Developing better methods of controlling heartwater will be critical in improving food animal health and the economies in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of the Caribbean where the disease is widespread.
Among its goals are to establish future collaborations with researchers in the Caribbean and Africa. The project will be the first to have strategic collaborations with the USDA and NBAF.
The far-reaching goals of our heartwater research are to develop rapid diagnostics and a vaccine.” “Currently, there are no approved diagnostic tests or vaccines for heartwater disease in the U.S. “Despite its enormous importance, effective means of diagnosing and controlling the disease are not available,” Ganta said. High mortality rates up to 90% can occur in livestock if introduced into a non-endemic area, such as to the mainland U.S. The disease is characterized by fever, labored breathing, coughing, neurological signs, hydrothorax, ascites and edema of the lungs. “The USDA-estimated cost of heartwater could be as high as $2.3 billion in losses to the U.S. “The possible introduction of heartwater from the Caribbean and through imported exotic foreign animals from Africa is a major concern to the U.S.
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