DNA Capture and Enrichment: A Culture-Independent Approach for Characterizing the Genomic Diversity of Pathogenic Species.

Because they are difficult to culture, obtaining genomic information from spp. is challenging, hindering the overall understanding of leptospirosis. We designed and validated a culture-independent DNA capture and enrichment system for obtaining genomic information from complex human and animal samples.

serovar Hardjo and serogroup Pyrogenes isolated from bovine dairy herds in Puerto Rico.

Leptospirosis is one of the most common zoonotic diseases in the world and endemic in the Caribbean Islands. Bovine leptospirosis is an important reproductive disease. Globally, cattle are recognized as a reservoir host for serovar Hardjo, which is transmitted urine, semen, and uterine discharges, and can result in abortion and poor reproductive performance.

Avian influenza A virus susceptibility, infection, transmission, and antibody kinetics in European starlings.

Avian influenza A viruses (IAVs) pose risks to public, agricultural, and wildlife health. Bridge hosts are spillover hosts that share habitat with both maintenance hosts (e.g.

Persistence of maternal antibodies to influenza A virus among captive mallards (Anas platyrhynchos).

Wild waterfowl are maintenance hosts of most influenza A virus (IAV) subtypes and are often the subjects of IAV surveillance and transmission models. While maternal antibodies have been detected in yolks and in nestlings for a variety of wild bird species and pathogens, the persistence of maternal antibodies to IAVs in mallard ducklings (Anas platyrhynchos) has not been previously investigated. Nonetheless, this information is important for a full understanding of IAV transmission dynamics because ducklings protected by maternal antibodies may not be susceptible to infection.

Leptospirosis in fox squirrels (Sciurus niger) of Larimer County, Colorado, USA.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the bacterium Leptospira interrogans. The organism is typically maintained within a geographic region by colonizing renal tubules of carrier animals and shed into the environment in urine. We assessed whether L.