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The present study was planned to evaluate the infection concerning Anaplasma platys in dogs for the first time in Nineveh Province, Iraq, using microscopic examination and conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques. Eighty-one blood samples were randomly collected from dogs (31 household dogs and 50 stray dogs). Those samples were drained from dogs introduced to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at the University of Mosul and private veterinary clinics in Nineveh province. The microscopic examination was used to check the blood films prepared for preliminary detection of morulae of A. platys within platelets; furthermore, the molecular technique was used to validate the presence of A. platys by targeting the gltA gene. In that, PCR yielded an amplification of 690 bp band size products, which was the expected size of the targeted gene. After that, these PCR amplicons were sent for sequencing to verify the presence of the pathogen, and then the sequence results were subsequently aligned with other strains available on the NCBI database. Finally, a phylogenetic tree for the related strains was constructed by Mega-11 software. The outcomes indicated that the overall infection rate of A. platys infection in dogs was 6/81 (7.4%) and 11/81 (13.6%) using microscopic examination and molecular techniques, respectively. Additionally, there was no significant difference within the dogs' categories in this study. In conclusion, it has been shown that A. platys in dogs were circulating in Nineveh province; therefore, plans for control measures are advised.

Gathering information about the status of the Border disease virus (BDV) would limit its propagation and make monitoring efforts more effective. Numerous BDV genotypes are globally widespread, according to various reports. In Nineveh province- Iraq, the phylogenetic analysis and some associated risk factors of BDV virus in sheep were the subjects of this groundbreaking work. Blood samples from 264 sheep were collected in different regions of Nineveh province from the period between June till December 2022. The analysis for the sequences of BDV Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) was performed using the online GenomeNet multiple sequence alignment tool (CLUSTALW). Following that, the sequences were blasted against other available BDV virus strains in the GenBank using NCBI BLAST (BLASTn) of NCBI. Neighbor-joining (NJ) mode was used to create the phylogenetic trees. The result revealed that 15.9% (42/264) of sheep tested positive for BDV, and the associated epidemiological aspects, including herd size and interspecies management, had a significant impact of (P

Lyme disease (LD) is the most prevalent tick-borne disease in both Europe and North America. The development of effective Lyme disease vaccines is complicated by the complex biology of Borrelia species and alterations in the expression of outer surface membranes. In this work, PepB, which is Borrelia burgdorferiBB0172-derived peptide was evaluated in scaffolded formulation as a vaccine candidate in murine model of LD. In brief, four groups of 6-8 weeks old C3H/HeN breed of mice (n=6 per group) were immunized subcutaneously with BBA34: PepB (BP), outer surface protein C (OspC), BBA34 and a naïve control group. In 8 weeks, post-priming blood samples were collected, and specific IgG titers were evaluated by ELISA. After that, A dose of 105 B. burgdorferi/mouse was administered subcutaneously to all animals as a challenge. The mice were euthanized at 4 weeks post-challenge and then blood and tissue samples were collected to evaluate bacterial burden by real time qPCR, and bacterial recovery from tissues. Taken together, and considering both bacterial burden and bacterial recovery, immunization with BP was not able to confer protection against borreliosis in this experiment, and consequently it was not considered as a potential vaccine formulation in subsequent studies. It was concluded, that other alternative antigen platforms and delivery methods might be considered to improve the immunogenicity of the PepB-based vaccine candidate.

Brucellosis is a widespread and endemic disease in the Middle East and Mediterranean regions, and it has significant public health and livestock industry concerns. It can affect a wide range of mammalian hosts, including humans. This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of thelatent infection of brucellosisin calves; Rose Bengal and indirect ELISA tests were conducted for this purpose. The serum samples were collected from 184 local calves of both sexes aged between 1 to 8 months (92 males and 92 females) from different regions of Mosul city. The current study revealed that all samples tested negative with the Rose Bengal test, whereas, in indirect ELISA 5.9%, the samples were against Brucella species. The seroprevalence of Brucella antibodies showed no statistical differences between males and females, which was 5.4 and 6.5%, respectively. This study concluded that the indirect ELISA test showed high diagnostic efficacy in detecting anti-Brucella antibodies in young calves.

African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) is a high-consequence transboundary animal pathogen that often causes hemorrhagic disease in swine with a case fatality rate close to 100%. Lack of treatment or vaccine for the disease makes it imperative that safe and efficacious vaccines are developed to safeguard the swine industry. In this study, we evaluated the immunogenicity of seven adenovirus-vectored novel ASFV antigens, namely A151R, B119L, B602L, EP402RΔPRR, B438L, K205R and A104R. Immunization of commercial swine with a cocktail of the recombinant adenoviruses formulated in adjuvant primed strong ASFV antigen-specific IgG responses that underwent rapid recall upon boost. Notably, most vaccinees mounted robust IgG responses against all the antigens in the cocktail. Most importantly and relevant to vaccine development, the induced antibodies recognized viral proteins from Georgia 2007/1 ASFV-infected cells by IFA and by western blot analysis. The recombinant adenovirus cocktail also induced ASFV-specific IFN-γ-secreting cells that were recalled upon boosting. Evaluation of local and systemic effects of the recombinant adenovirus cocktail post-priming and post-boosting in the immunized animals showed that the immunogen was well tolerated and no serious negative effects were observed. Taken together, these outcomes showed that the adenovirus-vectored novel ASFV antigen cocktail was capable of safely inducing strong antibody and IFN-γ+ cell responses in commercial swine. The data will be used for selection of antigens for inclusion in a multi-antigen prototype vaccine to be evaluated for protective efficacy.