Special Issue "Pestes des Petits Ruminants: Five Years Implementation of Its Global Eradication Programme"

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Veterinary Clinical Studies".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 December 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Felix Njeumi
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy
Interests: peste des petits ruminants; animal health; disease control/eradication; small ruminant production; epidemiology; socio-economic impact and wildlife
Prof. Dr. Paula Menzies
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Interests: ruminant health management; sheep and goats; food animal health management; epidemiology; control and prevention of diseases; biosecurity; food safety and welfare

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) Global Control and Eradication Strategy was established in 2015 with the aim of global PPR freedom by 2030. Over the last 5 years, several activities were implemented at all levels. This Special Issue on PPR will consider all activities undertaken including research toward the vision of a PPR-free world by 2030.

Dr. Felix Njeumi
Prof. Dr. Paula Menzies
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Peste des Petits Ruminants
  • control
  • eradication
  • surveillance
  • small ruminant
  • epidemiology
  • laboratory
  • socio-economic impact
  • cattle
  • camel
  • wildlife

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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Article
Development of Nanobodies Targeting Peste des Petits Ruminants Virus: The Prospect in Disease Diagnosis and Therapy
Animals 2021, 11(8), 2206; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082206 - 26 Jul 2021
Viewed by 879
Abstract
Peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) causes a highly devastating disease, peste des petits ruminants (PPR) of sheep and goats, that threatens food security, small ruminant production, and the conservation of wild small ruminants in many developing countries, especially in Africa. Robust serological [...] Read more.
Peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) causes a highly devastating disease, peste des petits ruminants (PPR) of sheep and goats, that threatens food security, small ruminant production, and the conservation of wild small ruminants in many developing countries, especially in Africa. Robust serological and molecular diagnostic tools are available to detect PPRV infection, but they were mainly developed for domestic sheep and goats. The presence of a wide host range for PPRV does present serological diagnostic challenges. New innovative diagnostic tools are needed to detect PPRV in atypical hosts (e.g., Camelidae, Suidae, and Bovinae), in wildlife ecosystems and in complex field situations. Interestingly, single-domain antigen binding fragments (nanobodies) derived from heavy-chain-only camelid antibodies have emerged as a new hope in the development of accurate, rapid, and cost-effective diagnostic tools in veterinary and biomedical fields that are suitable for low-income countries. The main objective of this study was to construct an immune nanobody library to retrieve PPRV-reactive nanobodies that enable the development of diagnostic and therapeutic nanobodies in the future. Here, a strategy was developed whereby an alpaca (Vicugna pacos) was immunized with a live attenuated vaccine strain (PPRV/N/75/1) to raise an affinity-matured immune response in the heavy-chain-only antibody classes. The nanobody gene repertoire was engineered in pMECS-GG phagemid, whereby a ccdB gene (encoding a lethal protein) was substituted by the nanobody gene. An immune nanobody library with approximately sixty-four million independent transformants was constructed, of which 100% contained an insert with the proper size of nanobody gene. Following phage display and biopanning, nine nanobodies that specifically recognise completely inactivated PPRV were identified on enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. They showed superb potency in rapidly identifying PPRV, which is likely to open a new perspective in the diagnosis and possible treatment of PPR infection. Full article
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Review

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Review
Review of Peste des Petits Ruminants Occurrence and Spread in Tanzania
Animals 2021, 11(6), 1698; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11061698 - 07 Jun 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1416
Abstract
Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is an important transboundary animal disease of domestic small ruminants, camels, and wild artiodactyls. The disease has significant socio-economic impact on communities that depend on livestock for their livelihood and is a threat to endangered susceptible wild species. [...] Read more.
Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is an important transboundary animal disease of domestic small ruminants, camels, and wild artiodactyls. The disease has significant socio-economic impact on communities that depend on livestock for their livelihood and is a threat to endangered susceptible wild species. The aim of this review was to describe the introduction of PPR to Tanzania and its subsequent spread to different parts of the country. On-line databases were searched for peer-reviewed and grey literature, formal and informal reports were obtained from Tanzanian Zonal Veterinary Investigation Centres and Laboratories, and Veterinary Officers involved with PPR surveillance were contacted. PPR virus (PPRV) was confirmed in northern Tanzania in 2008, although serological data from samples collected in the region in 1998 and 2004, and evidence that the virus was already circulating in Uganda in 2003, suggests that PPRV might have been present earlier than this. It is likely that the virus which became established in Tanzania was introduced from Kenya between 2006–7 through the cross-border movement of small ruminants for trade or grazing resources, and then spread to eastern, central, and southern Tanzania from 2008 to 2010 through movement of small ruminants by pastoralists and traders. There was no evidence of PPRV sero-conversion in wildlife based on sera collected up to 2012, suggesting that they did not play a vectoring or bridging role in the establishment of PPRV in Tanzania. PPRV lineages II, III and IV have been detected, indicating that there have been several virus introductions. PPRV is now considered to be endemic in sheep and goats in Tanzania, but there has been no evidence of PPR clinical disease in wildlife species in Tanzania, although serum samples collected in 2014 from several wild ruminant species were PPRV sero-positive. Similarly, no PPR disease has been observed in cattle and camels. In these atypical hosts, serological evidence indicates exposure to PPRV infection, most likely through spillover from infected sheep and goats. Some of the challenges for PPRV eradication in Tanzania include movements of small ruminants, including transboundary movements, and the capacity of veterinary services for disease surveillance and vaccination. Using wildlife and atypical domestic hosts for PPR surveillance is a useful indicator of endemism and the ongoing circulation of PPRV in livestock, especially during the implementation of vaccination to control or eliminate the disease in sheep and goats. PPR disease has a major socio-economic impact in Tanzania, which justifies the investment in a comprehensive PPRV eradication programme. Full article
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