North-Central 229 Multi-state PRRS Integrated Project Funded by the National Research Initiative

The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) announced early in 2003 the availability of approximately $4 million in funds for researching PRRS, Avian Influenza, and Johne’s Disease through the National Research Initiative (NRI) Integrated Program. NPB has joined in an effort with the NC-229 PRRS Committee to establish a multistate collaborative model comprising the integrated activities of producers, industry and research scientists, to provide the next generation of experts with the scientific and organizational tools for controlling PRRS and other future livestock pathogens. This multi-institutional consortium will integrate research methodologies across laboratory and field disciplines to address four essential problems in PRRS in the U.S.

1. PRRS Biosecurity Within Herds – the development of methods that prevent establishment of PRRS infections on a pig farm and facilitate elimination of an ongoing infection, based on a better understanding of protective immunity, viral persistence in pigs, virulence determinants, and genetic resistance.
2. Viral Spread Among Herds – the identification of factors involved in inter-farm transmission and the role of geography and viral genetics in regional spread.
3. Diagnostics and Monitoring – the development and delivery of more effective tools for on-farm PRRS diagnosis and prevention, including differential immunodiagnostics, determination of infection status, rapid strain identification, and marker vaccines.
4. Regional Elimination – the design and implementation of eradication protocols in relevant ecological settings.

The principal milestone of this project is the implementation of a regional PRRS elimination project. The approach is to form clusters of individuals, drawn from a substantial pool of recognized experts, who can focus on relevant experimental problems with complementary approaches and skills, ranging from diagnostic virology to functional genomics, and bench research to controlled field studies. In support of these activities we will provide an infrastructure that will be a clearinghouse for reagents, virus isolates, data, and services. It will be available to all PRRSV investigators, including those who are not directly supported by NRI funds. Coordination and communication are through a closed data network, through which the participants can post results, develop ideas, and share information. The research will deliver biosecurity education and compliance information, including multi-lingual biosecurity manuals and protection protocols, which will be readily available through the Internet to producers and veterinarians. All activities will be subject to merit review by a scientific advisory board and reviewed by an external stakeholder advisory board. Questions about this project can be directed to the project director, Dr. Michael Murtaugh at the University of Minnesota or the NC229 Chairman, Dr. Jeff Zimmerman at Iowa State University.