Equine Infectious Anemia Andrea Jensen & Emily French

Discovery History

Horsey AIDS?… NOT

Lentiviruses  Retrovirus Family  Single Strand (+) RNA virus  Contains 2 copies  Can infect non-dividing cells  Contains regulatory proteins  Latent or active viral states  Spread by blood and other bodily fluids  Long lived virus leading to reservoir for persistent infection  Virus type present in many vertebrate species

The next 30 minutes of your life…  Transmission  Pathology  Testing and Control  Vaccine research, EIAV/FIV  What does it mean to Me?

Transmission  Vicki 15 min of fame

Viral Life Cycle

Primary Pathology  Mature RBC’s destroyed by immune system  Maturation of RBC precursor cells prevented

Other EIAV Symptoms  Depression  Fever  Enlarged Lymph Nodes  Weakness  Weight Loss  Anorexia  Edema  Nasal Discharge  DEATH

How EIAV Stacks Up  HIV “generally” fatal  EIAV has 30% mortality  FIV is “Kitty AIDS”

So now you know….. What EIAV is and what it means for the horse. But what are we doing about it?  Mandatory Testing  Federally Mandated Control Measures  Vaccine Research

Current Testing Agar gel immunodiffusion test (AGID or Coggin’s) Competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (cELISA) AGID / Coggin’s cELISA

Control Measures  Life-long quarantine  Slaughter  Research  Euthanasia

What this means is… 70% of horses that contract EIAV would effectively manage the infection…. But….. 100% of horses who have a positive Coggin’s Test will die as a result of the test.

Vaccines No. Yes. Well, Maybe…

Why do we even care?  Vaccine Research  Therapeutic Vectors  Immune System

The End