Virology
Current Projects | Reports | Posters
The objective of the division is to provide an understanding of the biology of virus diseases of ruminants which will lead to the development of more appropriate control strategies. The interaction of virus pathogens with the host's immune functions is complex and knowledge of the virus coded molecules which are responsible for the evasion, subversion and dysfunction of immunological pathways will have application across many aspects of animal health and comparative medicine. Candidate genes of importance within the Orf virus and ovine herpesvirus-2 genomes have been identified and a major objective for the Division is to isolate, express and ascribe function to these gene products. The feasibility of manipulating the ovine immune system to recognise the causal virus of sheep pulmonary adenomatoses will be assessed and the outcome will have relevance both to the control of this disease and to the fight against cancer of man. In addition, the Division is responsible for providing specialist expertise in virology and histopathology for farm animal disease surveillance. The Division already has externally funded projects of research into BSE and scrapie and expansion of this programme is a priority.
The four core projects of the Division divide equally into two programmes: Virokines and Viral Pathogenesis though there is a matrix of collaboration between the separate projects.
Current Projects
- Genetics and molecular
pathogenesis of Malignant Catarrhal Fever viruses
Principal contact: Dr George Russell (SEERAD core funded project) - Comparative studies of
parapoxviruses that infect animals and man.
Principal contact: Dr Colin McInnes (SEERAD core funded project) - Foetal mortality in sheep
and cattle; the role of infections
Principal contact: Dr David Buxton (SEERAD core funded project) - Immune interference by orf
virus
Principal contact: Dr David Haig (SEERAD core funded project) - Immuno-modulation by the
gammaherpesvirus of Malignant Catarrhal Fever
Principal contact: Dr David Haig (SEERAD core funded project) - Strategies to control
ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma
Principal contact: Dr David Griffiths (SEERAD core funded project) - Towards an understanding
of Malignant Catarrhal Fever at the molecular level
Principal contact: Dr David Haig (SEERAD collaborative flexible funded project) - Identification of lymphoctye
receptors for OVHV-2 and AIHV-1 and their role in virus pathogenesis
Principal contact: Dr David Haig (SEERAD collaborative flexible funded project) - Control of Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma
(Jaagsiekte) in the Scottish Sheep Flock
Principal contact: Dr Christina Cousens (SEERAD collaborative flexible funded project) - Studies of the immune
system during infection of sheep with scrapie and BSE agent
Principal contact: Dr Francesca Chianini (Defra funded project) - Studies of the alimentary
pathogenesis of scrapie infection
Principal contact at Moredun: Dr Mark Dagleish(Defra funded project in collaboration with VLA) - Epidemiological and transmission
studies in sheep and moufflons naturally infected by jaagsiekte
retrovirus
Principal contact: Dr Christina Cousens (EU funded project) - An investigation of ovine
pulmonary adenocarcinoma for retroviral nucleic acid sequences and
proteins
Principal contact: Dr David Griffiths (Chief Scientists Office funded project) - Interbreed, cross genotype
transmission studies of ovine scrapie
Principal contact: Dr Francesca Chianini (Defra funded project in collaboration with VLA) - Studies of murine scrapie strains
reisolated in sheep
Principal contact: Dr Francesca Chianini (Defra funded project in collaboration with VLA) - The effect of tonsil biopsy
on the rate and frequency of disease in 171QQ susceptible Suffolk
sheep
Principal contact: Dr Hugh Reid (Defra funded project) - Efficiency of rectal
mucosa biopsies in the diagnosis of pre-clinical sheep scrapie
Principal contact at Moredun: Dr Mark Dagleish (Defra funded project in collaboration with VLA) - Susceptibility of Red
Deer to BSE
Principal contact at Moredun: Dr Mark Dagleish (FSA funded project in collaboration with VLA) - A rapid sensitive live
animal blood test for sheep scrapie
Principal contact at Moredun: Dr Francesca Chianini (Defra funded project in collaboration with Adlyfe) - Susceptibility of ARR/ARR
sheep to scrapie challemge by intracerebral challenge
Principal contact at Moredun: Dr Francesca Chianini (Defra funded project in collaboartion with VLA)
Reports
- “Review of the Pathology and Pathogenesis of Ovine Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma” (Written by David Griffiths)
- "Orf Infection: new developments, diagnosis and control" (written by Dr Colin McInnes)
- "Understanding Ovine Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma" (written Dr David Griffiths)
- "Parapoxviruses: successful pathogens in animals and man" (written by Dr Colin McInnes)
- "Orf virus and other parapoxviruses that infect animals and man" (written by Dr Colin McInnes)
- "Ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma" (written by Dr Christina Cousens)
- "Malignant Catarrhal Fever Research" (written by Dr David Haig and Dr George Russell)
- "Scrapie and TSE research" (written by Dr Hugh Reid)
- "Orf - a review" (written by Dr David Haig)
- DfID report on the impact of malignant catarrhal fever in Tanzania (Cleaveland et al.)
- "Mechanisms of Immune evasion by Orf Virus and the Identification of Virulence Genes." (written by Dr Colin McInnes)
Posters
- List of posters has been moved to the Virtual Poster Room