June 11, 2020
US swine centre starts ASF research in Vietnam
The Swine Health Information Center (SHIC) of the US will conduct a field evaluation using oral fluids for detection and surveillance of ASF virus in Vietnam, Feedstuffs reported.
These lessons will be valuable if ASF enters the US and are part of SHIC's preparedness mission. A US$1.7-million grant awarded by USDA Foreign Agricultural Service last fall to SHIC, with active support from the National Pork Producers Council, is funding ASF research which will benefit both US and Vietnamese pork producers.
The grant's overall goals include sharing veterinary knowledge and ways to prevent ASF from further spreading, while also helping to build veterinary capacity as well as strategic partnerships and increasing trade of US pork to the region. So far, six related research projects will begin. Some are under contract with SHIC using grant funds and others are potentially being funded by the National Pork Board.
In addition to these six, there are more to come. "This is a competitive process involving outside reviewers looking at priority per the call for proposals, objectives, and budget in selecting for funding," says Paul Sundberg, SHIC executive director. The first six ASF-related research projects include field evaluation of oral fluids for detection of ASF, the validity of test-and-remove practices with ASF, examining rodents as vectors for ASF, time and temperature required for inactivation of ASF virus, composting for ASF inactivation, and methods for decontamination of truck cabs.
Pen-based aggregate oral (rope) fluid testing is a non-invasive, common US industry practice requiring significantly lower financial and human resources than other methods. Collaborators on this project are the Canadian Food Inspection Agency – National Centre for Foreign Animal Diseases, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Iowa State University, National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, USDA Animal Research Center and Plum Island Animal Disease Center. Funded by SHIC with USDA grant proceeds.
The test-and-remove protocol is based on the premise that ASF, although highly infectious, has relatively slow transmissibility. The process involves immediate removal of any sow exhibiting clinical signs, submitting blood for ASF detection by PCR, and if the animal is determined positive, adjacent animals (two up and two down the trough from the sow) are also removed. This project will test sufficiency of this methodology for ASF elimination in the Vietnamese sow herd, while in the process testing four commercially available ASF point-of-care assays on diagnostic performance for detecting ASF in suspect and non-clinical neighbouring animals. Researchers working on this study are from Boehringer Ingelheim, Iowa State University and Nong Lam University. Funded by SHIC with USDA grant proceeds.
This research being conducted by the University of Nebraska and Vietnam National University of Agriculture, is designed to simulate the sanitation protocols currently used to disinfect animal trailers, with the goal of identifying the optimal baking time and temperature required to completely inactivate ASF virus in contaminated aluminium materials. Funded by SHIC with USDA grant proceeds.
This project is designed to determine if ASF virus can be detected in mice and rats, a potential threat of transmission. Then, if so, which tissues of mice and rats are best to sample. Next, the project will determine the impact of farm biosecurity level on rodents' ability to carry the disease, confirming whether stringent biosecurity reduces rodent movement as compared to farms with less stringent biosecurity and older buildings. Finally, researchers will measure mouse-to-mouse transmission of ASF in a controlled, laboratory situation, determining if ASF can be transmitted between mice through direct physical contact and/or contact with faeces from ASF-infected mice. Collaborators on this project are from South Dakota State University and the Vietnam National University of Agriculture. Funded by SHIC with USDA grant proceeds.
A recent report of a field investigation in Vietnam by Kansas State University staff indicated the cabs of vehicles responsible for feed delivery and live animal movement are a common area of ASF virus contamination. This research conducted by KSU will develop a cab decontamination model that stimulates the air volume and surface type cab environment of a truck cab, then evaluate a series of procedures for efficacy against porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus and ASF virus. The process will include testing in Vietnam in collaboration with Vietnamese production partners. The intended outcome is practical, efficacious and cost-effective solutions for swine producers to address the risk of contamination of cabs from numerous pathogens within a wide variety of vehicles. This project is being reviewed for funding by the National Pork Board.
In validating the composting process for ASF virus inactivation, the research will help US pork producers collect data to improve ASF outbreak response readiness and help Vietnamese pork producers better respond to and recover from ongoing ASF outbreaks there. The project team will conduct research in Vietnam to assess the effectiveness of swine carcass composting in inactivating the ASF virus and assess time and temperature requirements. The University of Maine System acting through the University of Maine, along with an industry consultant, USDA APHIS staff and personnel at Vietnam National University of Agriculture in Hanoi are collaborating on this work. This project is being reviewed for funding by the National Pork Board.
These research projects, as well as others to be contracted and announced, all share the mission of benefiting both US pork producers with resources for readiness for reacting for foreign animal disease such as ASF while also providing much-needed information for Vietnamese producers already facing ASF infection.
