Lyophilization of ASFV vaccine candidate ASFV-G-ΔI177L offers long term stability.

For over a century African swine fever (ASF) has been causing outbreaks leading to devastating losses for the swine industry. The current pandemic of ASF has shown no signs of stopping and continues to spread causing outbreaks in additional countries. Currently control relies mostly on culling infected farms, and strict biosecurity procedures.

A Retrospective Analysis Reveals That the 2021 Outbreaks of African Swine Fever Virus in Ghana Were Caused by Two Distinct Genotypes.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the causative agent of African swine fever (ASF), a highly infectious and lethal disease of domesticated swine. Outbreaks of ASF have been mostly restricted to the continent of Africa. The outbreaks that have occurred outside of Africa were controlled by extensive depopulation of the domesticated pig population.

Down Syndrome: Evaluating Disparities in Place of Death in the United States Using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (CDC-WONDER) Database Over 22 Years.

Introduction: The Uniform Determination of Death Act (UDDA) ensures that individuals with irreversible cessation of circulatory, respiratory, or brain functions receive timely palliative care. Our research has focused on identifying disparities in mortality among individuals with Down syndrome (DS) based on gender, age, racial groups, and geographic regions within the United States over 22 years. This study aims to analyze differences in the location of death, including hospitals, nursing homes, hospice care facilities, and unspecified locations, considering demographic and regional variables.

Recombinant Vaccine Strain ASFV-G-Δ9GL/ΔUK Produced in the IPKM Cell Line Is Genetically Stable and Efficacious in Inducing Protection in Pigs Challenged with the Virulent African Swine Fever Virus Field Isolate Georgia 2010.

We have previously reported that the recombinant African Swine Fever (ASF) vaccine candidate ASFV-G-Δ9GL/ΔUK efficiently induces protection in domestic pigs challenged with the virulent strain Georgia 2010 (ASFV-G). As reported, ASFV-G-Δ9GL/ΔUK induces protection, while intramuscularly (IM), administered at doses of 10 HAD or higher, prevents ASF clinical disease in animals infected with the homologous ASFV g strain. Like other recombinant vaccine candidates obtained from ASFV field isolates, ASFV-G-Δ9GL/ΔUK stocks need to be produced in primary cultures of swine macrophages, which constitutes an important limitation in the production of large virus stocks at the industrial level.

Deletion of the EP402R Gene from the Genome of African Swine Fever Vaccine Strain ASFV-G-∆I177L Provides the Potential Capability of Differentiating between Infected and Vaccinated Animals.

The African swine fever virus (ASFV) mutant ASFV-G-∆I177L is a safe and efficacious vaccine which induces protection against the challenge of its parental virus, the Georgia 2010 isolate. Although a genetic DIVA (differentiation between infected and vaccinated animals) assay has been developed for this vaccine, still there is not a serological DIVA test for differentiating between animals vaccinated with ASFV-G-∆I177L and those infected with wild-type viruses. In this report, we describe the development of the ASFV-G-∆I177L mutant having deleted the gene, which encodes for the viral protein responsible for mediating the hemadsorption of swine erythrocytes.

Evaluation of the Deletion of the African Swine Fever Virus Gene from the Genome of the Georgia Isolate.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a structurally complex, double-stranded DNA virus, which causes African swine fever (ASF), a contagious disease affecting swine. ASF is currently affecting pork production in a large geographical region, including Eurasia and the Caribbean. ASFV has a large genome, which harbors more than 160 genes, but most of these genes' functions have not been experimentally characterized.

African Swine Fever Vaccine Candidate ASFV-G-ΔI177L Produced in the Swine Macrophage-Derived Cell Line IPKM Remains Genetically Stable and Protective against Homologous Virulent Challenge.

ASFV vaccine candidate ASFV-G-ΔI177L has been shown to be highly efficacious in inducing protection against challenges with the parental virus, the Georgia 2010 isolate, as well as against field strains isolated from Vietnam. ASFV-G-ΔI177L has been shown to produce protection even when used at low doses (10 HAD) and shows no residual virulence even when administered at high doses (10 HAD) or evaluated for a relatively long period of time (6 months). ASFV-G-ΔI177L stocks can only be massively produced in primary cell macrophages.

The 2022 Outbreaks of African Swine Fever Virus Demonstrate the First Report of Genotype II in Ghana.

African swine fever (ASF) is a lethal disease of domestic pigs that has been causing outbreaks for over a century in Africa ever since its first discovery in 1921. Since 1957, there have been sporadic outbreaks outside of Africa; however, no outbreak has been as devastating and as far-reaching as the current pandemic that originated from a 2007 outbreak in the Republic of Georgia. Derivatives with a high degree of similarity to the progenitor strain, ASFV-Georgia/2007, have been sequenced from various countries in Europe and Asia.

Deletion of the Gene in African Swine Fever Virus Partially Reduces Virus Virulence in Swine.

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious disease that affects wild and domestic swine. Currently, the disease is present as a pandemic affecting pork production in Eurasia and the Caribbean region. The etiological agent of ASF is a large, highly complex structural virus (ASFV) harboring a double-stranded genome encoding for more than 160 proteins whose functions, in most cases, have not been experimentally characterized.

ASF Vaccine Candidate ASFV-G-∆I177L Does Not Exhibit Residual Virulence in Long-Term Clinical Studies.

African swine fever (ASF) is an important disease in swine currently producing a pandemic affecting pig production worldwide. Except in Vietnam, where two vaccines were recently approved for controlled use in the field, no vaccine is commercially available for disease control. Up to now, the most effective vaccines developed are based on the use of live-attenuated viruses.

Confirming the absence of parental African swine fever virus as a potential contaminant of recombinant live attenuated ASF vaccines.

African swine fever (ASF) is a devastating disease that is currently producing a panzootic significantly impacting the swine industry worldwide. One of the major challenges for advancing the development of ASF vaccines has been the absence of international standards for ASF vaccine purity, potency, safety, and efficacy. To date, the most effective experimental vaccines have been live attenuated strains of viruses.

Classical Swine Fever Virus Structural Glycoprotein E2 Interacts with Host Protein ACADM during the Virus Infectious Cycle.

The E2 glycoprotein is one of the four structural proteins of the classical swine fever virus (CSFV) particle. E2 has been shown to be involved in many virus functions, including adsorption to host cells, virus virulence and interaction with several host proteins. Using a yeast two-hybrid screen, we have previously shown that the CSFV E2 specifically interacts with swine host protein medium-chain-specific acyl-Coenzyme A dehydrogenase (ACADM), an enzyme that catalyzes the initial step of the mitochondrial fatty acid beta-oxidation pathway.

Evaluation of the Function of ASFV Gene E66L in the Process of Virus Replication and Virulence in Swine.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the etiological agent of an economically important disease of swine currently affecting large areas of Africa, Eurasia and the Caribbean. ASFV has a complex structure harboring a large dsDNA genome which encodes for more than 160 proteins. One of the proteins, E66L, has recently been involved in arresting gene transcription in the infected host cell.

Full genome sequence for the African swine fever virus outbreak in the Dominican Republic in 1980.

African swine fever is a lethal disease of domestic pigs, geographically expanding as a pandemic, that is affecting countries across Eurasia and severely damaging their swine production industry. After more than 40 years of being absent in the Western hemisphere, in 2020 ASF reappeared in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The recent outbreak strain in the Dominican Republic has been identified as a genotype II ASFV a derivative of the ASF strain circulating in Asia and Europe.

Deletion of an African Swine Fever Virus ATP-Dependent RNA Helicase from the Highly Virulent Georgia 2010 Strain Does Not Affect Replication or Virulence.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) produces a lethal disease (ASF) in domestic pigs, which is currently causing a pandemic deteriorating pig production across Eurasia. ASFV is a large and structurally complex virus with a large genome harboring more than 150 genes. ASFV gene has been shown to encode for an ATP-dependent RNA helicase, which appears to be important for efficient virus replication.

Complete Structural Predictions of the Proteome of African Swine Fever Virus Strain Georgia 2007.

Here, we announce the predicted structures of the 193 proteins encoded by African swine fever virus (ASFV) strain Georgia 2007 (ASFV-G). Previously, only the structures of 16 ASFV proteins were elucidated.

The Presence of Virus Neutralizing Antibodies Is Highly Associated with Protection against Virulent Challenge in Domestic Pigs Immunized with ASFV live Attenuated Vaccine Candidates.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is currently producing a pandemic affecting a large area of Eurasia, and more recently, the Dominican Republic in the Western Hemisphere. ASFV is a large and structurally complex virus with a large dsDNA genome encoding for more than 150 genes. Live attenuated virus strains can induce protection in domestic swine against disease produced by homologous virulent parental viruses.

ASFV Gene A151R Is Involved in the Process of Virulence in Domestic Swine.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the etiological agent of a swine pandemic affecting a large geographical area extending from Central Europe to Asia. The viral disease was also recently identified in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. ASFV is a structurally complex virus with a large dsDNA genome that encodes for more than 150 genes.

Deletion of the EP296R Gene from the Genome of Highly Virulent African Swine Fever Virus Georgia 2010 Does Not Affect Virus Replication or Virulence in Domestic Pigs.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) causes a lethal disease (ASF) in domestic pigs, African swine fever (ASF). ASF is currently producing a pandemic affecting pig production across Eurasia, leading to a shortage of food accessibility. ASFV is structurally complex, harboring a large genome encoding over 150 genes.

Deletion of the ASFV dUTPase Gene from the Genome of Highly Virulent African Swine Fever Virus Georgia 2010 Does Not Affect Virus Replication or Virulence in Domestic Pigs.

African swine fever (ASF) is a frequently lethal disease of domestic and wild swine currently producing a pandemic affecting pig production in Eurasia. The causative agent, ASF virus (ASFV) is a structurally complex virus with a large genome harboring over 150 genes. One of them, , encodes for a protein belonging to the dUTPase family.

Deletion of the H108R Gene Reduces Virulence of the Pandemic Eurasia Strain of African Swine Fever Virus with Surviving Animals Being Protected against Virulent Challenge.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the etiological agent of African swine fever (ASF), a devastating disease affecting domestic and wild swine and currently causing a global pandemic, severely affecting swine production. Here, we demonstrate that the deletion of the previously uncharacterized ASFV gene, H108R from the highly virulent ASFV-Georgia2007 (ASFV-G) genome strain, reduces virulence in domestic swine. ASFV-G-ΔH108R, a recombinant virus with the H108R gene deleted, was used to evaluate the involvement of the H108R gene for ASFV replication and virulence in swine.

Evaluation of the Deletion of MGF110-5L-6L on Swine Virulence from the Pandemic Strain of African Swine Fever Virus and Use as a DIVA Marker in Vaccine Candidate ASFV-G-ΔI177L.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is responsible for an ongoing pandemic that is affecting central Europe, Asia, and recently the Dominican Republic, the first report of the disease in the Western Hemisphere in over 40 years. ASFV is a large, complex virus with a double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome that carries more than 150 genes, most of which have not been studied. Here, we assessed the role of the MGF110-5L-6L gene during virus replication in cell cultures and experimental infection in swine.

Deletion of African Swine Fever Virus Histone-like Protein, A104R from the Georgia Isolate Drastically Reduces Virus Virulence in Domestic Pigs.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the etiological agent of a frequently lethal disease, ASF, affecting domestic and wild swine. Currently, ASF is causing a pandemic affecting pig production in Eurasia. There are no vaccines available, and therefore control of the disease is based on culling infected animals.

Evaluation of the Safety Profile of the ASFV Vaccine Candidate ASFV-G-ΔI177L.

African swine fever (ASF) is the cause of a recent pandemic that is posing a threat to much of the world swine production. The etiological agent, ASF virus (ASFV), infects domestic and wild swine, producing a variety of clinical presentations depending on the virus strain and the genetic background of the pigs infected. No commercial vaccine is currently available, although recombinant live attenuated vaccine candidates have been shown to be efficacious.