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Riggio S, Tolone M, Sottile G, Tumino S, Portolano B, Sutera AM, Sardina MT, Cesarani A, Mastrangelo S. A high-density genome-wide approach reveals novel genetic markers linked to small ruminant lentivirus susceptibility in sheep. Front Genet 2024; 15:1376883. [PMID: 38911298 PMCID: PMC11191640 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1376883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Visna/Maedi virus (VMV) is lentiviral disease of sheep responsible for severe production losses. Multiple genomic regions associated with infection were reported indicating genetic complexity. In this study, a combined genome-wide approach using a high-density SNP array has been performed, comparing VMV-infected (n = 78) and non-infected (n = 66) individuals of the Valle del Belice breed. The serological tests showed a seroprevalence of 26%. The comparison among results from different approaches (GWAS, Fisher's exact test and the FST analysis) revealed two association signals: on OAR03 close to the GRIN2B gene and on OAR05 close to the TMEM232 gene. To the best of our knowledge, there has been no previous association between these genes and lentiviral infection in any species. The GRIN2B gene plays a role in pain response, synaptic transmission, and receptor clustering, while TMEM232 is involved in the development of immune-related disorders. The results highlighted new aspects of the genetic complexity related to the resistance/susceptibility to VMV in sheep, confirming that studies on different breeds can lead to different results. The ideal approach for validation of the markers identified in our study is to use samples from a population independent from the discovery population with the same phenotype used in the discovery stage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Riggio
- Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Marco Tolone
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Biologiche, Farmaceutiche, ed Ambientali, University of Messina, Messina, Italy
| | - Gianluca Sottile
- Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Aziendali e Statistiche, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Serena Tumino
- Dipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Baldassare Portolano
- Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Anna Maria Sutera
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Biologiche, Farmaceutiche, ed Ambientali, University of Messina, Messina, Italy
| | - Maria Teresa Sardina
- Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Alberto Cesarani
- Dipartimento di Agraria, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy
- Department of Animal and Dairy Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States
| | - Salvatore Mastrangelo
- Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy
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Lanave G, Camero M, Coppola C, Marchi S, Cascone G, Salina F, Coltraro M, Odigie AE, Montomoli E, Chiapponi C, Cicirelli V, Martella V, Trombetta CM. Serological Evidence for Circulation of Influenza D Virus in the Ovine Population in Italy. Pathogens 2024; 13:162. [PMID: 38392900 PMCID: PMC10892703 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens13020162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Influenza D virus (IDV) is a novel orthomyxovirus initially isolated from pigs exhibiting influenza-like disease in the USA. Since then, IDV has been detected worldwide in several host species, including livestock animals, whilst specific antibodies have been identified in humans, raising concerns about interspecies transmission and zoonotic risks. Few data regarding the seroprevalence of IDV in small ruminants have been available to date. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of antibodies against IDV in ovine serum samples in Sicily, Southern Italy. Six hundred serum samples, collected from dairy sheep herds located in Sicily in 2022, were tested by haemagglutination inhibition (HI) and virus neutralization (VN) assays using reference strains, D/660 and D/OK, representative of two distinct IDV lineages circulating in Italy. Out of 600 tested samples, 168 (28.0%) tested positive to either IDV strain D/660 or D/OK or to both by HI whilst 378 (63.0%) tested positive to either IDV strain D/660 or D/OK or to both by VN. Overall, our findings demonstrate that IDV circulates in ovine dairy herds in Sicily. Since IDV seems to have a broad host range and it has zoonotic potential, it is important to collect epidemiological information on susceptible species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianvito Lanave
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy; (M.C.); (A.E.O.); (V.C.); (V.M.)
| | - Michele Camero
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy; (M.C.); (A.E.O.); (V.C.); (V.M.)
| | - Chiara Coppola
- Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy; (C.C.); (S.M.); (E.M.); (C.M.T.)
| | - Serena Marchi
- Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy; (C.C.); (S.M.); (E.M.); (C.M.T.)
| | - Giuseppe Cascone
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, 90129 Palermo, Italy; (G.C.); (F.S.); (M.C.)
| | - Felice Salina
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, 90129 Palermo, Italy; (G.C.); (F.S.); (M.C.)
| | - Miriana Coltraro
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, 90129 Palermo, Italy; (G.C.); (F.S.); (M.C.)
| | - Amienwanlen E. Odigie
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy; (M.C.); (A.E.O.); (V.C.); (V.M.)
| | - Emanuele Montomoli
- Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy; (C.C.); (S.M.); (E.M.); (C.M.T.)
- VisMederi S.r.l., 53035 Monteriggioni, Italy
| | - Chiara Chiapponi
- OIE Reference Laboratory for Swine Influenza, Sede Territoriale di Parma, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia ed Emilia Romagna, 25124 Brescia, Italy;
| | - Vincenzo Cicirelli
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy; (M.C.); (A.E.O.); (V.C.); (V.M.)
| | - Vito Martella
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy; (M.C.); (A.E.O.); (V.C.); (V.M.)
| | - Claudia M. Trombetta
- Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy; (C.C.); (S.M.); (E.M.); (C.M.T.)
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Di Marco Lo Presti V, Ippolito D, Migliore S, Tolone M, Mignacca SA, Marino AMF, Amato B, Calogero R, Vitale M, Vicari D, Ciarello FP, Fiasconaro M. Large-scale serological survey on Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis infection in sheep and goat herds in Sicily, Southern Italy. Front Vet Sci 2024; 11:1334036. [PMID: 38362298 PMCID: PMC10868524 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1334036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Paratuberculosis (PTB) is a worldwide chronic, contagious enteric disease caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) mainly affecting ruminant species. PTB is a WOAH-listed disease with direct and indirect economic losses in the livestock sector, negative impact on animal welfare and significant public health concerns. In spite of this, MAP prevalence in small ruminants is still unknown and the prevalence appears to be underestimated in many countries. The aim of this study is providing a first large-scale serological survey on MAP infection in small ruminants in Sicily, a region of Southern Italy with the 11.3 and 8.9% Italian national heritage of sheep and goats, respectively. Methods For this purpose, we analyzed a total of 48,643 animals reared in 439 flocks throughout Sicily. MAP seroprevalence was estimated both at herd-level and animal-level within breeds reared in all the nine sampled provinces. Results Our results revealed a high overall apparent prevalence at herd-level of 71.8% in sheep and 60.8% in goat farms with an animal-level prevalence of 4.5 and 5.1% in sheep and goats, respectively. Significant statistical differences were found between the provinces and within the breeds both in sheep and goats. Discussion Our study provides the first large-scale serological survey on PTB infection in small ruminants in Sicily and showed a high prevalence of disease depending to the species, breed and province. This study represents the first step to better understand the MAP epidemiology in a typical Mediterranean breeding context, suggesting the need of in-depth study on the herds risk factors, including the eventual presence of candidate genes for resistance/susceptibility to PTB in native breeds.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Dorotea Ippolito
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
- Unit of Emerging Zoonoses, Department of Food Safety, Nutrition and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Sergio Migliore
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
| | - Marco Tolone
- Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical, and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, Messina, Italy
| | | | | | - Benedetta Amato
- Department of Veterinary Pathology, Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Rosita Calogero
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
| | - Maria Vitale
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
| | - Domenico Vicari
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
| | | | - Michele Fiasconaro
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia “A. Mirri”, Palermo, Italy
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Kalogianni AI, Bouzalas I, Bossis I, Gelasakis AI. Seroepidemiology of Maedi-Visna in Intensively Reared Dairy Sheep: A Two-Year Prospective Study. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:2273. [PMID: 37508051 PMCID: PMC10375974 DOI: 10.3390/ani13142273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 07/05/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The objective of this study is to prospectively evaluate the seroepidemiology of maedi-visna (MV) infections in intensively reared dairy sheep. A total of 407 purebred Chios and Lacaune ewes from four farms were surveyed for two consecutive years and were serologically tested semiannually with an indirect ELISA at pre-mating and pre-lambing. The farms' structure and management practices were similar and animal traits (age, breed, and production stage) were recorded. Based on the serological status, morbidity frequency measures were estimated, and ewes were categorized as constantly seronegative, constantly seropositive, seroconverted, seroreverted, or as animals with an intermittent presence of antibodies. During the study, period seroprevalence, incidence rate, and cumulative incidence were 84.8%, 33.6 new cases per 100 sheep-semesters, and 64.2%. Point-seroprevalence ranged from 48.5% to 96.0% among the studied farms and sampling occasions, and they increased by age. Increased morbidity frequency measures indicate the significance of horizontal transmission in intensive dairy sheep farms. A remarkable percentage of infected animals seroreverted (8.1%) or presented an intermittent presence of antibodies (10.3%) during the study, confirming the risk of misdiagnosis in cross-sectional studies and in the currently implemented testing and elimination programs. The serological patterns observed in our study need to be considered when studying MV epidemiology and for the designing of efficient MV elimination programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aphrodite I Kalogianni
- Department of Animal Science, School of Animal Biosciences, Agricultural University of Athens, 11855 Athens, Greece
| | - Ilias Bouzalas
- Veterinary Research Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organization-DEMETER, Campus of Thermi, 57001 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Ioannis Bossis
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, School of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources, University Campus, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Athanasios I Gelasakis
- Department of Animal Science, School of Animal Biosciences, Agricultural University of Athens, 11855 Athens, Greece
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Impact of Four Ovine TMEM154 Haplotypes on Ewes during Multiyear Lentivirus Exposure. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232314966. [PMID: 36499292 PMCID: PMC9741230 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232314966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2022] [Revised: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Polypeptide variation encoded by the ovine transmembrane protein 154 gene (TMEM154) is associated with susceptibility to ovine lentivirus, the causative agent of Ovine Progressive Pneumonia (OPP) and Visna/Maedi. Our aim was to compare the four most prevalent TMEM154 haplotypes on the incidence of infection and ewe productivity during natural multiyear virus exposure. Prospective cohort studies were designed to test gene action and estimate effects of TMEM154 haplotypes encoding distinctive variant residues: K35 (“1”), I70 (“2”), ancestral (“3”), and A4del/M44 (“4”). Exposure consisted of co-mingling infected ewes at a rate greater than 30% with serological status evaluated every four months. For ewes with one or two copies of the highly susceptible haplotypes “2” and ”3”, the infection prevalence steadily increased to nearly 100% at 55 months. Haplotypes “2” and “3” were equally susceptible and dominant to haplotype “1”. A difference was not detected (p < 0.53) in the magnitude of effect with haplotype combinations of “1” and ”4”. The ewe infection prevalence with “1,1”; “1,4”; and “4,4” was 10% to 40% at 55 months. The latter suggested that two copies of the K35 amino acid substitution (“1”) were as effective as a homozygous TMEM154 “knockout” with the frame-shift deletion mutation (“4”) in reducing infection susceptibility. When considering ewe reproductive performance, a difference was not detected when comparing haplotypes “2”, and “3” to each other, or “1” and “4” to each other. Our study indicated that ewes with two copies of the severely truncated versions of TMEM154 (“4,4”) had normal lamb productivity. Without complete understanding of the natural function of TMEM154 our recommendations to producers interested in using TMEM154 selection to reduce their flock’s genetic predisposition to OPP are encouraged to increase the frequency of TMEM154 haplotype K35 (“1”) since it encodes a full-length protein with minimal difference to the ancestral polypeptide.
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