Veterinary microbiology
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Veterinary microbiology · Mar 2015
Resolution of the cellular proteome of the nucleocapsid protein from a highly pathogenic isolate of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus identifies PARP-1 as a cellular target whose interaction is critical for virus biology.
Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is a major threat to the swine industry and food security worldwide. The nucleocapsid (N) protein is a major structural protein of PRRSV. The primary function of this protein is to encapsidate the viral RNA genome, and it is also thought to participate in the modulation of host cell biology and recruitment of cellular factors to facilitate virus infection. ⋯ Use of the PARP-1 small molecule inhibitor, 3-AB, in PRRSV infected cells demonstrated that PARP-1 was required and acted as an enhancer factor for virus biology. Serial growth of PRRSV in different concentrations of 3-AB did not yield viruses that were able to grow with wild type kinetics, suggesting that by targeting a cellular protein crucial for virus biology, resistant phenotypes did not emerge. This study provides further evidence that cellular proteins, which are critical for virus biology, can also be targeted to ablate virus growth and provide a high barrier for the emergence of drug resistance.
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Veterinary microbiology · Jun 2014
Distribution of Capnocytophaga canimorsus in dogs and cats with genetic characterization of isolates.
Capnocytophaga canimorsus, which is often found in the oral cavities of dogs and cats, is sometimes transmitted to humans, causing severe infection. To elucidate the risk of C. canimorsus in humans and animals, this study was undertaken to characterize this bacterium epidemiologically and genetically. We examined the distribution of C. canimorsus in dogs and cats, and analyzed the correlation between the presence of bacteria and individual factors statistically. ⋯ Strains from human patients belonged unevenly to group I, possibility suggesting that group I can be transmitted to humans and group II is indigenous only to the oral cavities of dogs and cats. PFGE genotyping showed high discriminatory power, and the dendrogram accorded with genetic segregation between isolates of group I and II. Sma I-digest PFGE developed for this study is useful as a molecular typing method for additional epidemiological and phylogenetic studies of C. canimorsus.
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Veterinary microbiology · May 2012
Prevalence, antibiotic resistance, virulence traits and genetic lineages of Staphylococcus aureus in healthy sheep in Tunisia.
Nasal swabs of 163 healthy sheep were obtained from two farms and one abattoir in Tunisia during 2010. Samples were inoculated in Baird Parker agar and ORSAB medium for Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) recovery, respectively. MRSA was detected in 5 of these 163 samples (3%) in ORSAB medium, and one isolate per sample was further studied. ⋯ All MRSA and MSSA isolates were able to coagulate bovine plasma and MRSA harboured the immune-evasion-gene-cluster type E. Conclusions. Nares of healthy sheep could be a reservoir of PVL-positive community-associated-MRSA and also of TSST-positive S. aureus isolates, with potential implications in public health.
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Veterinary microbiology · Mar 2012
Genetic relationship of H3 subtype avian influenza viruses isolated from domestic ducks and wild birds in Korea and their pathogenic potential in chickens and ducks.
The H3 subtype avian influenza virus (AIV) is one of the most frequently isolated subtypes in domestic ducks, live poultry markets, and wild birds in Korea. In 2002-2009, a total of 45 H3 subtype AIVs were isolated from the feces of clinically normal domestic ducks (n=28) and wild birds (n=17). The most prevalent subtypes in domestic ducks were H3N2 (35.7%), H3N6 (35.7%), H3N8 (25.0%), and H3N1 (3.6%, novel subtype in domestic duck in Korea). ⋯ When we inoculated chickens and ducks with six selected viruses, some of the viruses replicated efficiently without pre-adaptation and shed a significant amount of viruses through oropharyngeal and cloacal routes. This raised concerns that H3 subtype AIV could be a new subtype in chickens in Korea. Continuous surveillance is needed to prepare the advent of a novel subtype AIV in Korea.
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Veterinary microbiology · Mar 2012
Descriptive epidemiology of Moraxella bovis, Moraxella bovoculi and Moraxella ovis in beef calves with naturally occurring infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis (Pinkeye).
Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis (IBK) is an ocular disease that causes substantial weight loss in beef calves. ⋯ A temporal association between prior exposure to M. bovoculi or M. bovis and subsequent IBK incidence was not demonstrated. However, M. bovoculi and M. bovis are more frequently recovered from eyes with IBK lesions than unaffected eyes and this provides weak evidence for a causal role.