Location: Zoonotic and Emerging Disease Research
Project Number: 3022-32000-027-024-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2024
End Date: Sep 1, 2026
Objective:
The objective of this project is to investigate the role of host responses following Niaph virus challenge and to identify determinants of disease progressions and resistance.
Approach:
Infection with Nipah virus produces a spectrum of disease. It is likely the strain, route, dose, species as well as other factors play roles in the development of clinical disease and the severity of the disease. Currently capabilities to study Nipah virus in pigs is limited to a few laboratories globally. Attemps to use minipigs or use juvenile animals failed to recaptiulate the disease observed in animals in Bangladesh and India. Limited availability of reagents for agriculture species further hinders investiation of disease in animals. While waiting for NBAF capabilities to be available work will be performed in alternative animals models and strategies developed to minimize the impact of reagent availability.
In the first part of this project ferrets will be challenged with henipaviruses and the disease course characterized. In the second part of this project single cell sequencing techniques will be developed. Archival samples collected from previous studies at UTMB and samples collected from ferrets will be utilized.
