after mating, throughout gestation (ca. 46 d and lactation to pelt harvesting. Material and Methods: Thirty clinically healthy multiparous minks (Neovison vison of the standard dark brown type were used. After the mating, the minks were randomly assigned into two equal groups: nontreated control group and DON group fed wheat contaminated naturally with DON at a concentration of 1.1 mg·kg-1 of feed. Results: The final body weight and weight and length of the femur did not differ between the groups. However, DON contamination decreased mechanical endurance of the femur. Furthermore, DON reduced the mean relative wall thickness and vertical wall thickness of the femur, while vertical cortical index, midshaft volume, and cross-sectional moment of inertia increased. Finally, DON contamination did not alter bone tissue density, bone mineral density, or bone mineral content, but decreased the values of all investigated structural and material properties. Conclusion: DON at applied concentration probably intensified the process of endosteal resorption, which was the main reason for bone wall thinning and the weakening of the whole bone.

50 CFR Figure 8 to Part 679 - Aleutian Islands Chinook Salmon Savings Area

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Aleutian Islands Chinook Salmon Savings Area 8 Figure 8 to Part 679 Wildlife and Fisheries FISHERY CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT, NATIONAL... ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA Pt. 679, Fig. 8 Figure 8 to Part 679—Aleutian Islands Chinook Salmon Savings Area...

Microflora of the gastrointestinal tract of Chernobyl she-minks of different age and immunological state

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sudenko, V.I.; Podgorskij, V.S.; Ryasenko, V.I.

1996-01-01

The quantitative and species characteristics of bacteria and yeast isolated from the food and gastrointestinal tract of she-minks of different age groups and different immunological state have been established. The species composition of bacteria forming the basic and accompanying microflora of small and large intestine of minks is determined. An increase in the quantity of anaerobic (bifidobacteria), microaerophilic (lactic acid bacilli, enterococci) and aerobic (intestinal bacilli) bacteria in the content of the large intestine of minks has been established in comparison with the stomach and small intestine in all examined groups of animals of various age and immunological state

Blood biochemical parameters in male American mink (Neovison vison before and during the breeding season

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bogdan Lasota

2014-05-01

Full Text Available This study was aimed at selected blood biochemical parameters in the male American mink before (September-November and during the breeding (January-March season. Blood from 143 Black and Sapphire male mink at one year age was collected. The plasma was assayed for the concentration of glucose, total protein, cholesterol, HDL and LDL fractions, triacylglycerides (TG, and the activity of ALT and AST. Concentrations of glucose, protein, total and HDL/LDL cholesterol, and AST activity were generally slightly higher during the breeding season than during the non-breeding season, but remained within the reference range. In the case of ALT activity and TG concentration, the relations were reversed. The parameters studied in the Sapphire mink showed greater variation, both in- and out of the season. In Black and Sapphire males of the American mink, the studied parameters revealed slightly higher values during the breeding season than the non-breeding season. This will vary depending on the color variety. The decrease in TG concentration during the breeding season may indicate an increased energy demand due to ambient temperature falls, and/or may be a sign of increased energy consumption associated with physical exertion during mating. Consideration should be given to the nutrition of male mink during the breeding season.

Risk factors associated with diarrhea in Danish commercial mink (Neovison vison) during the pre-weaning period

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Birch, Julie Melsted; Agger, Jens Frederik; Dahlin, Christina

2017-01-01

the animals and experienced more females with mastitis compared to farmers on control farms. No significant differences in cleaning practices or hygienic measures between case and control farms were found and there were no differences in drinking water quality, bedding material, composition neither of color......Pre-weaning diarrhea in mink, also known as "sticky kits", is a syndrome and outbreaks occur every year on commercial mink farms in all mink producing countries. Morbidity and mortality can be considerable on a farm with huge economic consequences for the farmer as well as compromised welfare...... for the mink kits. Although efforts have been taken to identify etiologic agents involved in outbreaks, the syndrome is still regarded as multifactorial and recurring problems on the same farms draw attention to management and environmental risk factors. In the pre-weaning period from May to June 2015, a case...

Animal Personality and Mate Preference in American Mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Noer, Christina Lehmkuhl

are unsustainable. Often, prescribed pairs of animals appear to be incompatible and reproductively unsuccessful. This is also a problem in solitary carnivore species, many of which are threatened with extinction. A suggested solution to this problem is to investigate, which male cues and signals the females use...... or cues: olfactory (urine and faeces), size, and behaviour. The latter may represent aspects of animal personality. The background for this is explained in the introduction (Chapter I). In Chapter II, a published article, I present a novel study on aspects of animal personality in the American mink...... aspects of shyness exist in the farmed American mink. These findings highlight the importance of carefully considering the context as well as the limitations of using the shyness-boldness continuum for describing animal personality traits. Chapter III, a manuscript, adds to the knowledge of animal...

Exclusion of candidate genes for coat colour phenotypes of the American mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Markakis, M. N.; Vissenberg, K.

2012-01-01

In a previous project, we screened the American mink Bacterial Artificial Chromosome library, CHORI-231, for genes potentially involved in various coat colour phenotypes in the American mink. Subsequently, we 454 sequenced the inserts containing these genes and developed microsatellite markers...... for each of these genes. Here, we describe a lack of association between three different ‘roan-type' phenotypes represented by Cross, Stardust and Cinnamon in American mink and six different genes that we considered to be potentially linked to these phenotypes. Thus, c-KIT (HUGO-approved symbol KIT), ATOH...

The roles of viruses in periodontal diseases

OpenAIRE

C C Azodo; P Erhabor

2015-01-01

The roles of bacteria in the etiopathogenesis of periodontal disease are well-understand, but that of the virus found in the periodontal environment are poorly understood. The aim of this literature review was to report the roles of viruses in periodontal diseases. The roles of viruses in periodontal diseases were categorized into the role in disease etiology, role in the pathogenesis of periodontal diseases, role in diseases progression and role in response to treatment. Clearer understandin...

Water baths for farmed mink: intra-individual consistency and inter-individual variation in swimming behaviour, and effects on stereotyped behaviour

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. MONONEN

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Swimming behaviour and effects of water baths on stereotyped behaviour in farmed mink (Mustela vison were studied in three experiments. The singly-housed mink had access from their home cages to extra cages with 20.5 litre water baths. Two short-term experiments aimed to investigate how quickly adult and juvenile mink start using and how consistently they use water baths over 10 days, and whether the extent of the use correlates between dams and their females kits. A four-month experiment was designed to compare the development of stereotyped behaviour in juvenile mink housed with and without swimming opportunity. The behavioural analyses were based on several 24-hour video recordings carried out in all three experiments. There were obvious inter-individual differences and intra-individual consistency in swimming frequency and time. Farmed mink’s motivation to swim can be assessed in short-term experiments, and measurement of water losses from the swimming baths and use of instantaneous sampling with 10 min sampling intervals provide quite reliable measures of the amount of swimming. The bath use of the juveniles correlated with that of their dams, indicating that an individual mink’s eagerness to swim may have a genetic component. The lower amount of stereotyped behaviour in mink housed with water baths indicates that long-term access to baths may alleviate frustration in singly-housed juvenile farmed mink.;

Alien Mink Predation and Colonisation Processes of Rodent Prey on Small Islands of the Baltic Sea: Does Prey Naivete Matter?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fey, K.; Korpimaki, E.; Banks, P.B.

2010-01-01

Colonisation, an important part of meta-population dynamics of fragmented populations, depends on both the dispersal ability and the ability to establish in the new habitat. Predation can hinder successful establishment of prey, and where the predation pressure comes from an alien predator, the effects on colonisation might be devastating. We studied the establishment of field voles (Microtus agrestis) inhabiting small islands of the archipelago of the Baltic Sea, SW Finland, under presence and absence of the alien American mink (Mustela vison). We translocated experienced voles from islands with mink, and inexperienced voles from islands from which mink had been removed, to other islands where mink was present or absent. By radio-tracking we studied survival, space and micro habitat use of voles within four weeks after translocation. Survival of voles on mink islands was significantly lower than on mink-free islands, but experienced voles did not survive better than inexperienced voles. Experienced voles were more often located in juniper habitats than inexperienced voles, but they appeared not to gain any survival benefit from altered micro habitat use. This study provides novel evidence, that alien mink predation inhibits establishment of colonising field voles and may thus ultimately induce extinction of voles from the outer archipelago.

Behaviour of mink kits and dams (Mustela vison) in the lactation period

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brink, Anne-Line; Jeppesen, Leif Lau

2005-01-01

This study describes the development of the behaviour of mink kits and dams from the fourth to the eighth respectively seventh week after delivery. The study is based on scan observations of 72 mink dams and their kits at a conventional Danish mink farm. The kits started eating when they were about...... 30 d old. Drinking started almost 2 wk later. During these 2 wk there was a peak in the licking of saliva from the dam and of the inter-litter agonistic behaviour. A causal relationship between experienced thirst and agonistic behaviour is suggested. The kits' sucking declined to only 5% of the time...... budget in the seventh week and the stereotypy frequency of the dams increased to about 4% of the time budget. It is suggested that some dams are frustrated by the forced cohabitation with their nutritionally independent kits already in the seventh week and that this should be taken into account when...

Protection against myxomatosis and rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease with recombinant myxoma viruses expressing rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus capsid protein.

Science.gov (United States)

Bertagnoli, S; Gelfi, J; Le Gall, G; Boilletot, E; Vautherot, J F; Rasschaert, D; Laurent, S; Petit, F; Boucraut-Baralon, C; Milon, A

1996-08-01

Two myxoma virus-rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) recombinant viruses were constructed with the SG33 strain of myxoma virus to protect rabbits against myxomatosis and rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease. These recombinant viruses expressed the RHDV capsid protein (VP60). The recombinant protein, which is 60 kDa in size, was antigenic, as revealed by its reaction in immunoprecipitation with antibodies raised against RHDV. Both recombinant viruses induced high levels of RHDV- and myxoma virus-specific antibodies in rabbits after immunization. Inoculations by the intradermal route protected animals against virulent RHDV and myxoma virus challenges.

Population genetic structure in farm and feral American mink (Neovison vison) inferred from RAD sequencing-generated single nucleotide polymorphisms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thirstrup, Janne Pia; Ruiz-Gonzalez, Aritz; Pujolar, José Martin

2015-01-01

Feral American mink populations (Neovison vison), derived from mink farms, are widespread in Europe. In this study we investigated genetic diversity and genetic differentiation between feral and farm mink using a panel of genetic markers (194 SNP) generated from RAD sequencing data. Sampling incl...

Protection against myxomatosis and rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease with recombinant myxoma viruses expressing rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus capsid protein

OpenAIRE

Bertagnoli, Stéphane; Gelfi, Jacqueline; Le Gall, Ghislaine; Boilletot, Eric; Vautherot, Jean-François; Rasschaert, Denis; Laurent, Sylvie; Petit, Frédérique; Boucraut-Baralon, Corine; Milon, Alain

1996-01-01

Two myxoma virus-rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) recombinant viruses were constructed with the SG33 strain of myxoma virus to protect rabbits against myxomatosis and rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease. These recombinant viruses expressed the RHDV capsid protein (VP60). The recombinant protein, which is 60 kDa in size, was antigenic, as revealed by its reaction in immunoprecipitation with antibodies raised against RHDV. Both recombinant viruses induced high levels of RHDV- and myxoma vir...

Influence of farm, feed-producer and season on incidence of gastrointestinal disorders in Danish farm mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rattenborg, Erik; Chriél, Mariann; Dietz, Hans H.

1999-01-01

The distribution of gastrointestinal disorders in mink in Danish farms is presented based on data collected in a longitudinal design. The time at risk was from weaning in June until pelting in November. The occurrence of gastrointestinal disorders after weaning of the mink kits together with the ...

Estimating population density and connectivity of American mink using spatial capture-recapture.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuller, Angela K; Sutherland, Chris S; Royle, J Andrew; Hare, Matthew P

2016-06-01

Estimating the abundance or density of populations is fundamental to the conservation and management of species, and as landscapes become more fragmented, maintaining landscape connectivity has become one of the most important challenges for biodiversity conservation. Yet these two issues have never been formally integrated together in a model that simultaneously models abundance while accounting for connectivity of a landscape. We demonstrate an application of using capture-recapture to develop a model of animal density using a least-cost path model for individual encounter probability that accounts for non-Euclidean connectivity in a highly structured network. We utilized scat detection dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) as a means of collecting non-invasive genetic samples of American mink (Neovison vison) individuals and used spatial capture-recapture models (SCR) to gain inferences about mink population density and connectivity. Density of mink was not constant across the landscape, but rather increased with increasing distance from city, town, or village centers, and mink activity was associated with water. The SCR model allowed us to estimate the density and spatial distribution of individuals across a 388 km² area. The model was used to investigate patterns of space usage and to evaluate covariate effects on encounter probabilities, including differences between sexes. This study provides an application of capture-recapture models based on ecological distance, allowing us to directly estimate landscape connectivity. This approach should be widely applicable to provide simultaneous direct estimates of density, space usage, and landscape connectivity for many species.

Estimating population density and connectivity of American mink using spatial capture-recapture

Science.gov (United States)

Fuller, Angela K.; Sutherland, Christopher S.; Royle, Andy; Hare, Matthew P.

2016-01-01

Estimating the abundance or density of populations is fundamental to the conservation and management of species, and as landscapes become more fragmented, maintaining landscape connectivity has become one of the most important challenges for biodiversity conservation. Yet these two issues have never been formally integrated together in a model that simultaneously models abundance while accounting for connectivity of a landscape. We demonstrate an application of using capture–recapture to develop a model of animal density using a least-cost path model for individual encounter probability that accounts for non-Euclidean connectivity in a highly structured network. We utilized scat detection dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) as a means of collecting non-invasive genetic samples of American mink (Neovison vison) individuals and used spatial capture–recapture models (SCR) to gain inferences about mink population density and connectivity. Density of mink was not constant across the landscape, but rather increased with increasing distance from city, town, or village centers, and mink activity was associated with water. The SCR model allowed us to estimate the density and spatial distribution of individuals across a 388 km2 area. The model was used to investigate patterns of space usage and to evaluate covariate effects on encounter probabilities, including differences between sexes. This study provides an application of capture–recapture models based on ecological distance, allowing us to directly estimate landscape connectivity. This approach should be widely applicable to provide simultaneous direct estimates of density, space usage, and landscape connectivity for many species.

Chemical and amino acid composition of colostrum and mature milk differ only slightly in mink (Mustela vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fink, Rikke; Rasmussen, Alice Neess; Tauson, Anne-Helene

2007-01-01

To determine differences in chemical composition between colostrum and mature milk in mink, milk samples were collected from 12 dams as close to the end of parturition as possible (n = 12), and at 24 h (n = 3), 48 h (n = 3) and 1 week (n = 12) postpartum. The milk samples were analysed for dry......, the differences between colostrum and mature milk were less pronounced in the mink than in many other species. Thus, colostrum seems to be of little importance in the mink in conferring passive immunity and hence for kit survival....

Control of Newcastle disease virus

Science.gov (United States)

Newcastle disease virus (NDV), also know as avian paramyxovirus serotype 1, is an important poultry pathogen worldwide. In naive poultry, the virulent forms of the virus cause high mortality. Because of this the virus is reportable to the World Organization for Animal Health and can be an important ...

Ganjam virus/Nairobi sheep disease virus induces a pro-inflammatory response in infected sheep

OpenAIRE

bin Tarif, Abid; Lasecka, Lidia; Holzer, Barbara; Baron, Michael D

2012-01-01

Abstract Partly due to climate change, and partly due to changes of human habitat occupation, the impact of tick-borne viruses is increasing. Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV) and Ganjam virus (GV) are two names for the same virus, which causes disease in sheep and goats and is currently known to be circulating in India and East Africa. The virus is transmitted by ixodid ticks and causes a severe hemorrhagic disease. We have developed a real-time PCR assay for the virus genome and validated ...

Ecological risk assessment in a large river-reservoir. 8: Experimental study of the effects of polychlorinated biphenyls on reproductive success in mink

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Halbrook, R.S.; Aulerich, R.J.; Bursian, S.J.; Lewis, L.

1999-01-01

As a component of an ecological risk assessment of Poplar Creek (located on the Oak Ridge Reservation [ORR]) and the Clinch River (a large river-reservoir system), fish from Poplar Creek, the Clinch River, and Atlantic Ocean were fed to ranch mink to evaluate reproductive success. Five diets, each composed of 75% fish and 25% normal ranch mink chow, were prepared. Two diets served as reference diets and contained 75% Atlantic Ocean fish or 75% Clinch River fish collected above the ORR. The fish portion of the remaining three diets contained 25, 50, and 75% fish collected from Poplar Creek and 50, 25, and 0% ocean fish, respectively. Five mink groups (eight females and two males each) were each fed one of the prepared diets for 196 days. Polychlorinated biphenyl concentrations were determined in diets and various mink tissues, ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity was determined in liver tissue, and reproductive success was evaluated. Concentrations of PCB were greatest in the diet composed of 75% Poplar Creek fish and in tissues from mink fed this diet and their offspring. There was a trend toward decreased adult female and kit weights and reduced mean litter size in mink fed diets containing 75% Poplar Creek fish; however, at 6 weeks of age, kit survival was similar among diet groups. Liver EROD activity significantly increased in adult female mink fed 50 and 75% Poplar Creek fish diets. Estimated dietary concentrations of PCBs were similar to or slightly lower than concentrations associated with adverse effects in experimentally dosed mink. Mercury (Hg) concentrations previously reported in these same mink were below that associated with adverse effects, and there was no indication of additive or synergistic effects from exposure to PCBs plus Hg. It is unlikely that population-level reproductive effects would be observed in mink consuming fish from Poplar Creek on the ORR

Lesions in mink (Mustela vison) infected with giant kidney worm (Dioctophyma renale).

Science.gov (United States)

Mace, T F

1976-01-01

Adult Dioctophyma renale occupied the enlarged renal pelvis of the right kidney of naturally infected mink. Lesions in the kidney parenchyma consisted of connective tissue proliferation in the interstitial tissue, tubular atrophy and fibrosis, and periglomerular fibrosis. The luminal surface of the renal pelvis wall was formed of numerous papillae covered with transitional epithelium. The nematodes in the lumen were bathed in an albuminous fluid containing red blood cells, epithelial cells and D. renale eggs. The left (uninfected) kidney was 60% larger than the left kidney of normal mink.

A new sea star of the genus Leptasterias (Asteroidea: Asteriidae) from the Aleutian Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Roger N; Jewett, Stephen C

2015-04-02

A new species of asteriid sea star of the genus Leptasterias (Order Forcipulatida) is described from the nearshore waters of the Aleutian Islands. Leptaterias tatei sp. nov. is distinguished from Leptasterias stolacantha Fisher, 1930, by the characteristics of the spines and pedicellariae. Geographic distribution is discussed and a key to the five-rayed Leptasterias of the Aleutian Islands is provided.

Rapid development of fasting-induced hepatic lipidosis in the American mink (Neovison vison): effects of food deprivation and re-alimentation on body fat depots, tissue fatty acid profiles, hematology and endocrinology.

Science.gov (United States)

Rouvinen-Watt, Kirsti; Mustonen, Anne-Mari; Conway, Rebecca; Pal, Catherine; Harris, Lora; Saarela, Seppo; Strandberg, Ursula; Nieminen, Petteri

2010-02-01

Hepatic lipidosis is a common pathological finding in the American mink (Neovison vison) and can be caused by nutritional imbalance due to obesity or rapid body weight loss. The objectives of the present study were to investigate the timeline and characterize the development of hepatic lipidosis in mink in response to 0-7 days of food deprivation and liver recovery after 28 days of re-feeding. We report here the effects on hematological and endocrine variables, body fat mobilization, the development of hepatic lipidosis and the alterations in the liver lipid classes and tissue fatty acid (FA) sums. Food deprivation resulted in the rapid mobilization of body fat, most notably visceral, causing elevated hepatosomatic index and increased liver triacylglycerol content. The increased absolute amounts of liver total phospholipids and phosphatidylcholine suggested endoplasmic reticulum stress. The hepatic lipid infiltration and the altered liver lipid profiles were associated with a significantly reduced proportion of n-3 polyunsaturated FA (PUFA) in the livers and the decrease was more evident in the females. Likewise, re-feeding of the female mink resulted in a more pronounced recovery of the liver n-3 PUFA. The rapid decrease in the n-3/n-6 PUFA ratio in response to food deprivation could trigger an inflammatory response in the liver. This could be a key contributor to the pathophysiology of fatty liver disease in mink influencing disease progression.

Brucella ceti Infection in a Common Minke Whale ( Balaenoptera acutorostrata ) with Associated Pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Davison, Nicholas J; Perrett, Lorraine L; Dawson, Claire; Dagleish, Mark P; Haskins, Gary; Muchowski, Jakub; Whatmore, Adrian M

2017-07-01

There are three major lineages of marine mammal strains of Brucella spp.: Brucella ceti ST23, found predominantly in porpoises; B. ceti ST26, in pelagic delphinids and ziphiids; and Brucella pinnipedialis ST24/25, predominantly in seals. The isolation of Brucella spp. in mysticetes has been described only in common minke whales ( Balaenoptera acutorostrata ) in Norway and Scotland. We report a third case of Brucella infection and isolation in a minke whale associated with a large abscess. In contrast to the two previous reports that involved isolates of B. pinnipedialis ST24 or the porpoise-associated B. ceti complex ST23, this case was associated with the dolphin-associated B. ceti ST26. Thus, minke whales can be infected naturally with members of all the distinct major lineages of Brucella associated with marine mammals. This report is unique in that the B. ceti ST26 did not originate from a pelagic delphinid or a beaked whale.

Zika virus disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adel I Al-Afaleq

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The Zika virus is an arbovirus belonging to the virus family Flaviviridae. The virus was isolated in 1947 from a rhesus monkey in the Zika Forest of Uganda. The virus causes sporadic mild human infections in Africa and later in Asia. However, by 2007 a major shift in its infection pattern was noticed and thousands of human infections were reported in the State of Yap and Federated States of Micronesia. In the last 3 years, major outbreaks have continued to occur and the virus has spread to several Pacific and American countries. These outbreaks were mostly asymptomatic; however, there were more severe clinical signs associated with the infections. Those signs included microcephaly and Guillain–Barre syndrome. It is believed that various species of mosquitoes can biologically transmit the virus. However, Aedes aegypti is most widely associated with the Zika virus. Recently, new modes of virus transmission have been reported, including mother-to-fetus, sexual, blood transfusion, animal bites, laboratory exposure and breast milk. Differential diagnosis is very important as some other arboviruses such as yellow fever virus, West Nile virus, dengue virus, and chikungunya virus have similar clinical manifestations to the Zika virus infection as well as relating serologically to some of these viruses. Established laboratory diagnostic tests to detect the Zika virus are limited, with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction being the most widely used test. Taking into consideration the quickness of the spread of infection, size of the infected population and change of the infection severity pattern, the Zika virus infection merits collective efforts on all levels to prevent and control the disease. Limited research work and data, concurrent infection with other arboviruses, involvement of biological vectors, mass crowd events, human and trade movements and lack of vaccines are some of the challenges that we face in our efforts to prevent and

AFSC/REFM: Atka mackerel Tagging Studies, Aleutian Islands, Alaska

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — From 1999-2015, approximately 130,000 Atka mackerel have been tagged and released in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, specifically at Seguam Pass, Tanaga Pass, Amchitka...

Autumn-winter diet of three carnivores, European mink (Mustela lutreola, Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra and small-spotted genet (Genetta genetta, in northern Spain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Palazón, S.

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This study describes the autumn-winter diet of three carnivores (Mustela lutreola, Lutra lutra and Genetta genetta in northern Spain. Diet composition was analysed from 85 European mink, 156 otter and 564 spotted genet fecal samples The European mink diet was based on small mammals (relative frequency of occurrences 38.1%, fish (30.9% and birds (16.7%. Spotted genet consumed mainly small mammals, birds and fruits, whilst otter predated practically only fish (95%. Using Levins’ index, trophic-niche widths in European mink, small-spotted genet and Eurasian otter were 3.76, 3.77 and 1.10, respectively. The trophic niche overlap by Pianka index for autumn-winter was 0.77 for European mink vs. Small-spotted genet, and 0.60 for European mink vs. otter. The average size of brown trout taken by otter was larger than those consumed by European mink.

Risk factors associated with diarrhea in Danish commercial mink (Neovison vison) during the pre-weaning period.

Science.gov (United States)

Birch, Julie Melsted; Agger, Jens Frederik; Dahlin, Christina; Jensen, Vibeke Frøkjær; Hammer, Anne Sofie; Struve, Tina; Jensen, Henrik Elvang

2017-06-29

Pre-weaning diarrhea in mink, also known as "sticky kits", is a syndrome and outbreaks occur every year on commercial mink farms in all mink producing countries. Morbidity and mortality can be considerable on a farm with huge economic consequences for the farmer as well as compromised welfare for the mink kits. Although efforts have been taken to identify etiologic agents involved in outbreaks, the syndrome is still regarded as multifactorial and recurring problems on the same farms draw attention to management and environmental risk factors. In the pre-weaning period from May to June 2015, a case control study was carried out on 30 Danish mink farms. Data concerning management, biosecurity, hygiene, feed consumption, antibacterial prescription and production efficiency were analyzed. The proportion of 1-year old females, farm size (total number of females), energy supply per female in the late gestation period, and dogs accessing the farm area were significantly associated with being a case farm. Case farms were prescribed almost twice the amount of antibacterials per gestational unit (female and litter) as in control farms. Farmers on case farms spent significantly more time nursing and treating the animals and experienced more females with mastitis compared to farmers on control farms. No significant differences in cleaning practices or hygienic measures between case and control farms were found and there were no differences in drinking water quality, bedding material, composition neither of color types nor in management regarding litter equalization. Results from this study showed an association between the occurrence of pre-weaning diarrhea on mink farms and parity profile, farm size and feeding intensity in the gestational period. The access of dogs to the farm area was a significant risk factor, but needs further clarification.

9 CFR 113.212 - Bursal Disease Vaccine, Killed Virus.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Bursal Disease Vaccine, Killed Virus..., DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE VIRUSES, SERUMS, TOXINS, AND ANALOGOUS PRODUCTS; ORGANISMS AND VECTORS STANDARD REQUIREMENTS Killed Virus Vaccines § 113.212 Bursal Disease Vaccine, Killed Virus. Bursal Disease Vaccine...

Indirect genetic effects contribute substantially to heritable variation in aggression-related traits in group-housed mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alemu, Setegn Worku; Bijma, Peter; Møller, Steen Henrik

2014-01-01

Background Since the recommendations on group housing of mink (Neovison vison) were adopted by the Council of Europe in 1999, it has become common in mink production in Europe. Group housing is advantageous from a production perspective, but can lead to aggression between animals and thus raises...... a welfare issue. Bite marks on the animals are an indicator of this aggressive behaviour and thus selection against frequency of bite marks should reduce aggression and improve animal welfare. Bite marks on one individual reflect the aggression of its group members, which means that the number of bite marks...... genetic effects contribute to variation in number of bite marks in group-housed mink. Thus, a genetic selection design that includes both direct genetic and indirect genetic effects could reduce the frequency of bite marks and probably aggression behaviour in group-housed mink....

Additional foraging elements reduce abnormal behaviour – fur-chewing and stereotypic behaviour – in farmed mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens; Palme, Rupert; Svendsen, Pernille Maj

2013-01-01

We investigated whether provision of additional appetitive and consummatory elements of foraging reduces baseline stress and abnormal behaviour – in terms of fur-chewing and stereotypic behaviour – in farmed mink. We studied 200 juveniles (n = 100 females and 100 males) during the 5-month growth......; (iii) CONS, chunky feed (parts up to 42 mm), replacing conventional feed; (iv) BOTH, access to both biting ropes and chunky feed. In growing mink, biting ropes reduced fur-chewing (P = 0.044) and chunky feed reduced stereotypic behaviour (P = 0.038) and fur-chewing in female mink (P = 0.019). During......, stereotypic behaviour was reduced by provision of chunky feed, increasing the consummatory element in daily foraging. Fur-chewing was reduced upon access to either biting ropes or chunky feed in female mink throughout the study. Our findings support frustrated foraging, mainly consummatory, behind abnormal...

Development of a novel real-time qPCR assay for the dual detection of canine and phocine distemper virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Linette Buxbom; Hjulsager, Charlotte Kristiane; Larsen, Helene

conventional PCR assays with real-time PCR assays to obtain a uniform assay palette. The present work describes the development of a novel real-time RT-qPCR assay for the dual detection of canine and phocine distemper virus. The assay is relevant for the future detection of outbreaks of canine distemper virus...... in e.g. in farmed mink and wildlife and phocine distemper in seals. A set of primers and dual labelled probe was designed based on an alignment of distemper sequences in GenBank from various species and in-house sequences from recent outbreaks in Danish farmed mink. The assay amplifies a segment of 151...... bp in the Phosphoprotein (P) gene of the distemper virus genome. The dynamic range and PCR efficiency (E) was experimentally determined using 10-fold dilutions of a specially designed distemper DNA-oligo in addition to extracted RNA from clinical samples. E of the real-time assay was shown to range...

Evaluation of the zoonotic potential of transmissible mink encephalopathy

Science.gov (United States)

Successful transmission of Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy (TME) to cattle supports the bovine hypothesis to the still controversial origin of TME outbreaks. Human and primate susceptibility to classical Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (c-BSE) and the transmissibility of L-type BSE to macaques as...

78 FR 12627 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-25

... Aleutian Islands Management Area; Groundfish Retention Standard AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service... Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI). This final rule removes certain regulatory... monitoring requirements for the Amendment 80 fleet and establishes a new requirement for Amendment 80...

Generalised additive models to investigate environmental drivers of Antarctic minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) spatial density in austral summer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beekmans, B.W.P.M.; Forcada, J.; Murphy, E.J.; Baar, H.J.W.; Bathmann, U.V.; Fleming, A.H.

2010-01-01

There is a need to characterise the physical environment associated with Antarctic minke whale density in order to understand long-term changes in minke whale distribution and density in open waters of the Southern Ocean during austral summer months. To investigate environmental drivers of Antarctic

76 FR 35772 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-20

... Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National... Tanner Crabs. Amendment 34 amends the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program to... for the Crab Rationalization Program are available from the NMFS Alaska Region Web site at http...

Ebola Virus Disease

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2014-08-08

This podcast provides general information about Ebola virus disease and the outbreak in West Africa. The program contains remarks from CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden, as well as a brief description of CDC’s response efforts.  Created: 8/8/2014 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 8/8/2014.

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of Mink (Neovison vison) Skin Reveals the Key Genes Involved in the Melanogenesis of Black and White Coat Colour.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Xingchao; Xu, Chao; Liu, Zongyue; Yue, Zhigang; Liu, Linling; Yang, Tongao; Cong, Bo; Yang, Fuhe

2017-09-29

Farmed mink (Neovison vison) is one of the most important fur-bearing species worldwide, and coat colour is a crucial qualitative characteristic that contributes to the economic value of the fur. To identify additional genes that may play important roles in coat colour regulation, Illumina/Solexa high-throughput sequencing technology was used to catalogue the global gene expression profiles in mink skin with two different coat colours (black and white). RNA-seq analysis indicated that a total of 12,557 genes were differentially expressed in black versus white minks, with 3,530 genes up-regulated and 9,027 genes down-regulated in black minks. Significant differences were not observed in the expression of MC1R and TYR between the two different coat colours, and the expression of ASIP was not detected in the mink skin of either coat colour. The expression levels of KITLG, LEF1, DCT, TYRP1, PMEL, Myo5a, Rab27a and SLC7A11 were validated by qRT-PCR, and the results were consistent with RNA-seq analysis. This study provides several candidate genes that may be associated with the development of two coat colours in mink skin. These results will expand our understanding of the complex molecular mechanisms underlying skin physiology and melanogenesis in mink and will provide a foundation for future studies.

Spatial distribution of common Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) as an indication of a biological hotspot in the East Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Dasom; An, Yong Rock; Park, Kyum Joon; Kim, Hyun Woo; Lee, Dabin; Joo, Hui Tae; Oh, Young Geun; Kim, Su Min; Kang, Chang Keun; Lee, Sang Heon

2017-09-01

The minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) is the most common baleen whale among several marine mammal species observed in Korea. Since a high concentrated condition of prey to whales can be obtained by physical structures, the foraging whale distribution can be an indicator of biological hotspot. Our main objective is verifying the coastal upwelling-southwestern East Sea as a productive biological hotspot based on the geographical distribution of minke whales. Among the cetacean research surveys of the National Institute of Fisheries Science since 1999, 9 years data for the minke whales available in the East Sea were used for this study. The regional primary productivity derived from Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was used for a proxy of biological productivity. Minke whales observed during the sighting surveys were mostly concentrated in May and found mostly (approximately 70%) in the southwestern coastal areas (whales was found in recent years, which indicate that the major habitats of mink whales have been shifted into the north of the common coastal upwelling regions. This is consistent with the recently reported unprecedented coastal upwelling in the mid-eastern coast of Korea. Based on high phytoplankton productivity and high distribution of minke whales, the southwestern coastal regions can be considered as one of biological hotspots in the East Sea. These regions are important for ecosystem dynamics and the population biology of top marine predators, especially migratory whales and needed to be carefully managed from a resource management perspective.

A comparative, BAC end sequence enabled map of the genome of the American mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Benkel, Bernhard F.; Smith, Amanda; Christensen, Knud

2012-01-01

In this report we present the results of the analysis of approximately 2.7 Mb of genomic information for the American mink (Neovison vison) derived through BAC end sequencing. Our study, which encompasses approximately 1/1000th of the mink genome, suggests that simple sequence repeats (SSRs...

76 FR 35781 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-20

... Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program; Amendment 37 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS... Tanner Crabs (FMP). This action amends the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program by... Assessment prepared for the Crab Rationalization Program are available from the NMFS Alaska Region Web site...

76 FR 47155 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-04

... the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program... program for the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands crab fisheries managed under the BSAI Crab Rationalization... Center Web site at http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/ . For further information on the Crab Rationalization...

77 FR 62482 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-10-15

... Aleutian Islands Management Area; Groundfish Retention Standard AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service... standard (GRS) program in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) management area by removing certain... the Amendment 80 fleet. This action is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson...

Zika virus disease: a new look at a well-known disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. V. Shestakova

2016-01-01

Full Text Available For the first time in the domestic medical literature presents a deep review about epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory knowledge of Zika virus disease, based mainly on the publications of foreign authors and leading international organizations from 1947 to March 2016. Analyzed the essence of the problem, treatment of patients with Zika virus disease and infected pregnant women, indicated the unresolved question. For the first time were systematic sources of contemporary information about Zika virus disease for professionals and patients.

Role of hepatic de novo lipogenesis in the development of fasting-induced fatty liver in the American mink (Neovison vison).

Science.gov (United States)

Rouvinen-Watt, Kirsti; Harris, Lora; Dick, Morag; Pal, Catherine; Lei, Sha; Mustonen, Anne-Mari; Nieminen, Petteri

2012-10-28

American mink (Neovison vison) develop fatty liver quickly in response to food deprivation, which results in preferential mobilisation of n-3 PUFA. The altered n-3:n-6 PUFA ratio in the liver may activate the endocannabinoid system resulting in increased lipid synthesis. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of feeding intensity (80 or 120% RDA), dietary fat source (n-3, n-6 or n-9 fatty acids (FA)) and short-term fasting (1-7 d) on hepatic de novo lipogenesis (DNL) and the development of fatty liver in mink. Significantly elevated expression of mRNA encoding for acetyl-CoA carboxylase-1 (ACC-1) and FA synthase (FAS) was observed in the liver of mink fasted for 5-7 d, while upon re-feeding for 28 d after a 7 d food deprivation, DNL returned to pre-fasting levels. The females had a higher expression of ACC-1 and FAS mRNA than the males. In the non-fasted animals, dietary fat source and feeding intensity had significant effects on ACC-1 mRNA. The highest levels were observed in the mink fed the rapeseed oil (n-9) diet at 80% RDA, while the lowest levels were seen when the same diet was fed at 120% RDA. For FAS, the highest gene expression was seen in the fasted mink fed at 80% RDA and the lowest in the non-fasted mink fed at 80%. It is concluded that short-term food deprivation induces hepatic lipidosis in mink and that during this process, hepatic DNL further exacerbates liver fat accumulation.

Mercury concentrations in wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada: Relationship to age and parasitism

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klenavic, Katherine [Environmental and Resource Studies, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8 (Canada); Champoux, Louise [Service Canadien de la Faune Environnement Canada, 1141 Route de l' Eglise, c.p. 10100, Sainte-Foy, QC G1V 4H5 (Canada)], E-mail: louise.champoux@ec.gc.ca; Mike, O' Brien [Furbearers and Upland Game, Department of Natural Resources, Kentville, NS B4N 4E5 (Canada)], E-mail: obrienms@gov.ns.ca; Daoust, Pierre-Y. [Department of Pathology and Microbiology, Atlantic Veterinary College, University of P.E.I., 550 University Avenue, Charlottetown, PEI C1A 4P3 (Canada)], E-mail: daoust@upei.ca; Evans, R. Douglas [Environmental and Resource Studies, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8 (Canada); Evans, Hayla E. [Environmental and Resource Studies, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8 (Canada)], E-mail: hevans@trentu.ca

2008-11-15

Total mercury (Hg) concentrations were measured in the fur, brain and liver of wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada. Total Hg concentrations in fur were strongly correlated with levels in the brain and liver. There was no difference in tissue concentrations between male and female mink; however, female otters had significantly higher fur, brain and liver Hg levels than males. Similarly, there was not a significant relationship between Hg concentration and age of mink, whereas in otters, Hg concentrations in all three tissues decreased significantly with age. In both species, only a very small percentage of the variability in Hg concentration was explained by age. After adjusting the data for site-to-site differences in Hg levels, Hg concentrations in the fur of mink infected by the parasite, Dioctophyma renale, were found to be significantly higher than Hg levels in uninfected mink. - Mercury (Hg) concentrations in liver, brain and fur are correlated in mink (Mustela vison) and otters (Lontra canadensis), allowing the use of fur as an indicator of internal tissue concentrations.

Mercury concentrations in wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada: Relationship to age and parasitism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klenavic, Katherine; Champoux, Louise; Mike, O'Brien; Daoust, Pierre-Y.; Evans, R. Douglas; Evans, Hayla E.

2008-01-01

Total mercury (Hg) concentrations were measured in the fur, brain and liver of wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada. Total Hg concentrations in fur were strongly correlated with levels in the brain and liver. There was no difference in tissue concentrations between male and female mink; however, female otters had significantly higher fur, brain and liver Hg levels than males. Similarly, there was not a significant relationship between Hg concentration and age of mink, whereas in otters, Hg concentrations in all three tissues decreased significantly with age. In both species, only a very small percentage of the variability in Hg concentration was explained by age. After adjusting the data for site-to-site differences in Hg levels, Hg concentrations in the fur of mink infected by the parasite, Dioctophyma renale, were found to be significantly higher than Hg levels in uninfected mink. - Mercury (Hg) concentrations in liver, brain and fur are correlated in mink (Mustela vison) and otters (Lontra canadensis), allowing the use of fur as an indicator of internal tissue concentrations

76 FR 49417 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-10

.... 100819383-0386-01] RIN 0648-BA18 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area; Limited Access Privilege Program AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries... Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP). This proposed...

Ebola Virus Disease

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

This podcast provides general information about Ebola virus disease and the outbreak in West Africa. The program contains remarks from CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden, as well as a brief description of CDC’s response efforts.

9 CFR 113.205 - Newcastle Disease Vaccine, Killed Virus.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... Virus. 113.205 Section 113.205 Animals and Animal Products ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH INSPECTION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE VIRUSES, SERUMS, TOXINS, AND ANALOGOUS PRODUCTS; ORGANISMS AND VECTORS STANDARD REQUIREMENTS Killed Virus Vaccines § 113.205 Newcastle Disease Vaccine, Killed Virus. Newcastle Disease Vaccine...

Ebola virus disease: past, present and future

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Harish Rajak

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Ebola virus disease is one of the most deadly ailments known to mankind due to its high mortality rate (up to 90% accompanying with the disease. Ebola haemorrhagic fever (EHF is an infectious disease of animal that can be transmitted to both human and non-human primates. The first epidemic of EHF occurred in 1976 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The incubation period of ebola is less than 21 days. Ebola virus infections are depicted by immune suppression and a systemic inflammatory response that leads to damage of the vascular, coagulation and immune systems, causing multi-organ failure and shock. Five genetically distinct members of the Filoviridae family responsible for EHF are as follows: Zaire ebolavirus, Sudan ebolavirus, Côte d’Ivoire ebolavirus, Bundibugyo ebolavirus and Reston ebolavirus. The ongoing 2014 West Africa ebola epidemic has been considered as the most serious panic in the medical field with respect to both the number of human cases and death toll. The natural host for ebola virus is unknown, thus it is not possible to carry out programs to regulate or abolish virus from transmission to people. The ebola virus infection provides little chance to develop acquired immunity causing rapid progression of the disease. It is pertinent to mention that at present, there is no antiviral therapy or vaccine that is helpful against ebola virus infection in humans. The impediment of EHF necessitates much better understanding of the epidemiology of the disease, particularly the role of wildlife, as well as bats, in the spread of ebola virus to humans.

Livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is widespread in farmed mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Julie Elvekjær; Rhod Larsen, Anders; Skov, Robert Leo

2017-01-01

was to examine the presence of LA-MRSA in farmed mink. The investigation comprised three different sample types 1) clinical samples from carcasses submitted to the laboratory for diagnostic examination, 2) paws and pharyngeal swabs from healthy animals collected at pelting, and 3) feed samples from mink feed...... farms, including paw samples (29%) and pharyngeal samples (16%). Twenty out of the 108 feed samples from feed producers were positive for LA-MRSA. The dominant spa-types were t034 and t011 associated to CC398, corresponding to the dominant spa-types detected in the Danish pig production, from which...

Ebola Virus Disease – An Update

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Surekha Kishore

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Ebola Virus Disease (EVD is a severe, haemorrhagic febrile disease, often fatal in humans, caused by a non segmented, negative sense RNA virus of the family Filoviridae and genus Ebolavirus. It is also known as Ebola Haemorrhagic fever. There are five species of Ebolavirus, namely Bundibugyo ebolavirus, Zaire ebolavirus, Reston ebolavirus, Sudan ebolavirus and Tai Forest ebolavirus. The Zaire species has caused multiple large outbreaks with mortality rates of 55 to 88 percent since first appearance of the disease whereas the Sudan virus has been associated with an approximate 50 percent case-fatality rate in four known epidemics: two in Sudan in the 1970s, one in Uganda in 2000, and another in Sudan in 2004 [1-5].

A combination in-ovo vaccine for avian influenza virus and Newcastle disease virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Steel, John; Burmakina, Svetlana V; Thomas, Colleen; Spackman, Erica; García-Sastre, Adolfo; Swayne, David E; Palese, Peter

2008-01-24

The protection of poultry from H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza A (HPAI) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) can be achieved through vaccination, as part of a broader disease control strategy. We have previously generated a recombinant influenza virus expressing, (i) an H5 hemagglutinin protein, modified by the removal of the polybasic cleavage peptide and (ii) the ectodomain of the NDV hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) protein in the place of the ectodomain of influenza neuraminidase (Park MS, et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2006;103(21):8203-8). Here we show this virus is attenuated in primary normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) cell culture, and demonstrate protection of C57BL/6 mice from lethal challenge with an H5 HA-containing influenza virus through immunisation with the recombinant virus. In addition, in-ovo vaccination of 18-day-old embryonated chicken eggs provided 90% and 80% protection against highly stringent lethal challenge by NDV and H5N1 virus, respectively. We propose that this virus has potential as a safe in-ovo live, attenuated, bivalent avian influenza and Newcastle disease virus vaccine.

76 FR 45219 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-28

...-BA18 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management... management plan amendment; request for comments. SUMMARY: Amendment 93 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP) would amend the Bering Sea and...

77 FR 59852 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-10-01

... made by this final rule to the management of the Amendment 80 fleet and an explanation of any... Aleutian Islands Management Area; Amendment 97 ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: NMFS publishes regulations to implement Amendment 97 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands...

Phytoestrogens alter the reproductive organ development in the mink (Mustela vison)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryoekkynen, Ari; Nieminen, Petteri; Mustonen, Anne-Mari; Pyykoenen, Teija; Asikainen, Juha; Haenninen, Sari; Mononen, Jaakko; Kukkonen, Jussi V.K.

2005-01-01

The aim of the present study was to examine the reproductive effects of two perorally applied phytoestrogens, genistein (8 mg/kg/day) and β-sitosterol (50 mg/kg/day), on the mink (Mustela vison) at human dietary exposure levels. Parental generations were exposed over 9 months to these phytoestrogens and their offspring were exposed via gestation and lactation. Parents and their offspring were sampled 21 days after the birth of the kits. Sex hormone levels, sperm quality, organ weights, and development of the kits were examined. The exposed females were heavier than the control females at the 1st postnatal day (PND). The control kits were heavier than the exposed kits from the 1st to the 21st PND. Phytoestrogens did not affect the organ weights of the adult minks, but the relative testicular weight of the exposed kits was higher than in the control kits. The relative prostate weight was higher and the relative uterine weight lower in the β-sitosterol-exposed kits than in the control kits. Moreover, the plasma dihydrotestosterone levels were lower in the genistein-exposed male kits compared to the control male kits. This study could not explain the mechanisms behind these alterations. The results indicate that perinatal phytoestrogen exposures cause alterations in the weight of the reproductive organs of the mink kits

Invasive pneumococcal and meningococcal disease : association with influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus activity?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jansen, A G S C; Sanders, E A M; VAN DER Ende, A; VAN Loon, A M; Hoes, A W; Hak, E

2008-01-01

Few studies have examined the relationship between viral activity and bacterial invasive disease, considering both influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). This study aimed to assess the potential relationship between invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), meningococcal disease (MD), and

Ganjam virus/Nairobi sheep disease virus induces a pro-inflammatory response in infected sheep

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

bin Tarif Abid

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Partly due to climate change, and partly due to changes of human habitat occupation, the impact of tick-borne viruses is increasing. Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV and Ganjam virus (GV are two names for the same virus, which causes disease in sheep and goats and is currently known to be circulating in India and East Africa. The virus is transmitted by ixodid ticks and causes a severe hemorrhagic disease. We have developed a real-time PCR assay for the virus genome and validated it in a pilot study of the pathogenicity induced by two different isolates of NSDV/GV. One isolate was highly adapted to tissue culture, grew in most cell lines tested, and was essentially apathogenic in sheep. The second isolate appeared to be poorly adapted to cell culture and retained pathogenicity in sheep. The real-time PCR assay for virus easily detected 4 copies or less of the viral genome, and allowed a quantitative measure of the virus in whole blood. Measurement of the changes in cytokine mRNAs showed similar changes to those observed in humans infected by the closely related virus Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus.

Ganjam virus/Nairobi sheep disease virus induces a pro-inflammatory response in infected sheep.

Science.gov (United States)

Bin Tarif, Abid; Lasecka, Lidia; Holzer, Barbara; Baron, Michael D

2012-10-19

Partly due to climate change, and partly due to changes of human habitat occupation, the impact of tick-borne viruses is increasing. Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV) and Ganjam virus (GV) are two names for the same virus, which causes disease in sheep and goats and is currently known to be circulating in India and East Africa. The virus is transmitted by ixodid ticks and causes a severe hemorrhagic disease. We have developed a real-time PCR assay for the virus genome and validated it in a pilot study of the pathogenicity induced by two different isolates of NSDV/GV. One isolate was highly adapted to tissue culture, grew in most cell lines tested, and was essentially apathogenic in sheep. The second isolate appeared to be poorly adapted to cell culture and retained pathogenicity in sheep. The real-time PCR assay for virus easily detected 4 copies or less of the viral genome, and allowed a quantitative measure of the virus in whole blood. Measurement of the changes in cytokine mRNAs showed similar changes to those observed in humans infected by the closely related virus Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus.

Heavy metals in fish from the Aleutians: Interspecific and locational differences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burger, Joanna, E-mail: burger@biology.rutgers.edu [Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ (United States); Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ (United States); Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235 (United States); Gochfeld, Michael [Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ (United States); Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235 (United States); Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (United States); Jeitner, Christian; Pittfield, Taryn [Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ (United States); Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ (United States); Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235 (United States); Donio, Mark [Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ (United States)

2014-05-01

The objectives of this study were to examine levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and selenium in edible tissue of seven species of marine fish collected from several Aleutian islands (in 2004) to determine: (1) interspecific differences, (2) locational differences (among Aleutian Islands), (3) size-related differences in any metal levels within a species, and (4) potential risk to the fish or to predators on the fish, including humans. We also compared metals levels to those of three other fish species previously examined in detail, as well as examining metals in the edible tissue of octopus (Octopus dofleini). Octopus did not have the highest levels of any metal. There were significant interspecific differences in all metal levels among the fish species, although the differences were less than an order of magnitude, except for arsenic (mean of 19,500 ppb in Flathead sole, Hippoglossoides elassodon). Significant intraisland variation occurred among the four sites on Amchitka, but there was not a consistent pattern. There were significant interisland differences for some metals and species. Mercury levels increased significantly with size for several species; lead increased significantly for only one fish species; and cadmium and selenium decreased significantly with size for halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis). The Alaskan Department of Health and Social Services supports unrestricted consumption of most Alaskan fish species for all people, including pregnant women. Most mean metal concentrations were well below the levels known to adversely affect the fish themselves, or predators that consume them (including humans), except for mercury in three fish species (mean levels just below 0.3 ppm), and arsenic in two fish species. However, even at low mercury levels, people who consume fish almost daily will exceed guideline values from the Centers for Disease Control and the Environmental Protection Agency. - Highlights: • Cadmium, lead, mercury and selenium

Heavy metals in fish from the Aleutians: Interspecific and locational differences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burger, Joanna; Gochfeld, Michael; Jeitner, Christian; Pittfield, Taryn; Donio, Mark

2014-01-01

The objectives of this study were to examine levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and selenium in edible tissue of seven species of marine fish collected from several Aleutian islands (in 2004) to determine: (1) interspecific differences, (2) locational differences (among Aleutian Islands), (3) size-related differences in any metal levels within a species, and (4) potential risk to the fish or to predators on the fish, including humans. We also compared metals levels to those of three other fish species previously examined in detail, as well as examining metals in the edible tissue of octopus (Octopus dofleini). Octopus did not have the highest levels of any metal. There were significant interspecific differences in all metal levels among the fish species, although the differences were less than an order of magnitude, except for arsenic (mean of 19,500 ppb in Flathead sole, Hippoglossoides elassodon). Significant intraisland variation occurred among the four sites on Amchitka, but there was not a consistent pattern. There were significant interisland differences for some metals and species. Mercury levels increased significantly with size for several species; lead increased significantly for only one fish species; and cadmium and selenium decreased significantly with size for halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis). The Alaskan Department of Health and Social Services supports unrestricted consumption of most Alaskan fish species for all people, including pregnant women. Most mean metal concentrations were well below the levels known to adversely affect the fish themselves, or predators that consume them (including humans), except for mercury in three fish species (mean levels just below 0.3 ppm), and arsenic in two fish species. However, even at low mercury levels, people who consume fish almost daily will exceed guideline values from the Centers for Disease Control and the Environmental Protection Agency. - Highlights: • Cadmium, lead, mercury and selenium

Humoral and cell-mediated immune responses in DNA immunized mink challenged with wild-type canine distemper virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Line; Søgaard, Mette; Karlskov-Mortensen, Peter

2009-01-01

The aim of the study was to investigate the different phases of the immune response after DNA immunization with the hemagglutinin and nucleoprotein genes from canine distemper virus (CDV). Although attenuated live CDV vaccines have effectively reduced the incidence of disease, canine distemper...

Radiation pasteurization of mink feed: Effect of irradiated feed on reproductive performance, growth and fur quality of mink

Science.gov (United States)

Passey, C. A.; Roy, D.; Savoie, L.; Malo, R.; Wilson, J.

No significant differences were observed in the net birth rate of kits/female between the 7 breeding groups. However, there was reduced incidence (P = 0.05) of kit deaths among the females receiving irradiated feed, and larger kit size (P pasteurization of mink feed (frozen meat to 1 kGy, and dry feed to 2 kGy or more) should therefore help improve feed utilization, keep the animals healthier, and reproducing better without affecting fur quality.

Production and characterization of monoclonal antibodies against mink leukocytes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, W.S.; Pedersen, Mikael; Gram-Nielsen, S.

1997-01-01

Three monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were generated against mink leukocytes. One antibody reacted with all T lymphocytes, one with all monocytes and one had platelet reactivity. Under reducing conditions, the T lymphocyte reactive antibody immunoprecipitated 18 kDa, 23 kDa, 25 kDa and 32-40 kDa pol...

Characterization of sheep pox virus vaccine for cattle against lumpy skin disease virus

Science.gov (United States)

Tuppurainen, Eeva S.M.; Pearson, Caroline R.; Bachanek-Bankowska, Katarzyna; Knowles, Nick J.; Amareen, Shadi; Frost, Lorraine; Henstock, Mark R.; Lamien, Charles E.; Diallo, Adama; Mertens, Peter P.C.

2014-01-01

Lumpy skin disease is of significant economic impact for the cattle industry in Africa. The disease is currently spreading aggressively in the Near East, posing a threat of incursion to Europe and Asia. Due to cross-protection within the Capripoxvirus genus, sheep pox virus (SPPV) vaccines have been widely used for cattle against lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV). In the Middle East and the Horn of Africa these vaccines have been associated with incomplete protection and adverse reactions in cattle post-vaccination. The present study confirms that the real identity of the commonly used Kenyan sheep and goat pox vaccine virus (KSGP) O-240 is not SPPV but is actually LSDV. The low level attenuation of this virus is likely to be not sufficient for safe use in cattle, causing clinical disease in vaccinated animals. In addition, Isiolo and Kedong goat pox strains, capable of infecting sheep, goats and cattle are identified for potential use as broad-spectrum vaccine candidates against all capripox diseases. PMID:24973760

Organization of the sleep-related neural systems in the brain of the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata).

Science.gov (United States)

Dell, Leigh-Anne; Karlsson, Karl Ae; Patzke, Nina; Spocter, Muhammad A; Siegel, Jerome M; Manger, Paul R

2016-07-01

The current study analyzed the nuclear organization of the neural systems related to the control and regulation of sleep and wake in the basal forebrain, diencephalon, midbrain, and pons of the minke whale, a mysticete cetacean. While odontocete cetaceans sleep in an unusual manner, with unihemispheric slow wave sleep (USWS) and suppressed REM sleep, it is unclear whether the mysticete whales show a similar sleep pattern. Previously, we detailed a range of features in the odontocete brain that appear to be related to odontocete-type sleep, and here present our analysis of these features in the minke whale brain. All neural elements involved in sleep regulation and control found in bihemispheric sleeping mammals and the harbor porpoise were present in the minke whale, with no specific nuclei being absent, and no novel nuclei being present. This qualitative similarity relates to the cholinergic, noradrenergic, serotonergic and orexinergic systems, and the GABAergic elements of these nuclei. Quantitative analysis revealed that the numbers of pontine cholinergic (274,242) and noradrenergic (203,686) neurons, and hypothalamic orexinergic neurons (277,604), are markedly higher than other large-brained bihemispheric sleeping mammals. Small telencephalic commissures (anterior, corpus callosum, and hippocampal), an enlarged posterior commissure, supernumerary pontine cholinergic and noradrenergic cells, and an enlarged peripheral division of the dorsal raphe nuclear complex of the minke whale, all indicate that the suite of neural characteristics thought to be involved in the control of USWS and the suppression of REM in the odontocete cetaceans are present in the minke whale. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:2018-2035, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mercury concentrations in wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada: relationship to age and parasitism.

Science.gov (United States)

Klenavic, Katherine; Champoux, Louise; Mike, O'Brien; Daoust, Pierre-Y; Evans, R Douglas; Evans, Hayla E

2008-11-01

Total mercury (Hg) concentrations were measured in the fur, brain and liver of wild mink (Mustela vison) and river otters (Lontra canadensis) collected from eastern and Atlantic Canada. Total Hg concentrations in fur were strongly correlated with levels in the brain and liver. There was no difference in tissue concentrations between male and female mink; however, female otters had significantly higher fur, brain and liver Hg levels than males. Similarly, there was not a significant relationship between Hg concentration and age of mink, whereas in otters, Hg concentrations in all three tissues decreased significantly with age. In both species, only a very small percentage of the variability in Hg concentration was explained by age. After adjusting the data for site-to-site differences in Hg levels, Hg concentrations in the fur of mink infected by the parasite, Dioctophyma renale, were found to be significantly higher than Hg levels in uninfected mink.

Lymphotropism and host responses during acute wild-type canine distemper virus infections in a highly susceptible natural host

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Line; Søgaard, Mette; Jensen, Trine Hammer

2009-01-01

The mechanisms behind the in vivo virulence of immunosuppressive wild-type Morbillivirus infections are still not fully understood. To investigate lymphotropism and host responses we have selected the natural host model of canine distemper virus (CDV) infection in mink. This model displays...

Structure and Steroidogenesis of the Placenta in the Antarctic Minke Whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis)

Science.gov (United States)

SASAKI, Motoki; AMANO, Yoko; HAYAKAWA, Daisuke; TSUBOTA, Toshio; ISHIKAWA, Hajime; MOGOE, Toshihiro; OHSUMI, Seiji; TETSUKA, Masafumi; MIYAMOTO, Akio; FUKUI, Yutaka; BUDIPITOJO, Teguh; KITAMURA, Nobuo

2012-01-01

Abstract There are few reports describing the structure and function of the whale placenta with the advance of pregnancy. In this study, therefore, the placenta and nonpregnant uterus of the Antarctic minke whale were observed morphologically and immunohistochemically. Placentas and nonpregnant uteri were collected from the 15th, 16th and 18th Japanese Whale Research Programme with Special Permit in the Antarctic (JARPA) and 1st JARPA II organized by the Institute of Cetacean Research in Tokyo, Japan. In the macro- and microscopic observations, the placenta of the Antarctic minke whale was a diffuse and epitheliochorial placenta. The chorion was interdigitated to the endometrium by primary, secondary and tertiary villi, which contained no specialized trophoblast cells such as binucleate cells, and the interdigitation became complicated with the progress of gestation. Furthermore, fetal and maternal blood vessels indented deeply into the trophoblast cells and endometrial epithelium respectively with fetal growth. The minke whale placenta showed a fold-like shape as opposed to a finger-like shape. In both nonpregnant and pregnant uteri, many uterine glands were distributed. The uterine glands in the superficial layer of the pregnant endometrium had a wide lumen and large epithelial cells as compared with those in the deep layer. On the other hand, in the nonpregnant endometrium, the uterine glands had a narrower lumen and smaller epithelial cells than in the pregnant endometrium. In immunohistochemical detection, immunoreactivity for P450scc was detected in most trophoblast cells, but not in nonpregnant uteri, suggesting that trophoblast epithelial cells synthesized and secreted the sex steroid hormones and/or their precursors to maintain the pregnancy in the Antarctic minke whale. PMID:23269486

Construction of an American mink Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC library and sequencing candidate genes important for the fur industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christensen Knud

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC libraries continue to be invaluable tools for the genomic analysis of complex organisms. Complemented by the newly and fast growing deep sequencing technologies, they provide an excellent source of information in genomics projects. Results Here, we report the construction and characterization of the CHORI-231 BAC library constructed from a Danish-farmed, male American mink (Neovison vison. The library contains approximately 165,888 clones with an average insert size of 170 kb, representing approximately 10-fold coverage. High-density filters, each consisting of 18,432 clones spotted in duplicate, have been produced for hybridization screening and are publicly available. Overgo probes derived from expressed sequence tags (ESTs, representing 21 candidate genes for traits important for the mink industry, were used to screen the BAC library. These included candidate genes for coat coloring, hair growth and length, coarseness, and some receptors potentially involved in viral diseases in mink. The extensive screening yielded positive results for 19 of these genes. Thirty-five clones corresponding to 19 genes were sequenced using 454 Roche, and large contigs (184 kb in average were assembled. Knowing the complete sequences of these candidate genes will enable confirmation of the association with a phenotype and the finding of causative mutations for the targeted phenotypes. Additionally, 1577 BAC clones were end sequenced; 2505 BAC end sequences (80% of BACs were obtained. An excess of 2 Mb has been analyzed, thus giving a snapshot of the mink genome. Conclusions The availability of the CHORI-321 American mink BAC library will aid in identification of genes and genomic regions of interest. We have demonstrated how the library can be used to identify specific genes of interest, develop genetic markers, and for BAC end sequencing and deep sequencing of selected clones. To our knowledge, this is the

Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus scavenge offal from minke (Balaenoptera acutorostrata whaling operations in Svalbard (Norway

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisa-Marie Leclerc

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata tissue (mainly blubber was found in the gastrointestinal tracks of Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus collected in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, Norway. In order to determine whether the sharks were actively hunting the whales, finding naturally dead whales or consuming offal from whaling, we checked the genetic identity of the whale tissue found in the sharks against the DNA register for minke whales taken in Norwegian whaling operations. All of the minke whale samples from the sharks that had DNA of sufficient quality to perform individual identifications were traceable to the whaling DNA register. During whaling operations, the blubber is stripped from the carcass and thrown overboard. The blubber strips float on the surface and are available for surface-feeding predators. This study revealed that Greenland sharks are scavenging this material; additionally, it demonstrates the capacity of this ‘benthic-feeding’ shark to utilize the whole water column for foraging.

Analysis of Factors Influencing Fur Quality in Minks of Standard, Pastel, Platinum and White Hedlunda Colour Strains

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stanisław Socha

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The work aimed at the analysis of the factors that influence conformation traits, included animal size and fur quality traits in four colour types of mink: standard, pastel, platinum and white Hedlunda. The data concerns the evaluation of animal conformation traits in the period of three years. The analysis of variance of particular traits indicates statistically significant effect of the year of birth, colour type and animal sex on the majority of analysed traits. Higher means of license evaluation were obtained by males in majority of the traits. Statistic analysis of body weight showed that the highest body weight characterized males of platinum and white Hedlunda colour types. Minks of standard and pastel colour types were characterised by lower body weight. The mean body weight of males was 2581.17g and of females 1401.42g (there is a clear sexual dimorphism in minks. Minks of white Hedlunda colour type were characterised by the highest means of colour purity, both males and females. Other colour types obtained lower means. The best fur quality characterised platinum minks. Variability of traits, measured by variability coefficient, had the highest values in animal weight (in grams and ranged from 6.0 to 32.0%. Variability of total number of scores ranged from 2.00 to 8.20%. Positive phenotypic correlations were the highest between body size (in points and total number of scores (0.676, while the lowest were obtained between body size (in points and fur quality (–0.178.

Verrucous endocarditis associated with Streptococcus bovis in mink (Mustela vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Karl; Jørgensen, J.C.; Dietz, Hans-Henrik

2003-01-01

Between 1998 and 2001, mortalities due to verrucous endocarditis were experienced at several mink farms. Gram-positive cocci were isolated from the endocardium of all the animals examined but not always from other internal organs. Almost all the isolates were identified as Streptococcus bovis...

Interactions between retinol, α-tocopherol and cholecalciferol need consideration in diets for farmed mink (Mustela vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hymøller, Lone; Clausen, Tove N.; Jensen, Søren Krogh

2016-01-01

A sufficient but balanced vitamin supplementation is a prerequisite for a satisfactory growth pattern and an effective immune system in mink and all other species. The fat-soluble vitamins are very sensitive to over- or under-supply because they interact with each other with respect to dose...... had higher concentrations of fat-soluble vitamins in plasma than male mink....

Immunotherapy of Human Papilloma Virus Induced Disease

Science.gov (United States)

van der Burg, Sjoerd H

2012-01-01

Immunotherapy is the generic name for treatment modalities aiming to reinforce the immune system against diseases in which the immune system plays a role. The design of an optimal immunotherapeutic treatment against chronic viruses and associated diseases requires a detailed understanding of the interactions between the target virus and its host, in order to define the specific strategies that may have the best chance to deliver success at each stage of disease. Recently, a first series of successes was reported for the immunotherapy of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)-induced premalignant diseases but there is definitely room for improvement. Here I discuss a number of topics that in my opinion require more study as the answers to these questions allows us to better understand the underlying mechanisms of disease and as such to tailor treatment. PMID:23341861

Virus Diseases Infecting Almond Germplasm in Lebanon

OpenAIRE

Adeeb Saad; Yusuf Abou-Jawdah; Zahi Kanaan-Atallah

2000-01-01

Cultivated and wild almond species were surveyed for virus diseases. Four viruses infected cultivated almonds (Prunus dulcis): Prunus necrotic ringspot virus (PNRSV), Prune dwarf virus (PDV), Apple chlorotic leaf spot virus (ACLSV) and Apple mosaic virus (ApMV). Only ACLSV and ApMV were detected on wild almonds, (Prunus orientalis and P. korschinskii). The occurence of PNRSV or PDV on seeds used for the production of rootstocks, on seedlings in nurseries, and on mother plants reve...

AFSC/RACE/GAP/Laman: Model Results of Aleutian Island POP distributions

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The data supporting the "Model Results of Aleutian Island POP distributions" manuscript are distribution and abundance of Pacific ocean perch from RACEBase,...

Ebola Virus Disease: A Review of Its Past and Present.

Science.gov (United States)

Murray, Michael J

2015-09-01

Ebola virus, the virus responsible for Ebola virus disease, has spawned several epidemics during the past 38 years. In 2014, an Ebola epidemic spread from Africa to other continents, becoming a pandemic. The virus's relatively unique structure, its infectivity and lethality, the difficulty in stopping its spread, and the lack of an effective treatment captured the world's attention. This article provides a brief review of the known history of Ebola virus disease, its etiology, epidemiology, and pathophysiology and a review of the limited information on managing patients with Ebola virus disease.

Survival of foot-and-mouth disease virus in cheese.

Science.gov (United States)

Blackwell, J H

1976-09-01

Persistence of foot-and-mouth disease virus during the manufacture of Cheddar, Mozzarella, Camembert cheese prepared from milk of cows experimentally infected with the virus was studied. Cheese samples were made on a laboratory scale with commercial lactic acid starter cultures and the microbial protease MARZYME as a coagulant. Milk was heated at different temperatures for different intervals before it was made into cheese. Food-and-mouth disease virus survived the acidic conditions of Cheddar and Camembert cheese processing but not that of Mozzarella. Foot-and-mouth disease virus survived processing but not curing for 30 days in Cheddar cheese preparaed from heated milk. However, the virus survived curing for 60 days but not for 120 days in cheese (pH 5) prepared from unheated milk. Foot-and-mouth disease virus survived in Camembert cheese (pH 5) for 21 days at 2 C but not for 35 days.

Simultaneous Detection of Barley Virus Diseases in Korea

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bong-Choon Lee

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Barley mild mosaic virus (BaMMV, Barley yellow mosaic virus (BaYMV and Barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV have been identified as an important causative agents for an economically important disease of winter barley in Korea. In this study, a multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (mRT-PCR method was used for the simultaneous detection. Three sets of virus-specific primers targeted to the capsid protein coding genes of BaMMV, BaYMV and BYDV were used to amplify fragments that were 594 bp, 461 bp, and 290 bp, respectively. Several sets of primers for each target virus were evaluated for their sensitivity and specificity by multiplex RT-PCR. The optimum primer concentrations and RT-PCR conditions were determined for the multiplex RT-PCR. The mRT-PCR assay was found to be a better and rapid virus diagnostic tool of specific barley diseases and potential for investigating the epidemiology of these viral diseases.

Characterization of sheep pox virus vaccine for cattle against lumpy skin disease virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Tuppurainen, Eeva S M; Pearson, Caroline R; Bachanek-Bankowska, Katarzyna; Knowles, Nick J; Amareen, Shadi; Frost, Lorraine; Henstock, Mark R; Lamien, Charles E; Diallo, Adama; Mertens, Peter P C

2014-09-01

Lumpy skin disease is of significant economic impact for the cattle industry in Africa. The disease is currently spreading aggressively in the Near East, posing a threat of incursion to Europe and Asia. Due to cross-protection within the Capripoxvirus genus, sheep pox virus (SPPV) vaccines have been widely used for cattle against lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV). In the Middle East and the Horn of Africa these vaccines have been associated with incomplete protection and adverse reactions in cattle post-vaccination. The present study confirms that the real identity of the commonly used Kenyan sheep and goat pox vaccine virus (KSGP) O-240 is not SPPV but is actually LSDV. The low level attenuation of this virus is likely to be not sufficient for safe use in cattle, causing clinical disease in vaccinated animals. In addition, Isiolo and Kedong goat pox strains, capable of infecting sheep, goats and cattle are identified for potential use as broad-spectrum vaccine candidates against all capripox diseases. Crown Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

West Nile Virus Neuroinvasive Disease

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J Gordon Millichap

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Epidemiological features of West Nile Virus (WNV disease among children (<18 years of age reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1999 through 2007 were analyzed and compared with those of adult WNV neuroinvasive disease (WNND, in a study at CDC&P, Fort Collins, CO.

Protein turnover in lactating mink (Mustela vison) is not affected by dietary protein supply

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tauson, Anne-Helene; Fink, Rikke; Chwalibog, André

2006-01-01

The mink is a strict carnivore and may therefore serve as a model for the cat. Current recommendations for protein supply for lactating mink are based on production experiments with preweaning kit growth as a measure of dietary adequacy (1,2). Recently, nitrogen balance and substrate oxidation have...... in humans (7), growing pigs (8), and growing rats (9). In adult cats, both protein synthesis and breakdown were lower when feeding a low- than when feeding a high-protein diet [20 vs. 70% of metabolizable energy (ME)5 from protein] (10). The objectives of this study were therefore to develop a ¹5N...

Arcanobacterium phocae infection in mink (Neovison vison), seals (Phoca vitulina, Halichoerus grypus) and otters (Lutra lutra)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nonnemann, Bettina; Chriél, Mariann; Larsen, Gitte

2017-01-01

pathological conditions, and from wild seals and otters. In 2015, A. phocae was isolated for the first time in Denmark from outbreaks of dermatitis in mink farms. The outbreaks affected at least 12 farms. Originating from these 12 farms, 23 animals cultured positive for A. phocae. The main clinical findings......Infectious skin disorders are not uncommon in mink. Such disorders are important as they have a negative impact on animal health and welfare as well as on the quality and value of the fur. This study presents the isolation of Arcanobacterium phocae from mink with severe skin lesions and other...... were necrotizing pododermatitis or dermatitis located to other body sites, such as the lumbar and cervical regions. A. phocae could be isolated from skin lesions and in nine animals also from liver, spleen and lung, indicating a systemic spread. The bacterium was also, for the first time in Denmark...

In vitro selection of high-infectious, leukemogenic virus from low-infectious, non-leukemogenic type C virus from a malignant ST/a mouse cell line

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Willumsen, B M

1979-01-01

; however, virus was detected in supernatant fluids only after two to four subcultures of the infected cells. The virus thus produced was XC(+) and a large plaque former. The virus released from infected SC-1 cells was N-tropic, whereas the viruses from infected NIH/3T3 and BALB/3T3 cells were NB...... nanogram of p30, was 30- to 60-fold lower for the virus released from the ST-L1 cell line than that of the viruses after passage in SC-1, NIH/3T3, and BALB/3T3 cells. None of the viruses could infect rabbit or mink cells. Inoculation of the viruses into newborn mice showed that the ST-L1 virus was non......-leukemogenic, whereas the NB-tropic virus selected from this after passage in BALB/3T3 or NIH/3T3 cells was highly leukemogenic. Viruses isolated from leukemic animals were indistinguishable with respect to host range and protein mobilities in SDS gels from the ones with which the mice were inoculated. Although the SC...

Chronic Active Epstein-Barr Virus Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Kimura, Hiroshi; Cohen, Jeffrey I

2017-01-01

Chronic active Epstein-Barr virus (CAEBV) disease is a rare disorder in which persons are unable to control infection with the virus. The disease is progressive with markedly elevated levels of EBV DNA in the blood and infiltration of organs by EBV-positive lymphocytes. Patients often present with fever, lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, EBV hepatitis, or pancytopenia. Over time, these patients develop progressive immunodeficiency and if not treated, succumb to opportunistic infections, hemophagocytosis, multiorgan failure, or EBV-positive lymphomas. Patients with CAEBV in the United States most often present with disease involving B or T cells, while in Asia, the disease usually involves T or NK cells. The only proven effective treatment for the disease is hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Current studies to find a cause of this disease focus on immune defects and genetic abnormalities associated with the disease.

Chronic Active Epstein–Barr Virus Disease

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Hiroshi Kimura

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Chronic active Epstein–Barr virus (CAEBV disease is a rare disorder in which persons are unable to control infection with the virus. The disease is progressive with markedly elevated levels of EBV DNA in the blood and infiltration of organs by EBV-positive lymphocytes. Patients often present with fever, lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, EBV hepatitis, or pancytopenia. Over time, these patients develop progressive immunodeficiency and if not treated, succumb to opportunistic infections, hemophagocytosis, multiorgan failure, or EBV-positive lymphomas. Patients with CAEBV in the United States most often present with disease involving B or T cells, while in Asia, the disease usually involves T or NK cells. The only proven effective treatment for the disease is hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Current studies to find a cause of this disease focus on immune defects and genetic abnormalities associated with the disease.

The Ste20 Family Kinases MAP4K4, MINK1, and TNIK Converge to Regulate Stress-Induced JNK Signaling in Neurons.

Science.gov (United States)

Larhammar, Martin; Huntwork-Rodriguez, Sarah; Rudhard, York; Sengupta-Ghosh, Arundhati; Lewcock, Joseph W

2017-11-15

The c-Jun- N -terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway regulates nervous system development, axon regeneration, and neuronal degeneration after acute injury or in chronic neurodegenerative disease. Dual leucine zipper kinase (DLK) is required for stress-induced JNK signaling in neurons, yet the factors that initiate DLK/JNK pathway activity remain poorly defined. In the present study, we identify the Ste20 kinases MAP4K4, misshapen-like kinase 1 (MINK1 or MAP4K6) and TNIK Traf2- and Nck-interacting kinase (TNIK or MAP4K7), as upstream regulators of DLK/JNK signaling in neurons. Using a trophic factor withdrawal-based model of neurodegeneration in both male and female embryonic mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons, we show that MAP4K4, MINK1, and TNIK act redundantly to regulate DLK activation and downstream JNK-dependent phosphorylation of c-Jun in response to stress. Targeting MAP4K4, MINK1, and TNIK, but not any of these kinases individually, is sufficient to protect neurons potently from degeneration. Pharmacological inhibition of MAP4Ks blocks stabilization and phosphorylation of DLK within axons and subsequent retrograde translocation of the JNK signaling complex to the nucleus. These results position MAP4Ks as important regulators of the DLK/JNK signaling pathway. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Neuronal degeneration occurs in disparate circumstances: during development to refine neuronal connections, after injury to clear damaged neurons, or pathologically during disease. The dual leucine zipper kinase (DLK)/c-Jun- N -terminal kinase (JNK) pathway represents a conserved regulator of neuronal injury signaling that drives both neurodegeneration and axon regeneration, yet little is known about the factors that initiate DLK activity. Here, we uncover a novel role for a subfamily of MAP4 kinases consisting of MAP4K4, Traf2- and Nck-interacting kinase (TNIK or MAP4K7), and misshapen-like kinase 1 (MINK1 or MAP4K6) in regulating DLK/JNK signaling in neurons. Inhibition of

QTL-mapping in mink (Neovison vison) shows evidence for QTL for guard hair thickness, guard hair length and skin length

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thirstrup, Janne Pia; Labouriau, Rodrigo; Guldbrandtsen, Bernt

2011-01-01

Fur quality in mink (Neovison vison) is a composite trait, consisting of e.g. guard hair length, guard hair thickness and density of wool. A genome wide QTL search was performed to detect QTL for fur quality traits in mink. Here we present the results of QTL analyses for guard hair length, guard...... hair thickness and density of wool. Data from an F2-cross was analysed across fourteen chromosomes using 100 microsatellites as markers with a spacing of approximately 20 cM. The two lines used for the F2-cross were Nordic wild mink and American short nap mink. In total 1,083 animals (21 wild type, 25...... short nap, 103 F1 and 934 F2) were marker typed and recorded for the three presented fur quality traits. For the QTL-analyses a regression analysis implemented in QTL Express software was used. Evidence was found for the existence of QTL for guard hair length, guard hair thickness and density of wool...

AFSC/REFM: Pacific cod genetics in the Aleutian Islands 2004-2007

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Landscape genetics of Pacific cod Gadus macrocephalus within the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) management area of Alaska was examined in samples from nine...

Potential role of viruses in white plague coral disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Soffer, Nitzan; Brandt, Marilyn E; Correa, Adrienne M S; Smith, Tyler B; Thurber, Rebecca Vega

2014-02-01

White plague (WP)-like diseases of tropical corals are implicated in reef decline worldwide, although their etiological cause is generally unknown. Studies thus far have focused on bacterial or eukaryotic pathogens as the source of these diseases; no studies have examined the role of viruses. Using a combination of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and 454 pyrosequencing, we compared 24 viral metagenomes generated from Montastraea annularis corals showing signs of WP-like disease and/or bleaching, control conspecific corals, and adjacent seawater. TEM was used for visual inspection of diseased coral tissue. No bacteria were visually identified within diseased coral tissues, but viral particles and sequence similarities to eukaryotic circular Rep-encoding single-stranded DNA viruses and their associated satellites (SCSDVs) were abundant in WP diseased tissues. In contrast, sequence similarities to SCSDVs were not found in any healthy coral tissues, suggesting SCSDVs might have a role in WP disease. Furthermore, Herpesviridae gene signatures dominated healthy tissues, corroborating reports that herpes-like viruses infect all corals. Nucleocytoplasmic large DNA virus (NCLDV) sequences, similar to those recently identified in cultures of Symbiodinium (the algal symbionts of corals), were most common in bleached corals. This finding further implicates that these NCLDV viruses may have a role in bleaching, as suggested in previous studies. This study determined that a specific group of viruses is associated with diseased Caribbean corals and highlights the potential for viral disease in regional coral reef decline.

Metabolomic study of plasma from female mink (Neovison vison) with low and high residual feed intake during restrictive and ad libitum feeding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hedemann, Mette Skou; Damgaard, Birthe Marie

2012-01-01

was high during restrictive feeding, e.g. betaine, carnitine, and creatine. During ad libitum feeding the plasma level of metabolites that can be characterized as biomarkers of meat intake (creatinine, carnosine, 1- and 3 methylhistidine) was high. The plasma level of lysophosphatidylcholine species......Metabolite profiling may elucidate changes in metabolic pathways under various physiological or nutritional conditions. In the present study two groups of female mink characterized as having a high (16 mink) or low (14 mink) residual feed intake were investigated during restrictive and ad libitum...

Nitrogen and energy balance in growing mink (Mustela vison) fed different levels of bacterial protein meal produced with natural gas

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hellwing, Anne Louise Frydendahl; Tauson, Anne-Helene; Ahlstrøm, Øystein

2005-01-01

The objective of this study was to estimate the effect of increasing the dietary content of bacterial protein meal (BPM) on energy and protein metabolism in growing mink kits. Sixteen male mink kits of the standard brown genotype were randomly fed one of four diets: A control (Diet III) and 60% (...

Distance estimation experiment for aerial minke whale surveys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lars Witting

2009-09-01

Full Text Available A comparative study between aerial cue–counting and digital photography surveys for minke whales conducted in Faxaflói Bay in September 2003 is used to check the perpendicular distances estimated by the cue-counting observers. The study involved 2 aircraft with the photo plane at 1,700 feet flying above the cue–counting plane at 750 feet. The observer–based distance estimates were calculated from head angles estimated by angle-boards and declination angles estimated by declinometers. These distances were checked against image–based estimates of the perpendicular distance to the same whale. The 2 independent distance estimates were obtained for 21 sightings of minke whale, and there was a good agreement between the 2 types of estimates. The relative absolute deviations between the 2 estimates were on average 23% (se: 6%, with the errors in the observer–based distance estimates resembling that of a log-normal distribution. The linear regression of the observer–based estimates (obs on the image–based estimates (img was Obs=1.1Img (R2=0.85 with an intercept fixed at zero. There was no evidence of a distance estimation bias that could generate a positive bias in the absolute abundance estimated by cue–counting.

Role of Virus-Encoded microRNAs in Avian Viral Diseases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yongxiu Yao

2014-03-01

Full Text Available With total dependence on the host cell, several viruses have adopted strategies to modulate the host cellular environment, including the modulation of microRNA (miRNA pathway through virus-encoded miRNAs. Several avian viruses, mostly herpesviruses, have been shown to encode a number of novel miRNAs. These include the highly oncogenic Marek’s disease virus-1 (26 miRNAs, avirulent Marek’s disease virus-2 (36 miRNAs, herpesvirus of turkeys (28 miRNAs, infectious laryngotracheitis virus (10 miRNAs, duck enteritis virus (33 miRNAs and avian leukosis virus (2 miRNAs. Despite the closer antigenic and phylogenetic relationship among some of the herpesviruses, miRNAs encoded by different viruses showed no sequence conservation, although locations of some of the miRNAs were conserved within the repeat regions of the genomes. However, some of the virus-encoded miRNAs showed significant sequence homology with host miRNAs demonstrating their ability to serve as functional orthologs. For example, mdv1-miR-M4-5p, a functional ortholog of gga-miR-155, is critical for the oncogenicity of Marek’s disease virus. Additionally, we also describe the potential association of the recently described avian leukosis virus subgroup J encoded E (XSR miRNA in the induction of myeloid tumors in certain genetically-distinct chicken lines. In this review, we describe the advances in our understanding on the role of virus-encoded miRNAs in avian diseases.

Border Disease Virus among Chamois, Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Rosell, Rosa; Cabezón, Oscar; Mentaberre, Gregorio; Casas, Encarna; Velarde, Roser; Lavín, Santiago

2009-01-01

Approximately 3,000 Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica) died in northeastern Spain during 2005–2007. Border disease virus infection was identified by reverse transcription–PCR and sequencing analysis. These results implicate this virus as the primary cause of death, similar to findings in the previous epizootic in 2001. PMID:19239761

Case study: Bioremediation in the Aleutian Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steward, K.J.; Laford, H.D.

1995-01-01

This case study describes the design, construction, and operation of a bioremediation pile on Adak Island, which is located in the Aleutian Island chain. Approximately 1,900 m 3 of petroleum-contaminated soil were placed in the bioremediation pile. The natural bioremediation process was enhanced by an oxygen and nutrient addition system to stimulate microbial activity. Despite the harsh weather on the island, after the first 6 months of operation, laboratory analyses of soil samples indicated a significant (80%) reduction in diesel concentrations

Aleutian Islands Coastal Resources Inventory and Environmental Sensitivity Maps: NESTS (Nest Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains biological resource data for alcids, shorebirds, waterfowl, diving birds, pelagic birds, gulls and terns in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska....

Effects of dietary protein level on nutrients digestibility and reproductive performance of female mink (Neovison vison during gestation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qingkui Jiang

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to determine whether nutrient digestibility and reproductive performance of pregnant mink (Neovison vison were affected by different dietary protein levels. One hundred and twenty female mink were randomly assigned to four groups, receiving diets of fresh material with different protein levels. The dietary protein levels, expressed as percentage of dry matter (DM, were 32, 36, 40 and 44% respectively. These values corresponded to average 320, 360, 400 and 440 g protein/kg DM, respectively. Results were as follows. All of crude protein digestibility, nitrogen (N intake, N retention increased along with dietary protein level increasing. Low protein level (32% significantly reduced the above indicators (P < 0.05. DM digestibility and ether extract digestibility were not affected by dietary protein level. Results of mated females, barren females, kids per litter, live born kids per mated female, birth survival rate, and birth weight showed that mink achieved optimal reproductive performance when dietary protein level was 36%. In conclusion, dietary protein was anticipated to significantly influence some nutrients' utilization. Adopting the appropriate dietary protein level allow better reproduction performance. The most preferable reproductive performance was achieved when diet contained 275.5 g digestible protein per kg DM for female mink in gestation.

Serum amyloid P component inhibits influenza A virus infections: in vitro and in vivo studies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Horvath, A; Andersen, I; Junker, K

2001-01-01

. These studies were extended to comprise five mouse-adapted influenza A strains, two swine influenza A strains, a mink influenza A virus, a ferret influenza A reassortant virus, a influenza B virus and a parainfluenza 3 virus. The HA activity of all these viruses was inhibited by SAP. Western blotting showed......Serum amyloid P component (SAP) binds in vitro Ca(2+)-dependently to several ligands including oligosaccharides with terminal mannose and galactose. We have earlier reported that SAP binds to human influenza A virus strains, inhibiting hemagglutinin (HA) activity and virus infectivity in vitro...... that SAP bound to HA trimers, monomers and HA1 and HA2 subunits of influenza A virus. Binding studies indicated that galactose, mannose and fucose moieties contributed to the SAP reacting site(s). Intranasal administration of human SAP to mice induced no demonstrable toxic reactions, and circulating...

Projekt skal undersøge MRSA i danske mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fertner, Mette Ely; Hansen, Julie Elvekjær; Larsen, Gitte

2017-01-01

MRSA blev for første gang isoleret fra to danske mink, som var indsendt til undersøgelse på DTU Veterinærinstituttet, i 2013. I løbet af 2017 gennemfører DTU Veterinærinstituttet et projekt, som har til formål at klarlægge MRSA-forekomsten og smitteoverførslen på danske minkgårde....

Er genomisk selektion en revolution af avlsarbejdet med mink?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berg, Peer

2011-01-01

Genomisk selektion udnytter, at den enkelte mink kan genotypes for tusindvis af genetiske markører. Et dyrs avlsværdi kan skønnes med ret stor sikkerhed på basis af en blod- eller hårprøve, hvor dyrets sæt af genetiske markører bestemmes. Det er altså ikke nødvendigt at registrere minkens egne eg...

Control of sweet potato virus diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Loebenstein, Gad

2015-01-01

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is ranked seventh in global food crop production and is the third most important root crop after potato and cassava. Sweet potatoes are vegetative propagated from vines, root slips (sprouts), or tubers. Therefore, virus diseases can be a major constrain, reducing yields markedly, often more than 50%. The main viruses worldwide are Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) and Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV). Effects on yields by SPFMV or SPCSV alone are minor, or but in complex infection by the two or other viruses yield losses of 50%. The orthodox way of controlling viruses in vegetative propagated crops is by supplying the growers with virus-tested planting material. High-yielding plants are tested for freedom of viruses by PCR, serology, and grafting to sweet potato virus indicator plants. After this, meristem tips are taken from those plants that reacted negative. The meristems were grown into plants which were kept under insect-proof conditions and away from other sweet potato material for distribution to farmers after another cycle of reproduction. © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genetic Similarity between Cotton Leafroll Dwarf Virus and Chickpea Stunt Disease Associated Virus in India

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Arup Kumar Mukherjee

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The cotton leafroll dwarf virus (CLRDV is one of the most devastating pathogens of cotton. This malady, known as cotton blue disease, is widespread in South America where it causes huge crop losses. Recently the disease has been reported from India. We noticed occurrence of cotton blue disease and chickpea stunt disease in adjoining cotton and chickpea fields and got interested in knowing if these two viral diseases have some association. By genetic studies, we have shown here that CLRDV is very close to chickpea stunt disease associated virus (CpSDaV. We were successful in transmitting the CLRDV from cotton to chickpea. Our studies indicate that CpSDaV and CLRDV in India are possibly two different strains of the same virus. These findings would be helpful in managing these serious diseases by altering the cropping patterns.

The urinary metabolome in female mink (Mustela neovison) shows distinct changes in protein and lipid metabolism during the transition from diapause to implantation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hedemann, Mette Skou

2017-01-01

Introduction The mink exhibit an obligatory diapause. The metabolic changes during the transition from diapause to implantation and established pregnancy are currently unknown. Objectives The study aimed to characterize changes in the urinary metabolome in mink during the period from mating...... to early gestation and to identify the metabolites involved. Methods Urine samples were collected from 56 female mink on March 24, April 8, and April 15, covering the period from mating to early pregnancy. The urine samples were subjected to non-targeted LC-MS metabolomics. Processed data were evaluated...

Experimental infection with Brazilian Newcastle disease virus strain in pigeons and chickens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adriano de Oliveira Torres Carrasco

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract This study was designed with the goal of adding as much information as possible about the role of pigeons (Columba livia and chickens (Gallus gallus in Newcastle disease virus epidemiology. These species were submitted to direct experimental infection with Newcastle disease virus to evaluate interspecies transmission and virus-host relationships. The results obtained in four experimental models were analyzed by hemagglutination inhibition and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for detection of virus shedding. These techniques revealed that both avian species, when previously immunized with a low pathogenic Newcastle disease virus strain (LaSota, developed high antibody titers that significantly reduced virus shedding after infection with a highly pathogenic Newcastle disease virus strain (São Joao do Meriti and that, in chickens, prevent clinical signs. Infected pigeons shed the pathogenic strain, which was not detected in sentinel chickens or control birds. When the presence of Newcastle disease virus was analyzed in tissue samples by RT-PCR, in both species, the virus was most frequently found in the spleen. The vaccination regimen can prevent clinical disease in chickens and reduce viral shedding by chickens or pigeons. Biosecurity measures associated with vaccination programs are crucial to maintain a virulent Newcastle disease virus-free status in industrial poultry in Brazil.

Optimization of Newcastle disease virus production in T-flask

African Journals Online (AJOL)

GREGORY

2011-12-16

Dec 16, 2011 ... In the present study, the production of lentogenic Asplin F strain of Newcastle disease virus by ... future live Newcastle disease vaccine production in larger ..... Production of yellow fever virus in microcarrier-based Vero cell ...

A Novel Virus Causes Scale Drop Disease in Lates calcarifer.

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Ad de Groof

2015-08-01

Full Text Available From 1992 onwards, outbreaks of a previously unknown illness have been reported in Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer kept in maricultures in Southeast Asia. The most striking symptom of this emerging disease is the loss of scales. It was referred to as scale drop syndrome, but the etiology remained enigmatic. By using a next-generation virus discovery technique, VIDISCA-454, sequences of an unknown virus were detected in serum of diseased fish. The near complete genome sequence of the virus was determined, which shows a unique genome organization, and low levels of identity to known members of the Iridoviridae. Based on homology of a series of putatively encoded proteins, the virus is a novel member of the Megalocytivirus genus of the Iridoviridae family. The virus was isolated and propagated in cell culture, where it caused a cytopathogenic effect in infected Asian seabass kidney and brain cells. Electron microscopy revealed icosahedral virions of about 140 nm, characteristic for the Iridoviridae. In vitro cultured virus induced scale drop syndrome in Asian seabass in vivo and the virus could be reisolated from these infected fish. These findings show that the virus is the causative agent for the scale drop syndrome, as each of Koch's postulates is fulfilled. We have named the virus Scale Drop Disease Virus. Vaccines prepared from BEI- and formalin inactivated virus, as well as from E. coli produced major capsid protein provide efficacious protection against scale drop disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease exacerbation associated with Epstein-Barr virus infection.

Science.gov (United States)

Dimitroulia, Evangelia; Pitiriga, Vassiliki C; Piperaki, Evangelia-Theophano; Spanakis, Nicholas E; Tsakris, Athanassios

2013-03-01

Epstein-Barr virus infection is associated with inflammatory bowel disease, but its role as a pathogenetic or exacerbating factor remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between Epstein-Barr virus infection and inflammatory bowel disease, particularly in regard to exacerbation of disease activity. This was a nonrandomized crosssectional study in subgroups of patients with inflammatory bowel disease compared with a control group with noninflammatory disease. Participants were patients treated for ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease and individuals undergoing evaluation for noninflammatory disease recruited from 2 urban adult gastrointestinal referral centers in Greece. Diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease was based on standard clinical and endoscopic criteria. Demographic and clinical characteristics of all participants were recorded. Whole blood samples and fresh tissue samples from biopsy of intestinal sites were obtained from each participant. The presence of Epstein-Barr virus was determined by amplifying the LMP1 gene of the virus in blood and intestinal tissue samples. The study comprised 94 patients with inflammatory bowel disease (63 with ulcerative colitis and 31 with Crohn's disease) and 45 controls with noninflammatory disease. Of the 94 patients, 67 (71.3%) had disease exacerbation and 27 (28.7%) were in remission. The prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus genome was significantly higher in patients than in controls for intestinal tissue (44 patients, 46.8% vs 6 controls, 13.3%; p = 0.001), but not for whole blood (24 patients, 25.5% vs 9 controls, 20%; p = 0.3). The viral genome was found significantly more frequently in intestinal samples from patients with disease exacerbation compared with patients in remission (38 patients with exacerbation, 56.7% vs 6 patients in remission, 22.2%; p = 0.001), but no significant difference was found for whole blood (18 patients with exacerbation, 26.8% vs 6 patients in remission, 22

An inactivated whole-virus porcine parvovirus vaccine protects pigs against disease but does not prevent virus shedding even after homologous virus challenge.

Science.gov (United States)

Foerster, Tessa; Streck, André Felipe; Speck, Stephanie; Selbitz, Hans-Joachim; Lindner, Thomas; Truyen, Uwe

2016-06-01

Inactivated whole-virus vaccines against porcine parvovirus (PPV) can prevent disease but not infection and virus shedding after heterologous virus challenge. Here, we showed that the same is true for a homologous challenge. Pregnant sows were vaccinated with an experimental inactivated vaccine based on PPV strain 27a. They were challenged on day 40 of gestation with the virulent porcine parvovirus PPV-27a from which the vaccine was prepared (homologous challenge). On day 90 of gestation, the fetuses from vaccinated sows were protected against disease, while the fetuses of the non-vaccinated sows (control group) exhibited signs of parvovirus disease. All gilts, whether vaccinated or not vaccinated, showed a boost of PPV-specific antibodies indicative of virus infection and replication. Low DNA copy numbers, but not infectious virus, could be demonstrated in nasal or rectal swabs of immunized sows, but high copy numbers of challenge virus DNA as well as infectious virus could both be demonstrated in non-vaccinated sows.

hand hygiene practices post ebola virus disease outbreak

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2014-10-20

Oct 20, 2014 ... INTRODUCTION. Ebola virus disease (EVD) is an infectious viral disease characterized by a high case-fatality rate which may be as high as 90%.1,2 Ebola virus may be acquired during contact with blood or body fluids of an infected animal, commonly monkeys or fruit bats.2 Once human infection occurs ...

Industry-Wide Surveillance of Marek's Disease Virus on Commercial Poultry Farms.

Science.gov (United States)

Kennedy, David A; Cairns, Christopher; Jones, Matthew J; Bell, Andrew S; Salathé, Rahel M; Baigent, Susan J; Nair, Venugopal K; Dunn, Patricia A; Read, Andrew F

2017-06-01

Marek's disease virus is a herpesvirus of chickens that costs the worldwide poultry industry more than US$1 billion annually. Two generations of Marek's disease vaccines have shown reduced efficacy over the last half century due to evolution of the virus. Understanding where the virus is present may give insight into whether continued reductions in efficacy are likely. We conducted a 3-yr surveillance study to assess the prevalence of Marek's disease virus on commercial poultry farms, determine the effect of various factors on virus prevalence, and document virus dynamics in broiler chicken houses over short (weeks) and long (years) timescales. We extracted DNA from dust samples collected from commercial chicken and egg production facilities in Pennsylvania, USA. Quantitative PCR was used to assess wild-type virus detectability and concentration. Using data from 1018 dust samples with Bayesian generalized linear mixed effects models, we determined the factors that correlated with virus prevalence across farms. Maximum likelihood and autocorrelation function estimation on 3727 additional dust samples were used to document and characterize virus concentrations within houses over time. Overall, wild-type virus was detectable at least once on 36 of 104 farms at rates that varied substantially between farms. Virus was detected in one of three broiler-breeder operations (companies), four of five broiler operations, and three of five egg layer operations. Marek's disease virus detectability differed by production type, bird age, day of the year, operation (company), farm, house, flock, and sample. Operation (company) was the most important factor, accounting for between 12% and 63.4% of the variation in virus detectability. Within individual houses, virus concentration often dropped below detectable levels and reemerged later. These data characterize Marek's disease virus dynamics, which are potentially important to the evolution of the virus.

The status of the American mink (Neovison vison) in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dekker, J.J.A.; Hofmeester, T.R.

2014-01-01

The American mink (Neovison vison) is a north American mustelid that has been farmed for its fur in Europe since the 1920s. It has been feral in the Netherlands since 1958. This paper discusses its distribution, diet, the indications for reproduction, and whether feral animals are born in the wild

Comparison of American mink embryonic stem and induced pluripotent stem cell transcriptomes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Menzorov, Aleksei G; Matveeva, Natalia M.; Markakis, Marios Nektarios

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Recently fibroblasts of many mammalian species have been reprogrammed to pluripotent state using overexpression of several transcription factors. This technology allows production of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells with properties similar to embryonic stem (ES) cells....... The completeness of reprogramming process is well studied in such species as mouse and human but there is not enough data on other species. We produced American mink (Neovison vison) ES and iPS cells and compared these cells using transcriptome analysis. RESULTS: We report the generation of 10 mink ES and 22 i......PS cell lines. The majority of the analyzed cell lines had normal diploid chromosome number. The only ES cell line with XX chromosome set had both X-chromosomes in active state that is characteristic of pluripotent cells. The pluripotency of ES and iPS cell lines was confirmed by formation of teratomas...

[Ebola virus disease: Update].

Science.gov (United States)

de la Calle-Prieto, Fernando; Arsuaga-Vicente, Marta; Mora-Rillo, Marta; Arnalich-Fernandez, Francisco; Arribas, Jose Ramon

2016-01-01

The first known Ebola outbreak occurred in 1976. Since then, 24 limited outbreaks had been reported in Central Africa, but never affecting more than 425 persons. The current outbreak in Western Africa is the largest in history with 28,220 reported cases and 11,291 deaths. The magnitude of the epidemic has caused worldwide alarm. For the first time, evacuated patients were treated outside Africa, and secondary cases have occurred in Spain and the United States. Since the start of the current epidemic, our knowledge about the epidemiology, clinical picture, laboratory findings, and virology of Ebola virus disease has considerably expanded. For the first time, experimental treatment has been tried, and there have been spectacular advances in vaccine development. A review is presented of these advances in the knowledge of Ebola virus disease. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier España, S.L.U. and Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica. All rights reserved.

Climate program "stone soup": Assessing climate change vulnerabilities in the Aleutian and Bering Sea Islands of Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Littell, J. S.; Poe, A.; van Pelt, T.

2015-12-01

Climate change is already affecting the Bering Sea and Aleutian Island region of Alaska. Past and present marine research across a broad spectrum of disciplines is shedding light on what sectors of the ecosystem and the human dimension will be most impacted. In a grassroots approach to extend existing research efforts, leveraging recently completed downscaled climate projections for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands region, we convened a team of 30 researchers-- with expertise ranging from anthropology to zooplankton to marine mammals-- to assess climate projections in the context of their expertise. This Aleutian-Bering Climate Vulnerability Assessment (ABCVA) began with researchers working in five teams to evaluate the vulnerabilities of key species and ecosystem services relative to projected changes in climate. Each team identified initial vulnerabilities for their focal species or services, and made recommendations for further research and information needs that would help managers and communities better understand the implications of the changing climate in this region. Those draft recommendations were shared during two focused, public sessions held within two hub communities for the Bering and Aleutian region: Unalaska and St. Paul. Qualitative insights about local concerns and observations relative to climate change were collected during these sessions, to be compared to the recommendations being made by the ABCVA team of researchers. Finally, we used a Structured Decision Making process to prioritize the recommendations of participating scientists, and integrate the insights shared during our community sessions. This work brought together residents, stakeholders, scientists, and natural resource managers to collaboratively identify priorities for addressing current and expected future impacts of climate change. Recommendations from this project will be incorporated into future research efforts of the Aleutian and Bering Sea Islands Landscape Conservation

Mink S38G Gene Polymorphism and Atrial Fibrillation in the Chinese Population: A Meta-Analysis of 1871 Participants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yan-yan Li

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Mink gene S38G polymorphism in the β-subunit of slow activating component of the delayed rectifier potassium channel current potassium channel has been associated with increased atrial fibrillation (AF risk. However, the individual studies results were still controversial. To investigate the association of Mink S38G gene polymorphisms with AF, a meta-analysis including 1871 subjects from six individual studies was conducted. Mink S38G gene polymorphism was significantly related to AF under allelic (OR: 1.380, 95% CI: 1.200–1.600, P<0.00001, recessive (OR: 1.193, 95% CI: 1.033–1.377, P=0.017, dominant (OR: 1.057, 95% CI: 1.025–1.089, P<0.00001, additive (OR: 1.105, 95% CI: 1.036–1.178, P=0.002, homozygous (OR: 1.128, 95% CI: 1.068–1.191, P<0.00001, and heterozygous genetic models (OR: 1.078, 95% CI: 1.014–1.146, P=0.016. A significant association between Mink S38G gene polymorphism and AF risk was found. G allele carriers may predispose to AF.

Genomic selection in mink yield higher accuracies with a Bayesian approach allowing for heterogeneous variance than a GBLUP model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Villumsen, Trine Michelle; Su, Guosheng; Cai, Zexi

2018-01-01

by sequencing. Four live grading traits and four traits on dried pelts for size and quality were analysed. GWAS analysis detected significant SNPs for all the traits. The single-trait Bayesian model resulted in higher accuracies for the genomic predictions than the single-trait GBLUP model, especially......The accuracy of genomic prediction for mink was compared for single-trait and multiple-trait GBLUP models and Bayesian models that allowed for heterogeneous (co)variance structure over the genome. The mink population consisted of 2,103 brown minks genotyped with the method of genotyping...... for the traits measured on dried pelts. We expected the multiple-trait models to be superior to the single trait models since the multiple-trait model can make use of information when traits are correlated. However, we did not find a general improvement in accuracies with the multiple-trait models compared...

Emerging tropical diseases in Australia. Part 5. Hendra virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tulsiani, Suhella; Graham, G C; Moore, P R

2011-01-01

gene of the virus and the discovery that the virus had an exceptionally large genome subsequently led to HeV being assigned to a new genus, Henipavirus, along with Nipah virus (a newly emergent virus in pigs). The regular outbreaks of HeV-related disease that have occurred in Australia since 1994 have...

Roles of three amino acids of capsid proteins in mink enteritis parvovirus replication.

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Yaping; Su, Jun; Wang, Jigui; Zhang, Xiaomei; Hou, Qiang; Bian, Dawei; Liu, Weiquan

2016-08-15

Virulent mink enteritis parvovirus (MEV) strain MEV-LHV replicated to higher titers in feline F81 cells than attenuated strain MEV-L. Phylogenetic and sequence analyses of the VP2 gene of MEV-LHV, MEV-L and other strains in GenBank revealed two evolutionary branches separating virulent and attenuated strains. Three residues, 101, 232 and 411, differed between virulent and attenuated strains but were conserved within the two branches. Site-directed mutagenesis of the VP2 gene of infectious plasmids of attenuated strain MEV-L respectively replacing residues 101 Ile and 411 Ala with Thr and Glu of virulent strains (MEV-L I101T and MEV-L A411E) increased replication efficiency but still to lower levels than MEV-LHV. However, viruses with mutation of residue 232 (MEV-L I232V and MEV-L I101T/I232V/A411E) decreased viral transcription and replication levels. The three VP2 residues 101, 232 and 411, located on or near the capsid surface, played different roles in the infection processes of MEV. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Viruses & kidney disease: beyond HIV

Science.gov (United States)

Waldman, Meryl; Marshall, Vickie; Whitby, Denise; Kopp, Jeffrey B.

2008-01-01

HIV-infected patients may acquire new viral co-infections; they may also experience the reactivation or worsening of existing viral infections, including active, smoldering, or latent infections. HIV-infected patients may be predisposed to these viral infections due to immunodeficiency or to risk factors common to HIV and other viruses. A number of these affect the kidney, either by direct infection or by deposition of immune complexes. In this review we discuss the renal manifestations and treatment of hepatitis C virus, BK virus, adenovirus, cytomegalovirus, and parvovirus B19 in patients with HIV disease. We also discuss an approach to the identification of new viral renal pathogens, using a viral gene chip to identify viral DNA or RNA. PMID:19013331

Aleutian Islands Coastal Resources Inventory and Environmental Sensitivity Maps: MGT (Management Area Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains management area data for National Wildlife Refuges in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Vector polygons in this data set represent management...

Viruses and kidney disease: beyond HIV.

Science.gov (United States)

Waldman, Meryl; Marshall, Vickie; Whitby, Denise; Kopp, Jeffrey B

2008-11-01

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients may acquire new viral co-infections; they also may experience the reactivation or worsening of existing viral infections, including active, smoldering, or latent infections. HIV-infected patients may be predisposed to these viral infections owing to immunodeficiency or risk factors common to HIV and other viruses. A number of these affect the kidney, either by direct infection or by deposition of immune complexes. In this review we discuss the renal manifestations and treatment of hepatitis C virus, BK virus, adenovirus, cytomegalovirus, and parvovirus B19 in patients with HIV disease. We also discuss an approach to the identification of new viral renal pathogens, using a viral gene chip to identify viral DNA or RNA.

Seroprevalence of Marek's Disease Virus antibody in some poultry ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study reports a survey of Marek's disease virus (MDV) antibody done in 21 selected poultry flocks in Lagos, Ogun and Oyo states of southwestern Nigeria. A total of 315 serum samples were examined using the Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) technique. Marek's disease virus antibody was present in ...

NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease - 2016. In this Table, provisional* cases of selected† notifiable diseases (≥1,000 cases reported during the preceding...

Genetic variation of Border disease virus species strains

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Massimo Giangaspero

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The 5´-untranslated region of Pestivirus strains isolated from domestic and wild animals were analysed to determine their taxonomic status according to nucleotide changes in the secondary genomic structure using the palindromic nucleotide substitutions (PNS method. A total of 131 isolates out of 536 Pestivirus strains evaluated, were clustered as Border disease virus (BDV species. The BDV strains were further divided into at least 8 genotypes or subspecies. Thirty-two isolates from small ruminants suffering from clinical symptoms of Border disease were clustered into bovine viral diarrhoea virus 1 (BVDV-1, BVDV-2 and classical swine fever (hog cholera virus species and also into the tentative BDV-2 species. Since the definition of an infectious disease is based primarily on a specific causative pathogen and taking into account the heterogeneity of the genus Pestivirus, clinical cases should be named according to the laboratory results. The PNS procedure could be useful for laboratory diagnosis of Border disease in domestic and wild ruminants.

Acute viral hemorrhage disease: A summary on new viruses

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Somsri Wiwanitkit

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Acute hemorrhagic disease is an important problem in medicine that can be seen in many countries, especially those in tropical world. There are many causes of acute hemorrhagic disease and the viral infection seems to be the common cause. The well-known infection is dengue, however, there are many new identified viruses that can cause acute hemorrhagic diseases. In this specific short review, the authors present and discuss on those new virus diseases that present as “acute hemorrhagic fever”.

46 CFR 7.170 - Alaska Peninsula, AK to Aleutian Islands, AK.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... BOUNDARY LINES Alaska § 7.170 Alaska Peninsula, AK to Aleutian Islands, AK. (a) A line drawn from the southernmost extremity of Cape Kumlium to the westernmost extremity of Nakchamik Island; thence to the... Light at Iliuliuk Bay entrance. (c) A line drawn from Arch Rock to the northernmost extremity of...

Diagnostic evaluation of a multiplexed RT-PCR microsphere array assay for the detection of foot-and-mouth disease virus and look-alike disease viruses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hindson, B J; Reid, S M; Baker, B R; Ebert, K; Ferris, N P; Bentley Tammero, L F; Lenhoff, R J; Naraghi-Arani, P; Vitalis, E A; Slezak, T R; Hullinger, P J; King, D P

2007-07-26

A high-throughput multiplexed assay was developed for the differential laboratory diagnosis of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) from viruses which cause clinically similar diseases of livestock. This assay simultaneously screens for five RNA and two DNA viruses using multiplexed reverse transcription PCR (mRT-PCR) amplification coupled with a microsphere hybridization array and flow-cytometric detection. Two of the seventeen primer-probe sets included in this multiplex assay were adopted from previously characterized real-time RT-PCR (rRT-PCR) assays for FMDV. The diagnostic accuracy of the mRT-PCR was evaluated using 287 field samples, including 248 (true positive n= 213, true negative n=34) from suspect cases of foot-and-mouth disease collected from 65 countries between 1965 and 2006 and 39 true negative samples collected from healthy animals. The mRT-PCR assay results were compared with two singleplex rRT-PCR assays, using virus isolation with antigen-ELISA as the reference method. The diagnostic sensitivity of the mRT-PCR assay for FMDV was 93.9% [95% C.I. 89.8-96.4%], compared to 98.1% [95% C.I. 95.3-99.3%] for the two singleplex rRT-PCR assays used in combination. In addition, the assay could reliably differentiate between FMDV and other vesicular viruses such as swine vesicular disease virus and vesicular exanthema of swine virus. Interestingly, the mRT-PCR detected parapoxvirus (n=2) and bovine viral diarrhea virus (n=2) in clinical samples, demonstrating the screening potential of this mRT-PCR assay to identify viruses in FMDV-negative material not previously recognized using focused single-target rRT-PCR assays.

Unusually large tsunamis frequent a currently creeping part of the Aleutian megathrust

Science.gov (United States)

Witter, Robert C.; Carver, G.A.; Briggs, Richard; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; Koehler, R.D.; La Selle, SeanPaul M.; Bender, Adrian M.; Engelhart, S.E.; Hemphill-Haley, E.; Hill, Troy D.

2016-01-01

Current models used to assess earthquake and tsunami hazards are inadequate where creep dominates a subduction megathrust. Here we report geological evidence for large tsunamis, occurring on average every 300–340 years, near the source areas of the 1946 and 1957 Aleutian tsunamis. These areas bookend a postulated seismic gap over 200 km long where modern geodetic measurements indicate that the megathrust is currently creeping. At Sedanka Island, evidence for large tsunamis includes six sand sheets that blanket a lowland facing the Pacific Ocean, rise to 15 m above mean sea level, contain marine diatoms, cap terraces, adjoin evidence for scour, and date from the past 1700 years. The youngest sheet, and modern drift logs found as far as 800 m inland and >18 m elevation, likely record the 1957 tsunami. Modern creep on the megathrust coexists with previously unrecognized tsunami sources along this part of the Aleutian Subduction Zone.

NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease - 2017. In this Table, provisional cases of selected notifiable diseases (≥1,000 cases reported during the preceding year),...

NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — NNDSS - Table II. West Nile virus disease - 2015.In this Table, provisional cases of selected notifiable diseases (≥1,000 cases reported during the preceding year),...

Literature and information related to the natural resources of the North Aleutian Basin of Alaska.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stull, E.A.; Hlohowskyj, I.; LaGory, K. E.; Environmental Science Division

2008-01-31

The North Aleutian Basin Planning Area of the Minerals Management Service (MMS) is a large geographic area with significant natural resources. The Basin includes most of the southeastern part of the Bering Sea Outer Continental Shelf, including all of Bristol Bay. The area supports important habitat for a wide variety of species and globally significant habitat for birds and marine mammals, including several federally listed species. Villages and communities of the Alaska Peninsula and other areas bordering or near the Basin rely on its natural resources (especially commercial and subsistence fishing) for much of their sustenance and livelihood. The offshore area of the North Aleutian Basin is considered to have important hydrocarbon reserves, especially natural gas. In 2006, the MMS released a draft proposed program, 'Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 2007-2012' and an accompanying draft programmatic environmental impact statement (EIS). The draft proposed program identified two lease sales proposed in the North Aleutian Basin in 2010 and 2012, subject to restrictions. The area proposed for leasing in the Basin was restricted to the Sale 92 Area in the southwestern portion. Additional EISs will be needed to evaluate the potential effects of specific lease actions, exploration activities, and development and production plans in the Basin. A full range of updated multidisciplinary scientific information will be needed to address oceanography, fate and effects of oil spills, marine ecosystems, fish, fisheries, birds, marine mammals, socioeconomics, and subsistence in the Basin. Scientific staff at Argonne National Laboratory were contracted to assist MMS with identifying and prioritizing information needs related to potential future oil and gas leasing and development activities in the North Aleutian Basin. Argonne focused on three related tasks: (1) identify and gather relevant literature published since 1996, (2) synthesize and

Farmers’ perception of stable schools as a tool to improve management for the benefit of mink welfare

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henriksen, Britt I. F.; Anneberg, Inger; Sørensen, Jan Tind

2015-01-01

The aim of the study was to explore farmers' perception of stable schools as a tool to improve management for the benefit of mink welfare. Stable schools are knowledge exchange between farmers working towards a common goal, being able to give practical advice to each other. The concept is based......, and that motivation for working towards a common goal is very important for the process of common learning among the farmers. The uniform production system at mink farms gives special challenges in how to work with the different subjects to ensure farmer ownership of the process. The farmers did not see the seasonal...

Virus diseases in lettuce in the Mediterranean basin.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreno, Aranzazu; Fereres, Alberto

2012-01-01

Lettuce is frequently attacked by several viruses causing disease epidemics and considerable yield losses along the Mediterranean basin. Aphids are key pests and the major vectors of plant viruses in lettuce fields. Lettuce mosaic virus (LMV) is probably the most important because it is seed-transmitted in addition to be transmissible by many aphid species that alight on the crop. Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) is another virus that causes severe damage since the introduction of its major vector, the thrips Frankliniella occidentalis. In regions with heavy and humid soils, Lettuce Mirafiori big-vein virus (LMBVV) can also produce major yield losses. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Inhibition of Interferon Induction and Action by the Nairovirus Nairobi Sheep Disease Virus/Ganjam Virus

OpenAIRE

Holzer, Barbara; Bakshi, Siddharth; Bridgen, Anne; Baron, Michael D.

2011-01-01

The Nairoviruses are an important group of tick-borne viruses that includes pathogens of man (Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus) and livestock animals (Dugbe virus, Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV)). NSDV is found in large parts of East Africa and the Indian subcontinent (where it is known as Ganjam virus). We have investigated the ability of NSDV to antagonise the induction and actions of interferon. Both pathogenic and apathogenic isolates could actively inhibit the induction of type ...

Metabolic and growth response of mink (Neovison vison) kits until 10 weeks of age when exposed to different dietary protein provision

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsson, Caroline; Fink, Rikke; Matthiesen, Connie Marianne Frank

2012-01-01

to solid feed. The capacity to regulate the rate of gluconeogenesis was even more limited in young mink kits than in adult dams. However, young mink kits can regulate protein oxidation in response to dietary protein supply, probably by adapting the size of the liver and kidneys to the level of protein......Growth performance and metabolism were investigated in mink kits (n = 210) exposed to the same dietary treatment as their dams (n = 30), i.e. high (HP; 61% of metabolisable energy, ME), medium (MP; 48% of ME) or low (LP; 30% of ME) protein supply, from birth until 10 weeks of age. The kits were...... the heaviest. After transition to solid feed MP kits weighed most at nine weeks of age (p age, the kits fed the LP diet retained less (p

Epstein-Barr virus: general factors, virus-related diseases and measurement of viral load after transplant

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luciana Cristina Fagundes Gequelin

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The Epstein-Barr virus is responsible for infectious mononucleosis syndrome and is also closely associated to several types of cancer. The main complication involving Epstein-Barr virus infection, both in recipients of hematopoietic stem cells and solid organs, is post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease. The importance of this disease has increased interest in the development of laboratory tools to improve post-transplant monitoring and to detect the disease before clinical evolution. Viral load analysis for Epstein-Barr virus through real-time polymerase chain reaction is, at present, the best tool to measure viral load. However, there is not a consensus on which sample type is the best for the test and what is its predictive value for therapeutic interventions.

Aleutian tholeiitic and calc-alkaline magma series I: The mafic phenocrysts

Science.gov (United States)

Kay, S. Mahlburg; Kay, Robert W.

1985-07-01

Diagnostic mafic silicate assemblages in a continuous spectrum of Aleutian volcanic rocks provide evidence for contrasts in magmatic processes in the Aleutian arc crust. Tectonic segmentation of the arc exerts a primary control on the variable mixing, fractional crystallization and possible assimilation undergone by the magmas. End members of the continuum are termed calc-alkaline (CA) and tholeiitic (TH). CA volcanic rocks (e.g., Buldir and Moffett volcanoes) have low FeO/MgO ratios and contain compositionally diverse phenocryst populations, indicating magma mixing. Their Ni and Cr-rich magnesian olivine and clinopyroxene come from mantle-derived mafic olivine basalts that have mixed with more fractionated magmas at mid-to lower-crustal levels immediately preceding eruption. High-Al amphibole is associated with the mafic end member. In contrast, TH lavas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl volcanoes) have high FeO/MgO ratios and contain little evidence for mixing. Evolved lavas represent advanced stages of low pressure crystallization from a basaltic magma. These lavas contain groundmass olivine (FO 40 50) and lack Ca-poor pyroxene. Aleutian volcanic rocks with intermediate FeO/MgO ratios are termed transitional tholeiitic (TTH) and calc-alkaline (TCA). TCA magmas are common (e.g., Moffett, Adagdak, Great Sitkin, and Kasatochi volcanoes) and have resulted from mixing of high-Al basalt with more evolved magmas. They contain amphibole (high and low-Al) or orthopyroxene or both and are similar to the Japanese hypersthene-series. TTH magmas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl) contain orthopyroxene or pigeonite or both, and show some indication of upper crustal mixing. They are mineralogically similar to the Japanese pigeonite-series. High-Al basalt lacks Mg-rich mafic phases and is a derivative magma produced by high pressure fractionation of an olivine tholeiite. The low pressure mineral assemblage of high-Al basalt results from crystallization at higher crustal levels.

Ebola Virus Disease Candidate Vaccines Under Evaluation in Clinical Trials

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-02

evidence that oral vaccines fail in populations with disturbed microbiota, poor nutrition , and high intestinal inflammation [102-104]. Additionally...countermeasure development against Ebola virus disease becoming a global public- health priority. This review summarizes the status quo of candidate...members of the mononegaviral family Filoviridae) cause two diseases recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO): Ebola virus disease (EVD) can be

Effect of HMB and 2-Ox administered during pregnancy on bone properties in primiparous and multiparous minks (Neivison vison

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomaszewska Ewa

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study was to determine the mechanical and geometric properties as well as bone tissue density of long bones in primiparous and multiparous dams of minks supplemented with β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate (HMB and/or 2-oxoketoglutarate (2-Ox during gestation. Powdered 2-Ox was given at the daily dosage of 0.4 g/kg b.w. separately or simultaneously with HMB, which was administered at the daily dosage of 0.02 g/kg b.w. The study demonstrates for the first time that administration of 2-Ox and/or HMB to dams markedly influences bone tissue density and the mechanical and geometrical properties of mother`s bones in minks. Moreover, it was demonstrated that the supplementation was more effective in the thoracic limb, which was comprehensively used in contrast to the pelvic limb. The mechanical parameters and bone tissue density significantly increased in the humerus in multiparous minks. Only such diet may provide satisfactory production results in the animals. Nutritional deficiencies occurring during pregnancies may trigger body`s own reserves to cover the bone mass increase in developing foetuses and support milk production. This can prevent regeneration of dams’ organisms, which negatively affects their reproductive performance. 2-Ox or HMB may be regarded as a protective metabolite when administered orally to minks, counteracting the negative influences of pregnancy and lactation periods on bones condition. Both simultaneous treatment with 2-Ox and HMB and their separate administration were equally effective.

Undersøgelse af nye vildtyper af hvalpesygevirus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Line; Jensen, Trine Hammer; Hammer, Anne Sofie

2010-01-01

  Canine distemper virus and the closely related phocine distemper virus have an overlapping host range and both have induced disease among terrestrial and marine carnivores. We have characterized the distemper virus among the wildlife in Denmark from 2000 to 2003. We have isolated viral RNA from...... the new wildtype CDVs, performed nucleic acid sequencing and determined the relatedness of the wildtypes. We found that the isolated virus from the investigated terrestrial carnivores (mink, badger, European polecat, beech marten and pine marten) were canine distemper virus, which was phylogeny separated...... from virus isolated from diseased seals. Our results revealed no direct epidemiological link between the two distemper viruses isolated from distemper cases among land-living carnivores and the marine carnivore....

Virus survival in slurry: Analysis of the stability of foot-and-mouth disease, classical swine fever, bovine viral diarrhoea and swine influenza viruses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bøtner, Anette; Belsham, Graham

2012-01-01

of an outbreak of disease before it has been recognized. The survival of foot-and-mouth disease virus, classical swine fever virus, bovine viral diarrhoea virus and swine influenza virus, which belong to three different RNA virus families plus porcine parvovirus (a DNA virus) was examined under controlled...... conditions. For each RNA virus, the virus survival in farm slurry under anaerobic conditions was short (generally ≤1h) when heated (to 55°C) but each of these viruses could retain infectivity at cool temperatures (5°C) for many weeks. The porcine parvovirus survived considerably longer than each of the RNA...... viruses under all conditions tested. The implications for disease spread are discussed....

Distinctly different parental magmas for plutons and lavas in the central Aleutian arc

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Y.; Rioux, M. E.; Kelemen, P. B.; Goldstein, S. L.; Bolge, L.; Kylander-Clark, A. R.

2014-12-01

While it is generally agreed that continental crust is generated by arc magmatism, average arc lavas are basaltic while the bulk continental crust is andesitic, and this has led to many models for secondary reprocessing of the arc crust in order to form continental crust. We report new data on calc-alkaline plutons in the central Aleutians showing that they have distinctly different sources compared to Holocene tholeiitic lavas. Therefore the lavas are not representative of the net magmatic transfer from the mantle into the arc crust. Eocene to Miocene (9-39 Ma) intermediate to felsic plutonic rocks from the central Aleutian arc show higher SiO2 at a given Mg#, higher ɛNd- and ɛHf-values, and lower Pb isotope ratios than Holocene volcanic rocks from the same region. Instead, the plutonic rocks resemble volcanics from the western Aleutians isotopically, and have chemical compositions similar to bulk continental crust. These data could reflect temporal variation of Aleutian magma source compositions, from Eocene-Miocene "isotopically depleted" and predominantly calc-alkaline to Holocene "isotopically enriched" and predominantly tholeiitic. Alternatively, they may reflect different transport and emplacement processes for the magmas that form plutons and lavas: calc-alkaline magmas with higher Si content and high viscosity may preferentially form plutons, perhaps after extensive mid-crustal degassing of initially high water contents. The latter case implies that the upper and middle arc crust is more like the calc-alkaline bulk composition of the continental crust than the lavas alone. Crustal reprocessing mechanisms that preserve upper and middle arc crust, while removing lower arc crust, can account for the genesis and evolution of continental crust. Since gabbroic lower arc crust extends from ca 20-40 km depth, and is density stable over most of this depth range, "delamination" of dense lithologies [1] may not be sufficient to accomplish this. Alternatively

Diseases and disorders of muscle.

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, A M; Young, R B

1993-01-01

periodic paralysis, and malignant hyperexia). Diseases of the connective tissues discussed include those of nutritional origin (scurvy, lathyrism, starvation, and protein deficiency), the genetic diseases (dermatosparaxis, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, osteogenesis imperfecta, Marfan syndrome, homocystinuria, alcaptonuria, epidermolysis bullosa, rheumatoid arthritis in humans, polyarthritis in swine, Aleutian disease of mink, and the several types of systemic lupus erythematosus) and the acquired diseases of connective tissues (abnormal calcification, systemic sclerosis, interstitial lung disease, hepatic fibrosis, and carcinomas of the connective tissues). Several of the diseases of connective tissues may prove to be useful models for determining the relationship of collagen to meat tenderness and its other physical properties. Several other promising models for studying the nutrition-related disorders and the quality-related characteristics of meat are also reviewed.

Comparison of the structures of three circoviruses: chicken anemia virus, porcine circovirus type 2, and beak and feather disease virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Crowther, R A; Berriman, J A; Curran, W L; Allan, G M; Todd, D

2003-12-01

Circoviruses are small, nonenveloped icosahedral animal viruses characterized by circular single-stranded DNA genomes. Their genomes are the smallest possessed by animal viruses. Infections with circoviruses, which can lead to economically important diseases, frequently result in virus-induced damage to lymphoid tissue and immunosuppression. Within the family Circoviridae, different genera are distinguished by differences in genomic organization. Thus, Chicken anemia virus is in the genus Gyrovirus, while porcine circoviruses and Beak and feather disease virus belong to the genus CIRCOVIRUS: Little is known about the structures of circoviruses. Accordingly, we investigated the structures of these three viruses with a view to determining whether they are related. Three-dimensional maps computed from electron micrographs showed that all three viruses have a T=1 organization with capsids formed from 60 subunits. Porcine circovirus type 2 and beak and feather disease virus show similar capsid structures with flat pentameric morphological units, whereas chicken anemia virus has stikingly different protruding pentagonal trumpet-shaped units. It thus appears that the structures of viruses in the same genus are related but that those of viruses in different genera are unrelated.

Development of a sandwich ELISA for quantification of immunoglobulin G in mink blood

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mathiesen, Ronja; Chriél, Mariann; Struve, T.

2016-01-01

early immunity and thus their resistance against pathogenic agents found in the environment. This study describes a sandwich ELISA for quantification of the concentration of total immunoglobulin G in mink blood. The ELISA was validated with serum samples from females (n=8) and their kits (litters of 4...

Aleutian Islands Coastal Resources Inventory and Environmental Sensitivity Maps: M_MAMPT (Marine Mammal Points)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains biological resource data for seals and sea lions in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Points in this data set represent locations of haulout and...

Four emerging arboviral diseases in North America: Jamestown Canyon, Powassan, chikungunya, and Zika virus diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Pastula, Daniel M; Smith, Daniel E; Beckham, J David; Tyler, Kenneth L

2016-06-01

Arthropod-borne viruses, or arboviruses, are viruses that are transmitted through the bites of mosquitoes, ticks, or sandflies. There are numerous arboviruses throughout the world capable of causing human disease spanning different viral families and genera. Recently, Jamestown Canyon, Powassan, chikungunya, and Zika viruses have emerged as increasingly important arboviruses that can cause human disease in North America. Unfortunately, there are currently no proven disease-modifying therapies for these arboviral diseases, so treatment is largely supportive. Given there are also no commercially available vaccines for these four arboviral infections, prevention is the key. To prevent mosquito or tick bites that might result in one of these arboviral diseases, people should wear long-sleeved shirts and pants while outside if feasible, apply insect repellant when going outdoors, using window screens or air conditioning to keep mosquitoes outside, and perform tick checks after being in wooded or brushy outdoor areas.

Using epidemiological information to develop effective integrated virus disease management strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Roger A C

2004-03-01

Virus diseases cause serious losses in yield and quality of cultivated plants worldwide. These losses and the resulting financial damage can be limited by controlling epidemics using measures that minimise virus infection sources or suppress virus spread. For each combination of virus, cultivated plant and production system, there is an 'economic threshold' above which the financial damage is sufficient to justify using such measures. However, individual measures used alone may bring only small benefits and they may become ineffective, especially over the long term. When diverse control measures that act in different ways are combined and used together, their effects are complementary resulting in far more effective overall control. Such experiences have led to the development of integrated management concepts for virus diseases that combine available host resistance, cultural, chemical and biological control measures. Selecting the ideal mix of measures for each pathosystem and production situation requires detailed knowledge of the epidemiology of the causal virus and the mode of action of each individual control measure so that diverse responses can be devised to meet the unique features of each of the different scenarios considered. The strategies developed must be robust and necessitate minimal extra expense, labour demands and disruption to standard practices. Examples of how epidemiological information can be used to develop effective integrated disease management (IDM) strategies for diverse situations are described. They involve circumstances where virus transmission from plant-to-plant occurs in four different ways: by contact, non-persistently or persistently by insect vectors, and by root-infecting fungi. The examples are: Subterranean clover mottle virus (SCMoV) (contact-transmitted) and Bean yellow mosaic virus (BYMV) (non-persistently aphid-transmitted) in annually self-regenerating clover pasture; three seed-borne viruses (all non-persistently aphid

Reduced Genetic Diversity and Increased Structure in American Mink on the Swedish Coast following Invasive Species Control.

Science.gov (United States)

Zalewski, Andrzej; Zalewska, Hanna; Lunneryd, Sven-Gunnar; André, Carl; Mikusiński, Grzegorz

2016-01-01

Eradication and population reductions are often used to mitigate the negative impacts of non-native invasive species on native biodiversity. However, monitoring the effectiveness of non-native species control programmes is necessary to evaluate the efficacy of these measures. Genetic monitoring could provide valuable insights into temporal changes in demographic, ecological, and evolutionary processes in invasive populations being subject to control programmes. Such programmes should cause a decrease in effective population size and/or in genetic diversity of the targeted non-native species and an increase in population genetic structuring over time. We used microsatellite DNA data from American mink (Neovison vison) to determine whether the removal of this predator on the Koster Islands archipelago and the nearby Swedish mainland affected genetic variation over six consecutive years of mink culling by trappers as part of a population control programme. We found that on Koster Islands allelic richness decreased (from on average 4.53 to 3.55), genetic structuring increased, and effective population size did not change. In contrast, the mink population from the Swedish coast showed no changes in genetic diversity or structure, suggesting the stability of this population over 6 years of culling. Effective population size did not change over time but was higher on the coast than on the islands across all years. Migration rates from the islands to the coast were almost two times higher than from the coast to the islands. Most migrants leaving the coast were localised on the southern edge of the archipelago, as expected from the direction of the sea current between the two sites. Genetic monitoring provided valuable information on temporal changes in the population of American mink suggesting that this approach can be used to evaluate and improve control programmes of invasive vertebrates.

Reduced Genetic Diversity and Increased Structure in American Mink on the Swedish Coast following Invasive Species Control.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrzej Zalewski

Full Text Available Eradication and population reductions are often used to mitigate the negative impacts of non-native invasive species on native biodiversity. However, monitoring the effectiveness of non-native species control programmes is necessary to evaluate the efficacy of these measures. Genetic monitoring could provide valuable insights into temporal changes in demographic, ecological, and evolutionary processes in invasive populations being subject to control programmes. Such programmes should cause a decrease in effective population size and/or in genetic diversity of the targeted non-native species and an increase in population genetic structuring over time. We used microsatellite DNA data from American mink (Neovison vison to determine whether the removal of this predator on the Koster Islands archipelago and the nearby Swedish mainland affected genetic variation over six consecutive years of mink culling by trappers as part of a population control programme. We found that on Koster Islands allelic richness decreased (from on average 4.53 to 3.55, genetic structuring increased, and effective population size did not change. In contrast, the mink population from the Swedish coast showed no changes in genetic diversity or structure, suggesting the stability of this population over 6 years of culling. Effective population size did not change over time but was higher on the coast than on the islands across all years. Migration rates from the islands to the coast were almost two times higher than from the coast to the islands. Most migrants leaving the coast were localised on the southern edge of the archipelago, as expected from the direction of the sea current between the two sites. Genetic monitoring provided valuable information on temporal changes in the population of American mink suggesting that this approach can be used to evaluate and improve control programmes of invasive vertebrates.

Avian influenza A virus and Newcastle disease virus mono- and co-infections in birds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iv. Zarkov

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The main features of avian influenza viruses (AIV and Newcastle disease virus (APMV-1, the possibilities for isolation and identification in laboratory conditions, methods of diagnostics, main hosts, clinical signs and virus shedding are reviewed in chronological order. The other part of the review explains the mechanisms and interactions in cases of co-infection of AIV and APMV-1, either between them or with other pathogens in various indicator systems – cell cultures, chick embryos or birds. The emphasis is placed on quantitative data on the virus present mainly in the first ten days following experimental infection of birds, the periods of virus carrier ship and shedding, clinical signs, pathological changes, diagnostic challenges

Molecular characterization and phylogenetic analysis of Babesia sp. NV-1 detected from wild American Mink ( Neovison vison ) in Hokkaido, Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirata, Haruyuki; Ishinabe, Satoki; Jinnai, Michio; Asakawa, Mitsuhiko; Ishihara, Chiaki

2013-04-01

Babesiosis is a tick-borne protozoan disease affecting many mammalian species worldwide, caused by the intraerythrocytic multiplication of Babesia spp. The present study aimed to detect the presence of Babesia sp. in 13 American mink from Hokkaido, Japan. One of 13 animals was positive, as indicated by nested PCR targeting the 18S ribosomal RNA (SSU rDNA) and subunit 7 (eta) of the chaperonin-containing t-complex polypeptide 1 (CCT7) genes from species of Babesia and Theileria. Sequencing of the PCR product of SSU rDNA revealed 99% homology to the isolates of Babesia sp. SAP#131 found in raccoons in Hokkaido, whereas that of the CCT7 gene showed 80% homology to the isolates of Babesia gibsoni in dogs as determined by BLAST analysis. We refer to the cognate sequence as Babesia sp. NV-1. Phylogenetic analyses of SSU rDNA and CCT7 genes from Babesia sp. NV-1 revealed them to be most closely related to the Babesia sp. SAP#131 from a raccoon in Hokkaido and to canine B. gibsoni, respectively. Here, we provide the first molecular evidence of the Babesia sp. NV-1 parasite in feral American mink ( Neovison vison ) in Hokkaido, Japan.

Fatty acid alterations caused by PCBs (Aroclor 1242) and copper in adipose tissue around lymph nodes of mink

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaekelae, R.; Hyvaerinen, H.

1999-01-01

Fatty acid composition was determined in adipose tissue surrounding the mesenteric lymph nodes of mink (Mustela vison) exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs: 1 mg Aroclor 1242 in food day -1 for 28 days) and/or copper (62 mg kg -1 food). These specific adipose tissues are known to have functional relationships with lymphocytes, and proliferation of cultured lymphocytes is influenced by the quality of fatty acids available in media. In six experimental groups the diet was based on freshwater fish, and in two groups it was based on marine fish. These basal diets differed in terms of fatty acid composition and content of fat-soluble vitamins A 1 and E. The fatty acid composition of membrane phospholipids (PL) responded to PCBs more than that of triacylglycerols (TG). The effects of copper were small. In female minks fed a diet of freshwater fish, the proportion of highly unsaturated fatty acids in PL decreased by 5 wt.% due to PCBs, and the acids seemed to be replaced by monounsaturated fatty acids (9 wt.% increase of total). This decrease of highly unsaturated fatty acids in PL was milder in minks on the marine fish diet rich in fat-soluble vitamins. In TG of minks on the marine diet, however, PCBs decreased the proportion of docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3). The possibility that these alterations in the fatty acid metabolism of adipose tissue supporting the lymph nodes affect immune function during PCB exposure should be studied further. Interestingly, the quality of the fish diet affected the magnitude of the alterations. The fatty acid responses may also differ between males and females. (Copyright (c) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam. All rights reserved.)

Comparative analysis of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) and new RHDV2 virus antigenicity, using specific virus-like particles

OpenAIRE

Bárcena, Juan; Guerra, Beatriz; Angulo, Iván; González, Julia; Valcárcel, Félix; Mata, Carlos P.; Castón, José R.; Blanco, Esther; Alejo, Alí

2015-01-01

International audience; In 2010 a new Lagovirus related to rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) emerged in France and has since rapidly spread throughout domestic and wild rabbit populations of several European countries. The new virus, termed RHDV2, exhibits distinctive genetic, antigenic and pathogenic features. Notably, RHDV2 kills rabbits previously vaccinated with RHDV vaccines. Here we report for the first time the generation and characterization of RHDV2-specific virus-like particl...

Emerging sexually transmitted viral infections: 1. Review of Ebola virus disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Caswell, Rachel J; Manavi, Kaveh

2017-11-01

This is the first in a series of articles reviewing four viral infections, Ebola virus, Zika virus, human T-cell lymphotropic virus, type 1 and hepatitis C virus, with an emphasis on recent advances in our understanding of their sexual transmission. With current day speed and ease of travel it is important for staff in sexual healthcare services to know and understand these infections when patients present to them and also to be able to advise those travelling to endemic regions. Following the recent resurgence in West Africa, this first article looks at Ebola virus disease (EVD). EVD has a high mortality rate and, of note, has been detected in the semen of those who have cleared the virus from their blood and have clinically recovered from the disease. As the result of emerging data, the WHO now recommends safe sex practices for all male survivors of EVD for 12 months after the onset of the disease or after having had two consecutive negative tests of semen specimens for the virus. This review provides an up-to-date summary of what is currently known about EVD and its implications for sexual health practice.

Immune responses of poultry to Newcastle disease virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Kapczynski, Darrell R; Afonso, Claudio L; Miller, Patti J

2013-11-01

Newcastle disease (ND) remains a constant threat to poultry producers worldwide, in spite of the availability and global employment of ND vaccinations since the 1950s. Strains of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) belong to the order Mononegavirales, family Paramyxoviridae, and genus Avulavirus, are contained in one serotype and are also known as avian paramyxovirus serotype-1 (APMV-1). They are pleomorphic in shape and are single-stranded, non-segmented, negative sense RNA viruses. The virus has been reported to infect most orders of birds and thus has a wide host range. Isolates are characterized by virulence in chickens and the presence of basic amino acids at the fusion protein cleavage site. Low virulent NDV typically produce subclinical disease with some morbidity, whereas virulent isolates can result in rapid, high mortality of birds. Virulent NDV are listed pathogens that require immediate notification to the Office of International Epizootics and outbreaks typically result in trade embargos. Protection against NDV is through the use of vaccines generated with low virulent NDV strains. Immunity is derived from neutralizing antibodies formed against the viral hemagglutinin and fusion glycoproteins, which are responsible for attachment and spread of the virus. However, new techniques and technologies have also allowed for more in depth analysis of the innate and cell-mediated immunity of poultry to NDV. Gene profiling experiments have led to the discovery of novel host genes modulated immediately after infection. Differences in virus virulence alter host gene response patterns have been demonstrated. Furthermore, the timing and contributions of cell-mediated immune responses appear to decrease disease and transmission potential. In view of recent reports of vaccine failure from many countries on the ability of classical NDV vaccines to stop spread of disease, renewed interest in a more complete understanding of the global immune response of poultry to NDV will be

Differential Persistence of Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus in African Buffalo Is Related to Virus Virulence.

Science.gov (United States)

Maree, Francois; de Klerk-Lorist, Lin-Mari; Gubbins, Simon; Zhang, Fuquan; Seago, Julian; Pérez-Martín, Eva; Reid, Liz; Scott, Katherine; van Schalkwyk, Louis; Bengis, Roy; Charleston, Bryan; Juleff, Nicholas

2016-05-15

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus (FMDV) circulates as multiple serotypes and strains in many regions of endemicity. In particular, the three Southern African Territories (SAT) serotypes are maintained effectively in their wildlife reservoir, the African buffalo, and individuals may harbor multiple SAT serotypes for extended periods in the pharyngeal region. However, the exact site and mechanism for persistence remain unclear. FMD in buffaloes offers a unique opportunity to study FMDV persistence, as transmission from carrier ruminants has convincingly been demonstrated for only this species. Following coinfection of naive African buffaloes with isolates of three SAT serotypes from field buffaloes, palatine tonsil swabs were the sample of choice for recovering infectious FMDV up to 400 days postinfection (dpi). Postmortem examination identified infectious virus for up to 185 dpi and viral genomes for up to 400 dpi in lymphoid tissues of the head and neck, focused mainly in germinal centers. Interestingly, viral persistence in vivo was not homogenous, and the SAT-1 isolate persisted longer than the SAT-2 and SAT-3 isolates. Coinfection and passage of these SAT isolates in goat and buffalo cell lines demonstrated a direct correlation between persistence and cell-killing capacity. These data suggest that FMDV persistence occurs in the germinal centers of lymphoid tissue but that the duration of persistence is related to virus replication and cell-killing capacity. Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) causes a highly contagious acute vesicular disease in domestic livestock and wildlife species. African buffaloes (Syncerus caffer) are the primary carrier hosts of FMDV in African savannah ecosystems, where the disease is endemic. We have shown that the virus persists for up to 400 days in buffaloes and that there is competition between viruses during mixed infections. There was similar competition in cell culture: viruses that killed cells quickly persisted more

Uveitis and Systemic Inflammatory Markers in Convalescent Phase of Ebola Virus Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Chancellor, John R; Padmanabhan, Sriranjani P; Greenough, Thomas C; Sacra, Richard; Ellison, Richard T; Madoff, Lawrence C; Droms, Rebecca J; Hinkle, David M; Asdourian, George K; Finberg, Robert W; Stroher, Ute; Uyeki, Timothy M; Cerón, Olga M

2016-02-01

We report a case of probable Zaire Ebola virus-related ophthalmologic complications in a physician from the United States who contracted Ebola virus disease in Liberia. Uveitis, immune activation, and nonspecific increase in antibody titers developed during convalescence. This case highlights immune phenomena that could complicate management of Ebola virus disease-related uveitis during convalescence.

Presence of Vaccine-Derived Newcastle Disease Viruses in Wild Birds.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea J Ayala

Full Text Available Our study demonstrates the repeated isolation of vaccine-derived Newcastle disease viruses from different species of wild birds across four continents from 1997 through 2014. The data indicate that at least 17 species from ten avian orders occupying different habitats excrete vaccine-derived Newcastle disease viruses. The most frequently reported isolates were detected among individuals in the order Columbiformes (n = 23, followed in frequency by the order Anseriformes (n = 13. Samples were isolated from both free-ranging (n = 47 and wild birds kept in captivity (n = 7. The number of recovered vaccine-derived viruses corresponded with the most widely utilized vaccines, LaSota (n = 28 and Hitchner B1 (n = 19. Other detected vaccine-derived viruses resembled the PHY-LMV2 and V4 vaccines, with five and two cases, respectively. These results and the ubiquitous and synanthropic nature of wild pigeons highlight their potential role as indicator species for the presence of Newcastle disease virus of low virulence in the environment. The reverse spillover of live agents from domestic animals to wildlife as a result of the expansion of livestock industries employing massive amounts of live virus vaccines represent an underappreciated and poorly studied effect of human activity on wildlife.

Presence of Vaccine-Derived Newcastle Disease Viruses in Wild Birds

Science.gov (United States)

Ayala, Andrea J.; Dimitrov, Kiril M.; Becker, Cassidy R.; Goraichuk, Iryna V.; Arns, Clarice W.; Bolotin, Vitaly I.; Ferreira, Helena L.; Gerilovych, Anton P.; Goujgoulova, Gabriela V.; Martini, Matheus C.; Muzyka, Denys V.; Orsi, Maria A.; Scagion, Guilherme P.; Silva, Renata K.; Solodiankin, Olexii S.; Stegniy, Boris T.; Miller, Patti J.; Afonso, Claudio L.

2016-01-01

Our study demonstrates the repeated isolation of vaccine-derived Newcastle disease viruses from different species of wild birds across four continents from 1997 through 2014. The data indicate that at least 17 species from ten avian orders occupying different habitats excrete vaccine-derived Newcastle disease viruses. The most frequently reported isolates were detected among individuals in the order Columbiformes (n = 23), followed in frequency by the order Anseriformes (n = 13). Samples were isolated from both free-ranging (n = 47) and wild birds kept in captivity (n = 7). The number of recovered vaccine-derived viruses corresponded with the most widely utilized vaccines, LaSota (n = 28) and Hitchner B1 (n = 19). Other detected vaccine-derived viruses resembled the PHY-LMV2 and V4 vaccines, with five and two cases, respectively. These results and the ubiquitous and synanthropic nature of wild pigeons highlight their potential role as indicator species for the presence of Newcastle disease virus of low virulence in the environment. The reverse spillover of live agents from domestic animals to wildlife as a result of the expansion of livestock industries employing massive amounts of live virus vaccines represent an underappreciated and poorly studied effect of human activity on wildlife. PMID:27626272

Treatment of ebola virus disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Kilgore, Paul E; Grabenstein, John D; Salim, Abdulbaset M; Rybak, Michael

2015-01-01

In March 2014, the largest Ebola outbreak in history exploded across West Africa. As of November 14, 2014, the World Health Organization has reported a total of 21,296 Ebola virus disease (EVD) cases, including 13,427 laboratory-confirmed EVD cases reported from the three most affected countries (Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone). As the outbreak of EVD has spread, clinical disease severity and national EVD case-fatality rates have remained high (21.2-60.8%). Prior to 2013, several EVD outbreaks were controlled by using routine public health interventions; however, the widespread nature of the current EVD outbreak as well as cultural practices in the affected countries have challenged even the most active case identification efforts. In addition, although treatment centers provide supportive care, no effective therapeutic agents are available for EVD-endemic countries. The ongoing EVD outbreak has stimulated investigation of several different therapeutic strategies that target specific viral structures and mechanisms of Ebola viruses. Six to eight putative pharmacotherapies or immunologically based treatments have demonstrated promising results in animal studies. In addition, agents composed of small interfering RNAs targeting specific proteins of Ebola viruses, traditional hyperimmune globulin isolated from Ebola animal models, monoclonal antibodies, and morpholino oligomers (small molecules used to block viral gene expression). A number of EVD therapeutic agents are now entering accelerated human trials in EVD-endemic countries. The goal of therapeutic agent development includes postexposure prevention and EVD cure. As knowledge of Ebola virus virology and pathogenesis grows, it is likely that new therapeutic tools will be developed. Deployment of novel Ebola therapies will require unprecedented cooperation as well as investment to ensure that therapeutic tools become available to populations at greatest risk for EVD and its complications. In this article, we

Carriers of foot-and-mouth disease virus: a review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Moonen, P.; Schrijver, R.

2000-01-01

This review describes current knowledge about persistent foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) infections, the available methods to detect carrier animals, the properties of persisting virus, the immunological mechanisms, and the risk of transmission. In particular, knowledge about the carrier state,

A systems view and lessons from the ongoing Ebola Virus disease ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article analyses the on-going (2014) Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa from a systems perspective; and draws out lessons for West Africa in general and Ghana in particular. Keywords: Ebola Virus Disease, West Africa , Ghana , Systems , Prevention and Control ...

Biology, etiology, and control of virus diseases of banana and plantain.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, P Lava; Selvarajan, Ramasamy; Iskra-Caruana, Marie-Line; Chabannes, Matthieu; Hanna, Rachid

2015-01-01

Banana and plantain (Musa spp.), produced in 10.3 million ha in the tropics, are among the world's top 10 food crops. They are vegetatively propagated using suckers or tissue culture plants and grown almost as perennial plantations. These are prone to the accumulation of pests and pathogens, especially viruses which contribute to yield reduction and are also barriers to the international exchange of germplasm. The most economically important viruses of banana and plantain are Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV), a complex of banana streak viruses (BSVs) and Banana bract mosaic virus (BBrMV). BBTV is known to cause the most serious economic losses in the "Old World," contributing to a yield reduction of up to 100% and responsible for a dramatic reduction in cropping area. The BSVs exist as episomal and endogenous forms are known to be worldwide in distribution. In India and the Philippines, BBrMV is known to be economically important but recently the virus was discovered in Colombia and Costa Rica, thus signaling its spread into the "New World." Banana and plantain are also known to be susceptible to five other viruses of minor significance, such as Abaca mosaic virus, Abaca bunchy top virus, Banana mild mosaic virus, Banana virus X, and Cucumber mosaic virus. Studies over the past 100 years have contributed to important knowledge on disease biology, distribution, and spread. Research during the last 25 years have led to a better understanding of the virus-vector-host interactions, virus diversity, disease etiology, and epidemiology. In addition, new diagnostic tools were developed which were used for surveillance and the certification of planting material. Due to a lack of durable host resistance in the Musa spp., phytosanitary measures and the use of virus-free planting material are the major methods of virus control. The state of knowledge on BBTV, BBrMV, and BSVs, and other minor viruses, disease spread, and control are summarized in this review. © 2015 Elsevier Inc

Genetic and non-genetic indirect effects for bite mark traits in group housed mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alemu, Setegn Worku; Berg, Peer; Janss, Luc

irrespective of relatedness. Kin selection theory predicts that an individual will interact differently with family members vs. non-family members. We showed that mink interact differently either due to sex or the family relationship with their group mates. Our results show that IGEs are very important...

Utilization of milk amino acids for body gain in suckling mink (Mustela vison) kits

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tauson, Anne-Helene; Fink, Rikke; Hansen, Niels E

2005-01-01

The efficiency of utilization of milk amino acids for body gain in suckling mink kits from small (n = 3), medium (n = 6) and large litters (n = 9) was investigated by using 36 mink dams and their litters for measurements during lactation weeks 1 through 4. Measurements on each dam and litter were...... performed once, hence three dams per litter size each week (n = 9). Individual milk intake of kits was determined, milk samples were collected and kits were killed for determination of amino acid composition. The most abundant amino acids in milk were glutamate, leucine and aspartate making up about 40......% of total amino acids. Branched chained amino acids made up slightly more than 20% and sulphur containing amino acids less than 5% of total milk amino acids. In kit bodies the sum of glutamate, aspartate and leucine made up about 32% of amino acids, branched chain amino acids about 16% and sulphur...

The effects of climbing cages on behaviour of female mink during the lactation period

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lidfors, L.; Axelsson, H.; Loberg, J.

2012-01-01

=46) or standard cages (2.550 cm², n=44). Behavioural observations were made four weeks before birth until kits were nine weeks old with one-zero sampling during two hours before feeding. During week 1-4 after females had given birth they were mostly recorded in the nest box and there were......The aim was to investigate if there were differences in behaviour of female mink when kept in a climbing cage compared with a standard cage during the lactation period. The study was carried out on 90 mink of the colour type "black cross". Females were housed in either climbing cages (4.350 cm², n...... no differences between cage types. Week 5-8 after giving birth females in climbing cages were less in the nest box, less active out in the cage and had fewer abnormal behaviours, but were on the platforms and more inactive out in the cage. In the bottom cage females were more often walking, grooming and inactive...

Diagnostic SNPs for inferring population structure in American mink (Neovison vison) identified through RAD sequencing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2015-01-01

Data from: "Diagnostic SNPs for inferring population structure in American mink (Neovison vison) identified through RAD sequencing" in Genomic Resources Notes accepted 1 October 2014 to 30 November 2014....

Molecular epidemiology, evolution and phylogeny of foot-and-mouth disease virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jamal, Syed Muhammad; Belsham, Graham J

2018-01-01

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is responsible for one of the most economically important infectious diseases of livestock. The virus spreads very easily and continues to affect many countries (mainly in Africa and Asia). The risks associated with the introduction of FMDV result in major...

Viruses: agents of coral disease?

Science.gov (United States)

Davy, S K; Burchett, S G; Dale, A L; Davies, P; Davy, J E; Muncke, C; Hoegh-Guldberg, O; Wilson, W H

2006-03-23

The potential role of viruses in coral disease has only recently begun to receive attention. Here we describe our attempts to determine whether viruses are present in thermally stressed corals Pavona danai, Acropora formosa and Stylophora pistillata and zoanthids Zoanthus sp., and their zooxanthellae. Heat-shocked P. danai, A. formosa and Zoanthus sp. all produced numerous virus-like particles (VLPs) that were evident in the animal tissue, zooxanthellae and the surrounding seawater; VLPs were also seen around heat-shocked freshly isolated zooxanthellae (FIZ) from P. danai and S. pistillata. The most commonly seen VLPs were tail-less, hexagonal and about 40 to 50 nm in diameter, though a diverse range of other VLP morphotypes (e.g. rounded, rod-shaped, droplet-shaped, filamentous) were also present around corals. When VLPs around heat-shocked FIZ from S. pistillata were added to non-stressed FIZ from this coral, they resulted in cell lysis, suggesting that an infectious agent was present; however, analysis with transmission electron microscopy provided no clear evidence of viral infection. The release of diverse VLPs was again apparent when flow cytometry was used to enumerate release by heat-stressed A. formosa nubbins. Our data support the infection of reef corals by viruses, though we cannot yet determine the precise origin (i.e. coral, zooxanthellae and/or surface microbes) of the VLPs seen. Furthermore, genome sequence data are required to establish the presence of viruses unequivocally.

Optimization of Newcastle disease virus production in T-flask | Arifin ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In the present study, the production of lentogenic Asplin F strain of Newcastle disease virus by using cell culture method was studied. Experiments were carried out in T-flasks to investigate the effects of serum concentration in the culture medium during virus replication phase and multiplicity of infection (MOI) on ND virus ...

75 FR 59687 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Alaska Region Bering Sea & Aleutian Islands...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-28

... among harvesters, processors, and coastal communities and monitors the ``economic stability for... Collection; Comment Request; Alaska Region Bering Sea & Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Crab Economic Data Reports... CR Program's mandatory economic data collection report (EDR) used to assess the efficacy of the CR...

A new reportable disease is born: Taiwan Centers for Disease Control's response to emerging Zika virus infection.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Angela Song-En; Shu, Pei-Yun; Yang, Chin-Hui

2016-04-01

Zika virus infection, usually a mild disease transmitted through the bite of Aedes mosquitos, has been reported to be possibly associated with microcephaly and neurologic complications. Taiwan's first imported case of Zika virus infection was found through fever screening at airport entry in January 2016. No virus was isolated from patient's blood taken during acute illness; however, PCR products showed that the virus was of Asian lineage closely related to virus from Cambodia. To prevent Zika virus from spreading in Taiwan, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control has strengthened efforts in quarantine and surveillance, increased Zika virus infection diagnostic capacity, implemented healthcare system preparedness plans, and enhanced vector control program through community mobilization and education. Besides the first imported case, no additional cases of Zika virus infection have been identified. Furthermore, no significant increase in the number of microcephaly or Guillain- Barré Syndrome has been observed in Taiwan. To date, there have been no autochthonous transmissions of Zika virus infection. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Advances in vaccine research against economically important viral diseases of food animals: Infectious bursal disease virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackwood, Daral J

2017-07-01

Numerous reviews have been published on infectious bursal disease (IBD) and infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV). Many high quality vaccines are commercially available for the control of IBD that, when used correctly, provide solid protection against infection and disease caused by IBDV. Viruses are not static however; they continue to evolve and vaccines need to keep pace with them. The evolution of IBDV has resulted in very virulent strains and new antigenic types of the virus. This review will discuss some of the limitations associated with existing vaccines, potential solutions to these problems and advances in new vaccines for the control of IBD. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Coinfecting viruses as determinants of HIV disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Lisco, Andrea; Vanpouille, Christophe; Margolis, Leonid

2009-02-01

The human body constitutes a balanced ecosystem of its own cells together with various microbes ("host-microbe ecosystem"). The transmission of HIV-1 and the progression of HIV disease in such an ecosystem are accompanied by de novo infection by other microbes or by activation of microbes that were present in the host in homeostatic equilibrium before HIV-1 infection. In recent years, data have accumulated on the interactions of these coinfecting microbes-viruses in particular-with HIV. Coinfecting viruses generate negative and positive signals that suppress or upregulate HIV-1. We suggest that the signals generated by these viruses may largely affect HIV transmission, pathogenesis, and evolution. The study of the mechanisms of HIV interaction with coinfecting viruses may indicate strategies to suppress positive signals, enhance negative signals, and lead to the development of new and original anti-HIV therapies.

Comparative analysis of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) and new RHDV2 virus antigenicity, using specific virus-like particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Bárcena, Juan; Guerra, Beatriz; Angulo, Iván; González, Julia; Valcárcel, Félix; Mata, Carlos P; Castón, José R; Blanco, Esther; Alejo, Alí

2015-09-24

In 2010 a new Lagovirus related to rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) emerged in France and has since rapidly spread throughout domestic and wild rabbit populations of several European countries. The new virus, termed RHDV2, exhibits distinctive genetic, antigenic and pathogenic features. Notably, RHDV2 kills rabbits previously vaccinated with RHDV vaccines. Here we report for the first time the generation and characterization of RHDV2-specific virus-like particles (VLPs). Our results further confirmed the differential antigenic properties exhibited by RHDV and RHDV2, highlighting the need of using RHDV2-specific diagnostic assays to monitor the spread of this new virus.

Antigenic structure of the capsid protein of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martinez-Torrecuadrada, Jorge L.; Cortes, Elena; Vela, Carmen

1998-01-01

Rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) causes an important disease in rabbits. The virus capsid is composed of a single 60 kDa protein. The capsid protein gene was cloned in Escherichia coli using the pET3 system, and the antigenic structure of RHDV VP60 was dissected using 11 monoclonal...

Clinical Features and Outcome of Ebola Virus Disease in Pediatric Patients

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damkjær, Mads; Rudolf, Frauke; Mishra, Sharmistha

2016-01-01

Clinical and outcome data on pediatric Ebola virus disease are limited. We report a case-series of 33 pediatric patients with Ebola virus disease in a single Ebola Treatment Center in 2014-2015. The case-fatality rate was 42%, with the majority of deaths occurring within 10 days of admission....

The cellular receptors for infectious bursal disease virus | Zhu ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Virus receptors are simplistically defined as cell surface molecules that mediate binding (attachment, adsorption) and/or trigger membrane fusion or entry through other processes. Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) entry into host cells occurs by recognition of specific cellular receptor(s) with viral envelope glycoprotein, ...

Biochemical map of polypeptides specified by foot-and-mouth disease virus.

OpenAIRE

Grubman, M J; Robertson, B H; Morgan, D O; Moore, D M; Dowbenko, D

1984-01-01

Pulse-chase labeling of foot-and-mouth disease virus-infected bovine kidney cells revealed stable and unstable viral-specific polypeptides. To identify precursor-product relationships among these polypeptides, antisera against a number of structural and nonstructural viral-specific polypeptides were used. Cell-free translations programmed with foot-and-mouth disease virion RNA or foot-and-mouth disease virus-infected bovine kidney cell lysates, which were shown to contain almost identical pol...

Animal models of human respiratory syncytial virus disease

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bem, Reinout A.; Domachowske, Joseph B.; Rosenberg, Helene F.

2011-01-01

Infection with the human pneumovirus pathogen, respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV), causes a wide spectrum of respiratory disease, notably among infants and the elderly. Laboratory animal studies permit detailed experimental modeling of hRSV disease and are therefore indispensable in the search for

Strong T-phases recorded in the Aleutian Arc following the April 20, 2006 Koryakia, Russia Mw=7.6 earthquake

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobs, K. M.; McNutt, S. R.; Reyes, C. G.; Deangelis, S.

2006-12-01

The April 20, 2006 Mw=7.6 earthquake that occurred in Koryakia, Russia, just North of Kamchatka, produced very clear T-phases on seismic stations in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. The seismic stations are maintained by the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) to monitor volcanoes. Strong T-phases were recorded by most of the AVO network. The well-distributed locations of the AVO stations along most of the arc, allow unusually clear observations of phase travel times and path effects. T-phases were recorded most clearly and with highest amplitudes in the central and western Aleutians. A sharp decline in amplitude is seen moving east across the arc as the path crosses the Alaskan continental shelf in the eastern Bering Sea. The partial destructive effects of the Bower's Ridge blocking part of the energy are evident at stations on several of the westernmost Aleutian volcanoes. In the central Aleutians several volcano networks recorded a strong secondary T-phase which we believe to be a reflection from the continental shelf edge or from somewhere else along the path. There are other possible interpretations to this signal, which are also being investigated. Using arrival times and distances of the T-phases we have calculated an average apparent velocity in the SOFAR channel of about 1550 m/s. This is slightly above the predicted speeds of 1400-1500 m/s for the Bering Sea. Investigations of the causes of the velocities variations as well as the secondary T-phases are ongoing and will likely yield new information about seismic and acoustic propagation in the Bering Sea.

Interference of Infectious Bursal Diseases (IBD) Virus and Vaccine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The interference of Infectious bursal disease (IBD) virus and vaccine with the immune response of the grey brested guinea fowl (Numida meleagridis galeata palas) to Newcastle desease (ND) “LaSota” vaccine was studied using hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test for detection of ND virus antibody and agar gel ...

Real-Time Evolution of Zika Virus Disease Outbreak, Roatán, Honduras.

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Trevor; Roy-Burman, Arup; Tuholske, Cascade; Busch, Michael P; Bakkour, Sonia; Stone, Mars; Linnen, Jeffrey M; Gao, Kui; Coleman, Jayleen; Bloch, Evan M

2017-08-01

A Zika virus disease outbreak occurred in Roatán, Honduras, during September 2015-July 2016. Blood samples and clinical information were obtained from 183 patients given a clinical diagnosis of suspected dengue virus infection. A total of 79 patients were positive for Zika virus, 13 for chikungunya virus, and 6 for dengue virus.

Field investigation of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) virus infection ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Prof. Ogunji

Foot and Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV) is a non-enveloped, single stranded RNA virus ... continents of Asia, Africa, and some regions in the South America. .... FCT = Federal Capital Territory; NE = North East, NC = North Central; NW =.

Effects of Aroclor 1242 and different fish-based diets on vitamins A(retinol) and A2 (3,4-didehydroretinol), and their fatty acyl esters in mink plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaekelae, Anne; Kaekelae, Reijo; Hyvaerinen Heikki; Nieminen, Petteri

2003-01-01

The effects of a 21-week exposure to Aroclor 1242 (1 mg per day in feed on plasma concentrations of vitamins A 1 (retinol) and A(3,4-didehydroretinol) and their principal fatty acyl esters (A 1 -16:0 A 2 -16:0 (palmitates), A 1 -18:1n-9; A 2 -18:1n-9 (oleates), and A 1 -18:0 A 2 -18:0 (stearates)) were studied in young female mink (Mustela vison) fed a diet based on freshwater smelt. These vitamin levels were also examined in mink fed diets containing Baltic herring or fatty marine fish. In the Aroclor-exposed smelt-fed mink, the plasma concentrations of A 1 and Aesters were significantly lower than the levels in controls fed the uncontaminated smelt diet. In addition, the A 2 esters reacted mor sensitively to the polychlorinated biphenyls than did A 1 esters. I contrast, in the plasma of the exposed mink the level of alcoholic A 1 was normal, and transport of thyroxine (T 4 ) and nonspecific lipoprotei transport of major lipids were not impaired. Despite the large dietary supply of vitamin A 2 and high levels of plasma A 2 esters, the mink fed freshwate smelt had only trace amounts of alcoholic vitamin A 2 in their plasma. The concentrations of A 1 and A 2 esters in the plasma of all the mink studied correlated with the hepatic total concentrations of the vitamins. Thus, in carnivores that have nonspecific lipoprotein transport of vitamin A esters determination of plasma levels of the esterified vitamins may be a useful nondestructive way to estimate stores of the vitamin A analogs in the body and to assess the organochlorine-induced decrease in the vitamin stores

Ebola virus disease: radiology preparedness.

Science.gov (United States)

Bluemke, David A; Meltzer, Carolyn C

2015-02-01

At present, there is a major emphasis on Ebola virus disease (EVD) preparedness training at medical facilities throughout the United States. Failure to have proper EVD procedures in place was cited as a major reason for infection of medical personnel in the United States. Medical imaging does not provide diagnosis of EVD, but patient assessment in the emergency department and treatment isolation care unit is likely to require imaging services. The purpose of this article is to present an overview of relevant aspects of EVD disease and preparedness relevant to the radiologic community. © RSNA, 2014.

Hepatitis C virus infection and risk of coronary artery disease

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roed, Torsten; Lebech, Anne-Mette; Kjaer, Andreas

2012-01-01

Several chronic infections have been associated with cardiovascular diseases, including Chlamydia pneumoniae, human immunodeficiency virus and viral hepatitis. This review evaluates the literature on the association between chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and the risk of coronary artery...

Borna disease virus and its role in the pathology of animals and humans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. O. Mikheev

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Infectious diseases that are caused by numerous pathogenic microorganisms – bacteria, viruses, protozoa or fungi – can be transmitted from patients or carriers to healthy people or animals. A large group of infectious disease is caused by pathogens of animal infections – zoonoses. The issue of zoonoses is of great significance in human pathology and requires comprehensive study. This is of particular relevance to Ukraine, as the question of prevalence, level within the population and threats to human life and health from zoonoses, though highly important, has remained insufficiently studied. Information about many of these pathogens is absent in the existing scientific literature accessible in Ukraine – both veterinary and medical. This applies, in particular, to a causative agent of viral zoonoses the Borna disease virus or Bornavirus. For this purpose, an analysis of the literature concerning the role of the Bornavirus in the pathology of animals and humans was conducted. It is well known that a large number of pathogens of animal infections (zoonoses, including viral, pose a potential threat to human health. Among these potential threats is the Borna disease virus belonging to the family of Bornaviridae, order Mononegavirales. This order includes representatives of deadly human diseases like rabies (family Rhabdoviridae, Ebola virus (family Filoviridae and Nipah virus (family Paramyxoviridae. Borna virus disease affects mainly mammals, but can infect birds and even reptiles (Aspid bornavirus. It is established that Bornaviruses have a wide range of natural hosts (horses, sheeps, cats, bats and various birds, including domestic animals, which poses a potential threat to human health. This is evidenced by numerous, although contradictory, research into the role of the Borna disease virus in human pathologies such as schizophrenia, depression, prolonged fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis and others. Analysis of the literature clearly

GATA2 Deficiency and Epstein–Barr Virus Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey I. Cohen

2017-12-01

Full Text Available GATA2 is a transcription factor that binds to the promoter of hematopoietic genes. Mutations in one copy of the gene are associated with haploinsufficiency and reduced levels of protein. This results in reduced numbers of several cell types important for immune surveillance including dendritic cells, monocytes, CD4, and NK cells, as well as impaired NK cell function. Recently, GATA2 has been associated with several different presentations of severe Epstein–Barr virus (EBV disease including primary infection requiring repeated hospitalizations, chronic active EBV disease, EBV-associated hydroa vacciniforme with hemophagocytosis, and EBV-positive smooth muscle tumors. EBV was found predominantly in B cells in each of the cases in which it was studied, unlike most cases of chronic active EBV disease in which the virus is usually present in T or NK cells. The variety of EBV-associated diseases seen in patients with GATA2 deficiency suggest that additional forms of severe EBV disease may be found in patients with GATA2 deficiency in the future.

GATA2 Deficiency and Epstein-Barr Virus Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen, Jeffrey I

2017-01-01

GATA2 is a transcription factor that binds to the promoter of hematopoietic genes. Mutations in one copy of the gene are associated with haploinsufficiency and reduced levels of protein. This results in reduced numbers of several cell types important for immune surveillance including dendritic cells, monocytes, CD4, and NK cells, as well as impaired NK cell function. Recently, GATA2 has been associated with several different presentations of severe Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) disease including primary infection requiring repeated hospitalizations, chronic active EBV disease, EBV-associated hydroa vacciniforme with hemophagocytosis, and EBV-positive smooth muscle tumors. EBV was found predominantly in B cells in each of the cases in which it was studied, unlike most cases of chronic active EBV disease in which the virus is usually present in T or NK cells. The variety of EBV-associated diseases seen in patients with GATA2 deficiency suggest that additional forms of severe EBV disease may be found in patients with GATA2 deficiency in the future.

[Role of hepatitis A and E viruses in the development of autoimmune diseases].

Science.gov (United States)

Iakimchuk, K S; Malinnikova, E Iu; Poleshchuk, V F; Mikhaĭlov, M I

2011-01-01

The mechanisms of development of autoimmune diseases may be associated with a complex of genetic, immune, hormonal, and infectious factors. Autoimmune diseases include a wide range of systemic and organ-specific diseases, including autoimmune hepatitis (AIH). It is currently assumed that the pathogenesis of AIH is due to compromised immune regulation in the presence of an exogenous triggering factor. Exogenous factors, such as viruses, may be triggers of AIH. There may be different ways of initiating an autoimmune response by viruses, which includes nonspecific T-lymphocyte activation and molecular mimicry. There is much evidence supporting the initiating role of hepatitis viruses in the development of AIH and other autoimmune diseases. The development of AIH symptoms during hepatitis A and E virus infections has been described elsewhere. The creation of animal models of viral hepatitis is required to confirm the hypothesis that the viruses trigger the development of AIH and other autoimmune manifestations.

A Virus-like disease of chinook salmon

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, A.J.; Pelnar, J.; Rucker, R.R.

1960-01-01

Consideration is given to a recurring disease of early feeding chinook salmon fingerlings at the Coleman, California, Federal Fish Cultural Station. The infection becomes manifest in the early spring months at low water temperatures and abates as the water temperature rises. Bacteriological studies have failed to yield the presence of a disease agent, either by cultural or staining procedures. The disease has been successfully transmitted from infected fish to healthy fish by the injection of bacteria-free filtrates prepared from diseased fish tissue. The causative agent is therefore believed to be a virus-like entity.

Acid-base status and cardiovascular function in mink (Mustela vison) anaesthetized with ketamine/midazolam.

Science.gov (United States)

Wamberg, S; Svendsen, P; Johansen, B

1996-01-01

Heart rate, arterial blood pressure and blood acid-base status were determined in 18 adult female mink (mean (+/- SEM) body weight 1052 +/- 34 g) during long-term anaesthesia with either controlled ventilation (n=12) or spontaneous respiration (n=6). Surgical anaesthesia was induced by intramuscular injection of ketamine hydrochloride (Ketaminol Vet, 40.0 +/- 1.7 mg/kg) and midazolam hydrochloride (Dormicum 2.8 +/- 0.1 mg/kg) and maintained for at least 5 h by continuous intravenous infusion of this drug combination in 0.9% saline. For all animals, the mean rates of infusion of ketamine and midazolam were 48.4 +/- 1.6 and 1.61 +/- 0.12 mg/h, respectively. Following continuous infusion of the anaesthetics in isotonic saline, at a rate of 20 ml/h, a moderate 'dilution acidosis' developed, which could be corrected by replacement of part of the saline with sodium bicarbonate to a final concentration of approximately 25 mmol NaHCO3 per litre. However, when the animals were allowed to breathe spontaneously, an increase in heart rate and a combined respiratory and metabolic acidosis occurred, due to severe respiratory depression. Apart from these effects and a few cases of increased salivation, no adverse effects over time were observed on the arterial blood acid-base status and cardiovascular function of the animals during ketamine/midazolam anaesthesia. It is concluded that the procedure described for long-term anaesthesia in mink is convenient and safe for acute physiological experiments in this species, provided normal body temperature and pulmonary gas exchange is sufficiently maintained. Thus, the need for an adequately controlled artificial ventilation is strongly emphasized. Finally, a proposal for the composition of an intravenous solution, containing ketamine and midazolam hydrochloride, and sodium bicarbonate in saline, suitable for long-term anaesthesia in adult mink is presented.

Multiple Virus Infections and the Characteristics of Chronic Bee Paralysis Virus in Diseased Honey Bees (Apis Mellifera L. in China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wu Yan Y.

2015-12-01

Full Text Available China has the largest number of managed honey bee colonies globally, but there is currently no data on viral infection in diseased A. mellifera L. colonies in China. In particular, there is a lack of data on chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV in Chinese honey bee colonies. Consequently, the present study investigated the occurrence and frequency of several widespread honey bee viruses in diseased Chinese apiaries, and we used the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR assay. Described was the relationship between the presence of CBPV and diseased colonies (with at least one of the following symptoms: depopulation, paralysis, dark body colorings and hairless, or a mass of dead bees on the ground surrounding the beehives. Phylogenetic analyses of CBPV were employed. The prevalence of multiple infections of honey bee viruses in diseased Chinese apiaries was 100%, and the prevalence of infections with even five and six viruses were higher than expected. The incidence of CBPV in diseased colonies was significantly higher than that in apparently healthy colonies in Chinese A. mellifera aparies, and CBPV isolates from China can be separated into Chinese-Japanese clade 1 and 2. The results indicate that beekeeping in China may be threatened by colony decline due to the high prevalence of multiple viruses with CBPV.

Ebola virus disease: preparedness in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Ashino, Yugo; Chagan-Yasutan, Haorile; Egawa, Shinichi; Hattori, Toshio

2015-02-01

The current outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) is due to a lack of resources, untrained medical personnel, and the specific contact-mediated type of infection of this virus. In Japan's history, education and mass vaccination of the native Ainu people successfully eradicated epidemics of smallpox. Even though a zoonotic virus is hard to control, appropriate precautions and personal protection, as well as anti-symptomatic treatment, will control the outbreak of EVD. Ebola virus utilizes the antibody-dependent enhancement of infection to seed the cells of various organs. The pathogenesis of EVD is due to the cytokine storm of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the lack of antiviral interferon-α2. Matricellular proteins of galectin-9 and osteopontin might also be involved in the edema and abnormality of the coagulation system in EVD. Anti-fibrinolytic treatment will be effective. In the era of globalization, interviews of travelers with fever within 3 weeks of departure from the affected areas will be necessary. Not only the hospitals designated for specific biohazards but every hospital should be aware of the biology of biohazards and establish measures to protect both patients and the community.

Research update: Avian Disease and Oncology Laboratory avian tumor viruses

Science.gov (United States)

Genomics and Immunogenetics Use of genomics to identify QTL, genes, and proteins associated with resistance to Marek’s disease. Marek’s disease (MD), a lymphoproliferative disease caused by the highly oncogenic herpesvirus Marek's disease virus (MDV), continues to be a major disease concern to the p...

Effects of dietary protein level on growth, health and physiological parameters in growing-furring mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damgaard, Birthe Marie; Larsen, Peter F.; Clausen, Tove

2012-01-01

The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of the dietary protein level and the feeding strategy on growth, health and physiological blood and liver parameters in growing-furring male mink. Effects of dietary protein levels ranging from 22% of metabolizable energy (MEp) to experimental p...

Generation of Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV) Recombinants Expressing the Infectious Laryngotracheitis Virus (ILTV) Glycoprotein gB or gD as Dual Vaccines.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Wei; Spatz, Stephen; Zsak, Laszlo; Yu, Qingzhong

2016-01-01

Infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT) is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease of chickens caused by infection with infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV), a member of the family Herpesviridae. The current commercial ILT vaccines are either unsafe or ineffective. Therefore, there is a pressing need to develop safer and more efficacious vaccines. Newcastle disease (ND), caused by infection with Newcastle disease virus (NDV), a member of the family Paramyxoviridae, is one of the most serious infectious diseases of poultry. The NDV LaSota strain, a naturally occurring low-virulence NDV strain, has been routinely used as a live vaccine throughout the world. This chapter describes the generation of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) LaSota vaccine strain-based recombinant viruses expressing glycoprotein B (gB) or glycoprotein D (gD) of ILTV as dual vaccines against ND and ILT using reverse genetics technology.

Viraemia and Ebola virus secretion in survivors of Ebola virus disease in Sierra Leone: a cross-sectional cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Green, Edward; Hunt, Luke; Ross, J C Gareth; Nissen, Nina Marie; Curran, Tanya; Badhan, Anjna; Sutherland, Katherine A; Richards, Jade; Lee, James S; Allen, Samuel H; Laird, Steven; Blackman, Mandy; Collacott, Ian; Parker, Paul A; Walbridge, Andrew; Phillips, Rebecca; Sellu, Sia Jammie; Dama, Agnes; Sheriff, Alpha Karim; Zombo, Joseph; Ngegba, Doris; Wurie, Alieh H; Checchi, Francesco; Brooks, Timothy J

2016-09-01

In survivors of Ebola virus disease, clinical sequelae including uveitis, arthralgia, and fatigue are common and necessitate systematic follow-up. However, the infection risk to health-care providers is poorly defined. Here we report Ebola virus RT-PCR data for body site and fluid samples from a large cohort of Ebola virus survivors at clinic follow-up. In this cross-sectional cohort study, consecutive survivors of Ebola virus disease attending Kerry Town survivor clinic (Freetown, Sierra Leone), who had been discharged from the Kerry Town Ebola treatment unit, were invited to participate. We collected and tested axillary, blood, conjunctival, forehead, mouth, rectal, semen, urine, and vaginal specimens for presence of Ebola virus using RT-PCR. We regarded samples to be positive for Ebola virus disease if the cycle threshold was 40 or lower. We collected demographic data from survivors of their age, sex, time since discharge from the treatment unit, and length of acute admission in the Ebola treatment unit using anonymised standard forms. Between April 2, and June 16, 2015, of 151 survivors of Ebola virus disease invited to participate, 112 (74%) provided consent. The median age of participants was 21·5 years (IQR 14-31·5) with 34 (30%) participants younger than 16 years. 50 (45%) of 112 participants were male. We tested a total of 555 specimens: 103 from the axilla, 93 from blood, 92 from conjunctiva, 54 from forehead, 105 from mouth, 17 from the rectum, one from semen, 69 from urine, and 21 from the vagina. The median time from Ebola treatment unit discharge to specimen collection was 142 days (IQR 127-159). 15 participants had a total of 74 swabs taken less than 100 days from discharge. The semen sample from one participant tested positive for Ebola virus at 114 days after discharge from the treatment unit; specimens taken from the axilla, blood, conjunctiva, forehead, mouth, rectum, and urine of the same participant tested negative. All specimens from the

The welfare of farmed mink should be easy to assess in a correct way and lead to animal welfare improvements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henriksen, Britt

2015-01-01

A three year PhD-study in assessment of mink welfare has contributed with methods and knowledge on how to get the welfare assessments as efficient and correct as possible and how to use the assessments in order to increase the welfare of the animals. The study found, that it might be possible...... periods have the same effect of date of assessment. The study also found that mink farmers are generally positive towards the structural way of working in stable schools and that including a discussion of the WelFur results related to the different farms in a stable school will make the feedback...

Selection against stereotyped behaviour may have contradictory consequences for the welfare of farm mink (Mustela vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svendsen, Pernille Maj; Jeppesen, Leif Lau; Malmkvist, Jens

2007-01-01

The present study aimed to examine if divergent selection for stereotypic behaviour in mink influences the welfare of the animals. Two breeding lines were used, a high stereotyping line (HSL, N = 139) and a low stereotyping line (LSL, N = 132). Their welfare was assessed on the basis...... of adrenocortical activity (faecal cortisol metabolites, FCM), confident versus fearful temperament, growth and reproduction. The results showed that the LSL performed less stereotypic behaviour and were less active than the HSL. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that: (1) the LSL had lower concentrations......) there was no failure to grow in any line, but on average the body weight in the LSL was higher than that in the HSL. The correlation between stereotypy and confidence in the present study supports earlier findings showing a higher proportion of fearful animals in groups of low stereotyping mink. So, although...

Estimates of the abundance of minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata from Faroese and Icelandic NASS shipboard surveys

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel G Pike

2009-09-01

Full Text Available North Atlantic Sightings Surveys for cetaceans were carried out Northeast and Central Atlantic in 1987, 1989, 1995 and 2001. Here we provide estimates of density and abundance for minke whales from the Faroese and Icelandic ship surveys. The estimates are not corrected for availability or perception biases. Double platform data collected in 2001 indicates that perception bias is likely considerable for this species. However comparison of corrected estimates of densityfrom aerial surveys with a ship survey estimate from the same area suggests that ship surveys can be nearly unbiased under optimal survey conditions with high searching effort. There were some regional changes in density over the period but no overall changes in density and abundance. Given the recent catch history for minke whales in this area, we would not expect to see changes in abundance due to exploitation that would be detectable with these surveys.

Epstein-Barr Virus Sequence Variation—Biology and Disease

Science.gov (United States)

Tzellos, Stelios; Farrell, Paul J.

2012-01-01

Some key questions in Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) biology center on whether naturally occurring sequence differences in the virus affect infection or EBV associated diseases. Understanding the pattern of EBV sequence variation is also important for possible development of EBV vaccines. At present EBV isolates worldwide can be grouped into Type 1 and Type 2, a classification based on the EBNA2 gene sequence. Type 1 EBV is the most prevalent worldwide but Type 2 is common in parts of Africa. Type 1 transforms human B cells into lymphoblastoid cell lines much more efficiently than Type 2 EBV. Molecular mechanisms that may account for this difference in cell transformation are now becoming clearer. Advances in sequencing technology will greatly increase the amount of whole EBV genome data for EBV isolated from different parts of the world. Study of regional variation of EBV strains independent of the Type 1/Type 2 classification and systematic investigation of the relationship between viral strains, infection and disease will become possible. The recent discovery that specific mutation of the EBV EBNA3B gene may be linked to development of diffuse large B cell lymphoma illustrates the importance that mutations in the virus genome may have in infection and human disease. PMID:25436768

Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) Atlas: Aleutian Islands, Alaska, maps and geographic information systems data (NODC Accession 0014927)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set comprises the Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) maps for the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. ESI data characterize coastal environments and wildlife by...

Species Identification of Fox-, Mink-, Dog-, and Rabbit-Derived Ingredients by Multiplex PCR and Real-Time PCR Assay.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Qingqing; Xiang, Shengnan; Wang, Wenjun; Zhao, Jinyan; Xia, Jinhua; Zhen, Yueran; Liu, Bang

2018-05-01

Various detection methods have been developed to date for identification of animal species. New techniques based on PCR approach have raised the hope of developing better identification methods, which can overcome the limitations of the existing methods. PCR-based methods used the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) as well as nuclear DNA sequences. In this study, by targeting nuclear DNA, multiplex PCR and real-time PCR methods were developed to assist with qualitative and quantitative analysis. The multiplex PCR was found to simultaneously and effectively distinguish four species (fox, dog, mink, and rabbit) ingredients by the different sizes of electrophoretic bands: 480, 317, 220, and 209 bp. Real-time fluorescent PCR's amplification profiles and standard curves showed good quantitative measurement responses and linearity, as indicated by good repeatability and coefficient of determination R 2  > 0.99. The quantitative results of quaternary DNA mixtures including mink, fox, dog, and rabbit DNA are in line with our expectations: R.D. (relative deviation) varied between 1.98 and 12.23% and R.S.D. (relative standard deviation) varied between 3.06 and 11.51%, both of which are well within the acceptance criterion of ≤ 25%. Combining the two methods is suitable for the rapid identification and accurate quantification of fox-, dog-, mink-, and rabbit-derived ingredients in the animal products.

Testing the WelFur assessment protocol for mink on-farm in three seasons of production

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Steen Henrik; Hansen, Steffen W

2011-01-01

principles and 12 underlying criteria, to be measured at the farm. Based on validity, reliability and feasibility 22 measures have been selected for use in the three seasons of mink production: 1. Breeders during winter, 2. Dams with kits during spring, and 3. Juveniles during growth in the autumn, in order...

Ferro-manganese encrustation on the tympanic bulla of a minke whale from Central Indian Ocean Basin

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Banakar, V.K.

Ear bone of a minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) was collected from 5200 m water depth with thin coating of Fe-Mn oxide on its surface. The Fe-Mn coating material was similar in nature and ratios Mn/Fe and Cu + Ni/Co were closely comparable...

Nurses leading the fight against Ebola virus disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Sagar, Priscilla L

2015-05-01

The current Ebola crisis has sparked worldwide reaction of panic and disbelief in its wake as it decimated communities in West Africa, particularly in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, including its health care workers. This article affirms the crucial role nurses play in maintaining health and preventing diseases, connects the devastating havoc of the Ebola virus disease to another issue of nursing shortage in underdeveloped countries, and asserts the key leadership nurses play in protecting the communities they serve while maintaining their safety and those of other health care workers. Nurses must actively seek a place at the table, as echoed by the American Academy of Nursing and American Nurses Association and the American Nurses Association, when decisions are being made regarding Ebola virus disease: at care settings, in the board room, and at federal, state, and local levels. © The Author(s) 2015.

A Mouse Model of Chronic West Nile Virus Disease.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jessica B Graham

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Infection with West Nile virus (WNV leads to a range of disease outcomes, including chronic infection, though lack of a robust mouse model of chronic WNV infection has precluded identification of the immune events contributing to persistent infection. Using the Collaborative Cross, a population of recombinant inbred mouse strains with high levels of standing genetic variation, we have identified a mouse model of persistent WNV disease, with persistence of viral loads within the brain. Compared to lines exhibiting no disease or marked disease, the F1 cross CC(032x013F1 displays a strong immunoregulatory signature upon infection that correlates with restraint of the WNV-directed cytolytic response. We hypothesize that this regulatory T cell response sufficiently restrains the immune response such that a chronic infection can be maintained in the CNS. Use of this new mouse model of chronic neuroinvasive virus will be critical in developing improved strategies to prevent prolonged disease in humans.

Estradiol stimulates glycogen synthesis whereas progesterone promotes glycogen catabolism in the uterus of the American mink (Neovison vison).

Science.gov (United States)

Bowman, Kole; Rose, Jack

2017-01-01

Glycogen synthesis by mink uterine glandular and luminal epithelia (GE and LE) is stimulated by estradiol (E 2 ) during estrus. Subsequently, the glycogen deposits are mobilized to near completion to meet the energy requirements of pre-embryonic development and implantation by as yet undetermined mechanisms. We hypothesized that progesterone (P 4 ) was responsible for catabolism of uterine glycogen reserves as one of its actions to ensure reproductive success. Mink were treated with E 2 , P 4 or vehicle (controls) for 3 days and uteri collected 24 h (E 2 , P 4 and vehicle) and 96 h (E 2 ) later. To evaluate E 2 priming, mink were treated with E 2 for 3 days, then P 4 for an additional 3 days (E 2 →P 4 ) and uteri collected 24 h later. Percent glycogen content of uterine epithelia was greater at E 2 + 96 h (GE = 5.71 ± 0.55; LE = 11.54 ± 2.32) than E 2 +24 h (GE = 3.63 ± 0.71; LE = 2.82 ± 1.03), and both were higher than controls (GE = 0.27 ± 0.15; LE = 0.54 ± 0.30; P glycogen content (GE = 0.61 ± 0.16; LE = 0.51 ± 0.13), to levels not different from controls, while concomitantly increasing catabolic enzyme (glycogen phosphorylase m and glucose-6-phosphatase) gene expression and amount of phospho-glycogen synthase protein (inactive) in uterine homogenates. Interestingly, E 2 →P 4 increased glycogen synthase 1 messenger RNA (mRNA) and hexokinase 1mRNA and protein. Our findings suggest to us that while E 2 promotes glycogen accumulation by the mink uterus during estrus and pregnancy, it is P 4 that induces uterine glycogen catabolism, releasing the glucose that is essential to support pre-embryonic survival and implantation. © 2016 Japanese Society of Animal Science.

Milk thistle for alcoholic and/or hepatitis B or C virus liver diseases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rambaldi, A; Jacobs, B P; Iaquinto, G

2005-01-01

Alcohol and hepatotoxic viruses cause the majority of liver diseases. Randomised clinical trials have assessed whether extracts of milk thistle, Silybum marianum (L) Gaertneri, have any effect in patients with alcoholic and/or hepatitis B or C virus liver diseases....

Milk thistle for alcoholic and/or hepatitis B or C virus liver diseases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rambaldi, A; Jacobs, B P; Gluud, C

2007-01-01

Alcohol and hepatotoxic viruses cause the majority of liver diseases. Randomised clinical trials have assessed whether extracts of milk thistle, Silybum marianum (L) Gaertneri, have any effect in patients with alcoholic and/or hepatitis B or C virus liver diseases....

Humanized Mouse Model of Ebola Virus Disease Mimics the Immune Responses in Human Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Bird, Brian H; Spengler, Jessica R; Chakrabarti, Ayan K; Khristova, Marina L; Sealy, Tara K; Coleman-McCray, JoAnn D; Martin, Brock E; Dodd, Kimberly A; Goldsmith, Cynthia S; Sanders, Jeanine; Zaki, Sherif R; Nichol, Stuart T; Spiropoulou, Christina F

2016-03-01

Animal models recapitulating human Ebola virus disease (EVD) are critical for insights into virus pathogenesis. Ebola virus (EBOV) isolates derived directly from human specimens do not, without adaptation, cause disease in immunocompetent adult rodents. Here, we describe EVD in mice engrafted with human immune cells (hu-BLT). hu-BLT mice developed EVD following wild-type EBOV infection. Infection with high-dose EBOV resulted in rapid, lethal EVD with high viral loads, alterations in key human antiviral immune cytokines and chemokines, and severe histopathologic findings similar to those shown in the limited human postmortem data available. A dose- and donor-dependent clinical course was observed in hu-BLT mice infected with lower doses of either Mayinga (1976) or Makona (2014) isolates derived from human EBOV cases. Engraftment of the human cellular immune system appeared to be essential for the observed virulence, as nonengrafted mice did not support productive EBOV replication or develop lethal disease. hu-BLT mice offer a unique model for investigating the human immune response in EVD and an alternative animal model for EVD pathogenesis studies and therapeutic screening. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America 2015. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Vaccine-induced anti-HA2 antibodies promote virus fusion and enhance influenza virus respiratory disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Khurana, Surender; Loving, Crystal L; Manischewitz, Jody; King, Lisa R; Gauger, Phillip C; Henningson, Jamie; Vincent, Amy L; Golding, Hana

2013-08-28

Vaccine-induced disease enhancement has been described in connection with several viral vaccines in animal models and in humans. We investigated a swine model to evaluate mismatched influenza vaccine-associated enhanced respiratory disease (VAERD) after pH1N1 infection. Vaccinating pigs with whole inactivated H1N2 (human-like) virus vaccine (WIV-H1N2) resulted in enhanced pneumonia and disease after pH1N1 infection. WIV-H1N2 immune sera contained high titers of cross-reactive anti-pH1N1 hemagglutinin (HA) antibodies that bound exclusively to the HA2 domain but not to the HA1 globular head. No hemagglutination inhibition titers against pH1N1 (challenge virus) were measured. Epitope mapping using phage display library identified the immunodominant epitope recognized by WIV-H1N2 immune sera as amino acids 32 to 77 of pH1N1-HA2 domain, close to the fusion peptide. These cross-reactive anti-HA2 antibodies enhanced pH1N1 infection of Madin-Darby canine kidney cells by promoting virus membrane fusion activity. The enhanced fusion activity correlated with lung pathology in pigs. This study suggests a role for fusion-enhancing anti-HA2 antibodies in VAERD, in the absence of receptor-blocking virus-neutralizing antibodies. These findings should be considered during the evaluation of universal influenza vaccines designed to elicit HA2 stem-targeting antibodies.

Patterns in thermal emissions from the volcanoes of the Aleutian Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Blackett, M.; Webley, P. W.; Dehn, J.

2012-12-01

Using AVHRR data 1993-2011 and the Alaska Volcano Observatory's Okmok II Algorithm, the thermal emissions from all volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands were converted from temperature to power emission and examined for periodicity. The emissions were also summed to quantify the total energy released throughout the period. It was found that in the period April 1997 - January 2004 (37% of the period) the power emission from the volcanoes of the island arc declined sharply to constitute just 5.7% of the total power output for the period (138,311 MW), and this was attributable to just three volcanoes: Veniaminof (1.0%), Cleveland (1.5%) and Shishaldin (3.2%). This period of apparent reduced activity contrasts with the periods both before and after and is unrelated to the number of sensors in orbit at the time. What is also evident from the data set is that in terms of overall power emission over this period, the majority of emitted energy is largely attributable to those volcanoes which erupt with regularity (again, Veniaminof [29.7%], Cleveland [17%] and Shishaldin [11.4%]), as opposed to from the relatively few, large scale events (i.e. Reboubt [5.4%], Okmok [8.3%], Augustine [9.7%]; Pavlov [13.9%] being an exception). Sum power emission from volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands (1993-2011)

Molecular characterization of a virus from the family Luteoviridae associated with cotton blue disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Corrêa, R L; Silva, T F; Simões-Araújo, J L; Barroso, P A V; Vidal, M S; Vaslin, M F S

2005-07-01

Cotton blue disease is an aphid-transmitted cotton disease described in Brazil in 1962 as Vein Mosaic "var. Ribeirão Bonito". At present it causes economically important losses in cotton crops if control measures are not implemented. The observed symptoms and mode of transmission have prompted researchers to speculate that cotton blue disease could be attributed to a member of the family Luteoviridae, but there was no molecular evidence supporting this hypothesis. We have amplified part of the genome of a virus associated with this disease using degenerate primers for members of the family Luteoviridae. Sequence analysis of the entire capsid and a partial RdRp revealed a virus probably belonging to the genus Polerovirus. Based on our results we propose that cotton blue disease is associated with a virus with the putative name Cotton leafroll dwarf virus (CLRDV).

Ferrets Infected with Bundibugyo Virus or Ebola Virus Recapitulate Important Aspects of Human Filovirus Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Kozak, Robert; He, Shihua; Kroeker, Andrea; de La Vega, Marc-Antoine; Audet, Jonathan; Wong, Gary; Urfano, Chantel; Antonation, Kym; Embury-Hyatt, Carissa; Kobinger, Gary P; Qiu, Xiangguo

2016-10-15

Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) is the etiological agent of a severe hemorrhagic fever in humans with a case-fatality rate ranging from 25 to 36%. Despite having been known to the scientific and medical communities for almost 1 decade, there is a dearth of studies on this pathogen due to the lack of a small animal model. Domestic ferrets are commonly used to study other RNA viruses, including members of the order Mononegavirales To investigate whether ferrets were susceptible to filovirus infections, ferrets were challenged with a clinical isolate of BDBV. Animals became viremic within 4 days and succumbed to infection between 8 and 9 days, and a petechial rash was observed with moribund ferrets. Furthermore, several hallmarks of human filoviral disease were recapitulated in the ferret model, including substantial decreases in lymphocyte and platelet counts and dysregulation of key biochemical markers related to hepatic/renal function, as well as coagulation abnormalities. Virological, histopathological, and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed uncontrolled BDBV replication in the major organs. Ferrets were also infected with Ebola virus (EBOV) to confirm their susceptibility to another filovirus species and to potentially establish a virus transmission model. Similar to what was seen with BDBV, important hallmarks of human filoviral disease were observed in EBOV-infected ferrets. This study demonstrates the potential of this small animal model for studying BDBV and EBOV using wild-type isolates and will accelerate efforts to understand filovirus pathogenesis and transmission as well as the development of specific vaccines and antivirals. The 2013-2016 outbreak of Ebola virus in West Africa has highlighted the threat posed by filoviruses to global public health. Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) is a member of the genus Ebolavirus and has caused outbreaks in the past but is relatively understudied, likely due to the lack of a suitable small animal model. Such a model for BDBV is

Weaning and separation stress: maternal motivation decreases with litter age and litter size in farmed mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens; Sørensen, Dennis Dam; Larsen, Torben

2016-01-01

was to investigate whether the dams experienced stress/had a different motivation to be reunited with the litter after7 and 8 weeks, estimated by non-invasive determination of cortisol (FCM: Faecal Cortisol Metabolites)and dam behaviour including calls the first week after separation (D0: Day of removal, D1: next......The optimal timing of separating the mink dam from the litter is suggested to be a balance between the partly conflicting needs of the mother and the kits. Early removal of the dam or partial removal of the litter may protect the dam against exhaustion. Little is, however, known about dam stress...... and maternal motivation around the time of weaning and separation. Therefore, we investigated effects of separating the dam from the litter using brown first-parity farm mink dams (n = 374) taken away from the litter either day 49 ± 1 (7w, n = 185) or day 56 ± 1 (8w, n = 189) after birth. The aim...

Removal of American mink increases the success of simulated nests in linear habitat

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Padyšáková, E.; Šálek, Martin; Poledník, L.; Sedláček, František; Albrecht, Tomáš

2009-01-01

Roč. 36, č. 3 (2009), s. 225-230 ISSN 1035-3712 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LC06073 Grant - others:GA MŽP(CZ) SE/620/1/03; GA MŽP(CZ) SP/2D3/60/08 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60870520; CEZ:AV0Z60930519 Keywords : mink * nest predation * introduction * allien species Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 1.222, year: 2009

Differential replication of foot-and-mouth disease viruses in mice determine lethality

Science.gov (United States)

Adult C57BL/6J mice have been used to study foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) biology. In this work, two variants of an FMDV A/Arg/01 strain exhibiting differential pathogenicity in adult mice were identified and characterized: a non-lethal virus (A01NL) caused mild signs of disease, whereas a let...

Change in Occurrence of Rice stripe virus Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bong Choon Lee

2012-12-01

Full Text Available We surveyed the occurrence of Rice stripe virus (RSV disease in 672 fields from 29 rice representative area inJuly 2012 as nationwide survey for RSV occurrence since 2008. We confirmed occurrence of virus disease in18 areas, in west coast region including Secheon, Taean, Buwan and Cheorwon. RSV incidence rates of plantin Sacheon and Buan were less than 0.01% and 0.15%, respectively, showing similar rate with the nationwidesurvey carried out in 2008, whereas incidence rate of field declined from 19.9% in 2008 to 4.9% in 2012.Earlier, RSV occurred largely across the southern region of Korea. In 2001, RSV disease was found inGangwha and Gyeonggi-do, the northern region of Korea. In 2007, RSV appeared in west coast; Buan inJeollabuk-do and Seocheon in Choongnam-do. After migration of the vector, small brown plant hopper, fromChina in 2009, RSV is becoming a pandemic.

Characterization of epitope-tagged foot-and-mouth disease virus

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Seago, J.; Jackson, T.; Doel, C.; Fry, E.; Stuart, D.; Harmsen, M.M.; Charleston, B.; Juleff, N.

2012-01-01

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious and economically devastating disease of cloven-hoofed animals with an almost-worldwide distribution. Conventional FMD vaccines consisting of chemically inactivated viruses have aided in the eradication of FMD from Europe and remain the main tool

A test of mink microsatellite markers in the ferret

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Christensen, Knud

2006-01-01

Short tandem repeats are a source of highly polymorphic markers in mammalian genomes. Genetic variations at these hypervariable loci is extensively used for linkage analysis and to identify individuals, and is very useful for interpopulation and interspecies studies. Fifty-nine microsatellite mar...... that were identical in size to those from mink displayed a high degree of conservation, with some differences at the repeat motif sites. These results could aid cross-utilization of markers between these two species.......Short tandem repeats are a source of highly polymorphic markers in mammalian genomes. Genetic variations at these hypervariable loci is extensively used for linkage analysis and to identify individuals, and is very useful for interpopulation and interspecies studies. Fifty-nine microsatellite...

Early kit mortality and growth in farmed mink are affected by litter size rather than nest climate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schou, Toke Munk; Malmkvist, Jens

2017-01-01

increased growth (P=0.026). Nest box temperature had little effect on early kit survival and growth, which could be due to dams’ additional maternal behaviour. Therefore, we cannot confirm that temperature is the primary reason for kit mortality, under the conditions of plenty straw access for maternal nest......We investigated the effects of nest box climate on early mink kit mortality and growth. We hypothesised that litters in warm nest boxes experience less hypothermia-induced mortality and higher growth rates during the 1st week of life. This study included data from 749, 1-year-old breeding dams...... building. Instead, prenatal and/or parturient litter size is the primary factor influencing early kit vitality. The results indicate that the focus should be on litter size and dam welfare around the times of gestation and birth to increase early kit survival in farmed mink....

Knowledge and attitude towards Ebola and Marburg virus diseases in Uganda using quantitative and participatory epidemiology techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

Nyakarahuka, Luke; Skjerve, Eystein; Nabadda, Daisy; Sitali, Doreen Chilolo; Mumba, Chisoni; Mwiine, Frank N; Lutwama, Julius J; Balinandi, Stephen; Shoemaker, Trevor; Kankya, Clovice

2017-09-01

Uganda has reported five (5) Ebola virus disease outbreaks and three (3) Marburg virus disease outbreaks from 2000 to 2016. Peoples' knowledge and attitude towards Ebola and Marburg virus disease impact on control and prevention measures especially during outbreaks. We describe knowledge and attitude towards Ebola and Marburg virus outbreaks in two affected communities in Uganda to inform future outbreak responses and help in the design of health education and communication messages. The study was a community survey done in Luweero, Ibanda and Kamwenge districts that have experienced outbreaks of Ebola and Marburg virus diseases. Quantitative data were collected using a structured questionnaire and triangulated with qualitative participatory epidemiology techniques to gain a communities' knowledge and attitude towards Ebola and Marburg virus disease. Out of 740 respondents, 48.5% (359/740) were categorized as being knowledgeable about Ebola and Marburg virus diseases, whereas 60.5% (448/740) were having a positive attitude towards control and prevention of Ebola and Marburg virus diseases. The mean knowledge and attitude percentage scores were 54.3 (SD = 23.5, 95%CI = 52.6-56.0) and 69.9 (SD = 16.9, 95%CI = 68.9-71.1) respectively. People educated beyond primary school were more likely to be knowledgeable about Ebola and Marburg virus disease than those who did not attain any formal education (OR = 3.6, 95%CI = 2.1-6.1). Qualitative data revealed that communities describe Ebola and Marburg virus diseases as very severe diseases with no cure and they believe the diseases spread so fast. Respondents reported fear and stigma suffered by survivors, their families and the broader community due to these diseases. Communities in Uganda affected by filovirus outbreaks have moderate knowledge about these diseases and have a positive attitude towards practices to prevent and control Ebola and Marburg viral diseases. The public health sector should enhance this community

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) recombinants expressing infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) glycoproteins gB and gD protect chickens against ILTV and NDV challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Wei; Spatz, Stephen; Zhang, Zhenyu; Wen, Guoyuan; Garcia, Maricarmen; Zsak, Laszlo; Yu, Qingzhong

2014-08-01

Infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT) is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease of chickens caused by infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV). The disease is controlled mainly through biosecurity and vaccination with live attenuated strains of ILTV and vectored vaccines based on turkey herpesvirus (HVT) and fowlpox virus (FPV). The current live attenuated vaccines (chicken embryo origin [CEO] and tissue culture origin [TCO]), although effective, can regain virulence, whereas HVT- and FPV-vectored ILTV vaccines are less efficacious than live attenuated vaccines. Therefore, there is a pressing need to develop safer and more efficacious ILTV vaccines. In the present study, we generated Newcastle disease virus (NDV) recombinants, based on the LaSota vaccine strain, expressing glycoproteins B (gB) and D (gD) of ILTV using reverse genetics technology. These recombinant viruses, rLS/ILTV-gB and rLS/ILTV-gD, were slightly attenuated in vivo yet retained growth dynamics, stability, and virus titers in vitro that were similar to those of the parental LaSota virus. Expression of ILTV gB and gD proteins in the recombinant virus-infected cells was detected by immunofluorescence assay. Vaccination of specific-pathogen-free chickens with these recombinant viruses conferred significant protection against virulent ILTV and velogenic NDV challenges. Immunization of commercial broilers with rLS/ILTV-gB provided a level of protection against clinical disease similar to that provided by the live attenuated commercial vaccines, with no decrease in body weight gains. The results of the study suggested that the rLS/ILTV-gB and -gD viruses are safe, stable, and effective bivalent vaccines that can be mass administered via aerosol or drinking water to large chicken populations. This paper describes the development and evaluation of novel bivalent vaccines against chicken infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT) and Newcastle disease (ND), two of the most economically important infectious

The Disease Caused by Zika Virus: Current Clinical and Epidemiological Features

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O.K. Duda

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the topical issue of today — the disease caused by Zika virus. The etiology and pathogenesis of the disease were described, attention is paid to the examination of a patient with suspected Zika virus. Laboratory tests available in the Synevo laboratory are listed. Recommendations for the treatment are given taking into account the fact that today the causal antiviral treatment is not developed.

Molecular characterization of foot-and-mouth disease virus: implications for disease control in Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Loth, L; Osmani, M G; Kalam, M A; Chakraborty, R K; Wadsworth, J; Knowles, N J; Hammond, J M; Benigno, C

2011-06-01

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is endemic in Bangladesh, and to implement an effective FMD control programme, it is essential to understand the complex epidemiology of the disease. Here, we report on the characterization of FMD virus (FMDV) recovered from FMD outbreaks in Bangladesh in late 2009. All isolated viruses belonged to the FMDV serotype O. The phylogenetic reconstruction showed that all isolates belonged to the Middle East-South Asia (ME-SA) topotype, but fell into two distinct sublineages, one named Ind-2001 (the other has not been named). Within both sublineages, the 2009 Bangladesh isolates were most closely related to viruses from Nepal collected during 2008 and 2009. Additionally, both sublineages contained older viruses from India collected in 2000 and 2001. In South Asia, there is extensive cross-border cattle movement from Nepal and India to Bangladesh. Both these findings have implications for the control of FMD in Bangladesh. Because of the porous borders, a regional FMD control strategy should be developed. Further, animal identification and monitoring animal movements are necessary to identify the cross-border movements and market chain interactions of ruminants, leading to improved border and movement controls. Additionally, a vaccination strategy should be developed with the initial objective of protecting small-scale dairy herds from disease. For any successful FMD control programme, long-term Government commitment and adequate resources are necessary. A sustainable programme will also need farmer education, commitment and financial contributions. © 2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Capsid coding sequences of foot-and-mouth disease viruses are determinants of pathogenicity in pigs.

Science.gov (United States)

Lohse, Louise; Jackson, Terry; Bøtner, Anette; Belsham, Graham J

2012-05-24

The surface exposed capsid proteins, VP1, VP2 and VP3, of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) determine its antigenicity and the ability of the virus to interact with host-cell receptors. Hence, modification of these structural proteins may alter the properties of the virus.In the present study we compared the pathogenicity of different FMDVs in young pigs. In total 32 pigs, 7-weeks-old, were exposed to virus, either by direct inoculation or through contact with inoculated pigs, using cell culture adapted (O1K B64), chimeric (O1K/A-TUR and O1K/O-UKG) or field strain (O-UKG/34/2001) viruses. The O1K B64 virus and the two chimeric viruses are identical to each other except for the capsid coding region.Animals exposed to O1K B64 did not exhibit signs of disease, while pigs exposed to each of the other viruses showed typical clinical signs of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). All pigs infected with the O1K/O-UKG chimera or the field strain (O-UKG/34/2001) developed fulminant disease. Furthermore, 3 of 4 in-contact pigs exposed to the O1K/O-UKG virus died in the acute phase of infection, likely from myocardial infection. However, in the group exposed to the O1K/A-TUR chimeric virus, only 1 pig showed symptoms of disease within the time frame of the experiment (10 days). All pigs that developed clinical disease showed a high level of viral RNA in serum and infected pigs that survived the acute phase of infection developed a serotype specific antibody response. It is concluded that the capsid coding sequences are determinants of FMDV pathogenicity in pigs.

Genetic characterization of epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus strains isolated from cattle in Israel

Science.gov (United States)

Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV), an Orbivirus not previously reported in Israel, was isolated from Israeli cattle during a “bluetongue like” disease outbreak in 2006. To ascertain the origin of this new virus, three isolates from the outbreak were fully sequenced and compared with availab...

Description of an as yet unclassified DNA virus from diseased Cyprinus carpio species.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutoran, Marina; Ronen, Ariel; Perelberg, Ayana; Ilouze, Maya; Dishon, Arnon; Bejerano, Izhak; Chen, Nissim; Kotler, Moshe

2005-02-01

Numerous deaths of koi and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) were observed on many farms throughout Israel, resulting in severe financial losses. The lethal viral disease observed is highly contagious and extremely virulent, but morbidity and mortality are restricted to koi and common carp populations. Diseased fish exhibit fatigue and gasping movements in shallow water. Infected fish had interstitial nephritis and gill necrosis as well as petechial hemorrhages in the liver and other symptoms that were not consistent with viral disease, suggesting a secondary infection. Here we report the isolation of carp nephritis and gill necrosis virus (CNGV), which is the etiologic agent of this disease. The virus propagates and induces severe cytopathic effects by 5 days postinfection in fresh koi or carp fin cell cultures (KFC and CFC, respectively), but not in epithelioma papillosum cyprini cells. The virus harvested from KFC cultures induced the same clinical signs, with a mortality of 75 to 95%, upon inoculation into naive koi and common carp. Using PCR, we provide final proof that the isolated virus is indeed the etiologic agent of food and ornamental carp mortalities in fish husbandry. Electron microscopy revealed viral cores with icosahedral morphology of 100 to 110 nm that resembled herpesviruses. Electron micrographs of purified pelleted CNGV sections, together with viral sensitivities to ether and Triton X-100, suggested that it is an enveloped virus. However, the genome of the isolated virus is a double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) molecule of 270 to 290 kbp, which is larger than known herpesviruses. The viral DNA seems highly divergent and bears only small fragments (16 to 45 bp) that are similar to the genomes of several DNA viruses. Nevertheless, amino acid sequences encoded by CNGV DNA fragments bear similarities primarily to members of the Poxviridae and Herpesviridae and to other large dsDNA viruses. We suggest, therefore, that the etiologic agent of this disease may

A systematic approach to novel virus discovery in emerging infectious disease outbreaks.

Science.gov (United States)

Sridhar, Siddharth; To, Kelvin K W; Chan, Jasper F W; Lau, Susanna K P; Woo, Patrick C Y; Yuen, Kwok-Yung

2015-05-01

The discovery of novel viruses is of great importance to human health-both in the setting of emerging infectious disease outbreaks and in disease syndromes of unknown etiology. Despite the recent proliferation of many efficient virus discovery methods, careful selection of a combination of methods is important to demonstrate a novel virus, its clinical associations, and its relevance in a timely manner. The identification of a patient or an outbreak with distinctive clinical features and negative routine microbiological workup is often the starting point for virus hunting. This review appraises the roles of culture, electron microscopy, and nucleic acid detection-based methods in optimizing virus discovery. Cell culture is generally slow but may yield viable virus. Although the choice of cell line often involves trial and error, it may be guided by the clinical syndrome. Electron microscopy is insensitive but fast, and may provide morphological clues to choice of cell line or consensus primers for nucleic acid detection. Consensus primer PCR can be used to detect viruses that are closely related to known virus families. Random primer amplification and high-throughput sequencing can catch any virus genome but cannot yield an infectious virion for testing Koch postulates. A systematic approach that incorporates carefully chosen combinations of virus detection techniques is required for successful virus discovery. Copyright © 2015 American Society for Investigative Pathology and the Association for Molecular Pathology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Introduction - The impacts of the 2008 eruption of Kasatochi Volcano on terrestrial and marine ecosystems in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

DeGange, Anthony R.; Byrd, G. Vernon; Walker, Lawrence R.; Waythomas, C.F.

2010-01-01

The Aleutian Islands are situated on the northern edge of the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire,” a 40,000-km-long horseshoe-shaped assemblage of continental landmasses and islands bordering the Pacific Ocean basin that contains many of the world's active and dormant volcanoes. Schaefer et al. (2009) listed 27 historically active volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands, of which nine have had at least one major eruptive event since 1990. Volcanic eruptions are often significant natural disturbances, and ecosystem responses to volcanic eruptions may vary markedly with eruption style (effusive versus explosive), frequency, and magnitude of the eruption as well as isolation of the disturbed sites from potential colonizing organisms (del Moral and Grishin, 1999). Despite the relatively high frequency of volcanic activity in the Aleutians, the response of island ecosystems to volcanic disturbances is largely unstudied because of the region's isolation. The only ecological studies in the region that address the effects of volcanic activity were done on Bogoslof Island, a remote, highly active volcanic island in the eastern Aleutians, which grew from a submarine eruption in 1796 (Merriam, 1910; Byrd et al., 1980; Byrd and Williams, 1994). Nevertheless, in the 214 years of Bogoslof's existence, the island has been visited only intermittently.Kasatochi Island is a small (2.9 km by 2.6 km, 314 m high) volcano in the central Aleutian Islands of Alaska (52.17°N latitude, 175.51°W longitude; Fig. 1) that erupted violently on 7-8 August 2008 after a brief, but intense period of precursory seismic activity (Scott et al., 2010 [this issue]; Waythomas et al., in review). The island is part of the Aleutian arc volcanic front, and is an isolated singular island. Although the immediate offshore areas are relatively shallow (20–50 m water depth), the island is about 10 km south of the 2000 m isobath, north of which, ocean depths increase markedly. Kasatochi is located between the

Haematology of infectious bursal disease virus infected chickens on ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Garlic (Allium sativum) is an herbal spice proven to posses antimicrobial and immunostimulating properties which could be useful in the control of endemic diseases of poultry such as infectious bursal disease (IBD). Its effect on IBD virus infection was therefore investigated via haematological assessment. One hundred and ...

Experimental co-infections of domestic ducks with a virulent Newcastle disease virus and low or highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Pantin-Jackwood, Mary J; Costa-Hurtado, Mar; Miller, Patti J; Afonso, Claudio L; Spackman, Erica; Kapczynski, Darrell R; Shepherd, Eric; Smith, Diane; Swayne, David E

2015-05-15

Infections with avian influenza viruses (AIV) of low and high pathogenicity (LP and HP) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) are commonly reported in domestic ducks in many parts of the world. However, it is not clear if co-infections with these viruses affect the severity of the diseases they produce, the amount of virus shed, and transmission of the viruses. In this study we infected domestic ducks with a virulent NDV virus (vNDV) and either a LPAIV or a HPAIV by giving the viruses individually, simultaneously, or sequentially two days apart. No clinical signs were observed in ducks infected or co-infected with vNDV and LPAIV, but co-infection decreased the number of ducks shedding vNDV and the amount of virus shed (Pducks inoculated with only LPAIV compared to ducks co-infected with vNDV. Ducks that received the HPAIV with the vNDV simultaneously survived fewer days (Pducks that received the vNDV two days before the HPAIV. Co-infection also reduced transmission of vNDV to naïve contact ducks housed with the inoculated ducks. In conclusion, domestic ducks can become co-infected with vNDV and LPAIV with no effect on clinical signs but with reduction of virus shedding and transmission. These findings indicate that infection with one virus can interfere with replication of another, modifying the pathogenesis and transmission of the viruses. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Construction of an Americn mink Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC) library and sequencing candidate genes important for the fur industry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anistoroaei, Razvan Marian; Hallers, Boudewijn ten; Nefedov, Michael

2011-01-01

BACKGROUND: Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) libraries continue to be invaluable tools for the genomic analysis of complex organisms. Complemented by the newly and fast growing deep sequencing technologies, they provide an excellent source of information in genomics projects. RESULTS: Here, we...... report the construction and characterization of the CHORI-231 BAC library constructed from a Danish-farmed, male American mink (Neovison vison). The library contains approximately 165,888 clones with an average insert size of 170 kb, representing approximately 10-fold coverage. High-density filters, each...... consisting of 18,432 clones spotted in duplicate, have been produced for hybridization screening and are publicly available. Overgo probes derived from expressed sequence tags (ESTs), representing 21 candidate genes for traits important for the mink industry, were used to screen the BAC library...

Humanized Mouse Models of Epstein-Barr Virus Infection and Associated Diseases

Science.gov (United States)

Fujiwara, Shigeyoshi; Matsuda, Go; Imadome, Ken-Ichi

2013-01-01

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a ubiquitous herpesvirus infecting more than 90% of the adult population of the world. EBV is associated with a variety of diseases including infectious mononucleosis, lymphoproliferative diseases, malignancies such as Burkitt lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). EBV in nature infects only humans, but in an experimental setting, a limited species of new-world monkeys can be infected with the virus. Small animal models, suitable for evaluation of novel therapeutics and vaccines, have not been available. Humanized mice, defined here as mice harboring functioning human immune system components, are easily infected with EBV that targets cells of the hematoimmune system. Furthermore, humanized mice can mount both cellular and humoral immune responses to EBV. Thus, many aspects of human EBV infection, including associated diseases (e.g., lymphoproliferative disease, hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and erosive arthritis resembling RA), latent infection, and T-cell-mediated and humoral immune responses have been successfully reproduced in humanized mice. Here we summarize recent achievements in the field of humanized mouse models of EBV infection and show how they have been utilized to analyze EBV pathogenesis and normal and aberrant human immune responses to the virus. PMID:25436886

Ebola Virus Disease: Essential Public Health Principles for Clinicians

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristi L. Koenig

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Ebola Virus Disease (EVD has become a public health emergency of international concern. The World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have developed guidance to educate and inform healthcare workers and travelers worldwide. Symptoms of EVD include abrupt onset of fever, myalgias, and headache in the early phase, followed by vomiting, diarrhea and possible progression to hemorrhagic rash, life-threatening bleeding, and multi-organ failure in the later phase. The disease is not transmitted via airborne spread like influenza, but rather from person-to-person, or animal to person, via direct contact with bodily fluids or blood. It is crucial that emergency physicians be educated on disease presentation and how to generate a timely and accurate differential diagnosis that includes exotic diseases in the appropriate patient population. A patient should be evaluated for EVD when both suggestive symptoms, including unexplained hemorrhage, AND risk factors within 3 weeks prior, such as travel to an endemic area, direct handling of animals from outbreak areas, or ingestion of fruit or other uncooked foods contaminated with bat feces containing the virus are present. There are experimental therapies for treatment of EVD virus; however the mainstay of therapy is supportive care. Emergency department personnel on the frontlines must be prepared to rapidly identify and isolate febrile travelers if indicated. All healthcare workers involved in care of EVD patients should wear personal protective equipment. Despite the intense media focus on EVD rather than other threats, emergency physicians must master and follow essential public health principles for management of all infectious diseases. This includes not only identification and treatment of individuals, but also protection of healthcare workers and prevention of spread, keeping in mind the possibility of other more common disease processes. [West J Emerg Med. 2014;15(7:–0.

Identification of a New Cotton Disease Caused by an Atypical Cotton Leafroll Dwarf Virus in Argentina.

Science.gov (United States)

Agrofoglio, Yamila C; Delfosse, Verónica C; Casse, María F; Hopp, Horacio E; Kresic, Iván Bonacic; Distéfano, Ana J

2017-03-01

An outbreak of a new disease occurred in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) fields in northwest Argentina starting in the 2009-10 growing season and is still spreading steadily. The characteristic symptoms of the disease included slight leaf rolling and a bushy phenotype in the upper part of the plant. In this study, we determined the complete nucleotide sequences of two independent virus genomes isolated from cotton blue disease (CBD)-resistant and -susceptible cotton varieties. This virus genome comprised 5,866 nucleotides with an organization similar to that of the genus Polerovirus and was closely related to cotton leafroll dwarf virus, with protein identity ranging from 88 to 98%. The virus was subsequently transmitted to a CBD-resistant cotton variety using Aphis gossypii and symptoms were successfully reproduced. To study the persistence of the virus, we analyzed symptomatic plants from CBD-resistant varieties from different cotton-growing fields between 2013 and 2015 and showed the presence of the same virus strain. In addition, a constructed full-length infectious cDNA clone from the virus caused disease symptoms in systemic leaves of CBD-resistant cotton plants. Altogether, the new leafroll disease in CBD-resistant cotton plants is caused by an atypical cotton leafroll dwarf virus.

Subcellular distribution of swine vesicular disease virus proteins and alterations induced in infected cells: A comparative study with foot-and-mouth disease virus and vesicular stomatitis virus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin-Acebes, Miguel A.; Gonzalez-Magaldi, Monica; Rosas, Maria F.; Borrego, Belen; Brocchi, Emiliana; Armas-Portela, Rosario; Sobrino, Francisco

2008-01-01

The intracellular distribution of swine vesicular disease virus (SVDV) proteins and the induced reorganization of endomembranes in IBRS-2 cells were analyzed. Fluorescence to new SVDV capsids appeared first upon infection, concentrated in perinuclear circular structures and colocalized to dsRNA. As in foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV)-infected cells, a vesicular pattern was predominantly found in later stages of SVDV capsid morphogenesis that colocalized with those of non-structural proteins 2C, 2BC and 3A. These results suggest that assembly of capsid proteins is associated to the replication complex. Confocal microscopy showed a decreased fluorescence to ER markers (calreticulin and protein disulfide isomerase), and disorganization of cis-Golgi gp74 and trans-Golgi caveolin-1 markers in SVDV- and FMDV-, but not in vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-infected cells. Electron microscopy of SVDV-infected cells at an early stage of infection revealed fragmented ER cisternae with expanded lumen and accumulation of large Golgi vesicles, suggesting alterations of vesicle traffic through Golgi compartments. At this early stage, FMDV induced different patterns of ER fragmentation and Golgi alterations. At later stages of SVDV cytopathology, cells showed a completely vacuolated cytoplasm containing vesicles of different sizes. Cell treatment with brefeldin A, which disrupts the Golgi complex, reduced SVDV (∼ 5 log) and VSV (∼ 4 log) titers, but did not affect FMDV growth. Thus, three viruses, which share target tissues and clinical signs in natural hosts, induce different intracellular effects in cultured cells

Ebola Virus Disease in Pregnancy: Clinical, Histopathologic, and Immunohistochemical Findings.

Science.gov (United States)

Muehlenbachs, Atis; de la Rosa Vázquez, Olimpia; Bausch, Daniel G; Schafer, Ilana J; Paddock, Christopher D; Nyakio, Jean Paul; Lame, Papys; Bergeron, Eric; McCollum, Andrea M; Goldsmith, Cynthia S; Bollweg, Brigid C; Prieto, Miriam Alía; Lushima, Robert Shongo; Ilunga, Benoit Kebela; Nichol, Stuart T; Shieh, Wun-Ju; Ströher, Ute; Rollin, Pierre E; Zaki, Sherif R

2017-01-01

Here we describe clinicopathologic features of Ebola virus disease in pregnancy. One woman infected with Sudan virus in Gulu, Uganda, in 2000 had a stillbirth and survived, and another woman infected with Bundibugyo virus had a live birth with maternal and infant death in Isiro, the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2012. Ebolavirus antigen was seen in the syncytiotrophoblast and placental maternal mononuclear cells by immunohistochemical analysis, and no antigen was seen in fetal placental stromal cells or fetal organs. In the Gulu case, ebolavirus antigen localized to malarial parasite pigment-laden macrophages. These data suggest that trophoblast infection may be a mechanism of transplacental ebolavirus transmission. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America 2016. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

75 FR 56485 - Groundfish Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Crab...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-16

.../Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program; Recordkeeping and Reporting AGENCY: National Marine... rule. SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations to remove the Crab Rationalization Program requirements for.... Background The Crab Rationalization (CR) Program is a limited-access system that allocates crab managed under...

78 FR 28523 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-15

...; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service... Rationalization Program (CR Program) by establishing a process whereby holders of regionally designated individual... scope of this action. Comment 9: One comment generally supported the Crab Rationalization Program...

Antigenic profile of African horse sickness virus serotype 4 VP5 and identification of a neutralizing epitope shared with bluetongue virus and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martinez-Torrecuadrada, J.L.; Langeveld, J.P.M.; Venteo, A.

1999-01-01

African horse sickness virus (AHSV) causes a fatal disease in horses. The virus capsid is composed of a double protein layer, the outermost of which is formed by two proteins: VP2 and VP5. VP2 is known to determine the serotype of the virus and to contain the neutralizing epitopes. The biological...... in a plaque reduction assay were generated. To dissect the antigenic structure of AHSV VP5, the protein was cloned in Escherichia coil using the pET3 system. The immunoreactivity of both MAbs, and horse and rabbit polyclonal antisera, with 17 overlapping fragments from VP5 was analyzed. The most....... Neutralizing epitopes were defined at positions 85-92 (PDPLSPGE) for MAb 10AE12 and at 179-185 (EEDLRTR) for MAb 10AC6. Epitope 10AE12 is highly conserved between the different orbiviruses. MAb 10AE12 was able to recognize bluetongue virus VP5 and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus VP5 by several techniques...

Quality and Toxicity Assessments of Foot and Mouth Disease Virus ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The quality and toxicity assessment of foot and mouth disease virus vaccine was carried out in inoculated guinea pigs. ... could be used for the control and prevention of foot and mouth disease in Nigerian livestock. Keyword: Foot and Mouth Disease ... 2 blended with Incomplete. Seepic Adjuvant (ISA) montanide 206, which.

Feed efficiency and body weight growth throughout growing-furring period in mink using random regression method

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shirali, Mahmoud; Nielsen, Vivi Hunnicke; Møller, Steen Henrik

2014-01-01

days of age for 2139 male mink and the same number of females. Cumulative feed intake was calculated six times with three weeks interval based on daily feed consumption between weighing’s from 105 to 210 days of age. Heritability estimates for RFI increased by age from 0.18 (0.03, standard deviation...

Presumed drowning of Aleutian Canada geese on the Pacific coast of California and Oregon

Science.gov (United States)

Springer, Paul F.; Lowe, Roy W.; Stroud, Richard K.; Gullett, Patricia A.

1989-01-01

Carcasses of 42 and 17 Aleutian Canada geese (Branta canadensis leucopareia), a federally listed endangered species, were found on ocean beaches near Crescent City, California, and near Pacific City, Oregon, respectively, following severe storms. Necropsies and other information suggest that the birds were flushed during the storms and somehow entered the water where they were washed into the surf and drowned.

Assay for Serum Antibodies to Infectious Bursal Disease Virus in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is an acute, lymphocidal disease that has been a threat to poultry production in Nigeria and a major disease problem of poultry producing areas of the world. A serological detection of antibodies to the virus was conducted on 300 sera samples derived from local chickens slaughtered at Sheik ...

Severity of Expert-Identified Behavioural Responses of Humpback Whale, Minke Whale, and Northern Bottlenose Whale to Naval Sonar

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sivle, L.D.; Kvadsheim, P.H.; Cure, C.; Isojunno, S.; Wensveen, P.J.; Lam, F.P.A.; Visser, F.; Kleivane, L.; Tyack, P.L.; Harris, C.M.; Miller, P.J.O.

2015-01-01

Controlled exposure experiments using 1 to2 kHz sonar signals were conducted with 11 humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), one minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), and one northern bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon ampullatus) during three field trials from 2011 to 2013. Ship approaches without

Short-term effect of oral amoxicillin treatment on the gut microbial community composition in farm mink (Neovison vison)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Marker, Laura Meier; Hammer, Anne Sofie; Andresen, Lars

2017-01-01

It is well documented that antibiotics have pronounced modulatory effects on the intestinal bacterial community of both humans and animals, with potential health consequences. The gut microbiota of mink has however attracted little attention due to low bacterial load and fast gastrointestinal...

Pathotyping of a Newcastle disease virus isolated from peacock (Pavo cristatus).

Science.gov (United States)

Vijayarani, K; Muthusamy, S; Tirumurugaan, K G; Sakthivelan, S M; Kumanan, K

2010-03-01

This report describes Newcastle disease in peacock and the isolation and characterization of the virus. The virus had an intracerbral pathogenicity index of 1.71 and mean death time of 47 h. The isolate had multiple basic amino acids at the fusion protein cleavage site sequence ((110)GGRRQRRFIG(119)) with a phenylalanine at residue 117. Biological and molecular characterization revealed that the virus is velogenic. Phylogenetic analysis placed the isolate in genotype II.

OUTBREAK OF ZIKA VIRUS DISEASE AND ITS COMPLICATIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriela S. Tsankova

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Zika virus (ZIKV is an arbovirus from Flaviviridae family, genus Flavivirus. Like most of the viruses which belong to the Flavivirus genus, it replicates in and is transmitted by mosquitoes. Unlike other arbovirus infections including dengue and chikungunya, Zika virus causes a relatively mild disease. The most common symptoms of ZIKV are mild fever, arthralgia, myalgia, headache, asthenia, abdominal pain, oedema, lymphadenopathy, retro-orbital pain, conjunctivitis, and cutaneous maculopapular rash, which last for several days to a week. Although 80% of the cases with ZIKV are asymptomatic, severe complications such as microcephalia and GBS may be observed. This explains why ZIKV is more dangerous that it was thought to be and why it rapidly evolves in unexpected challenge for the international and national public health authorities.

Rapid Engineering of Foot-and-Mouth Disease Vaccine and Challenge Viruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seo-Yong; Lee, Yeo-Joo; Kim, Rae-Hyung; Park, Jeong-Nam; Park, Min-Eun; Ko, Mi-Kyeong; Choi, Joo-Hyung; Chu, Jia-Qi; Lee, Kwang-Nyeong; Kim, Su-Mi; Tark, Dongseob; Lee, Hyang-Sim; Ko, Young-Joon; Seo, Min-Goo; Park, Jung-Won; Kim, Byounghan; Lee, Myoung-Heon; Lee, Jong-Soo; Park, Jong-Hyeon

2017-08-15

There are seven antigenically distinct serotypes of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), each of which has intratypic variants. In the present study, we have developed methods to efficiently generate promising vaccines against seven serotypes or subtypes. The capsid-encoding gene (P1) of the vaccine strain O1/Manisa/Turkey/69 was replaced with the amplified or synthetic genes from the O, A, Asia1, C, SAT1, SAT2, and SAT3 serotypes. Viruses of the seven serotype were rescued successfully. Each chimeric FMDV with a replacement of P1 showed serotype-specific antigenicity and varied in terms of pathogenesis in pigs and mice. Vaccination of pigs with an experimental trivalent vaccine containing the inactivated recombinants based on the main serotypes O, A, and Asia1 effectively protected them from virus challenge. This technology could be a potential strategy for a customized vaccine with challenge tools to protect against epizootic disease caused by specific serotypes or subtypes of FMDV. IMPORTANCE Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus (FMDV) causes significant economic losses. For vaccine preparation, the selection of vaccine strains was complicated by high antigenic variation. In the present study, we suggested an effective strategy to rapidly prepare and evaluate mass-produced customized vaccines against epidemic strains. The P1 gene encoding the structural proteins of the well-known vaccine virus was replaced by the synthetic or amplified genes of viruses of seven representative serotypes. These chimeric viruses generally replicated readily in cell culture and had a particle size similar to that of the original vaccine strain. Their antigenicity mirrored that of the original serotype from which their P1 gene was derived. Animal infection experiments revealed that the recombinants varied in terms of pathogenicity. This strategy will be a useful tool for rapidly generating customized FMD vaccines or challenge viruses for all serotypes, especially for FMD-free countries

Hepatitis virus infection and chronic liver disease among atomic-bomb survivors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujiwara, Saeko; Cologne, John; Akahoshi, Masazumi; Kusumi, Shizuyo; Kodama, Kazunori; Yoshizawa, Hiroshi

2000-01-01

Hepatitis C and B virus (HCV, HBV) infection plays a crucial role in the etiology of chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma, which have been reported to increase with radiation dose among the atomic bomb survivors. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether radiation exposure altered the prevalence of hepatitis virus infection or accelerated the progress toward chronic hepatitis after hepatitis virus infection. Levels of serum antibody to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV), HBs antigen (HBsAg), and anti-HBs antibody (anti-HBs) were measured for 6,121 participants in the Adult Health Study of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. No relationship was found between anti-HCV prevalence and radiation dose, after adjusting for age, sex, city, history of blood transfusion, acupuncture, and family history, but prevalence of anti-HCV was significantly lower overall among the radiation-exposed people (relative prevalence 0.84, p=0.022) compared to people with estimated radiation dose 0 Gy. No significant interaction was found between any of the above mentioned risk factors and radiation dose. People with anti-HCV positive had 13 times higher prevalence of chronic liver disease than those without anti-HCV. However, the radiation dose response for chronic liver disease among anti-HCV positive survivors may be greater than that among anti-HCV negative survivors (slope ratio 20), but the difference was marginally significant (p=0.097). Prevalence of HBsAg increased with whole-body kerma. However, no trend with radiation dose was found in the anti-HBs prevalence. In the background, prevalence of chronic liver disease in people with HBsAg-positive was approximately three times higher that in those without HBsAg. No difference in slope of the dose was found among HBsAg positive and negative individuals (slope: HBsAg positive 0.91/Gy, HBsAg negative 0.11/Gy, difference p=0.66). In conclusion, no dose-response relationship was found between

Hepatitis virus infection and chronic liver disease among atomic-bomb survivors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fujiwara, Saeko; Cologne, John; Akahoshi, Masazumi [Radiation Effects Research Foundation, Hiroshima (Japan); Kusumi, Shizuyo [Institute of Radiation Epidemiology, Radiation Effects Association, Tokyo (Japan); Kodama, Kazunori; Yoshizawa, Hiroshi [Hiroshima University School of Medicine, Hiroshima (Japan)

2000-05-01

Hepatitis C and B virus (HCV, HBV) infection plays a crucial role in the etiology of chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma, which have been reported to increase with radiation dose among the atomic bomb survivors. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether radiation exposure altered the prevalence of hepatitis virus infection or accelerated the progress toward chronic hepatitis after hepatitis virus infection. Levels of serum antibody to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV), HBs antigen (HBsAg), and anti-HBs antibody (anti-HBs) were measured for 6,121 participants in the Adult Health Study of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. No relationship was found between anti-HCV prevalence and radiation dose, after adjusting for age, sex, city, history of blood transfusion, acupuncture, and family history, but prevalence of anti-HCV was significantly lower overall among the radiation-exposed people (relative prevalence 0.84, p=0.022) compared to people with estimated radiation dose 0 Gy. No significant interaction was found between any of the above mentioned risk factors and radiation dose. People with anti-HCV positive had 13 times higher prevalence of chronic liver disease than those without anti-HCV. However, the radiation dose response for chronic liver disease among anti-HCV positive survivors may be greater than that among anti-HCV negative survivors (slope ratio 20), but the difference was marginally significant (p=0.097). Prevalence of HBsAg increased with whole-body kerma. However, no trend with radiation dose was found in the anti-HBs prevalence. In the background, prevalence of chronic liver disease in people with HBsAg-positive was approximately three times higher that in those without HBsAg. No difference in slope of the dose was found among HBsAg positive and negative individuals (slope: HBsAg positive 0.91/Gy, HBsAg negative 0.11/Gy, difference p=0.66). In conclusion, no dose-response relationship was found between

The effects of feed restriction on physical activity, body weight, physiology, haematology and immunology in female mink

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damgaard, Birthe Marie; Dalgaard, Tina Sørensen; Larsen, Torben

2012-01-01

The aim of the present study was to investigate if adult mink females characterised as having a high or low residual feed intake (RFI) differed in their response to feed restriction with regard to activity, body weight loss and physiological parameters. For RFI-High, the activity was higher prior...

Molecular characterisation of lumpy skin disease virus and sheeppox virus based on P32 gene

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P.M.A.Rashid

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV and sheeppox virus (SPV have a considerable economic impact on the cattle and small ruminant industry. They are listed in group A of contagious disease by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE. This study addressed molecular characterisation of first LSDV outbreak and an endemic SPV in Kurdistan region of Iraq based on P32 gene. The results indicated that P32 gene can be successfully used for diagnosis of LSDV. The phylogenic and molecular analysis showed that there may be a new LSDV isolate circulating in Kurdistan which uniquely shared the same characteristic amino acid sequence with SPV and GPV, leucine at amino acid position 51 in P32 gene as well as few genetically distinct SPV causing pox disease in Kurdistan sheep. This study provided sequence information of P32 gene for several LSDV isolates, which positively affects the epidemiological study of Capripoxvirus

Avian mortality associated with a volcanic gas seep at Kiska Island, Aleutian Islands, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Bond, Alexander L.; Evans, William C.; Jones, Ian L.

2012-01-01

We identified natural pits associated with avian mortality at the base of Kiska Volcano in the western Aleutian Islands, Alaska in 2007. Living, moribund, and dead birds were regularly found at low spots in a canyon between two lava flows during 2001–2006, but the phenomenon was attributed to natural trapping and starvation of fledgling seabirds (mostly Least Auklets, Aethia pusilla) at a colony site with >1 million birds present. However, 302 birds of eight species, including passerines, were found dead at the site during 2007–2010, suggesting additional factors were involved. Most carcasses showed no signs of injury and concentrations of dead birds had accumulated in a few distinctive low pits in the canyon. Gas samples from these locations showed elevated CO2 concentrations in late 2010. Analysis of carcasses indicated no evidence of blunt trauma or internal bleeding. Volcanic gases accumulating at these poorly ventilated sites may have caused the observed mortality, but are temporally variable. Most auklets breeding in the Aleutian Islands do so in recent lava flows that provide breeding habitat; our study documents a cost of this unusual habitat selection.

Mercury concentrations of a resident freshwater forage fish at Adak Island, Aleutian Archipelago, Alaska.

Science.gov (United States)

Kenney, Leah A; von Hippel, Frank A; Willacker, James J; O'Hara, Todd M

2012-11-01

The Aleutian Archipelago is an isolated arc of over 300 volcanic islands stretching 1,600 km across the interface of the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ocean. Although remote, some Aleutian Islands were heavily impacted by military activities from World War II until recently and were exposed to anthropogenic contaminants, including mercury (Hg). Mercury is also delivered to these islands via global atmospheric transport, prevailing ocean currents, and biotransport by migratory species. Mercury contamination of freshwater ecosystems is poorly understood in this region. Total Hg (THg) concentrations were measured in threespine stickleback fish (Gasterosteus aculeatus) collected from eight lakes at Adak Island, an island in the center of the archipelago with a long military history. Mean THg concentrations for fish whole-body homogenates for all lakes ranged from 0.314 to 0.560 mg/kg dry weight. Stickleback collected from seabird-associated lakes had significantly higher concentrations of THg compared to non-seabird lakes, including all military lakes. The δ(13)C stable isotope ratios of stickleback collected from seabird lakes suggest an input of marine-derived nutrients and/or marine-derived Hg. Copyright © 2012 SETAC.

Isolation of lumpy skin disease virus from cattle in and around ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... Lumpy Skin Disease was found to be a serious disease in the study area. So, further investigation is needed on identification of the causative agents and Molecular characterization of Lumpy Skin Disease Virus and risk factors of the disease in South Wollo Zone. Keywords: Cattle, Dessie and Kombolcha, LSD, LSDV, ...

Interleukin-10 Modulation of Virus Clearance and Disease in Mice with Alphaviral Encephalomyelitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Nina M; Griffin, Diane E

2018-03-15

Alphaviruses are an important cause of mosquito-borne outbreaks of arthritis, rash, and encephalomyelitis. Previous studies in mice with a virulent strain (neuroadapted SINV [NSV]) of the alphavirus Sindbis virus (SINV) identified a role for Th17 cells and regulation by interleukin-10 (IL-10) in the pathogenesis of fatal encephalomyelitis (K. A. Kulcsar, V. K. Baxter, I. P. Greene, and D. E. Griffin, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 111:16053-16058, 2014, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1418966111). To determine the role of virus virulence in generation of immune responses, we analyzed the modulatory effects of IL-10 on disease severity, virus clearance, and the CD4 + T cell response to infection with a recombinant strain of SINV of intermediate virulence (TE12). The absence of IL-10 during TE12 infection led to longer morbidity, more weight loss, higher mortality, and slower viral clearance than in wild-type mice. More severe disease and impaired virus clearance in IL-10 -/- mice were associated with more Th1 cells, fewer Th2 cells, innate lymphoid type 2 cells, regulatory cells, and B cells, and delayed production of antiviral antibody in the central nervous system (CNS) without an effect on Th17 cells. Therefore, IL-10 deficiency led to more severe disease in TE12-infected mice by increasing Th1 cells and by hampering development of the local B cell responses necessary for rapid production of antiviral antibody and virus clearance from the CNS. In addition, the shift from Th17 to Th1 responses with decreased virus virulence indicates that the effects of IL-10 deficiency on immunopathologic responses in the CNS during alphavirus infection are influenced by virus strain. IMPORTANCE Alphaviruses cause mosquito-borne outbreaks of encephalomyelitis, but determinants of outcome are incompletely understood. We analyzed the effects of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 on disease severity and virus clearance after infection with an alphavirus strain of intermediate virulence

Virus interference between H7N2 low pathogenic avian influenza virus and lentogenic Newcastle disease virus in experimental co-infections in chickens and turkeys

OpenAIRE

Costa-Hurtado, Mar; Afonso, Claudio L; Miller, Patti J; Spackman, Erica; Kapczynski, Darrell R; Swayne, David E; Shepherd, Eric; Smith, Diane; Zsak, Aniko; Pantin-Jackwood, Mary

2014-01-01

International audience; Low pathogenicity avian influenza virus (LPAIV) and lentogenic Newcastle disease virus (l NDV) are commonly reported causes of respiratory disease in poultry worldwide with similar clinical and pathobiological presentation. Co-infections do occur but are not easily detected, and the impact of co-infections on pathobiology is unknown. In this study chickens and turkeys were infected with a l NDV vaccine strain (LaSota) and a H7N2 LPAIV (A/turkey/VA/SEP-67/2002) simultan...

Zika virus infection: Past and present of another emerging vector-borne disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakkas, Hercules; Economou, Vangelis; Papadopoulou, Chrissanthy

2016-01-01

Zika virus infection is an emerging mosquito-borne disease, first identified in Uganda in 1947. It is caused by the Zika arbovirus, and transmitted by the bites of infected mosquitoes of the genus Aedes. For almost half a century, the Zika virus was reported as the causative agent of sporadic human infections. In 2007, the Zika virus emerged outside Asia and Africa causing an epidemic on the Island of Yap in Micronesia. The manifestation of the newly acquired human infection varies from asymptomatic to self-limiting acute febrile illness with symptoms and clinical features similar to those caused by the Dengue virus ('Dengue-like syndrome'). The real-time PCR and serological methods have been successfully applied for the diagnosis of the disease. The treatment is symptomatic, since there is no specific antiviral treatment or a vaccine. During the recent outbreaks in French Polynesia and Brazil, incidents of Guillain-Barrι syndrome and microcephaly were associated with Zika virus infection, giving rise to fears of further global spread of the virus. Prevention and vector control strategies have to be urgently implemented by national health authorities in order to contain future outbreaks in vulnerable populations. This review summarizes the existing information on Zika virus characteristics, pathogenesis and epidemiology, the available methods for the diagnosis of Zika virus infection and recent approaches for prevention and control.

Ebola virus disease: a literature review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hirokazu Kimura

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Ebola virus disease (EVD is a life-threatening viral disease with a fatality rate ranging from around 30% to 90%. The first EVD outbreak was reported in the 1970s in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Until 2013, most outbreaks occurred in the Central Africa region, including Zaire, Sudan and Uganda. However, between March and October 2014, over 10 000 cases of EVD have been recorded in West Africa, such as in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria, and a few hospital or secondary infections of EVD have occurred in Spain and the United States of America. EVD is presently one of the world's most feared diseases. In this literature review, we describe the epidemiology, clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment of EVD.

78 FR 68390 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-14

.... 130306200-3200-01] RIN 0648-BD03 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area; Amendment 102 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) National.... SUMMARY: NMFS proposes regulations to implement Amendment 102 to the Fishery Management Plan for...

78 FR 65602 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-01

...-BD03 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management... Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery management plan amendment; request for comments. SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) has submitted...

76 FR 68354 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-04

.... 100819383-1652-02] RIN 0648-BA18 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area; Limited Access Privilege Program AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries.... SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations implementing Amendment 93 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish...

The complete genome sequence of a virus associated with cotton blue disease, cotton leafroll dwarf virus, confirms that it is a new member of the genus Polerovirus.

Science.gov (United States)

Distéfano, Ana J; Bonacic Kresic, Ivan; Hopp, H Esteban

2010-11-01

Cotton blue disease is the most important virus disease of cotton in the southern part of America. The complete nucleotide sequence of the ssRNA genome of the cotton blue disease-associated virus was determined for the first time. It comprised 5,866 nucleotides, and the deduced genomic organization resembled that of members of the genus Polerovirus. Sequence homology comparison and phylogenetic analysis confirm that this virus (previous proposed name cotton leafroll dwarf virus) is a member of a new species within the genus Polerovirus.

Quantitative trait loci for resistance to maize streak virus disease in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)