Genome sequence of bovine herpesvirus 5 (BoHV-5) isolate from India.

Recently, we identified bovine herpesvirus 5 (BoHV-5) in a vaginal swab from aborted cattle. It was unusual in two aspects: first, its association with abortion (it is otherwise mainly associated with encephalitis), and second, it is the first report from India (as it is mostly restricted to South American countries). In this study, we conducted the genome sequencing of the BoHV-5 isolate and provided insights into its phylogenetic relationships with other BoHV-5 strains.

Antiviral and Cytoprotective Effect of Zinc (Yasad Bhasma) Based Nanoformulations Against Bovine Coronavirus.

Ayurvedic medicine utilizes metal-based preparations, known as bhasmas, to treat various health conditions. Yasad bhasma (YB), a zinc-based ayurvedic preparation, shows promise as a potential candidate for developing zinc-based nanomedicines with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. In this study, we synthesized a formulation combining YB and hydroxychloroquine (HC) as a zinc ionophore (YBHC) and investigated its biocompatibility and antiviral effects against buffalo calf coronavirus (BCoV) in Vero cells.

Evidence of lumpy skin disease virus infection in camels.

Countries in the Indian subcontinent are currently facing a deadly epidemic of lumpy skin disease (LSD).  LSD is primarily a disease of cattle. Buffaloes may sometimes develop mild illness, however, other domestic animals are considered resistant to LSD.

Evaluation of the safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of a new live-attenuated lumpy skin disease vaccine in India.

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) was reported for the first time in India in 2019 and since then, it has become endemic. Since a homologous (LSD-virus based) vaccine was not available in the country, goatpox virus (GPV)-based heterologous vaccine was authorized for mass immunization to induce protection against LSD in cattle. This study describes the evaluation of safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of a new live-attenuated LSD vaccine developed by using an Indian field strain, isolated in 2019 from cattle.

Multisectoral prioritization of zoonotic diseases in Haryana (India) using one health approach.

Zoonotic diseases have huge livestock and public health burden worldwide, including India. Prioritizing zoonotic diseases is one of the important tasks under 'One Health' as it facilitates effective policy making, proper allocation of resources and promotion of multisectoral collaboration. Although some efforts have been made to prioritizing zoonotic diseases at national level in India, it is important to identify priority diseases in regional settings due to wide variation in climate and demography of different states.

Studies on Growth Characteristics and Cross-Neutralization of Wild-Type and Delta SARS-CoV-2 From Hisar (India).

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly evolved to generate several antigenic variants. These variants have raised concerns whether pre-existing immunity to vaccination or prior infection would be able to protect against the newly emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants or not. We isolated SARS-CoV-2 from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-confirmed patients in the beginning of the first (April/May 2020) and second (April/May 2021) waves of COVID-19 in India (Hisar, Haryana).

Emetine suppresses SARS-CoV-2 replication by inhibiting interaction of viral mRNA with eIF4E.

Emetine is a FDA-approved drug for the treatment of amebiasis. Previously we demonstrated the antiviral efficacy of emetine against some RNA and DNA viruses. In this study, we evaluated the in vitro antiviral efficacy of emetine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and found it to be a low nanomolar (nM) inhibitor.

Isolation and characterization of lumpy skin disease virus from cattle in India.

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) has devastating economic impact. During the last decade, LSD had spread to climatically new and previously disease-free countries, which also includes its recent emergence in the Indian subcontinent (2019). This study deals with the LSD outbreak(s) from cattle in Ranchi (India).

Microwave assisted fast fabrication of zinc/iron oxides based polymeric nanocomposites and evaluation on equine fibroblasts.

We aimed to provide a tissue repair material, which can be synthesized rapidly, using polymers mimicking the natural environment in the extra-cellular matrix and metals/minerals. The components should have the potential to be used in tissue repair and simultaneously, reducing the side-effects of the incorporated molecules. It is challenging to manage the dispersibility of ZnO NPs in common solutions like water.

Antiviral activity of Apigenin against buffalopox: Novel mechanistic insights and drug-resistance considerations.

We describe herein that Apigenin, which is a dietary flavonoid, exerts a strong in vitro and in ovo antiviral efficacy against buffalopox virus (BPXV). Apigenin treatment was shown to inhibit synthesis of viral DNA, mRNA and proteins, without affecting other steps of viral life cycle such as attachment, entry and budding. Although the major mode of antiviral action of Apigenin was shown to be mediated via targeting certain cellular factors, a modest inhibitory effect of Apigenin was also observed directly on viral polymerase.

Isolation and characterization of bovine herpes virus 5 (BoHV5) from cattle in India.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV1) and 5 (BoHV5) are genetically and antigenically related alphaherpesviruses. Infection with one virus induces protective immunity against the other. However, disease associated with BoHV1 and BoHV5 varies significantly; whereas BoHV1 infection is usually associated with rhinotracheitis and abortion, BoHV5 causes encephalitis in cattle.

Molecular characterization of chicken astroviruses in gout-affected commercial broiler chickens in Haryana, India.

Chicken astroviruses (CAstVs) infect young chicks and are associated with gastroenteritis, stunted growth or visceral gout (gout). True incidence and distribution of CAstVs as well as virus variants circulating in India is not well understood. In this study, 80 gout-affected broiler chicken flocks from Haryana, a north-western state of India, were tested for the presence of astroviruses by targeting the polymerase gene of both CAstV and avian nephritis virus (ANV) and capsid gene of CAstV.

Inhibitor of Sarco/Endoplasmic Reticulum Calcium-ATPase Impairs Multiple Steps of Paramyxovirus Replication.

Sarco/endoplasmic reticulum calcium-ATPase (SERCA) is a membrane-bound cytosolic enzyme which is known to regulate the uptake of calcium into the sarco/endoplasmic reticulum. Herein, we demonstrate for the first time that SERCA can also regulate virus replication. Treatment of Vero cells with SERCA-specific inhibitor (Thapsigargin) at a concentration that is nontoxic to the cells significantly reduced Peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) replication.

MNK1 inhibitor as an antiviral agent suppresses buffalopox virus protein synthesis.

A small molecule chemical inhibitor CGP57380 that blocks activation of MAPK interacting kinase 1 (MNK1) was found to significantly suppress buffalopox virus (BPXV) replication. BPXV infection was shown to induce MNK1 activation. Depletion of MNK1 by small interfering RNA (siRNA), blocking activation of extracellular regulated kinase (ERK, an upstream activator of MNK1) and disruption of eIF4E/eIF4G interaction (downstream substrate of MNK1 which plays a central role in cap-dependent translation initiation), resulted in reduced BPXV replication, suggesting that ERK/MNK1/eIF4E signaling is a prerequisite for BPXV replication.

Emetine inhibits replication of RNA and DNA viruses without generating drug-resistant virus variants.

At a noncytotoxic concentration, emetine was found to inhibit replication of DNA viruses [buffalopoxvirus (BPXV) and bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1)] as well as RNA viruses [peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV)]. Using the time-of-addition and virus step-specific assays, we showed that emetine treatment resulted in reduced synthesis of viral RNA (PPRV and NDV) and DNA (BPXV and BHV-1) as well as inhibiting viral entry (NDV and BHV-1). In addition, emetine treatment also resulted in decreased synthesis of viral proteins.

Sodium alginate and gum acacia hydrogels of zinc oxide nanoparticles reduce hemolytic and oxidative stress inflicted by zinc oxide nanoparticles on mammalian cells.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles are important nanomaterials currently under research due to their applicability in nanomedicine. Toxicity of ZnO NPs has been extensively studied and has been shown to affect various cell types and animal systems. In this study, we investigated hemolytic potential and oxidative stress inflicted by ZnO NPs and ZnO NPs-loaded-sodium alginate-gum acacia hydrogels on horse erythrocytes and African green monkey kidney (Vero) cells.

Advances in peste des petits ruminants vaccines.

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a highly contagious disease of small ruminants that leads to high morbidity and mortality thereby results in devastating economic consequences to the livestock industry. PPR is currently endemic across most parts of Asia and Africa, the two regions with the highest concentration of poor people in the world. Sheep and goats in particularly contribute significantly towards the upliftment of livelihood of the poor and marginal farmers in these regions.

Abundance of antibiotic resistance genes in environmental bacteriophages.

The ecosystem is continuously exposed to a wide variety of antimicrobials through waste effluents, agricultural run-offs and animal-related and anthropogenic activities, which contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The contamination of ecosystems with ARGs may create increased opportunities for their transfer to naive microbes and eventually lead to entry into the human food chain. Transduction is a significant mechanism of horizontal gene transfer in natural environments, which has traditionally been underestimated as compared to transformation.

Isolation and genetic characterization of swinepox virus from pigs in India.

Swinepox virus (SWPV), a member of the genus Suipoxvirus causes generalized pock-like lesions on the body of domestic and wild pigs. Although outbreak has been reported in India since 1987, virus isolation and genetic characterization remained elusive. In September 2013, an outbreak of acute skin infection occurred in piglets in a commercial piggery unit at Rohtak district in Haryana, India.

Complexities in Isolation and Purification of Multiple Viruses from Mixed Viral Infections: Viral Interference, Persistence and Exclusion.

Successful purification of multiple viruses from mixed infections remains a challenge. In this study, we investigated peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) and foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) mixed infection in goats. Rather than in a single cell type, cytopathic effect (CPE) of the virus was observed in cocultured Vero/BHK-21 cells at 6th blind passage (BP).

Cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of a trypanocidal drug quinapyramine sulfate loaded-sodium alginate nanoparticles in mammalian cells.

We synthesized quinapyramine sulfate loaded-sodium alginate nanoparticles (QS-NPs) to reduce undesirable toxic effects of QS against the parasite Trypanosoma evansi, a causative agent of trypanosomosis. To determine the safety of the formulated nanoparticles, biocompatibility of QS-NPs was determined using Vero, Hela cell lines and horse erythrocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Our experiments unveiled a concentration-dependent safety/cytotoxicity (metabolic activity), genotoxicity (DNA damage, chromosomal aberrations), production of reactive oxygen species and hemolysis in QS-NPs treated cells.

First Draft Genome Sequence of Salmonella enterica Serovar Gallinarum Strain VTCCBAA614, Isolated from Chicken in India.

Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Gallinarum biovar Gallinarum causes fowl typhoid (FT), which results in huge economic losses to poultry farmers in India. We report the draft genome sequence of Salmonella biovar Gallinarum strain VTCCBAA614, isolated from a chicken in an FT affected broiler flock.

Genetic characterization and phylogenetic analysis of host-range genes of Camelpox virus isolates from India.

Camelpox virus (CMLV), a close variant of variola virus (VARV) infects camels worldwide. The zoonotic infections reported from India signify the need to study the host-range genes-responsible for host tropism. We report sequence and phylogenetic analysis of five host-range genes: cytokine response modifier B (crmB), chemokine binding protein (ckbp), viral schlafen-like (v-slfn), myxomavirus T4-like (M-T4-like) and b5r of CMLVs isolated from outbreaks in India.