Publications by authors named "A Graaf-Rau"

Article Synopsis
  • - RNA viruses like influenza and coronaviruses pose significant health threats, often lacking effective vaccines or treatments, while others like filo- and henipaviruses have high mortality rates despite limited outbreaks.
  • - The antiviral drug 4'-Fluorouridine (4'-FlU) inhibits RNA virus replication by targeting the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, but its effectiveness varies across different viruses, necessitating strategies to improve its potency.
  • - Researchers found that inhibiting dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) enhances the antiviral effects of 4'-FlU against several RNA viruses, including in models of infection, potentially by depleting uridine, which boosts 4'-FlU's incorporation into viral
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Aggregated samples such as oral fluids (OFs) display an animal friendly and time and cost-efficient sample type for swine Influenza A virus (swIAV) monitoring. However, further molecular and biological characterization of swIAV is of particular significance. The reportedly inferior suitability of aggregated samples for subtyping of swIAV presents a major drawback compared to nasal swabs, still considered the most appropriate sample type for this purpose (Garrido-Mantilla et al.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Within the last decades industrial swine herds in Europe grown significantly, creating an optimized reservoir for swine influenza A viruses (swIAV) to become enzootic, particularly in piglet producing herds among newborn, partly immunologically naïve piglets. To date, the only specific control measure to protect piglets from swIAV is the vaccination of sows, which provides passive immunity through maternally derived antibodies in colostrum of vaccinated sows. Interruption of infection chains through management practices have had limited success.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Swine influenza A viruses (swIAV) are a significant respiratory disease in pigs, causing economic challenges in pig farming due to ongoing virus transmission and variation.
  • Researchers immunized antibody-positive piglets from an infected herd using a prime-boost vaccination strategy with novel vaccines (a live attenuated influenza virus and a vesicular stomatitis virus-based replicon).
  • These new vaccines significantly reduced virus replication in vaccinated piglets compared to traditional inactivated virus vaccines, potentially helping to control virus spread and improving animal health while lowering the risk of transmission to humans.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Monitoring of infectious diseases on swine farms requires a high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of the test system. Moreover, particularly in cases of swine influenza A virus (swIAV) it is desirable to include characterization of the virus as precisely as possible. This is indispensable for strategies concerning prophylaxis of swIAV and furthermore, to meet the requirements of a purposeful monitoring of newly emerging swIAV strains in terms of vaccine design and public health.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF