Do you know an AASV member whose dedication to the association and the swine industry is worthy of recognition? The AASV Awards Committee requests nominations for the following five awards to be presented at the upcoming AASV annual meeting in Phoenix. You’ll find the roster of past award winners at http://www.aasv.org/aasv.html.
Monthly Archives: October 2010
Canadian Swine Health Board Introduces Biosecurity Users Guide
The author of the Canadian Swine Health Board’s Biosecurity Users Guide says the new package will provide one stop shopping to help Canadian swine producers improve biosecurity on their farms.
Cut the Castration
Castration of piglets is a piggery chore that can be spared if scientists succeed in developing genetic methods for pointing out which piglets are likely to develop boar taint.
USU Trustees Approve Veterinary Medicine Degree
The Utah State University Board of Trustees unanimously approved a proposal to offer a doctor of veterinary medicine degree.
Pathogenesis and Antigenic Characterization of a New East European Subtype 3 Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Isolate
Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is divided into a European and North American genotype. East European PRRSV isolates have been found to be of the European genotype, but form different subtypes. In the present study, PRRSV was isolated from a Belarusian farm with reproductive and respiratory failure and designated “Lena”. Analyses revealed that Lena is a new East European subtype 3 PRRSV isolate. The main purpose of this investigation was to study the pathogenesis and antigenic characteristics of PRRSV (Lena).
Fast Cars and Loose Chicks
Talk about extreme sports! What would you pay for the chance to hunt waterfowl out of the infield at the Indianapolis Speedway while driving a stockcar counterclockwise at 200 mph? Awesome, right? Unfortunately, that kind of entertainment can only be found in a few select locations in the rural southeast. But, luckily we’ve got the next best thing.
Advanced Techniques Conference Survey
The AASV Summer Conference Committee is seeking your input regarding the future of the AASV Advanced Techniques Conference. The association has held 3 Advanced Techniques Conferences at Iowa State University. Although it was the intent to limit participation to enhance the hands-on opportunities, attendance has been somewhat lower than initially hoped. While feedback from participants has been positive, the committee would like to ensure that the expenditure of time, money and effort benefit the membership. Therefore, the committee requests that you take a couple of minutes to complete a short 15 question survey to offer some guidance regarding continuing the conference and, if so, how it might be enhanced. The survey will be open until November 12 and can be accessed online at AASV Summer Conference Survey.
Swine Veterinarians to “Examine the Evidence” in Phoenix
Attendees will seek to understand and apply evidence-based medicine during sessions at the 42nd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians. The meeting is scheduled for March 5-8, 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona. The AASV room block at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort is open for reservations.
How Many Meals in a Pig? — Corrected
Have you ever thought about how many meals are represented by every market hog under your care? Dr. Locke Karriker has (that’s one of the benefits of tenure). He did some simple calculations (sorry Locke – I mean, “after extensive study and a day spent with a super collider super computer, Dr. Karriker derived an equation too complex to be understood by those of us outside of academia”) and determined that every market hog provides 371 servings of pork! That’s assuming a 265 pound market weight, 70% yield and an 8 ounce serving size (I know, I know the USDA says a serving size is only 4 ounces but come on let’s get real). What this means is that every time you make a decision in a 1000 head finishing barn, you potentially impact more than 371,000 meals.
Pandemic 2009 H1N1 Vaccine Protects against 1918 Spanish Influenza Virus
The 1918 influenza A virus caused the most devastating pandemic, killing approximately 50 million people worldwide. Immunization with 1918-like and classical swine H1N1 virus vaccines results in cross-protective antibodies against the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza, indicating antigenic similarities among these viruses. In this study, we demonstrate that vaccination with the 2009 pandemic H1N1 vaccine elicits 1918 virus cross-protective antibodies in mice and humans, and that vaccination or passive transfer of human-positive sera reduced morbidity and conferred full protection from lethal challenge with the 1918 virus in mice. The spread of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus in the population worldwide, in addition to the large number of individuals already vaccinated, suggests that a large proportion of the population now have cross-protective antibodies against the 1918 virus, greatly alleviating concerns and fears regarding the accidental exposure/release of the 1918 virus from the laboratory and the use of the virus as a bioterrorist agent.