transmission | Horse Racing Free Tips - Part 2

Britain Remains Free From West Nile Virus

Samples from nearly 1,000 British horses revealed no presence of West Nile Virus (WNV). Transmitted by mosquitoes, West Nile Virus can cause severe neurological issues in horses; the disease has a fatality rate of about 33 percent in unvaccinated animals.

Drs. Arran Folly, Elisabeth Waller, Fiona McCracken, Lorraine McElhinney, Helen Roberts and Nicholas Johnson note that while this is good news for horse owners, they must remain vigilant in the fight against the disease. WNV is seen in many parts of the world, including the United States, southern Europe and Germany.

The researchers focused their study on southeast England, the area of Britain considered most at risk for virus introduction. The virus is most likely spread geographically by birds that have the virus; horses are a dead-end host for WNV.

Two of the 998 horses tested were positive for WNV antibodies, but upon further review, it was deemed that the antibodies were a result of vaccination for the virus within seven days of the testing.

The scientists concluded that there was no evidence of West Nile Virus transmission in England in 2019; this is in agreeance with the results of a 2019 British bird surveillance, which also found no West Nile Virus RNA in the birds.

Read the short report here.

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Research Shows Horses More Susceptible To COVID-19 Than Other Species

New research shows that horses seem to be at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 than other species. Researchers believe their close relationship with humans may be to blame for a greater susceptibility.

Vanderbilt University utilized experts in virology, genetics, structural biology, chemistry, physiology, medicine, immunology and pharmacology worked together to create a tool that would predict animal susceptibility to COVID-19 infection. The scientists determined that horses and camels were most at risk and suggested that they be closely monitored and tested for infection.

The researchers identified five amino acid sites that indicate virus susceptibility or resistance; they then created an algorithm to predict susceptibility. Jacquelyn Brown, a staff scientist at the Vanderbilt Institute for Integrative Biosystems Research and Education, is an equestrian who initiated the project, noting that horses have a large respiratory system, and many are regularly have their mouths and nostrils touched by humans.

The research team is hopeful that their findings will help protect pets, food sources, wildlife and people. The algorithm the team created can be modified to predict susceptibility to other viruses; there is also hope that the research will be used to help develop drugs to inhibit virus transmission.

Drs. Matthew Alexander, Clara Schoeder, Jacquelyn Brown, Charles Smart, Chris Moth, John Wikswo, John Capra, Jens Meiler, Wenbiao Chen and Meena Madhur determined that there as an intermediate risk for COVID-19 susceptibility in cows, sheep and goats; the most susceptible animal is the rhesus macaque.

Read the full study here.

Read more at HorseTalk.

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