Surface modification of materials for control of beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) in a wild population of endangered parakeets

病毒是整个人类医疗保健中最大的医疗挑战之一，目前的大流行凸显了这一点，然而，在动物世界中，病毒也有能力破坏种群，并为潜在的濒危物种创造可怕的境地。对动物病毒的研究要少得多然而，它们不仅代表了病毒在进入人类群体之前发生变异的潜在种群，而且反过来说，动物也有可能感染人类病毒，它们的种群因此受到损害。这个项目的特定病毒目标影响到全球所有的鹦鹉物种，并阻碍了毛里求斯科学家们的成功保护工作，他们正在努力建立一个濒危的长尾小鹦鹉种群，野生繁殖对不到20对。这里的项目涉及创造/合成一种材料，这种材料将不可逆转地破坏病毒，并希望防止病毒在濒危人口中传播。这种材料的开发已经在单纯疱疹病毒（HSV-2）方面被证明是成功的，并且很快将转向其他病毒，以证明理论上的广谱功效。通过改进医疗技术，这有可能成为未来治疗病毒感染的一种方法。目前只有抗病毒药物能够减少病毒对个体的影响但在过去的50年里只有90种被批准用于人类动物研究在这一领域的研究远远落后于人类。一种廉价的广谱抗病毒药物可以靶向依赖于硫酸赫帕兰蛋白聚糖结合位点的大量病毒，这是病毒治疗中一个非常令人兴奋的进展。开发抗病毒物质的工作已经完成，并已在体外对HSV-2进行了测试，准备对呼吸道合胞病毒（RSV）和巨细胞病毒（CMV）起作用。已经对果蝇进行了有限的动物毒性测试，结果显示摄入该物质没有任何不良影响，同时对斑马鱼卵进行了初步测试，结果显示在斑马鱼卵水中浓度达到10mg/mL时没有任何不良影响。伦理批准是为了开始以与野生长尾小鹦鹉蛋相同的方式对鸡蛋进行测试，以证明其毒性低于目前为防止病毒传播而采取的生物安全措施。此外，保护小组已表示同意在其生物安全工作中进一步实施该材料，并观察该材料是否对防止病毒在人群中传播产生有益影响。

Viruses represent one of the biggest medical challenges throughout human healthcare and this is only highlighted by the current pandemic, however in the animal world viruses also have the ability to ravage populations and create dire situations for potentially endangered species. Animal viruses have far less research put into them however they represent not only potential population sinks for viral mutation before entering the human population, but also the other way around where animals have the potential to catch human viruses and their populations become damaged by this. The specific virus target for the project here effects all parrot species globally and is preventing the successful conservation efforts of those scientists in Mauritius that are fighting to build up a population of endangered parakeets from less than 20 breeding pairs in the wild. The project here involves creating/synthesising a material that will irreversibly disrupt a virus and in the hopes of preventing the spread of the virus amongst the endangered population. The development of this material has already proved successful in regards to a Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV-2) and work will soon turn onto other viruses to prove the theoretical broad-spectrum efficacy. This has potential to be a future therapy for viral infections by improving healthcare technologies. Currently there are only antivirals that have the ability to reduce the impact of a virus on an individual however over the past 50 years only 90 have actually been approved for use in humans with animal research in this area taking a decided back seat to the human population. The novelty of an inexpensive broad-spectrum virucidal antiviral that can target a large family of viruses relying on the Herparan Sulfate Proteoglycan binding sites to operate poses a very exciting advance in viral treatment. Work has already been done to develop the antiviral material and has been tested in-vitro against HSV-2 with preparation to work on Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) as well as Cytomegalovirus (CMV). Limited animal toxicity testing has already been conducted on fruit flies showing no adverse effect due to ingestion of the material as well as preliminary testing on zebrafish eggs showing no adverse effects up to a concentration of 10mg/mL in their water. Ethics approval has taken place in order to begin testing on chicken eggs in a manner equivalent to the treatment of the wild parakeet eggs in order to prove less toxicity than their current biosecurity measures put in place to prevent the spread of the virus. Further to this the conservation team have expressed their approval to move forward to implement the material in their biosecurity efforts and observe whether or not there is a beneficial impact of the material on preventing the spread of the virus throughout the population.