Biostone Animal Health Launches Nipah Virus (NiV) Antibody Test Kit

DALLAS-FORT WORTH, TX — March 21, 2024— BioStone Animal Health is pleased to announce that the launch of the AsurDx^TM Nipah Virus (NiV) Antibody Test Kit designed for the detection of antibodies specific to Nipah Virus Glycoprotein, which can be detected from multiple species including including pig, dog, cat, bat , horse and humans (excluding birds). NiV causes respiratory disease in pigs, commonly called porcine respiratory and encephalitis syndrome (PRES) or barking pig syndrome. NiV is a zoonotic pathogen with a natural reservoir in Pteropus fruit bats (flying foxes). When pigs consume fruit contaminated with NiV, they develop clinical or sub-clinical infections. NiV can be spread by contact with bats and pigs, and transmission can also occur via contaminated fruits and date palm sap. Historically, outbreaks have been reported in Southeast Asia, but the zone of transmission has the potential to extend across the migratory ranges of Pteropus fruit bats.

Nipah virus (NiV) is an enveloped RNA virus from the genus Henipavirus, in the Paramyxoviridea family, which also includes the closely related Hendra virus (HeV). There are two genetically distinct strains of NiV, Malaysia strain (NiV-M) and Bangladesh strain (NiV-B). The NiV-B strain has significantly higher mortality rates. NiV caused a major outbreak in 1998, due to transmission from bats to pigs and humans in Southeast Asia. In response, 1.1 million pigs were culled to prevent transmission. Smaller outbreaks have occurred every year since its emergence. Although pigs are the primary NiV-amplifying species, several other animal species are susceptible to NiV infections, including dogs, cats, goats, horses, and sheep. Pigs with subclinical infections were a major cause of the first NiV outbreak and continues to pose a biosecurity risk due to the lack of treatments or vaccines.

Recently, experimental NiV vaccines have been developed for clinical trials, but they are not available on the market for animal or human use. Therefore, the only means available to control NiV is through surveillance, containment, and preventative measures. The AsurDx^TM Nipah Virus (NiV) Antibody Test Kit can be used for serosurveillance to detect NiV antibodies in multiple species’ serum/plasma. The AsurDx^TM Nipah Virus (NiV) Antibody Test Kit provides a cost-effective enzyme based immunoassay (ELISA) screening method to identify NiV reservoirs and infections in most animals including pig, dog, cat, bat , horse and humans (excluding birds).

About BioStone Animal Health — BioStone Animal Health is a Dallas, TX-based biotechnology company that provides innovative solutions for animal health. BioStone Animal Health works together with our worldwide partners to offer a portfolio of animal disease diagnostic products as well as test kits and reagents for vaccine testing that enables performing a rapid evaluation of the efficacies, stability, consistency, and potency of common animal vaccines. By making these test kits available to the international community, BioStone strives to actively promote and participate in global animal health initiatives. For more information about BioStone Animal Health, visit www.biostoneah.com