Transplacental transmission (TPT) of wild-type Indian BTV-1 had never been experimentally proved. This study was first time investigated TPT of Indian BTV-1 (isolated from aborted and stillborn goat fetal spleens). The sequential pathology, virological and immune cell kinetics (CD4⁺, CD8⁺T-lymphocytes and NK cells in spleen and PBMCs), and apoptosis in IFNAR1-blocked pregnant mice during early (infected on 1 GD) and mid (infected on 8 GD) gestation have been studied. There was higher rate of TPT during mid stage (71.43%) than early (57.14%) stage. In early stage reduced implantation sites, early embryonic deaths, abortions, and necro-haemorrhagic lesions had observed. Mid stage, congenital defects and neurological lesions in foetuses like haemorrhages, diffuse cerebral edema, necrotizing encephalitis and decreased bone size (Alizarin red staining) were noticed. BTV-1 antigen was first time demonstrable in cells of mesometrium, decidua of embryos, placenta, uterus, ovary, and brain of foetuses by immunohistochemistry and quantified by real-time qRT-PCR. BTV-inoculated mice were seroconverted by 7 and 5 dpi, and reached peak levels by 15 and 9 dpi in early and mid gestation, respectively. CD4⁺and CD8⁺cells were significantly decreased (increased ratio) on 7 dpi but subsequently increased on 15 dpi in early gestation. In mid gestation, increased CD8⁺cells (decreased ratio) were observed. Apoptotic cells in PBMCs and tissues increased during peak viral load. This first time TPT of wild-type Indian BTV-1 deserves to be reported for implementation of control strategies. This model will be very suitable for further research into mechanisms of TPT, overwintering, and vaccination strategies.

Aim The aim of this study was to develop a saltatory rolling circle amplification (SRCA) assay for rapid, simple and visual detection of Salmonella in meat. Methods and Results SRCA assay was established using simple PCR primers targeting the invA gene of Salmonella enterica. The specificity of the SRCA assay was determined by using 28 Salmonella and 15 non‐Salmonella strains. The analytical sensitivity of the developed SRCA, conventional and real‐time PCR assays were 70 fg, 7 pg and 700 fg S.enterica DNA per tube, respectively. The limit of detection of the SRCA assay was 40 CFU per gram of meat without enrichment and 4 CFU/gram after including 6 h brief enrichment step. The detection limits of 40 CFU/gram and 4 CFU/gram of meat were achieved within 165 min and 9 h, respectively (including DNA extraction). To assess the real‐world relevance of the SRCA assay, it was used to screen Salmonella from the field pork samples (n = 82). The same samples were also tested with culture (ISO 6579: 2002) method, conventional and real‐time PCR assays. By using the developed assay with 6 h enrichment step, it could give accurate results as that of the culture method. Conclusions The results of this study showed that the SRCA assay is a rapid, simple, sophisticated‐equipment free and user‐friendly method for accurate detection of Salmonella in meat foods. To our information, this is the first study to deploy SRCA assay for screening foods for Salmonella. Significance and Impact of the Study The developed SRCA assay is cost‐effective, easy‐to‐perform and equipment free therefore has the potential to replace other molecular detection methods for regular screening of Salmonella in foods in field laboratories.

Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogenic microorganism infects man mostly through food. A total of 1615 samples of foods of animal origin and water were collected from retail meat shops of North-Eastern India and processed. Sixty-three (3.9%) samples were positive for L. monocytogenes. Animal origin foods showing the highest prevalence was chevon (9.8%) followed by beef (8.9%), chicken (8.5%), pork (2.8%) and milk (1.8%). The prevalence rate in water from retail meat shops was 10%. Recovered L. monocytogenes were distributed into 3 serogroups, of which 74.6% fit in to 1/2a, 3a serogroup, 17.5% to 1/2b, 3b and 7.9 % to 4b, 4d, 4e serogroups. Thirty-five isolates out of 63 possessed all the tested four virulence genes. RAPD- and ERIC -PCR based analyses jointly revealed a discriminative genetic profile for the L. monocytogenes. On the whole, the occurrence of L. monocytogenes in foods of animal origin of North Eastern India displays public health hazard.