West Nile Virus (WNV) Study - Request for Blood Samples
by Jennifer Sargent

My name is Jennifer Sargent and I am a preveterinary student at Oregon State University . I am working with Michelle Kutzler, Assistant Professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine , on a West Nile virus infection in camelids. We are collecting 5-20 blood samples per farm from alpacas and llamas across America to determine the incidence of asymptomatic West Nile virus infection.

Although we have received a fair number of samples (about 220 samples from 13 states), we haven't received any from the states of VT, NH, MA, RI, CT, NY, PA, WV, VA, NC, MI, OH, IL, IN, KY, TN, MS, AL, LA, AR, MO,MN, ND, NE, KS, OK, NM, WY, AZ, UT, ID, or NV and we would like these states to be represented in our results.

Animals used for this study must not have been vaccinated against West Nile virus and must not have a history of illness. We will pay for the shipping and testing of the blood samples. However, our grant will not cover the cost for collecting the samples. Any personal information related to these samples will be strictly confidential and the results will be shared with owners as soon as they are available. There is mounting evidence that asymptomatic natural infection will provide life-long immunity against West Nile virus disease in the animal. If your animals test positive, you can be virtually certain that they will never become sick from West Nile infection in the future.

If you would like more information on this project, I would be glad to send you a copy of the abstract we presented to the Centers for Disease Control 6th Annual Conference on West Nile Virus on February 8, 2005 or answer your questions directly. Dr. Kutzler has also published two articles on West Nile virus infection and vaccination in camelids and copies of these could also be sent to you.

This research is generously supported by The Alpaca Research Foundation.

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