Evaluation of oral fluid as an aggregate sample for early detection of ASF

This is our Friday rubric: every week a new Science Page from the Bob Morrison’s Swine Health Monitoring Project. The previous editions of the science page are available on our website.

Since ASF has been found in the Dominic Republic last week, swine producers are concerned about it spreading into the United States. Early detection would be essential to ensure a rapid response and containment of the disease. This week, the MSHMP team shares the summary of a Canadian study looking at using oral fluids as a tool to diagnose ASF.

Key Points

  • Oral fluid samples may be used as a low labor, cost effective alternative sample source for rapid detection of ASFV during ASF surveillance.
  • ASFv genome was detected in oral fluids at low-to-moderate levels as early as 3-5 days post infection, before clinical symptoms started. 
  • Further research is needed to understand limitations and best practices of oral fluid sampling for ASFv
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Relationships among Microbial Communities in Pigs

Today, we are sharing a recent article published in the journal Microorganisms by Dr. Valeris-Chacin and the MycoLab. The publication, available in open access, focuses on the relationships among fecal, air, oral, and tracheal microbial communities in pigs.

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Natural transmission and detection of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae in a naïve gilt population

Dr. Alyssa Betlach, member of the Maria Pieters Myco Lab, recently published a study on the natural transmission of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae in Veterinary Microbiology. The study evaluated transmission rate in a naïve gilt population and compared various sample types to detect infection.

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Molecular detection of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus, Porcine Circovirus 2 and Hepatitis E virus in oral fluid compared to their detection in feces and serum

This is our Friday rubric: every week a new Science Page from the Bob Morrison’s Swine Health Monitoring Project. The previous editions of the science page are available on our website.

Doctors Plut, Kamnikar-Ciglenecki and Stukeli from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia) highlight the usefulness of pig oral fluid (OF) to detect Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV), Porcine Circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) and Hepatitis E virus (HEV) in different pig age categories. Read here the full article published in BMC Veterinary Research.

Key Points

  • OF, feces and serum were evaluated for the detection of PRRSV, PCV2 and HEV in six farms.
  • OF samples had good agreement with serum sample PCR results for the detection of all three viruses.
  • The study highlights that pooled samples can potentially be used to investigate viral presence on farms.
Continue reading “Molecular detection of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus, Porcine Circovirus 2 and Hepatitis E virus in oral fluid compared to their detection in feces and serum”

Detection of Mycoplasma hyorhinis and Mycoplasma hyosynoviae in oral fluids and correlation with pig lameness scores

In this newly released article from the MycoLab in the Veterinary Microbiology journal, Dr. David Pillman working with Dr. Maria Pieters shares his results regarding detection of two mycoplasma species and how this was correlated with lameness scores in nursery and finishing pigs.

Key points

  • M. hyorhinis was frequently detected in oral fluids in nursery and finisher herds
  • High detection of M. hyosynoviae in oral fluids was observed in finisher herds.
  • Proportion of lame pigs and M. hyosynoviae detection in oral fluids were correlated.
Continue reading “Detection of Mycoplasma hyorhinis and Mycoplasma hyosynoviae in oral fluids and correlation with pig lameness scores”