Veterinary Microbiology and Immunobiology Commons^™

Efficacy Of A Doxycycline Treatment Regimen Initiated During Three Different Phases Of Experimental Ehrlichiosis, Jennifer C. Mcclure, Michelle L. Crothers, John J. Schaefer, Patrick D. Stanley, Glen R. Needham, S A. Ewing, Roger W. Stich

John J Schaefer

Doxycycline is the treatment of choice for canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (CME), a well-characterized disease and valuable model for tick-borne zoonoses. Conflicting reports of clearance of Ehrlichia canis after treatment with doxycycline suggested that the disease phase during which treatment is initiated influences outcomes of these treatments. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a 28-day doxycycline regimen for clearance of experimental E. canis infections from dogs treated during three phases of the disease. Ten dogs were inoculated with blood from E. canis carriers and treated with doxycycline during acute, subclinical, or chronic phases of CME. Daily …

Methicillin Resistance In Staphylococcus Pseudintermedius, Chad Christopher Black

Doctoral Dissertations

Staphylococcus pseudintermedius affecting dogs is analogous to S. aureus on humans, acting as both normal flora and opportunistic pathogen. Methicillin resistance in S. pseudintermedius is recent, with the first documented occurrence of an isolate bearing the methicillin resistance gene, mecA, in 1999. This gene encodes penicillin binding protein 2a, which renders all beta-lactam drugs ineffective and functions as a “gateway” antibiotic resistance determinant. In the presence of ineffective antibiotics, opportunities for mutational events and acquisition of mobile genetic elements increase as microbial densities increase, often leading to multi-drug resistance. Methicillin-resistant S. pseudintermedius (MRSP) infections have become increasingly common. For …

The Lack Of An Inherent Membrane Targeting Signal Is Responsible For The Failure Of The Matrix (M1) Protein Of Influenza A Virus To Bud Into Virus-Like Particles, Dan Wang, Aaron Harmon, Jing Jin, David H. Francis, Jane Christopher-Hennings, Eric A. Nelson, Ronald C. Montelaro, Feng Li

Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

The matrix protein (M1) of influenza A virus is generally viewed as a key orchestrator in the release of influenza virions from the plasma membrane during infection. In contrast to this model, recent studies have indicated that influenza virus requires expression of the envelope proteins for budding of intracellular M1 into virus particles. Here we explored the mechanisms that control M1 budding. Similarly to previous studies, we found that M1 by itself fails to form virus-like-particles (VLPs). We further demonstrated that M1, in the absence of other viral proteins, was preferentially targeted to the nucleus/perinuclear region rather than to the …

Tactics For Identifying And Eliminating Tritrichomonas Foetus From Infected Beef Herds, Jeff D. Ondrak

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The protozoan, Tritrichomonas foetus (TF), has been recognized as a cause of bovine infertility for more than 100 years (Skirrow and BonDurant, 1988). As an obligate parasite of the bovine reproductive tract its control and eradication seems achievable (Harding, 1950). However, this disease continues to trouble US cattle producers and a recent epidemic in the Western US has lead to increased interest in research and regulatory efforts (Cima, 2009).

Outbreak investigations were carried out on three Nebraska ranches to assess the efficiency of currently available diagnostic tests, culture, gel polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and real time PCR (rtPCR), in identifying …

Role Of All Of The Prrsv Glycoproteins In Protective Immune Response, Asit K. Pattnaik

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) contains the major glycoprotein, GP5, as well as three other minor glycoproteins, namely, GP2a, GP3, and GP4, on the virion envelope, all of which are required for generation of infectious virions. To study their interactions amongst each other and with the cellular receptor for PRRSV, we have cloned each of the viral glycoproteins and CD163 receptor in expression vectors and examined their expression and interaction with each other in transfected cells by co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) assay using monospecific antibodies. Our results show that strong interaction exists between GP4 and GP5 proteins, although weak interactions …

Cell-Type Specific Distribution Of Chloride Transporters In The Rat Suprachiasmatic Nucleus, Michael A. Belenky, Patricia J. Sollars, David B. Mount, Seth L. Alper, Yosef Yarom, Gary E. Pickard

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is a circadian oscillator and biological clock. Cell-to-cell communication is important for synchronization among SCN neuronal oscillators and the great majority of SCN neurons use γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as a neurotransmitter, the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the adult central nervous system. Acting via the ionotropic GABAA receptor, a chloride ion channel, GABA typically evokes inhibitory responses in neurons via Cl− influx. Within the SCN GABA evokes both inhibitory and excitatory responses although the mechanism underlying GABA-evoked excitation in the SCN is unknown. GABA-evoked depolarization in immature neurons in several regions of the brain is a function …

Porcine Reproductive And Respiratory Syndrome Virus Nonstructural Protein 1Β Modulates Host Innate Immune Response By Antagonizing Irf3 Activation, Lalit Beura, Saumendra Sarkar, Byungjoon Kwon, Sakthivel Subramaniam, Clinton J. Jones, Asit K. Pattnaik, Fernando A. Osorio

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) infection of swine leads to a serious disease characterized by a delayed and defective adaptive immune response. It is hypothesized that a suboptimal innate immune response is responsible for the disease pathogenesis. In the study presented here we tested this hypothesis and identified several nonstructural proteins (NSPs) with innate immune evasion properties encoded by the PRRS viral genome. Four of the total ten PRRSV NSPs tested were found to have strong to moderate inhibitory effects on beta interferon (IFN-β) promoter activation. The strongest inhibitory effect was exhibited by NSP1 followed by, NSP2, NSP11, …

The Minor Envelope Glycoproteins Gp2a And Gp4 Of Porcine Reproductive And Respiratory Syndrome Virus Interact With The Receptor Cd163, Phani B. Das, Phat X. Dinh, Israrul H. Ansari, Marcelo De Lima, Fernando A. Osorio, Asit K. Pattnaik

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) contains the major glycoprotein, GP5, as well as three other minor glycoproteins, namely, GP2a, GP3, and GP4, on the virion envelope, all of which are required for generation of infectious virions. To study their interactions with each other and with the cellular receptor for PRRSV, we have cloned each of the viral glycoproteins and CD163 receptor in expression vectors and examined their expression and interaction with each other in transfected cells by coimmunoprecipitation (co-IP) assay using monospecific antibodies. Our results show that a strong interaction exists between the GP4 and GP5 proteins, although …

Method For Identification Of Virulence Determinants, Raul G. Barletta, Beth Harris

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Disclosed are methods for the determination of virulence determinants in bacteria and in particular bacteria of the genus Mycobacterium. Also disclosed are compositions and methods for stimulating an immune response in an animal using bacteria and virulence determinants identified by the methods of the present invention.

Promiscuous Mating In Feral Pigs (Sus Scrofa) From Texas, Usa, Johanna Delgado-Acevedo, Angeline Zamorano, Randy W. Deyoung, Tyler A. Campbell, David G. Hewitt, David B. Long

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Context. Feral pigs represent a significant threat to agriculture and ecosystems and are disease reservoirs for pathogens affecting humans, livestock and other wildlife. Information on the behavioural ecology of feral pigs might increase the efficiency and effectiveness of management strategies.

Aims. We assessed the frequency of promiscuous mating in relation to oestrous synchrony in feral pigs from southern Texas, USA, an agroecosystem with a widespread and well established population of feral pigs. An association between multiple paternity of single litters and synchrony of oestrous may indicate alternative mating strategies, such as mateguarding.

Methods. We collected gravid sows at …

Induction Of Interferon And Interferon Signaling Pathways By Replication Of Defective Interfering Particle Rna In Cells Constitutively Expressing Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Replication Proteins, Debasis Panda, Phat X. Dinh, Lalit Beura, Asit K. Pattnaik

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

We show here that replication of defective interfering (DI) particle RNA in HEK293 cells stably expressing vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) replication proteins potently activates interferon (IFN) and IFN signaling pathways through upregulation of IFN- promoter, IFN-stimulated response element (ISRE) promoter, and NF-κB promoter activities. Replication of DI particle RNA, not mere expression of the viral replication proteins, was found to be critical for induction of IFN and IFN signaling. The stable cells supporting replication of DI RNA described in this report will be useful in further examining the innate immune signaling pathways and the host cell functions in viral genome …

Towards An Understanding Of The Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Latency-Reactivation Cycle, Guey-Chuen Perng, Clinton Jones

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Infection by herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) can cause clinical symptoms in the peripheral and central nervous system. Recurrent ocular shedding can lead to corneal scarring and vision loss making HSV-1 a leading cause of corneal blindness due to an infectious agent. The primary site of HSV-1 latency is sensory neurons within trigeminal ganglia. Periodically, reactivation from latency occurs resulting in virus transmission and recurrent disease. During latency, the latency-associated transcript (LAT) is abundantly expressed. LAT expression is important for the latency-reactivation cycle in animal models, in part, because it inhibits apoptosis, viral gene expression, and productive infection. A …

Detection And Molecular Characterization Of Canine Enteric Viruses In Southern Ireland., Susan Mcelligott

Theses

Enteric viruses, such as canine parvovirus (CPV) and canine coronavirus (CCoV), are a major cause of gastroenteritis in dogs. More serious clinical symptoms occur in young pups, or when both of these viruses infect an animal simultaneously. Caliciviruses and rotaviruses can also cause gastroenteritis in dogs, but these viruses, while causing significant problems in other animal species and humans, are considered to be less significant pathogens of canines. However, on occasion, these viruses have been reported to produce severe clinical symptoms such as vomiting, haemorrhagic enteritis and severe dehydration.

Many viral vaccines for canines are formulated using old vaccine viral …