WNS News from USGS

More recent WNS news - the fungus and spores have only been found in mud in infected caves ( and therefore could be caver transported) - and other items of interest http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/wildlife_health_bulletins/WHB_2009...
here's some of the report:

Research Updates

Preliminary findings from a collaborative study funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Forest Service, the National Speleological Society, and Symbiology, LLC, indicated that a genetic signature of G. destructans was present in sediments collected in WNS-infested hibernacula. However, the genetic signature has thus far not been detected in environmental samples or on bats collected from outside the known WNS-infested region. Identification of G. destructans genetic material in environmental samples suggests that the fungus is present, and the potential exists for fungus to be transmitted between bat hibernation caves as an unwanted hitch-hiker upon humans, their clothing, or caving gear.

Preliminary data from WNS infection studies conducted at NWHC suggest G. destructans can be transmitted from bat-to-bat in a controlled environment. This finding, coupled with the recently confirmed first case of WNS this fall from a bat collected on November 4, 2009 in Virginia, suggests that WNS transmission may occur during the fall bat swarm, as well as during hibernation.

The NWHC has developed a rapid PCR test that can quickly screen samples for the genetic signature of G. destructans. This test will be used for surveillance and monitoring efforts this winter. Also, genome sequencing of G. destructans is underway at the Microbial Sequencing Center of the Broad Institute with funding provided by the National Human Genome Research Institute and the U.S. Geological Survey. Determination of the G. destructans genome sequence will facilitate future research into mechanisms of WNS pathogenesis and will enable molecular epidemiological studies into the origin of G. destructans. Future WNS research directions include predicting the potential for WNS spread, evaluating possible treatment and control options, examining the persistence of G. destructans in the environment, and determining the cycle of WNS transmission.