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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Infectious Diseases
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1425928

Development and optimization of sampling techniques for environmental sampling from African swine fever virus-contaminated surfaces with no organic contaminants

Provisionally accepted
Taeyong Kwon Taeyong Kwon 1Jordan T. Gebhardt Jordan T. Gebhardt 1*Eu Lim Lyoo Eu Lim Lyoo 1Natasha N. Gaudreault Natasha N. Gaudreault 1Dr. Jessie Trujillo Dr. Jessie Trujillo 1Jason C. Woodworth Jason C. Woodworth 2Chad B. Paulk Chad B. Paulk 3Cassandra K. Jones Cassandra K. Jones 2Juergen A. Richt Juergen A. Richt 1
  • 1 Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States
  • 2 Department of Animal Sciences and Industry, College of Agriculture, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States
  • 3 Department of Grain Science and Industry, College of Agriculture, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious diseases in domestic pigs and wild boars with up to 100% mortality. ASF virus (ASFV) is a causative agent responsible for ASF and highly resistant in environments, which creates a significant challenge for the control and eradication of the virus. Despite the geographical expansion of ASFV and international movement of products to sustain the swine production system, there is limited knowledge on the use of environmental samples to perform surveillance to prevent the introduction of ASFV into ASFV-free areas and for control of transmission in affected areas. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and optimize sampling techniques for environmental samples for ASFV detection. The stainless steel surfaces were contaminated with ASFV-infected blood, swabbed using different devices, and then processed through different techniques. The environmental samples were processed and tested using qPCR analysis. The results showed that the use of pre-moistened gauze surgical sponges, sweeping pads, and sponge sticks resulted in increased sensitivity, when compared to either dry sampling devices or Dacron swab. In particular, the combination of the sponge stick and the commercial nucleic acid preservative supported the best detection of ASFV DNA on the clean stainless steel surfaces evaluated. Pre-incubation for the short period of time and centrifugation at low speed were sufficient to provide satisfactory diagnostic sensitivity of ASFV detection using qPCR for environmental samples. Our findings contribute to the development of techniques for environmental samples for ASFV surveillance to prevent the introduction and dissemination of ASFV.

    Keywords: African Swine Fever, ASFV, Environmental sample, Fomite, surface

    Received: 30 Apr 2024; Accepted: 25 Jun 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Kwon, Gebhardt, Lyoo, Gaudreault, Trujillo, Woodworth, Paulk, Jones and Richt. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jordan T. Gebhardt, Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506-5802, Kansas, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.