Publications by authors named "Eric Shepherd"

An unusual case of swollen head syndrome in a 55-wk-old broiler breeder flock was identified in north Georgia in the summer of 2019. The presenting complaint was elevated mortality and visibly swollen heads. Necropsy of affected birds on the farm primarily revealed signs of bacterial septicemia, with few large scab lesions near the vent area.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Spotty liver disease (SLD) has emerged as an important cause of disease in egg-producing flocks in countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia and has emerged in the United States. The organisms implicated in SLD include and, more recently, . These organisms have been found to cause focal lesions on the livers of infected birds.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hemorrhagic hepatopathy is a syndrome reported in layer pullets resulting in mortality and lesions including hepatic, splenic, and intestinal necrosis; hepatic and splenic enlargement; hemorrhages; amyloidosis of the muscle, spleen, and liver; accumulation of noncoagulated hemorrhagic fluid in the coelom; and frequently, granulomatous myositis at bacterin injection sites. The syndrome is characterized in the literature in table egg layer pullets and is thought to be associated with the administration of bacterin vaccines, namely, frequently subsp. bacterins.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: Wild aquatic birds have been associated with the intercontinental spread of H5 subtype highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses of the A/goose/Guangdong/1/96 (Gs/GD) lineage during 2005, 2010, and 2014, but dispersion by wild waterfowl has not been implicated with spread of other HPAI viruses. To better understand why Gs/GD H5 HPAI viruses infect and transmit more efficiently in waterfowl than other HPAI viruses, groups of mallard ducks were challenged with one of 14 different H5 and H7 HPAI viruses, including a Gs/GD lineage H5N1 (clade 2.2) virus from Mongolia, part of the 2005 dispersion, and the H5N8 and H5N2 index HPAI viruses (clade 2.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Little is known on the interactions between avian influenza virus (AIV) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) when coinfecting the same poultry host. In a previous study we found that infection of chickens with a mesogenic strain of NDV (mNDV) can reduce highly pathogenic AIV (HPAIV) replication, clinical disease, and mortality. This interaction depended on the titer of the viruses used and the timing of the infections.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) are two of the most important viruses affecting poultry worldwide and produce co-infections especially in areas of the world where both viruses are endemic; but little is known about the interactions between these two viruses. The objective of this study was to determine if co-infection with NDV affects HPAIV replication in chickens. Only infections with virulent NDV strains (mesogenic Pigeon/1984 or velogenic CA/2002), and not a lentogenic NDV strain (LaSota), interfered with the replication of HPAIV A/chicken/Queretaro/14588-19/95 (H5N2) when the H5N2 was given at a high dose (10(6.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Infections with avian influenza viruses (AIV) of low and high pathogenicity (LP and HP) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) are commonly reported in domestic ducks in many parts of the world. However, it is not clear if co-infections with these viruses affect the severity of the diseases they produce, the amount of virus shed, and transmission of the viruses. In this study we infected domestic ducks with a virulent NDV virus (vNDV) and either a LPAIV or a HPAIV by giving the viruses individually, simultaneously, or sequentially two days apart.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Low pathogenicity avian influenza virus (LPAIV) and lentogenic Newcastle disease virus (lNDV) are commonly reported causes of respiratory disease in poultry worldwide with similar clinical and pathobiological presentation. Co-infections do occur but are not easily detected, and the impact of co-infections on pathobiology is unknown. In this study chickens and turkeys were infected with a lNDV vaccine strain (LaSota) and a H7N2 LPAIV (A/turkey/VA/SEP-67/2002) simultaneously or sequentially three days apart.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Domestic ducks are the second most abundant poultry species in many Asian countries including Vietnam, and play a critical role in the epizootiology of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) [FAO]. In this study, we examined the protective efficacy in ducks of two commercial H5N1 vaccines widely used in Vietnam; Re-1 containing A/goose/Guangdong/1/1996 hemagglutinin (HA) clade 0 antigens, and Re-5 containing A/duck/Anhui/1/2006 HA clade 2.3.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses continue to be a threat to poultry in many regions of the world. Domestic ducks have been recognized as one of the primary factors in the spread of H5N1 HPAI. In this study we examined the pathogenicity of H5N1 HPAI viruses in different species and breeds of domestic ducks and the effect of route of virus inoculation on the outcome of infection.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Gulls are widely recognized reservoirs for low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) viruses; however, the subtypes maintained in these populations and/or the transmission mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Although, a wide diversity of influenza viruses have been isolated from gulls, two hemagglutinin subtypes (H13 and H16) are rarely detected in other avian groups, and existing surveillance data suggests they are maintained almost exclusively within gull populations. In order to evaluate the host range of these gull-adapted influenza subtypes and to characterize viral infection in the gull host, we conducted a series of challenge experiments, with multiple North American strains of H13 LPAI virus in ring-billed gulls (Larus delawarensis), mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), chickens (Gallus domesticus), and turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In a previous study, we found clear differences in pathogenicity and response to vaccination against H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI; HA dade 2.3.4) between Pekin (Anas platyrhynchos var.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The pathogenicity of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses in domestic ducks varies between different viruses and is affected by the age of the ducks, with younger ducks presenting a more severe disease. In order to better understand the pathobiology of H5N1 HPAI in ducks including the role of host responses, 2 and 5-week-old Pekin ducks were infected with three different H5N1 HPAI viruses. Virus-induced pathology ranged from no clinical signs to severe disease and mortality, with the 2-week-old ducks being more severely affected by the more virulent viruses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To assess improvements in fixation stability when a hinged unilateral external fixator is used to supplement compromised internal fixation for distal humerus fractures.

Methods: Removing a 1-cm section of the distal humerus in cadaveric whole-arm specimens created a comminuted distal humerus fracture model (AO type 13-A3). Fixation was then performed using different constructs representing optimal, compromised, or supplemented internal fixation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Fifty-two knees in normal healthy subjects and 32 knees more than 2 years after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) were evaluated. Average isometric extension peak torque values in TKA patients were reduced by up to 30.7% (P=.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A two-dimensional accelerometer worn on the ankle (step activity monitor [SAM]; Prosthetic Research Study, Seattle, WA) has been proved to be highly accurate for assessing walking activity. The walking activity of 33 patients with well-functioning total hip arthroplasties was measured continuously during daily life, simultaneously with a pedometer and a SAM. The SAM recorded an average of 1.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF