Risk factors for infection with PRRSv in Ontario

Kwong GP(1), Poljak Z, Deardon R, Dewey CE.

Abstract

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) has a worldwide distribution. This economically important endemic disease causes reproductive failure in breeding stock and respiratory tract illness in young pigs. In Ontario restricted fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) 1-18-4 has been determined as one of the most common virus genotypes. Individual-level models (ILMs) for infectious diseases, fitted in a Bayesian MCMC framework, have been used to describe both the spatial and temporal spread of diseases. They are an intuitive and flexible class of models that can take into account population heterogeneity via various individual-level covariates. The objective of this study is to identify relative importance of risk factors for the spread of the genotype 1-18-4 from monitoring data in southern Ontario using ILMs. Specifically, we explore networks through which resources are obtained or delivered, as well as the ownership structure of herds, and identify factors that may be contributing to high risk of infection. A population of 316 herds which experienced their PRRS outbreaks between September 2004 and August 2007 are included in the analyses, in which 194 (61%) are sow herds. During the study period, 45 herds (27 sow herds) experienced their first outbreak due to RFLP 1-18-4. Our results show that the three relatively most important factors for the spread of 1-18-4 genotype in Ontario swine herds were sharing the same herd ownership, gilt source and market trucks. All other networks had relatively smaller impact on spread of this PRRSV genotype. Spatial proximity could not be identified as important contributor to spread. Our findings also suggest that gilt acclimation should be practiced whenever possible and appropriate to reduce the risk for the herd and for others as it is already widely implemented and recommended in the North American swine industry.

Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. PMID: 23416041  [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Kwong GP, Poljak Z, Deardon R, Dewey CE. Bayesian analysis of risk factors for infection with a genotype of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus in Ontario swine herds using monitoring data. Prev Vet Med. 2013 Jul1;110(3-4):405-17. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2013.01.004. Epub 2013 Feb 14.

Fresh Pork and PRRSv: Factors Related to the Risk of Disease Transmission.

Hall W, Neumann E. Transbound Emerg Dis. 2015 Aug;62(4):350-66. doi: 10.1111/tbed.12163. Epub 2013Sep 10.

Abstract

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRS) is a highly infectious virus. Experimentally, the disease can be induced in naïve pigs by the oral, intranasal and intramuscular routes. Depending on the virulence of the strain of the virus and the age of the pig, peak viremia can occur within 7 days of infection, and live virus can be isolated from blood or lymph nodes for several months post-infection. Young pigs tend to develop higher titres of viremia than older pigs infected by the same route and dose with the same strain of virus. Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus survives in pork harvested from infected pigs for extended periods at temperatures of -20 or -70°C. In experimentally infected pigs, survival of PRRS virus in muscle held at 4°C has been demonstrated for at least 7 days, and infectivity of the virus in these samples was confirmed by bioassay. The optimal pH range for the survival of PRRS virus is thought to be 6.0 to 7.5. The elevated pH of non-meat tissues (generally one pH unit higher) is likely to favour extended survival of PRRS virus in pig carcasses from which all superficial and deep lymph nodes have not been removed. It is likely that exsanguinated carcasses held at 4°C retain sufficient blood or lymph tissue to contain infective doses of PRRS virus. Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus is rapidly inactivated by heat, providing a predictable method to ensure that pork tissues are free of viable virus and feeding of cooked swill or garbage should not constitute a risk to pigs. While the probability of viable PRRS virus being present in a pig carcass may be low, the risk is not zero. The importation of raw pork into countries where PRRS is not endemic represents a hazard with potentially severe economic consequences.

© 2013 Blackwell Verlag GmbH. PMID: 24016101 [PubMed - in process]

An assessment of external biosecurity on Southern Ontario swine farms and its application to surveillance on a geographic level

Can J Vet Res. 2013 Oct;77(4):241-53.

Bottoms K1, Poljak Z, Friendship R, Deardon R, Alsop J, Dewey C.

1Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College (Bottoms, Poljak, Friendship, Dewey) and Department of Mathematics and Statistics (Deardon), University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario; Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Guelph, Ontario (Alsop).

Abstract

Risk-based surveillance is becoming increasingly important in the veterinary and public health fields. It serves as a means of increasing surveillance sensitivity and improving cost-effectiveness in an increasingly resource-limited environment. Our approach for developing a tool for the risk-based geographical surveillance of contagious diseases of swine incorporates information about animal density and external biosecurity practices within swine herds in southern Ontario. The objectives of this study were to group the sample of herds into discrete biosecurity groups, to develop a map of southern Ontario that can be used as a tool in the risk-based geographical surveillance of contagious swine diseases, and to identify significant predictors of biosecurity group membership. A subset of external biosecurity variables was selected for 2-step cluster analysis and latent class analysis (LCA). It was determined that 4 was the best number of groups to describe the data, using both analytical approaches. The authors named these groups: i) high biosecurity herds that were open with respect to replacement animals; ii) high biosecurity herds that were closed with respect to replacement animals; iii) moderate biosecurity herds; and iv) low biosecurity herds. The risk map was developed using information about the geographic distribution of herds in the biosecurity groups, as well as the density of swine sites and of grower-finisher pigs in the study region. Finally, multinomial logistic regression identified heat production units (HPUs), number of incoming pig shipments per month, and herd type as significant predictors of biosecurity group membership. It was concluded that the ability to identify areas of high and low risk for disease may improve the success of surveillance and eradication projects.

PMID: 24124266 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] PMCID: PMC3788655

Epidemiological study of air filtration systems for preventing PRRSV infection in large sow herds

Alonso C, Murtaugh MP, Dee SA, Davies PR.

Prev Vet Med. 2013 Oct 1;112(1-2):109-17. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2013.06.001. Epub 2013 Jul 17.

Abstract

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is the most economically significant pathogen in the US swine industry. Aerosol transmission among herds is a major concern in pig dense regions and filtration of incoming air, in combination with standard biosecurity procedures, has been demonstrated to prevent transmission of PRRSV into susceptible herds. To quantify the impact of air filtration on reducing risk of PRRSVoutbreaks, we compared the incidence rate of new PRRSV introductions in 20 filtered and 17 non-filtered control sow herds in a swine dense region of North America during a 7 year study period. Events of novel virus introduction were ascertained by phylogenetic analysis of PRRSV ORF5 gene sequences. Putative new viruses were defined as exogenous (introduced) based on ORF5 nucleotide sequence differences compared to previous farm isolates. The influence of sequence difference cut-off values ranging from 2 to 10% on case definition and relative risk were evaluated. Non-filtered farms incurred about 0.5 outbreaks per year, with a seasonal increase in risk in cooler periods. Baseline risk, prior to filtration, in treatment farms was approximately 0.75 per year, approximately 50% higher than in control farms. Air filtration significantly reduced risk of PRRSV introduction events to 0.06-0.22 outbreaks per year, depending on the cut-off values used to classify a virus isolate as new to the herd. Overall, air filtration led to an approximately 80% reduction in risk of introduction of novel PRRSV, indicating that on large sow farms with good biosecurity in swine-dense regions, approximately four-fifths of PRRSV outbreaks may be attributable to aerosol transmission.

Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

KEYWORDS:

Air filtration; Biosecurity; Epidemiology; PRRS; Swine
PMID: 23870693 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Comparative pathogenesis of European North American genotypes PRRSv in infected boar

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) now has two main genotypes, genotype 1 (European) and genotype 2 (North American). There is a lack of data on the comparison of pathogenicity of the two genotypes in boars. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the amount of PRRSV present in semen over time and compare the viral distribution and microscopic lesions of type 1 and type 2 PRRSV-infected boars.

METHODS:

Twenty-four 8-month-old PRRSV-naive Duroc boars were randomly allocated to 3 treatment groups. The boars in groups 1 (n = 9) and 2 (n = 9) were intranasally inoculated with type 1 or type 2 PRRSV, respectively. The boars in groups 1 (n = 6) served as negative controls. Semen and blood samples were collected up to 35 days post-inoculation (dpi), and necropsies were performed on 14, 21, and 35 dpi.

RESULTS:

There were no significant differences in the genomic copy number of PRRSV, microscopic testicular lesion score, number of PRRSV-positive germ cells, or number of apoptotic cells between the type 1 and type 2 PRRSV-infected boars throughout the experiment. Histopathological changes were manifested by the desquamation of spermatocytes and the presence of multinucleated giant cells in seminiferous tubules of both type 1 and type 2 PRRSV-infected boars. The distribution of PRRSV-positive cells was focal; the virus was found in single germ cells or small clusters of germ cells, localized to the spermatogonia, spermatocytes, spermatids, and non-sperm cells in type 1 and type 2 PRRSV-infected boars.

CONCLUSIONS:

The results of this study demonstrated that two genotypes of PRRSV do not have significantly different virulence toward the male reproductive system of pigs.

PMID:

 

23687995

 

[PubMed - as supplied by publisher] 

PMCID:

 

PMC3663669

Han K, Seo H W, Park C, Oh Y, Kang I, Chae C. Comparative pathogenesis of type 1 (European genotype) and type 2 (North American genotype) porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus in infected boar. Virology journal 2013;10(1):156-156.

Kinetics of the PRRSv humoral immune response in swine serum and oral fluids collected from boars

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

The object of this study was to describe and contrast the kinetics of the humoral response in serum and oral fluid specimens during acute porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) infection. The study involved three trials of 24 boars each. Boars were intramuscularly inoculated with a commercial modified live virus (MLV) vaccine (Trial 1), a Type 1 PRRSV field isolated (Trial 2), or a Type 2 PRRSV field isolate (Trial 3). Oral fluid samples were collected from individual boars on day post inoculation (DPI) -7 and 0 to 21. Serum samples were collected from all boars on DPI -7, 0, 7, 14, 21 and from 4 randomly selected boars on DPI 3, 5, 10, and 17. Thereafter, serum and oral fluid were assayed for PRRSV antibody using antibody isotype-specific ELISAs (IgM, IgA, IgG) adapted to serum or oral fluid.

RESULTS:

Statistically significant differences in viral replication and antibody responses were observed among the three trials in both serum and oral fluid specimens. PRRSV serum IgM, IgA, and IgG were first detected in samples collected on DPI 7, 10, and 10, respectively. Oral fluid IgM, IgA, and IgG were detected in samples collected between DPI 3 to 10, 7 to 10, and 8 to 14, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS:

This study enhanced our knowledge of the PRRSV humoral immune response and provided a broader foundation for the development and application of oral fluid antibody-based diagnostics.

PMID:

 

23537175

 

[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Kittawornrat A, Engle M, Panyasing Y, Olsen C, Schwartz K, Rice A, Lizano S, Wang C, Zimmerman J. Kinetics of the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) humoral immune response in swine serum and oral fluids collected from individual boars. BMC veterinary research 2013;9(1):61-61.

Probability of detecting PRRSv infection using pen-based swine oral fluid specimens as a function of within-pen prevalence

Abstract

Pen-based oral fluid sampling has proven to be an efficient method for surveillance of infectious diseases in swine populations. To better interpret diagnostic results, the performance of oral fluid assays (antibody- and nucleic acid-based) must be established for pen-based oral fluid samples. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to determine the probability of detecting Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) infection in pen-based oral fluid samples from pens of known PRRSV prevalence. In 1 commercial swine barn, 25 pens were assigned to 1 of 5 levels of PRRSV prevalence (0%, 4%, 12%, 20%, or 36%) by placing a fixed number (0, 1, 3, 5, or 9) of PRRSV-positive pigs (14 days post PRRSV modified live virus vaccination) in each pen. Prior to placement of the vaccinated pigs, 1 oral fluid sample was collected from each pen. Thereafter, 5 oral fluid samples were collected from each pen, for a total of 150 samples. To confirm individual pig PRRSV status, serum samples from the PRRSV-negative pigs (n = 535) and the PRRSV vaccinated pigs (n = 90) were tested for PRRSV antibodies and PRRSV RNA. The 150 pen-based oral fluid samples were assayed for PRRSV antibody and PRRSV RNA at 6 laboratories. Among the 100 samples from pens containing ≥1 positive pig (≥4% prevalence) and tested at the 6 laboratories, the mean positivity was 62% for PRRSV RNA and 61% for PRRSV antibody. These results support the use of pen-based oral fluid sampling for PRRSV surveillance in commercial pig populations.

PMID:

 

23536612

 

[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Olsen C, Wang C, Christopher Hennings J, Doolittle K, Harmon K M, Abate S, Kittawornrat A, Lizano S, Main R, Nelson E A, Otterson T, Panyasing Y, Rademacher C, Rauh R, Shah R, Zimmerman J. Probability of detecting Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infection using pen-based swine oral fluid specimens as a function of within-pen prevalence. Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation 2013 [in press].