You wouldn’t normally find “African Swine Fever” and “some good news” in the same sentence, but we’re here to buck that trend with some good news about ASF detection.
Background: ASF is a viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs. It’s typically fatal, and the U.S. doesn’t have any treatments or a vaccine for it. Asia, Africa, and Europe have all seen large hog losses from ASF, but to date, the disease hasn’t been found in the U.S.
Tell us more about that good news: Kansas State University researchers explored new ways to detect ASF on the surfaces of trucks, shipping containers, and other materials as they enter the country. They found a polymerase chain reaction, aka PCR, which meant they could develop a PCR test.
Sound familiar? These tests use DNA or RNA from a sample to diagnose infectious diseases. They became a household term during the Covid-19 pandemic, as they were used to check for the virus.
Scientists used four-inch square cotton gauze, polyester tipped swabs, sponge sticks, and dry sweep cloths to “swab” surfaces that had potentially been in contact with contaminated feed.
Looking ahead: While KSU swine production specialist and veterinarian Jordan Gebhardt said they’re doing the research to prevent an introduction of ASF into the U.S., these new findings could also be used to track the virus. This would empower additional control measures that could prevent spread.
Soundbite: “The virus would be devastating to our domestic swine herd and would immediately shut off our export of pork products to other countries.” — Gebhardt
KSU’s research was funded by the Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense center at Texas A&M University through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.