The Associated Press | Posted: Thursday, May 5, 2005 12:00 am
LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) - More than 50 researchers from around the world will gather at the University of Wyoming in August to discuss alternatives to existing brucellosis vaccinations for bison and elk in the Yellowstone area, officials announced Thursday.
Brucellosis was first detected in Yellowstone National Park bison in 1917, but over ensuing decades, the contagious reproductive disease was virtually eradicated from the United States.
The wild bison and elk in the Greater Yellowstone Area, however, represent the nation's last major reservoir for the bacterium.
"Traditional techniques that successfully eradicated the disease in livestock are not as easy to apply in free-ranging wildlife," said Bret D. Marsh, who serves as chairman of a U.S. Animal Health Association special committee established last year to plan and host the workshop.
Marsh is also the Indiana state veterinarian.
The UW Ruckelshaus Institute of Environment and Natural Resources will moderate the event, scheduled Aug. 16-18 at the Wyoming Union ballroom. All sessions will be open to the public, with a formal public comment period from 1-3 p.m. on Aug. 18.
The meeting will center on development and testing of safe, effective vaccines for bison and elk; new ways to administer the vaccines; and improving live-animal diagnostic methods.
The goal of the workshop is to bring together key individuals from federal, state, academic and private sectors in hopes of devising a plan to eliminate brucellosis from the area while maintaining free-ranging wildlife populations, Marsh said.
Brucellosis causes abortions and other reproductive problems in many mammals, including cattle, sheep, goats, dogs, swine, bison, elk and occasionally horses. While no longer a major human health issue in the U.S., brucellosis remains a health concern in much of the world.
The U.S. Animal Health Association is a 109-year-old organization of state and federal governments, animal industry groups, universities, wildlife health experts and other national organizations that addresses animal health and disease control, food safety, public health, homeland security and animal welfare.
The departments of Agriculture and Interior are providing funding for the workshop. For more information, call Jill Lovato, a project coordinator at the Ruckelshaus Institute, (307) 766-5146.
On the Net:
U.S. Animal Health Association: http://www.usaha.org/
CDC Disease Information: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo
USDA brucellosis fact sheet:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahps/brucellosis