[填空题]
[Maximum mark: 15]
Swine fever is a highly contagious disease in pigs. The disease is classified into two types: African and classical. Classical swine fever (CSF) is caused by the classical swine fever virus (CSFV) and can be controlled by a live attenuated vaccine. This study presents the events that occurred after the intramuscular (IM) administration of a live attenuated marker vaccine, FlagT4Gv. Such a marker vaccine enables the identification of serum samples that have come from vaccinated animals rather than infected animals and therefore allows for immunological differentiation between infected and vaccinated pigs. The aim of this study was to determine how many days are needed post-vaccination before the pigs are protected against the virus. To test the pig’s immunity to the CSFV, the virulent CSFV (BICv) was introduced intranasally between 1 and 7 days after inoculation with the marker vaccine. The number of pigs that survived in each group was recorded, as was the mean time to death. One group, the mock group, was not inoculated with the marker vaccine but was exposed to the BICv.
[Source: Adapted from Holinka LG, O’Donnell V, Risatti GR, Azzinaro P, Arzt J, Stenfeldt C, et al. (2017) Early protection events in swine immunized with an experimental live attenuated classical swine fever marker vaccine, FlagT4G. PLoS ONE 12(5): e0177433. Retrieved October 27, 2022, from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177433. Copyright-free]
1.Calculate the percentage increase in mean time to death between the mock group and the group that was BICv challenged 2 days post inoculation with FlagT4Gv. Show your working.
The presence of the virus was measured for a maximum of 21 days in each group of FlagT4Gv-inoculated animals, those challenged with the BICv 1 day, 2 days, 3 days, 5 days and 7 days after inoculation with FlagT4Gv as well as in the mock group. The level of BICv was recorded and the results are shown in the graph below. Numbers correspond exclusively to the presence of BICv which was determined by immunocytochemistry.
[Source: Adapted from Holinka LG, O’Donnell V, Risatti GR, Azzinaro P, Arzt J, Stenfeldt C, et al. (2017) Early protection events in swine immunized with an experimental live attenuated classical swine fever marker vaccine, FlagT4G. PLoS ONE 12(5): e0177433. Retrieved October 27, 2022, from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177433. Copyright-free]
2.1Based on the immunocytochemical data shown in the graph, identify the concentration of BICv 7 days post-challenge with BICv for the group infected 2 days after inoculation with FlagT4Gv.
2.2Explain the cause for the difference in viral levels between the group infected 2 days after inoculation and the group infected 3 days after inoculation.
3.Suggest a reason why data is not recorded after day seven, for the mock group and the group exposed to BICv one day after inoculation.
4.Determine the number of days post FlagT4Gv inoculation after which complete protection is achieved against BICv.
5.Describe the pattern of the results shown in the graph.
In a second experiment, tonsil tissue was collected from three different groups of pigs which had undergone different treatments, shown in the table below.
[Source: Adapted from Holinka LG, O’Donnell V, Risatti GR, Azzinaro P, Arzt J, Stenfeldt C, et al. (2017) Early protection events in swine immunized with an experimental live attenuated classical swine fever marker vaccine, FlagT4G. PLoS ONE 12(5): e0177433. Retrieved October 27, 2022, from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177433. Copyright-free]
The tissue was then examined using immunohistochemistry, which involves using monoclonal antibodies and fluorescent dyes to highlight any viruses present. The results from Groups 1, 2, and 3 are shown below.
FlagT4Gv in frozen sections of tonsil tissues from pigs either inoculated with FlagT4Gv or infected with BICv or both.
[Source: Adapted from Holinka LG, O’Donnell V, Risatti GR, Azzinaro P, Arzt J, Stenfeldt C, et al. (2017) Early protection events in swine immunized with an experimental live attenuated classical swine fever marker vaccine, FlagT4G. PLoS ONE 12(5): e0177433. Retrieved October 27, 2022, from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177433. Copyright-free]
6.Describe what can be seen in the tissue sections from each of the 3 groups.
7.Suggest reasons for the appearance of the tonsil tissue from both group 1 and group 3.
8.Discuss whether the data supports the hypothesis that inoculation with FlagT4Gv prevents infection with all types of swine fever.
