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The 2024 IPD-MHC database update: a comprehensive resource for major histocompatibility complex studies

The IPD-MHC Database project (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/ipd/mhc/) serves as a comprehensive and expertly curated repository for major histocompatibility complex (MHC) sequences from non-human species, providing the necessary infrastructure and tools to study the function and…

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Assessment of Donkey (Equus asinus) Welfare at Slaughter in Ghana

Donkey slaughter in West Africa has received limited scientific attention, despite increasing over recent years. This study aimed to explore factors affecting donkey welfare, both ante-mortem and at slaughter, in the Upper East region of Ghana. A total of 134 donkeys at five…

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Approaches to Enhance the Potency of Vaccines in Chickens

Outbreaks of avian pathogens such as Newcastle disease virus, avian influenza virus, and salmonella have a major impact on economies and food security worldwide. Some pathogens also pose a significant zoonotic potential, especially avian influenza viruses. Vaccination plays…

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Predicting airway immune responses and protection from immune parameters in blood following immunization in a pig influenza model

Whereas the intranasally delivered influenza vaccines used in children affect transmission of influenza virus in the community as well as reducing illness, inactivated influenza vaccines administered by intramuscular injection do not prevent transmission and have a variable…

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Evaluation of population immunity against SARS-CoV-2 variants, EG.5.1, FY.4, BA.2.86, JN.1, JN.1.4, and KP.3.1.1 using samples from two health demographic surveillance systems in Kenya

Increased immune evasion by emerging and highly mutated SARS-CoV-2 variants is a key challenge to the control of COVID-19. The majority of these mutations mainly target the spike protein, allowing the new variants to escape the immunity previously raised by vaccination and…

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The pseudoknot region and poly-(C) tract comprise an essential RNA packaging signal for assembly of foot-and-mouth disease virus

Virus assembly is a crucial step for the completion of the viral replication cycle. In addition to ensuring efficient incorporation of viral genomes into nascent virions, high specificity is required to prevent incorporation of host nucleic acids. For picornaviruses…

Single large pink pig standing on hay looking at the camera

Pig research paves way for human respiratory vaccine development

A study in pigs, which shows that inhaled vaccines could potentially reduce viral transmission and improve efficiency, is an important step toward advancing vaccines for human use. Interest in administering vaccines mucosally, rather than by intramuscular injections, has…

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No evidence that mutations in SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern derive from homologous fragments in gut microbiota

Understanding the origin and evolution of mutations in SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) is a critical area of research. B. Cao, X. Wang, W. Yin, Z. Gao, and B. Xia (mBio 15:e03187-23, 2024, https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.03187-23) proposed that these mutations originated…

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From structure prediction to function: defining the domain on the African swine fever virus CD2v protein required for binding to erythrocytes

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a high-consequence pathogen posing a substantial threat to global food security. This large DNA virus encodes more than 150 open reading frames, many of which are uncharacterized. The EP402R gene encodes CD2v, a glycoprotein expressed on…

Image shows dog heart tissue infected with foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV). Green and red show FMDV proteins, blue shows cell nuclei.

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