New strangles test developed

New strangles test developed A novel rapid test for strangles is being developed by scientists at the University of Maine. Current culture techniques require several days to confirm a diagnosis of strangles. The new test, which detects a specific protein on the Streptococcus equi bacterium, can produce a result in a matter of hours. A grant of nearly $500,000 from the Maine Technology Asset Fund has made the development possible. The project also involves renovations at the UMaine JF Witter Teaching and Research Center to create an animal handling area for disease diagnosis, an equine isolation area, and a technology transfer center classroom with video-endoscopy equipment.  This will be used for training veterinarians as well as being for research into infectious diseases.

The grant will also fund the purchase of portable endoscopes for use by Maine veterinarians at farms and stables around the state.

The test has already proved successful in early trials. Now the new funding will allow the scientists to carry out a large scale trial to check its reliability and efficacy before making it commercially available.

Principal investigator is Dr Robert Causey, a veterinarian and associate professor in the University of Maine Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences.

Also part of the research team are veterinarian Anne Lichtenwainer, director of UMaine's Animal Health Laboratory, James Weber, associate professor in animal sciences and colleagues at Tufts University veterinary school and the Gluck Equine Research Center at the University of Kentucky.

"There's no doubt that the market for this is potentially global" says Causey. "Wherever there are horses there is this disease. No one has ever tried to do this before. This puts Maine right in the front of strangles research."

"Nationally, quicker diagnosis and timely animal isolation could save the equine industry millions of dollars if the new diagnostic protocols are effective in preventing strangles in even 1% of the nations estimated 10 million horses" he says.

"In uncomplicated cases, the disease quickly infects most susceptible animals in a facility, leading to cessation of riding or training activates for a month or longer"

"The economic impact of an outbreak can be devastating to a commercial equine facility."

The kits, which are being developed by Maine Biotechnology Services (MBS) in Portland, have an antibody on a membrane that changes colour when exposed to a strangles protein.

The strangles test kit is the first to be developed using this technology. As additional new antibodies are developed by MBS, the test kits could be adapted to more quickly detect and diagnose other equine infections.

Reproduced with kind permission of Mark Andrews BVM&S CertEP MRCVS
© Copyright Equine Science Update  2011

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