Mary McCarty <[log in to unmask]> wrote on 1/7/2006,
 >I have contacted the Univ of GA about doing commercial ADV testing and
>Marshall Farms about doing ADV testing/perhaps buying Fervac and starting
>a pharmaceutical branch.  Out of the commercial breeders, they seem to be
>the most likely to be able to do this.  Haven't heard anything back, yet.
 
I doubt that UGA will be interested in offering CEP testing commercially,
but I could be wrong.
 
I did talk to Dr. Ritchie, who heads the UGA ADV research team, in early
December.  At that time he said they were planning to have their ADV
ELISA test commercially available after the beginning of the year (2006).
 
Since hearing the news about United, I have been trying to reach both Dr.
Ritchie and Kate in reference to this, but I have not heard back from
them.
 
The ELISA test that UGA developed, while using the same technology as
the Avecon ELISA, is a different test.  ELISA stands for "enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay".  ELISA tests are widely utilized to detect
substances that have antigenic properties, primarily proteins (as
opposed to small molecules and ions such as glucose and potassium).  The
substances detected by ELISA tests include hormones, bacterial antigens
and antibodies.  So, an ELISA test can be developed to look for a number
of different things, and not just ADV.
 
The UGA ELISA is, I believe, the test that PETsMART is using to screen
the ferrets they sell for ADV.  I do not know if their ELISA is an
antigen (the actual virus) or an antibody test, but I do know that they
plan to express the test results in titers (actual numbers).  Titers
can be useful, because they give you an idea of the concentration of
something, rather than just giving a positive or negative result.
 
UGA has another ADV test already commercially available, but because it
is run on organ biopsy samples, it is not a good test for regular ADV
screening.  This test, called the DNA in situ hybridization test.  It
is a very accurate test, but is more for use with necropsy samples, or
biopsy samples taken while the ferret is undergoing surgery for something
else.  It is not reasonable to have a ferret undergo surgery to remove
organ biopsy samples for normal screening.
 
--
Danee DeVore
International Ferret Congress Health Issues Coordinator
http://www.ferretcongress.org
ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know!
For more information visit: http://www.ferretadv.com
You can help fight ADV!
Visit: http://help4adv.terrabox.com/
[Posted in FML issue 5116]