As this is written, winter has been mild and quite pleasant compared with some of those of past years. OK with me if it continues. Activity in the ADDL continues to be high; the faculty and staff of the Laboratory continue to provide dedicated, beyond the call of duty, hustle to diagnostic requests and submissions. We have recently completed testing by the immunohistochemistry method samples from 1256 hunter-killed deer from Indiana; all samples were found to be 'no resistant prions detected, i.e. no prions diagnostic of Chronic Wasting Disease of deer were found. We continue to support the national surveillance program for detecting Scrapie of sheep and goats. We are running 600-1000 samples by IHC per week. The federally assisted state program for Johne's disease surveillance in Indiana continues to generate samples for fecal culture or serum ELISA testing for Johne's disease.
Our laboratory was recently selected as one of the members of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network laboratories to participate in an interlaboratory comparison study for a newly developed Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory multiplex system capable of testing for a number of diseases from the same animal tissue/fluid sample by multiplex polymerase chain reaction methodology. High technology equipment has been installed and calibrated in the ADDL and we have two technicians in addition to the head of our molecular diagnostics area, Dr. Ramesh Vemulapalli, who have been trained on the equipment operation.
I was recently presented with a letter of resignation from Dr. Zheko Kounev who has been a member of our faculty for the past three years as avian diagnostician and food safety specialist. Dr. Kounev was presented with an opportunity with an Illinois nutrition company who will assign Dr. Kounev to activity in Bulgaria for major timeframes as part of his employment responsibilities. As Zheko and his wife are natives of Bulgaria and they yet own properties there, it was an opportunity that felt they could not decline. We wish Zheko and his family the best of times in the future. ADDL will begin a search for a replacement for Dr. Kounev's avian activities ASAP.
We continue to receive queries regarding Avian Influenza presence and testing. To date, we have tested birds of several species, the most numerous being chickens and turkeys; we have found no evidence of AI presence in Indiana. Tests available in ADDL for AI include PCR, virus isolation, antigen capture ELISA and agar gel immunodiffusion.
In August of 2005, we sent out a survey of ADDL laboratory users to get ideas of means whereby we can improve services. We were very well pleased with the satisfaction reflected by the returned survey results. Some areas of perceived needed improvement were identified; we are working on them.
We hope to see many of the veterinarians who receive this newsletter at the annual meeting of the Indiana Veterinary Medical Association in Indy the end of this month.
