Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25870565
24 January 2014 Last updated at 01:27 ET
'Rise' in Schmallenberg virus cases in South West
More cattle and sheep have been affected by the Schmallenberg virus in the south-west of England than previously thought, experts from the Duchy College have claimed.
Its researchers said vets had estimated nearly 60% of dairy herds and 42% of sheep had been affected.
But last July, a survey of more than 3,000 cattle and 2,000 sheep has shown 80% and 70% have tested positive...
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-1...wn-insect.html
Schmallenberg Livestock Virus Came to U.K. From Windblown Insect
By Whitney McFerron - Nov 28, 2013 5:00 AM ET
The Schmallenberg virus that first appeared in U.K. livestock in late 2011 probably was carried by infected midges blown across the English Channel from France and Belgium, according to an Oxford University study...Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
First Confirmation of Schmallenberg Virus in Cattle in Spain: Tissue Distribution and Pathology.
Balseiro A, Royo LJ, G?mez Antona A, Garc?a Mar?n JF.
Source
SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigaci?n y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Centro de Biotecnolog?a Animal, Gij?n, Asturias, Spain.
Abstract
Between January and June 2013, nine stillborn bovine foetuses with congenital malformations from nine cattle herds located in Salamanca (central Spain) were detected. Necropsy was performed on two calves. Pathological lesions together with molecular genetics and serological results allowed a definitive diagnosis: first confirmation of Schmallenberg virus (SBV) infection in cattle in Spain. SBV was detected in different tissues and organic fluids in both animals including blood, suggesting a possible viraemia. The umbilical cord was also positive for the presence of SBV in both animals. The former tissue provides an easy to obtain sample and might be a sample of choice when necropsy is carried out in the field.
PubMedLeave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Veterinary Record doi:10.1136/vr.101983
Transmission of Schmallenberg virus in a housed dairy herd in the UK
This study, as well as previous reports during the recent Bluetongue virus epizootics, reaffirms that housing animals in farm buildings typical of those in the UK during periods of vector activity is not an effective measure against Culicoides-borne arbovirus infections in northern Europe, where the predominant Culicoides species are those of the C obsoletus species complex (Meiswinkel and others 2008, Baylis and others 2010, Viennet and others 2012).Interestingly, the first case (cow #157) identified at this farm was diagnosed in February 2012. Therefore, cow #157 must have been infected either during the winter, when the outside temperature was never above 10°C, or in the summer/autumn of 2011 before or soon after the discovery of SBV in Germany.Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (33): GREECE, BOVINE, CAPRINE, FIRST REPORT
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A ProMED-mail post
Date: Thu 19 Sep 2013
Detection of Schmallenberg virus (SBV) reactive antibodies in samples from ruminants in Greece
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In total, 14 bovine, 20 ovine, and 7 caprine blood serum samples, collected from animals in 13 farms in Thessaly and Western Macedonia regions of Greece, were considered to have originated from animals with exposure to SBV.
Samples from cattle had been collected from November 2012 to May 2013 and those from sheep or goats in January to February 2013. The different samples originated from animals with reproductive problems, as diagnosed at the Department of Obstetrics and Reproduction of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Greece.
Initial diagnostic laboratory tests, where antibodies to the virus were detected by using the ID Screen Schmallenberg virus indirect ELISA (IDvet Innovative Diagnostics), had been performed at the Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Greece.
Subsequently, 10 bovine and 2 caprine samples were sent to the Institute of Diagnostic Virology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Germany, where the results of the initial tests were confirmed by using a serum neutralization test against 100 TCID50 of Schmallenberg virus.
This is the 1st report of widespread exposure of ruminants to SBV in Greece and the 1st report of exposure of goats to SBV in Greece. All animals, in which SBV antibodies were detected, had been born in Greece. This supports the hypothesis that exposure of animals to the virus had taken place in Greece. Detection of viral RNA is needed to finally confirm the presence of SBV in the country.
[George Valiakos, George Fthenakis, Stavros Spanos, Fotini Korbou, Vasiliki Spyrou, Charalambos Billinis
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly,
Karditsa, Greece
Martin Beer, Horst Schirrmeier, Bernd Hoffmann
Institute of Diagnostic Virology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut,
Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany]Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (30): ROMANIA, BOVINE, NOT
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A ProMED-mail post
Date: Thu 22 Aug 2013
From: Jaroslaw Kaba [edited]
10 Aug 2013 Schmallenberg virus, Romania
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Due to technical difficulties experienced lately with the ELISA plate reader, which encountered controversial results in several cases studied in the month of July and August [2013] at the Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Poland, we consider that all the research results obtained during that period are scientifically invalidated, need to be reconsidered and the samples retested, including those that provided support for the 1st notification of the presence of antibodies against Schmallenberg virus (SBV) in Romania.
Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Source: http://www.farminglife.com/news/test...n-ni-1-5384223
Wednesday 14 August 2013
Tests reveal how Schmallenberg is spreading in NI
Published on 14/08/2013 08:30
Farming Life has been informed that almost 40% of cows tested for the presence of Schmallenberg Virus in the Newtownards area have come up positive.
The surveillance work was carried out by DARD staff on blood samples submitted for Brucellosis testing...Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (29): ROMANIA, BOVINE, POSITIVE SEROLOGY, FIRST REPORT
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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Sat 10 Aug 2013
From: Jaroslaw Kaba <jaroslaw_kaba@sggw.pl> [edited]
1st detection of Schmallenberg virus antibodies in Romania
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For the last 2 years, Schmallenberg virus (SBV) has been disseminating in the European ruminant population. At the beginning of 2013, SBV infection was confirmed in Hungary and Slovenia, and in June 2013 antibodies to SBV were detected in the Republic of Serbia.
As no data on the epidemiological situation of SBV in Romania had been so far available, blood samples from cattle and sheep were collected between 18 and 25 Jun 2013 in the north-western part of the country; 184 cattle and 92 sheep samples were serologically tested on 31 Jul 2013 using ID Screen Schmallenberg virus indirect (IDvet Innovative Diagnostics). The tests ware performed in the Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Poland.
A total of 169 cattle samples [out of 184] and 25 sheep samples [out of 92] (92 and 27 percent, respectively) were seropositive.
This is the 1st report of SBV infection from Romania.
Jaroslaw Kaba, Michal Czopowicz, Lucjan Witkowski
Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Poland
Marina Spinu, Dan-Alexandru Nagy
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, USAMV, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
--
Communicated by:
Dr Jaroslaw Kaba
Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW
02-776 Warsaw
Poland
<jaroslaw_kaba@sggw.pl>
[ProMED-mail is very grateful to Dr Kaba and his co-authors from Poland and Romania for the firsthand information above.
The same laboratory of the Warsaw University kindly provided, earlier, information on the 1st detection of SBV antibodies in sera of Polish and Serbian cattle. This is a commendable contribution to improved transparency in relation to SBV.
The apparently wide distribution of SBV in European livestock has become a cause for concern for exporters and particularly their clientele in SBV-free importing countries. The novel, teratogenic [causing developmental malfunctions], vector-borne orthobunyavirus SBV, affecting large and small ruminants in Europe, was initially discussed during the 80th General Session of the OIE, May 2012. The issue has been discussed again during the 81st General Session, 26-31 May 2013, in Paris, with recorded SBV-related interventions by the delegates of Russia, Ireland (speaking on behalf of the 27 EU Member States), Israel, Belarus, Somalia and Haiti. The debate included the following summarising statements:
"Dr Thiermann (President of the Terrestrial Animal Health Code Commission) accepted the proposal of the Delegate of Russia for review of the Schmallenberg virus according to the OIE criteria for disease listing.
Dr Vallat, the Director General, supported Dr Thiermann's comments. With respect to the Schmallenberg virus, Dr Vallat noted that the main point of discussion related to the impact of the virus. He informed Member Countries that the questions relating to Schmallenberg virus would be discussed as from September [2013] with a comprehensive review by experts from Europe and other regions."
The epidemiology of SBV was reviewed during the 81st Session by Dr Ben Jebara, head of OIE's information department, as recorded under article 312 of the Proceedings, titled "Emerging disease: Schmallenberg virus". He informed that 9 countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, the Netherlands and United Kingdom) reported the presence of SBV by sending an immediate notification through OIE's World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS), citing "emerging disease" as the reason for their notifications. Following discussions on the subject at the 80th OIE General Session, it was stated that SBV, which had originally been considered as an emerging disease in Western Europe, no longer fulfilled the criteria for notification in the countries having already notified a great number of outbreaks. Consequently, Member Countries stopped notifying SBV through WAHIS. However, to support the OIE's expressed views on the need for clarification regarding the concept of emerging diseases and their notification requirements, 11 additional countries (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Slovenia and Sweden) informed the OIE, by letter (instead of through WAHIS, as they should have done), of their 1st detection of SBV.
To the said total of 20 SBV-affected European countries, Serbia and now also Romania should be added.
Since SBV is not notifiable, information on its current clinical impact (abortions, AH) remains unclear. - Mod.ASLeave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (24): (RUSSIA) BOVINE SEROPOSITIVE
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A ProMED-mail post
Fri 17 May 2013
Source: NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" [in Russian, trans. & summ., Mod.NR, edited]
The Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance of the Nizhny Novgorod Oblast and the Republic of Mari-El website reports that Schmallenberg virus disease has been found in the Nizhny Novgorod Region.
According to the site, 240 serum samples were collected from cattle in the Bogorodsky agricultural district in the Nizhny Novgorod region; 27 of the samples had antibodies to the Schmallenberg virus [SBV].
The study was conducted by FGBU, the Federal Centre for Animal Health [FGI-ARRIAH, Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation], in the city of Vladimir. [This is an OIE Collaborating Centre for the Diagnosis and Control of Animal Diseases in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Transcaucasia].
[byline: Irina Serkova]
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[The Nizhny Novgorod oblast (region) is situated some 350-400 km (218-249 mi) east of Moscow; Vladimir, where the diagnostic federal laboratory is located, is about halfway between them.
Earlier, SBV positive cattle were discovered in the town of Ramenskoye, nearly 50 km (31 mi) south east of Moscow (it can be found on the HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map at http://healthmap.org/r/6LHM).
It is not clear if the animals which have been tested and found seropositive for SBV in both locations are local or imported animals. This issue, as well as their breed, age, and reproduction status (pregnant?) are points deserving clarification in view of SBV's characteristic teratogenic potential.
SBV and its international impact, including issues recently raised by CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries, is expected to be among the topics on the agenda of OIE's 81st General Session, taking place in Paris from Sun 26 May 2013 to Fri 31 May 2013. - Mod.AS
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (21) (RUSSIA) BOVINE, SEROPOSITIVE
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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Wed 1 May 2013
Source: Argumenti.RU [in Russian, machine trans., edited]
Schmallenberg virus disease detected in cows in the suburbs of Moscow
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The Chief Veterinary Officer of the Moscow Oblast [Region] is taking measures to prevent the spread of the Schmallenberg virus [SBV] disease in Ramensky district. The office has conducted a study of biomaterial collected from cattle to monitor infection by dangerous diseases.
As a result of laboratory tests, 16 serum samples of cattle owned by JSC "Plemzavod Ramenskoe", located in the town of Ramenskoye, have been found to include antibodies against SBV.
The disease caused by SBV affects cattle, sheep, and goats. It was originally recorded in Germany. To date, it is little understood but widely distributed in the European Union.
Studies conducted by the Dutch National Institute for Health and the Environment do not exclude the possibility of human infection with SBV.
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It is not clear if the animals which have been tested and found seropositive for SBV are local or imported animals. This issue, as well as their breed, age, and, if females and pregnant and their month of pregnancy, are points deserving clarification.
Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (20): NORWAY, BOVINE, FIRST CLINICAL CASE
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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
[1]
Date: Thu 25 Apr 2013
Source: Norwegian Veterinary Institute (NVI) [in Norwegian, trans. summarised by communicator, edited]
Schmallenberg virus (SBV) was detected in a bovine foetus with malformations consistent with Schmallenberg disease for the 1st time. The calf was born on 17 Apr 2013.
The calf originated from a beef herd in southern Norway (Aust Agder County) and was submitted by the national Food Safety Authorities for post mortem examination at NVI. SBV was detected in the brain stem of the calf by PCR.
SBV is spread between animals by biting midges (_Culicoides_ spp.) and was detected in these vectors in the southern part of Norway in autumn 2012. Furthermore, serological examinations of bulk milk samples have demonstrated that antibodies against SBV are widespread in dairy cattle in southern Norway. SBV can cause brief illness in ruminants. Animals that are infected early in pregnancy may have stillborn or malformed offspring with severe deformities.
This is the 1st time that SBV has been detected in animals in Norway.
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Schmallenberg virus confirmed in Scotland
Aly Balsom
Friday 19 April 2013
The first case of the Schmallenberg virus (SBV) on a Scottish farm has been confirmed.
Scotland's Rural University College (SRUC) said a deformed calf born into a Dumfriesshire suckler herd had tested positive for the virus.
Last month, eight dairy cows on SRUC's Barony Campus outside Dumfries had tested positive for antibodies to SBV, although there has been no evidence of any calving problems with that herd. The deformed beef calf is the first animal in Scotland to be identified as actually having the disease.
"The report of this recent calving in Dumfriesshire would indicate SBV was spread by midges in the area during last autumn," said Brian Hosie, head of SAC Veterinary Services.
"We would urge farmers to be more alert than ever to potential problems among cattle or sheep and discuss any concerns with their veterinary surgeons."
Farmers WeeklyLeave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...l-si041513.php
Public release date: 17-Apr-2013
Contact: Richard Mellor
r.d.mellor@leeds.ac.uk
44-011-334-34031
University of Leeds
Study identifies 'chink in the armor' of Schmallenberg virus
A key building block in the Schmallenberg virus could be targeted by anti-viral drugs, according to a new study led from the University of Leeds.
The disease, which causes birth defects and stillbirths in sheep, goats and cattle, was first discovered in Germany in late 2011 and has already spread to more than 5,000 farms across Europe, and 1,500 farms in the UK alone.
There is currently no way of treating infected animals, but a study published in Nucleic Acids Research reports that the Schmallenberg virus nucleocapsid protein, which protects its genetic material, could be its Achilles' heel.
A University of Leeds-led team of virologists and structural biologists used X-ray crystallography and electron microscopy to decipher the three-dimensional shape of the nucleocapsid protein and also show how it builds the inner workings of the virus itself.
Dr John Barr, of the University of Leeds' Faculty of Biological Sciences and co-leader of the study, said: "The protein forms a chain a bit like a necklace that wraps around and protects the RNA, the genetic material of the virus. This chain also recruits other proteins that are vital to the virus' ability to multiply and cause disease. We have developed a very finely detailed picture of the shape of the protein and all the nooks and crannies that it needs to present to other molecules to be able to function."
The nucleocapsid proteins bind together in a ring-like structure of four identical protein units, and the ring is held together by contacts between the protein units, a bit like people holding hands in a circle.
Co-lead Dr Tom Edwards, also from Leeds' Faculty of Biological Sciences, said: "The shape of the nucleocapsid protein has shown us important details of how the individual proteins in these rings are interacting. This not only tells us how the virus works, but importantly we think we can block that interaction and disrupt the process of making the ring. That could be the chink in its armour. It would stop the protein wrapping up the RNA, and would essentially kill the virus. We are now designing small molecules that could block ring formation and could therefore be an effective antiviral drug."
The Schmallenberg virus appears to be spread by midges. It causes a relatively mild illness in adult animals but is responsible for stillbirths and birth defects in cattle, sheep and goats.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) believes the disease was probably brought into the UK from infected midges blown across the Channel. It has since spread rapidly, causing severe losses on many holdings across the entire UK. There is new evidence that the Schmallenberg virus can also spread to wild animal populations such as deer and wild boar, raising the possibility that a reservoir of the disease could develop outside the control of farmers and cause problems for many years to come.
Developing a vaccine for the Schmallenberg virus is a possibility. One already exists for the similar Akabane virus, but the discovery by the Leeds-led team is the first step toward developing a treatment that could be used after an animal is infected.
The research was funded by The Wellcome Trust and involved researchers from The University of Leeds, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, The University of St Andrews, The Veterinary Laboratories Agency, and the University of Liverpool. The paper, "Nucleocapsid protein structures from orthobunyaviruses reveal insight into ribonucleoprotein architecture and RNA polymerization," is published in Nucleic Acids Research.
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Further information
Dr John Barr and Dr Thomas Edwards are available for interview.
Copies of the paper and high-resolution computer generated images of the structure of the protein and virus are available on request.
Contact Richard Mellor, Communications, University of Leeds
T: +44 (0)113 343 4031
E: r.d.mellor@leeds.ac.ukLeave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
SCHMALLENBERG VIRUS - EUROPE (17): (RUSSIA) IMPORTED BOVINE, INTERNATIONAL TRADE
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A ProMED-mail post
[1]
Date: Mon 8 Apr 2013
Source: RG.RU (Rossiiskaya Gazeta/Russian Gazette) [in Russian, machine trans., edited]
1st focus of Schmallenberg virus (SBV) in the Tver region
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According of orders 268 and 269 issued by the State Veterinary Inspectorate of the Tver oblast, 2 animal farms, one in the village of Kozlovo (Andreopolsky district, map at http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...-Andreapol.png) and the other, a cattle breeding center, in the village of Verhanovo (Konakovsky district, map at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tv...t-Konakovo.png), have been declared as "hotspots" of SBV, a disease which affects cattle, sheep, and goats.
The decision was based upon the test results of cattle serum samples performed by the Federal Centre for Animal Health (State Organization "ARRIAH"). Antibodies to the virus have been identified in 29 samples. All suspect animals were imported into Tver from abroad. Now they are isolated from the main herd; their slaughter is prohibited, the premises have been disinfected.
[The country of origin of the suspected cattle is not mentioned in the report above. The location of Tver oblast, in western Russia, is available at http://tinyurl.com/cj5mvwu; of the Andreopolsky district (within Tver), at http://tinyurl.com/cnwsk4w, and of the Konakovsky district at http://tinyurl.com/bqo275c.
A HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map can be accessed at http://healthmap.org/r/1mS5.
The ban on the slaughter of the animals was probably based upon a decision to follow the fate/health-status of their offspring. It will be interesting to obtain information on the gestation status of the animals upon arrival (from where?) in Russia and the results of the undertaken clinical follow-up. - Mod.AS]Leave a comment:
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Re: Schmallenberg Virus - News and updates - 2013
Machinetranslated - From Finland
04.10.2013
A new viral disease of cattle caused malformations
Anneli Kallioniemi Send feedback to the supplier
The all-new ruminants Schmallenberg virus disease has spread to a large part of Finland.
About ten sheep farms or in the barn this spring found born deformed lambs or calves, with the development of a new virus is disrupted.
- Virus-or antibody findings are plenty of Kokkola-Kitee, south of a line, but the malformations are tip of the iceberg, says senior researcher Ulla Rikula Food Safety Authority Evira.
The disease should be suspected if the calves, lambs or kilej? are stillborn or deformed, or in cattle occurs in abortions. The virus interferes with the central nervous system, as well as the development of the limbs and spine, resulting in a severely deformed animal.
Schmallenberg virus is a whole new sheep and cattle plague in Europe. It was discovered in Germany in the autumn of 2011, and has been followed by a number of European countries.
Finland antibodies against the virus was found in herds for the first time last August in the south-west.
Damaged by a virus or calves, lambs mothers are infected last year in the late summer or early fall. The virus spread midges.
Infected mothers may have been asymptomatic. Specific tiineysaikaan Infection may be fatal to the offspring.
- When a lamb or calf born in the spring, it may have defects. We estimate that the Schmallenberg due to deformed calves may be born until the end of May.
Evira is going to campaign for birth defects and abortion causes. The study is a cattle owner free of charge until the end of May.
Blood dams is no longer found in the virus, but the memory of the blood remains antibodies. Researchers believe that the antibodies protect animals up to a lifetime of the same virus for subsequent attacks.
Schmallenberg distribution evolves, the dairy herds surveys are completed. The virus causes the greatest losses, where it spreads to the new area. State level, the economic losses can be large.
It is not yet known whether the virus will be able to spend the winter, or whether perhaps next summer in our country with the wind new midges that carry the virus.
Satankunnan KansaLeave a comment:
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