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RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Lumpy skin disease: a significant threat to Australia

Kelly J. Stanger A * and Timothy R. Bowden A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A CSIRO, Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness, Geelong, Vic. 3220, Australia.




Kelly Stanger is the Group leader for the newly established Lumpy Skin Disease Research group at the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (ACDP). She has over 20 years of research experience, predominantly working on the production limiting diseases and disorders affecting the red meat industries. Prior to commencing the Lumpy Skin Disease research role, Kelly was the Veterinary Services manager for ACDP overseeing the operation and research activities in the animal facilities. Before joining ACDP, she was a lecturer in Cattle Medicine and Production at the University of Melbourne, completed her PhD and worked as a veterinary consultant to the sheep and beef cattle industries through her work with the Mackinnon Group. She has a keen interest in biosecurity, animal welfare and production limiting diseases of livestock.



Tim Bowden is a Senior Research Scientist and veterinarian with over 20 years of experience in virology and molecular biology, as well as diagnostic test development and validation, focusing on the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and control of infectious animal diseases. Since completing his PhD in 2004 Tim has worked at the CSIRO Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (ACDP) on various projects, with both domestic and international collaborators, including to enhance the diagnostic capability for diseases caused by capripoxviruses (sheeppox, goatpox and lumpy skin disease) and foot-and-mouth disease. He has broad experience with pathogenesis and vaccine efficacy trials and, prior to joining the recently established Lumpy Skin Disease Research group, was the Team Leader (Serology) within the ACDP Diagnostic Emergency Response Laboratory.

* Correspondence to: kelly.stanger@csiro.au

Microbiology Australia 43(4) 186-189 https://doi.org/10.1071/MA22061
Submitted: 10 November 2022  Accepted: 6 December 2022   Published: 22 December 2022

© 2022 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the ASM. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Lumpy skin disease, a mechanically transmitted poxvirus, causes severe disease in naïve populations of cattle and buffalo. It is characterised by development of multifocal cutaneous nodules and systemic illness with significant impacts on animal health, productivity, welfare and trade. Lumpy skin disease entered South-East Asia via Myanmar (November 2020) and later Thailand (March 2021), and has spread rapidly through the region reaching Indonesia in February 2022. This article provides a brief overview of current literature and its application to the Australian context including possible routes of entry, early detection and knowledge gaps that need to be addressed to improve preparedness and response capability.

Keywords: Australia, buffalo, capripoxvirus, cattle, emergency animal disease, lumpy skin disease, poxvirus, South‐East Asia, surveillance, vector.


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