Veterinary Microbiology and Immunobiology Commons^™

Analysis Of Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis Mutant Libraries Reveals Loci-Dependent Transposition Biases And Strategies For Novel Mutant Discovery, Govardhan Rathnaiah, John Bannantine, Darrell O. Bayles, Denise K. Zinniel, Judith R. Stabel, Yrjö T. Gröhn, Raúl G. Barletta

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP), the aetiological agent of Johne’s disease, is one of the most important bacterial pathogens in ruminants. A thorough understanding of MAP pathogenesis is needed to develop new vaccines and diagnostic tests. The generation of comprehensive random transposon mutant libraries is a fundamental genetic technology to determine the role of genes in physiology and pathogenesis. In this study, whole MAP genome analysis compared the insertion sites for the mycobacterial transposon Tn5367 derived from the Mycobacterium smegmatis insertion sequence IS1096 and the mariner transposon MycoMarT7 carrying the Himar1 transposase. We determined that only MycoMarT7 provides …

Mosquito Host Choices On Livestock Amplifiers Of Rift Valley Fever Virus In Kenya, David P. Tchouassi, Robinson O. Okiro, Rosemary Sang, Lee W. Cohnstaedt, D. Scott Mcvey, Baldwyn Torto

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Animal hosts may vary in their attraction and acceptability as components of the host location process for assessing preference, and biting rates of vectors and risk of exposure to pathogens. However, these parameters remain poorly understood for mosquito vectors of the Rift Valley fever (RVF), an arboviral disease, and for a community of mosquitoes.

Methods: Using three known livestock amplifiers of RVF virus including sheep, goat and cattle as bait in enclosure traps, we investigated the host-feeding patterns for a community of mosquitoes in Naivasha, an endemic area of Rift Valley fever (RVF), in a longitudinal study for six …

Development And Characterization Of A Recombinant Orf Virus Vector Expressing The Spike Protein Of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus, Kyle Hain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Orf virus (ORFV), the type member of the genus Parapoxvirus of the family Poxviridae, causes orf or cutaneous pustular dermatitis in sheep and goats. ORFV is a ubiquitous virus capable of re-infecting its hosts multiple times over time. ORFV causes a non-systemic, self-limiting disease which is usually restricted to the skin surrounding the virus entry sites. ORFV has evolved several immunomodulatory proteins (IMPs) that evade and/or modulate host immune responses to infection and contribute to virus virulence and disease pathogenesis. Given biological properties and unique immunomodula tor y properties, ORFV has gained significant attention in recent years for its …