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

病毒代表了人类医疗保健中最大的医学挑战之一，这一点仅在当前的大流行中突出显示，然而在动物世界中，病毒也有能力蹂躏种群，并为潜在的濒危物种创造可怕的情况。动物病毒对它们的研究要少得多，但它们不仅代表了病毒在进入人类群体之前发生突变的潜在群体汇，而且还代表了动物有可能感染人类病毒并使其种群受到损害的另一种方式。该项目的特定病毒目标影响全球所有鹦鹉物种，并阻止了毛里求斯科学家的成功保护工作，这些科学家正在努力从不到20对野生繁殖对中建立濒危鹦鹉种群。该项目涉及创建/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群中传播。这种材料的开发已经证明在单纯疱疹病毒（HSV-2）方面是成功的，工作将很快转向其他病毒，以证明理论上的广谱功效。通过改善医疗保健技术，这有可能成为病毒感染的未来疗法。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种药物被批准用于人类，而在这一领域的动物研究则决定退居人类之后。一种廉价的广谱杀病毒抗病毒药物的新奇，它可以靶向依赖于硫酸乙酰肝素蛋白聚糖结合位点的一大家族病毒，从而在病毒治疗方面取得了非常令人兴奋的进展。已经完成了开发抗病毒材料的工作，并在体外测试了抗HSV-2的作用，制备了对呼吸道合胞病毒（RSV）以及巨细胞病毒（CMV）的作用。已经对果蝇进行了有限的动物毒性测试，显示摄入该材料不会产生不良影响，对斑马鱼卵的初步测试显示，在其水中浓度高达10 mg/mL时不会产生不良影响。已获得伦理学批准，以便开始以与处理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。除此之外，保护小组还表示同意在其生物安全工作中实施该材料，并观察该材料是否对防止病毒在整个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.