Leveraging Artificial Intelligence for Surveillance and Innovation in Livestock Virus Control
February 26, 2025- Ames, IA- Iowa is a leading state in livestock production, significantly contributing to the U.S. agricultural economy. It is also the nation’s top pork and egg producer, raising nearly one-third of the U.S. hogs. The state has over 5,400 pig farms, with pig farmers in every county[i]. In 2023, Iowa’s cattle industry contributed over $9.45 billion to the state’s economy[ii]. While these figures underscore Iowa’s pivotal role in U.S. livestock production, highlighting its diverse and economically significant agricultural sector, it also makes the state very susceptible to viral animal epidemics.
Viral outbreaks in livestock, like Foot-and-Mouth Disease, Avian Influenza, and African Swine Fever, can result in significant economic losses. Timely detection and control are essential to minimizing these losses and maintaining the health and sustainability of livestock industries. While traditional methods such as vaccination can be effective, they are not always reliable because over time, viruses can mutate, rendering them resistant to existing vaccines. This underscores the need for new and innovative approaches to controlling viral infections in livestock.
The Vice President of Research Seed Grant program at Iowa State University is intended to support vaccine, diagnostic, and immunotherapeutic research priorities.Funding for this program is allocated from the State of Iowa to accelerate commercial development of these strategic platforms and to boost workforce and economic development of the State of Iowa.
“The intersection of AI and biosciences is transforming economic development, and Iowa is poised to lead the way—leveraging innovation, research, and a strong agricultural foundation to drive the future of biotechnology and smart industries,” says Dr. Michael Roof, Chief Technology Officer of Vaccines, Diagnostics, and Immunotherapeutics at Iowa State University.
Ratul Chowdhury, Nanovaccine institute member and Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Iowa State University, and Black and Veatch Building a World of Difference Faculty Fellow in Engineering, was awarded a grant from the Vice President of Research Seed Grant program at Iowa State University.
Chowdhury and his student, Supantha Dey, are working on a project that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to create new ways to design antibodies. These antibodies would target specific types of viruses. The goal is to predict how the virus might change in the future and make sure the antibodies can still protect against these changes. This could help stop future outbreaks and prevent animals from getting sick. As part of their research, they made a detailed map of parts of the PRRSV (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus) that are most likely to trigger the immune system. They identified the top 75 parts of the virus that could be targeted using AI, and then used AI to design 56 stable antibody structures that could help trigger an immune response. This work will help researchers find better targets for antibodies and design vaccines that can work against multiple parts of the virus at once. Additionally, it will lead to the creation of a technology platform that can fight any viral disease in the future.
The Chowdhury Lab plans to expand their research to predict mutations in other animal diseases, potentially safeguarding Iowa’s agricultural economy. By leveraging machine learning and deep neural networks, the team aims to stay ahead of disease variants and broaden their focus beyond PRRSV in upcoming days. This work is expected to be available for industry use through collaborations and on-field applications within the next few years.
[i] “2020 Iowa Pork Industry Facts. Iowa Pork Producers Association”. https://www.iowapork.org/newsroom/facts-about-iowa-pork-production. Accessed February 17, 2025.
[ii] “Iowa Cattle Industry Facts. Iowa Beef Industry Council”. https://www.iabeef.org/raising-beef/cattle-industry-facts. Accessed February 17, 2025.
Article written by Pradeepa Sukumaran, Program Assistant II