Eun-Jee Na

Abstract Background: Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders capable of causing transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) and have been reported in humans and several animal species. Genetic polymorphisms in the prion protein gene (PRNP) are known to influence the conformational conversion of the normal cellular prion protein (PrPC) into its pathogenic isoform (PrPSc), thereby affecting disease susceptibility and pathogenesis.

Abstract Introduction: The emergence of the tick-borne Ikeda genotype of Theileria orientalis poses a significant threat to the U.S. cattle industry. Although information has been gathered on parasite distribution, data regarding the pathogenicity of the U.S. isolate of Ikeda remain to be elucidated. In this study, we evaluated the effect of the U.S. Ikeda isolate on cattle experimentally infected with sporozoites, the parasite stage naturally transmitted by ticks.

1. Introduction Influenza A virus (IAV) is a zoonotic pathogen that remains an imminent global threat to public health and, even more so, to livestock welfare worldwide [1, 2].