Improving The Detection Of African Swine Fever Virus Antibodies In Serum

Sep 05, 2022

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly infectious and fatal disease of pigs. Due to the complexity of the ASF virus (ASFV) and various clinical forms of the disease, a wide range of highly effective and robust sero-diagnostic assays are required.

The use of the most antigenic ASFV proteins is highly crucial to improving sero-diagnostic assays. Currently, only a few highly antigenic recombinant proteins have been tested and validated for use as reagents in ASF sero-diagnostic assays. So far, three ELISA kits based on the recombinant proteins P72, P30, and PP62 have been approved.

In a new study published in Biosafety and Health based on the recombinant P22 protein, a highly sensitive, specific, and rapid P22 monoclonal antibody-based blocking ELISA (mAb-bELISA) assay was developed to detect serum antibodies induced by genotype I and II ASFVs to detect ASFV antibodies. A total of 806 pig serum samples were tested to evaluate the performance of the diagnostic assay. The assay was able to detect ASFV antibodies as early as 9 days post-infection.

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Video: Environmental Effects on Sow Fertility - Dr. Isabela Bez

In this special episode celebrating International Women's Day of The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, we bring Dr. Isabela Bez, a veterinarian and PhD student in Brazil, who explains how temperature and light regimes influence sow reproductive performance. She discusses seasonal infertility, climate adaptation, and why environmental monitoring inside barns is critical for herd efficiency. The episode highlights practical management strategies to reduce reproductive losses and improve outcomes. Listen now on all major platforms. "Environmental factors are actually very important on sow reproduction, and sometimes these are the factors that producers tend to not pay attention." Meet the guest: Dr. Isabela Bez / isabela-cristina-cola%c3%a7o-bez-1753381b0 is a veterinarian and PhD student in Animal Science at Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná (PUCPR), Brazil. Her work focuses on swine reproduction, nutrition, and animal welfare, with strong expertise in environmental effects on sow performance. She collaborates with international farms and research groups to improve reproductive efficiency through applied science.