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Introduction

Respiratory infections account for 70 to 80% of health issues in young cattle fattening operations. They are caused by pathogenic viruses in the respiratory tract, paving the way for secondary bacterial infections. Identifying the causative agents of these disorders is crucial for choosing appropriate preventive and curative measures. In practice, collecting samples from respiratory tract to search for and identify the pathogens responsible for respiratory diseases is rarely done because it is difficult to implement and invasive.

Project description

The AIDAV project, initiated in January 2022, aims to develop a  non-invasive sampling method based on the collection of exhaled air, coupled with a sensitive and rapid analysis technique through isothermal biomolecular amplification (LAMP) using an automated microfluidic device for detecting respiratory viruses in cattle, initially focusing on bovine coronavirus.

the project began with preliminary laboratory tests and continued with intermediate tests at an experimental station in July 2022 and september 2023. The evaluation on farms is starting in the winter of 2023/2024.

Partners

AIDAV involves the collaboration of several academic and private entities, including CEA (Jean-Maxime Roux et Guillaume Blaire), INRAE (Sébastien Assié et Gilles Foucras), and IDELE (Elise Vanbergue).

Individuals involved in the unit

Sébastien Assié (Oniris/INRAE)

Contact Person

Sébastien Assié is the project coordinator and serves as the primary contact point (sebastien.assie@oniris-nantes.fr) for further information regarding AIDAV.

Results

So far, the project has achieved significant progress. Preliminary results show that the non-invasive approach to sampling and rapid identification of viruses is effective, with successful detection of bovine cononavirus in experimentally infected calves. The collection system has become more robust and has been adopted by an equipment manufacturer. The microfluidic chips have improved performance between the two experimental station trials.

Photo 1 : The collection device and the insertion of a microfluidic chip (early 2024 version)

Photo 2 : The insertion of a microfluidic chip on which particle capture is performed and a LAMP detection of bovine coronavirus is carried out (early 2024 version)

Photo 3 : The trial under experimental conditions, sampling of ambient air, and demonstration of bovine coronavirus in the air shared by 3 experimentally infected calves.