Is PED virus airborne and infectious?
A completed study at the University of Minnesota shows PED virus can be airborne and infectious while airborne.
Pigs weighing about 16kg each were experimentally infected with PEDV.  Air samples collected 1 to 3 days post infection tested positive for PEDV and had between 1.00E+7 to 1.00E+8 of PEDV RNA copies per cubic meter (m3) of air.  PCR Ct values ranged between 22.66 and 26.31. Both Cyclonic and Anderson air collection instruments confirmed airborne PEDV from experimentally infected pigs.  Virus was found on all measured particle sizes, but predominantly in larger size particles.
Air samples were also tested to determine whether they were infectious. Sentinel pigs were inoculated with the positive air samples and all inoculated pigs developed PED disease and tested positive for PEDV demonstrating the presence of live virus.
These findings indicate that viable PEDV can be found in air samples collected from contaminated environments. Strategies for preventing the airborne transmission of PEDV should be considered as part of a comprehensive biosecurity and disease control program.
Work is in progress to determine strategies, such as the use of ionization, to decrease the presence of PEDV from the air.