June 22, 2007

Australian scientists discover new viral species in pigs

A team of researchers at the Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute in Camden, New South Wales (NSW) in Australia have possibly identified a new species of porcine pestivirus.

Scientists working in the institute's virology laboratory have been investigating the organism since 2003 which they called "Novel Bungowannah virus" after an outbreak of sudden deaths occurred in three to four week old piglets on a farm in New South Wales.

The infection caused high mortality rates in the birth of stillborn foetuses as further study showed pathological changes consisted of a multifocal non-suppurative myocarditis. A viral infection was suspected, but a wide range of known agents were excluded.

The study used modified sequence independent single primer amplification (SISPA) method which identified a new virus associated with this outbreak which later had researchers conclude that the new specie is classified under the Pestivirus genus based on further laboratory tests and genetic investigations.

Research into the genetic coding of this virus has now demonstrated that it is possibly the most different pestivirus identified to date.

Other diseases within this genus include Classical Swine Fever, Bovine Viral Diarrhoea and Border Disease Virus in sheep.