Lauren Aubrey, University of Saskatchewan

Lauren Aubrey1,3, Nathalie Berube1, Natalia Pessoa1, Cynthia Swan1, M. Afzal Javed1, Erin Scruten1, Rob Stevens1, Carla Norleen1, Kyla Cutts1, Yanyun Huang 4, Yohannes Berhane5,6,7, Bryce Warner1,8 and Antonio Facciuolo1,2*, Yan Zhou1,2,3* 1 Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 2 Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 3 Vaccinology & Immunotherapeutic Program, School of Public Health, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 4 Prairie Diagnostic Services (PDS) Inc., Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 5 National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada 6 Department of Pathobiology, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 7 Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada 8 Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

Discovering & Evolving

Recent spillovers of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) infections in dairy cows create new opportunities for zoonotic transmission and new concerns around development of mammalian adaptations and viral evolution in this new host. In dairy cows, HPAI results in mastitis, decreased milk production, and leads to economic losses in the dairy industry. HPAI pathogenesis and vaccine challenge studies in cows require high biocontainment agricultural spaces. A small ruminant model would allow for larger sample sizes, and offer advantages in animal handling, cost, safety, and logistics within these facilities. Here, we evaluate lactating goats as a surrogate model for HPAI in dairy cows. Consistent with HPAI in dairy cows, intramammary inoculation of lactating goats with HPAI H5N1 genotypes D1.1 and B3.13 resulted in mastitis, decreased milk production and high viral shedding in milk. Subcutaneous vaccination with inactivated B3.13 virus induced antigen-specific antibodies in blood and milk, protected goats from clinical disease after homologous B3.13 challenge and mitigated both milk production loss and viral shedding in milk compared with controls. Lactating goats can recapitulate HPAI infection in dairy cattle, providing a relevant surrogate model for studying pathogenesis and evaluating vaccine efficacy.