Location: Food and Feed Safety Research
Project Number: 3091-32420-001-015-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Aug 1, 2025
End Date: Jul 31, 2028
Objective:
The objective of this project is to conduct ARS/FSIS priority food safety research to investigate alternate means to confirm viable/intact virus (other than growing in egg). Further to understand the virus growth dynamics in avian vs bovine cells/tissues. Avian and bovine trachea and bovine mammary organoids will be developed. These organoids will be tested as a method to grow avian influenza virus and determine the viability of virus from various environmental and experimental samples.
Approach:
This project will operate as a collaboration between the Office of National Programs (ONP), the Food and Feed Safety Research Unit, and Texas A&M AgriLife to study organoid models, in both chicken and bovine, for the detection of viable and infective influenza virus. Considering the high viral titers generated in dairy cattle mammary, a mammary organoid may be a means of culturing live virus outside an egg-based system. Trachea will also be tested as a natural, respiratory site of virus replication. In addition, this approach may aid in the understanding of host-pathogenesis, organ tropism, and mechanism of disruption of virus growth by studying the organoid/virus interaction in this system. Using the organoid model and the relevant H5N1 strain is a unique opportunity afforded by the facilities and expertise of FFSRU and Texas A&M AgriLife. In addition, FFSRU can compare these results to LPAI in these organoids for any indications of tropism differences relevant to cattle mammary and thus food safety consequence differences of the strains.