Use of equine H3N8 hemagglutinin as a broadly protective influenza vaccine immunogen.

Development of an efficacious universal influenza vaccines remains a long-sought goal. Current vaccines have shortfalls such as mid/low efficacy and needing yearly strain revisions to account for viral drift/shift. Horses undergo bi-annual vaccines for the H3N8 equine influenza virus, and surveillance of sera from vaccinees demonstrated very broad reactivity and neutralization to many influenza strains.

EFFECT OF GENOTYPE AND AGE ON A DEFINED MICROBIOTA IN GNOTOBIOTIC SCID PIGLETS.

Severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) individuals lack functional T and B lymphocytes, leading to a deficient adaptive immune system. SCID pigs are a unique large animal biomedical model as they possess many similarities to humans, allowing for the collection of translatable data in regenerative medicine, cancer, and other biomedical research topics. While many studies suggest early gut microbiota development is necessary for developing the intestinal barrier and immune system, these animals are often cesarian section derived, leaving them uncolonized for normal intestinal microflora.

Plants Causing Toxic Myopathies.

Boxelder and sycamore maple contain hypoglycin A (HGA), the toxic metabolite of which, MCPA-CoA, inhibits fatty acid β-oxidation, causing seasonal pasture myopathy (SPM) or atypical myopathy (AM), respectively. White snakeroot and rayless goldenrod contain multiple benzofuran ketones (BFKs). The identity/toxicity of BFKs appear variable, possibly involving interactions between toxins/toxic metabolites, but ultimately inhibit cellular energy metabolism.

An Overview of Equine Enteric Clostridial Diseases.

The understanding of the pathogenesis of equine enteric clostridial organisms is an active, evolving field. Advances will improve our knowledge both from the animal welfare and human health perspectives. The zoonotic nature of this group of diseases makes them relevant in the age of One health, as a significant amount of close human-equine interactions occurs for business and pleasure.