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Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease of clovenhoofed animals responsible for economic losses that amount to >$20 billion annually. Rapid recognition of FMD cases provides vital information to guide control programmes. A range of point-of-need amplification technologies have been developed which allow sensitive detection of the causative virus (FMDV) in the field at locations remote from laboratories. Here we describe a novel system to detect FMDV RNA using loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). This test was evaluated using a panel of FMDV isolates (n = 79) and RNA standards demonstrating capability to amplify viral genome directly from clinical material in the absence of nucleic acid extraction. This extraction-free RT-LAMP assay was transferred to a bespoke closed-system lateral flow test (LFT) that was used in combination with a low-cost hand-held heater. Our results show that the RT-LAMP-LFT assay retains a high level of diagnostic and analytical sensitivity when using direct clinical material, with a limit of detection under 80 copies per reaction. Together, our data support the potential for the use of this assay at the point-of-need to facilitate rapid feedback on the status of suspect cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is endemic in the United Arab Emirates (UAE); however, FMD virus (FMDV) genotyping in small ruminants or cattle has never been reported. This study focused on FMD outbreaks that occurred during 2021 in two different regions in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, where cases affected sheep, goats, cattle, and Arabian oryx. VP1 sequences from different isolates were characterised, and phylogenetic analysis revealed epidemiological connections between FMDV sequences collected in the UAE and neighbouring countries, which highlights the importance of implementing measures such as vaccination, animal movement controls, and biosecurity to limit the spread of the disease. Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an endemic disease in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in both wild and domestic animals. Despite this, no systematic FMD outbreak investigation accompanied by molecular characterisation of FMD viruses (FMDVs) in small ruminants or cattle has been performed, and only a single report that describes sequences for FMDVs in wildlife from the Emirate has been published. In this study, FMD outbreaks that occurred in 2021 in five animal farms and one animal market in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi were investigated. Cases involved sheep, goats, and cattle, as well as Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx). Twelve samples were positive for FMDV via RT-qPCR, and four samples (Arabian oryx n = 1, goat n = 2, and sheep n = 1) were successfully genotyped using VP1 nucleotide sequencing. These sequences shared 88~98% identity and were classified within the serotype O, Middle East–South Asia topotype (O/ME-SA). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the Arabian oryx isolate (UAE/2/2021) belonged to the PanAsia-2 lineage, the ANT-10 sublineage, and was closely related to the FMDVs recently detected in neighbouring countries. The FMDV isolates from goats (UAE/10/2021 and UAE/11/2021) and from sheep (UAE/14/2021) formed a monophyletic cluster within the SA-2018 lineage that contained viruses from Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka. This is the first study describing the circulation of the FMDV O/ME-SA/SA-2018 sublineage in the UAE. These data shed light on the epidemiology of FMD in the UAE and motivate further systematic epidemiological studies and genomic sequencing to enhance the ongoing national animal health FMD control plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is endemic in many Asian countries, with outbreaks occurring regularly due to viruses from serotypes O, A, and Asia1 that co-circulate in the region. The ability to rapidly characterize new virus occurrences provides critical information to understand the epidemiology and risks associated with field outbreaks, and helps in the selection of appropriate vaccines to control the disease. FMD lineage-specific characterization is usually determined through sequencing; however, this capacity is not always readily available. In this study, we provide a panel of real-time RT-PCR (rRT-PCR) assays to allow differentiation of the FMD virus (FMDV) lineages known to have been co-circulating in Asia during 2020. This panel included five new rRT-PCR assays designed to detect lineages O/ME-SA/PanAsia-PanAsia-2, O/ME-SA/Ind-2001, O/SEA/Mya-98, O/CATHAY, and A/ASIA/Sea-97, along with three published rRT-PCR assays for A/ASIA/Iran-05, A/ASIA/G-VII, and Asia1 serotypes. Samples of known FMD lineage (n = 85) were tested in parallel with all eight lineage-specific assays and an established 3D pan-FMD rRT-PCR assay, and comparative limit of detection (LOD) experiments were conducted for the five newly developed assays. All samples (85/85) were assigned to the correct serotype, and the correct lineage was assigned for 70 out of 85 samples where amplification only occurred with the homologous assay. For 13 out of 85 of the samples, there was amplification in two assays; however, the correct lineage could be designated based on the strongest Ct values for 12 out of 13 samples. An incorrect lineage was assigned for 3 out of 85 samples. The amplification efficiencies for the five new rRT-PCR assays ranged between 79.7 and 100.5%, with nucleic acid dilution experiments demonstrating broadly equivalent limits of detection when compared to the 3D pan-FMD rRT-PCR assay. These new tests, together with other published lineage-specific rRT-PCR assays, constitute a panel of assays (or molecular toolbox) that can be selected for use in FMD endemic countries (individually or a subset of the assays depending on region/lineages known to be circulating) for rapid characterization of the FMDV lineages circulating in Asia at a relatively low cost. Thismolecular toolbox will enhance the ability of national laboratories in endemic settings to accurately characterize circulating FMDV strains and facilitate prompt implementation of control strategies, and may be particularly useful in settings where it is difficult to access sequencing capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) can decrease productivity in the cloven-hooved livestock industry. As this disease spreads rapidly over large distances, it is regarded as one of the most economically devastating diseases [...]

Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is the causative agent of a highly contagious and economically devastating disease of cloven-hooved domestic and wild animals. It can cause a high number of deaths [...]

We describe the characterization of a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) serotype A virus responsible for recent outbreaks of disease in Egypt. Phylogenetic analysis of VP1 nucleotide sequences demonstrated a close relationship [...]

Livestock farming across the world is constantly threatened by the evolutionary turnover of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) strains in endemic systems, the underlying dynamics of which remain to be elucidated. Here, we map the eco-evolutionary landscape of cocirculating FMDV lineages within an important endemic virus pool encompassing Western, Central, and parts of Southern Asia, reconstructing the evolutionary history and spatial dynamics over the last 20 years that shape the current epidemiological situation. We demonstrate that new FMDV variants periodically emerge from Southern Asia, precipitating waves of virus incursions that systematically travel in a westerly direction. We evidence how metapopulation dynamics drive the emergence and extinction of spatially structured virus populations, and how transmission in different host species regulates the evolutionary space of virus serotypes. Our work provides the first integrative framework that defines coevolutionary signatures of FMDV in regional contexts to help understand the complex interplay between virus phenotypes, host characteristics, and key epidemiological determinants of transmission that drive FMDV evolution in endemic settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious transboundary disease that affects domesticated animals and wildlife in Africa, Asia and parts of South America. Outbreaks of FMD in these disease-endemic regions [...]

This study describes the genetic characterization of serotype A viruses collected during outbreaks of foot‐and‐mouth disease (FMD) that occurred in Algeria in 2017. These are the first reports of clinical cases due to this serotype in the country since 1977. One complete genomic sequence (comprising 8,119 nucleotides) and three additional near‐complete genomic sequences were generated. Phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that these viruses were classified within the A/AFRICA/G‐IV lineage, most closely related to viruses circulating in Nigeria between 2009 and 2015. These unexpected results motivate further studies to define the precise pathways by which this viral lineage has been introduced into North Africa in order to understand risks of future disease incursions into the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]