Expansion in host dynamics of peste des petits ruminants: Potential attribute of outbreaks in disease-endemic settings

The evaluation of five serological assays in determining seroconversion to peste des petits ruminants virus in typical and atypical hosts

“…In order to protect biodiversity and support a PPRV vaccination campaign in domestic goats and sheep it is crucial that there is credible evidence that free-ranging wildlife populations, sharing the same geographical locations with goat and sheep populations through complex interfaces, do not have the capacity to harbour and reintroduce the virus to domestic stock at a later date. Although the dynamics of this wildlife-livestock interface are the subject of other recent publications 2 , 6 , 7 , 10 , 31 , 32 , suggesting low seroprevalence with additional molecular evidence of PPRV circulation, these rely on having confidence in the surveillance and testing methodologies employed. This is problematic when the frontline serological assays for such a purpose have been optimised and validated using typical host sera only, largely omitting wild and domestic atypical species.…”

“…Also, some members of the sub-family Antilopinae, such as saiga, have been observed to produce a severe clinical response to infection and could transmit the disease, at least at the intra-species level 12 . This is not the case in larger free-ranging bovids, such as African buffalo, which are considered dead-end hosts outside of captive settings 8 , 32 . It may, therefore, be more prudent to think of atypical host species as those being either epidemiologically significant or not epidemiologically significant as this is more conducive to forming adequate testing and vaccination campaigns.…”

Evaluation of a novel liquid stabilised peste des petits ruminants vaccine: Safety and immunogenic efficacy in sheep and goats in the field in Jordan

“…Further investigation into the longer-term immune response in animals up to a year, to observe any possible decline of neutralising antibodies and to determine if the immune response could potentially cover the seasonal variances that influence PRPV [11] would be beneficial. Additionally further study into the use of this liquid-stabilised vaccine in a variety of geographic areas would provide greater insight into the efficacy of the liquid-stabilised vaccine beyond the specific environmental conditions of Jordan, particularly in terms of variance based on meteorological factors [12] , humidity [13] and current endemic status of the test region [14] . It could also be warranted to investigate how PPR vaccine stored in a liquid stabiliser is affected by sub-zero storage temperatures caused by shipment to remote mountainous regions, as has been previously described in the western provinces of China [15] .…”