Page 67 - VHSA - Onderstepoort 100 Years - Part 3

ly mainly diagnostic work), blood parasites of game, and protozoal and viral diseases. Several subsequent publications on diseases such as anaplasmosis (tick-borne), rabies, Afri- can horsesickness, heartwater (tick-borne),
ONDERSTEPOORT 100
the excellent virologist R.A. Alexander who graduated from the Onderstepoort Faculty in 1925 and became a Director of Veterinary Services in later years (see Part I).
louping ill (tick-borne), eperythrozoonosis and bluetongue provide a clear indication of the multidisciplinary nature of his research. It is only from the late 1940s that tick-borne diseases like East Coast fever and related protozoan parasites begin to predominate in his many publications.
The Neitz Era (1930-1970)
“One of the best-known technicians at Onderstepoort, F. W. (Fred) Boughton who joined the Institute in about 1918 as a messenger (he is identified as such in 1918 and as a laboratory assistant in 1931), spent the greater part of his career working with Neitz. He assisted Neitz meticulously with every activity in which the latter was involved.”
It has not been possible to determine exactly when the Section of Protozoology was created. In 1949 Neitz is listed as being in the Protozoology Section, but in actual fact it was still part of the Section of Protozoology and Virus Diseases. B.C. Jansen was appointed in the section in 1949, but was transferred to Bacteriology in 1951. J.W. Pols joined in the early 1950s, H.S. Walters in 1947 and R.D. Bigalke in 1956. In 1958, when the Institute celebrated its 50th anniversary, the Protozoology and Virology Sections are listed separately, Neitz being identified as head of the former.
One of the best-known technicians at Onderstepoort, F.W. (Fred) Boughton who joined the Institute in about 1918 as a messenger (he is identified as such in 1918 and as a laboratory assistant in 1931), spent the greater part of his career working with Neitz. He assisted Neitz meticulously with
Neitz’s was appointed at Onderstepoort in
1930 in the Department of Protozoology
and Virology led by the Director of Veterinary
Services, P.J. du Toit, (according to Neitz’s
cur. vit.). The invaluable research conducted
by Neitz on, for example, the chemotherapy
of heartwater, the demonstration of the
multiplicity of bluetongue virus strains and
the discovery of rickettsiosis of dogs and
sheep in South Africa, in the early stages
of his career whilst he was working under
P.J. du Toit, is described in Part I of this book. Another well- known member of the above-mentioned department was
the leadership of
every activity in which the latter was involved. This included
the production of anaplasmosis and babesiosis vaccines
which, then as now, meant the bleeding of large volumes
of blood from donor cattle – for many years cows and oxen weighing 400 kg and more were used for this purpose – to produce the customary blood vaccines. The technique used involved the insertion of a small trochar and canula into the
jugular vein of an appropriately restrained donor animal. This
not only required considerable skill but could also result in 157 injury to the operator. Small wonder that Boughton suffered
a severe injury to one knee and developed a limp that several surgical operations failed to cure. He was also responsible for maintaining the lines of infected and non-infected ticks (mainly Rhipicephalus spp.) by feeding them on animals – mainly cattle, but sometimes sheep and other animal species, depending on the species of tick and the disease being investigated – fitted with ear bags.
Another important responsibility entrusted to Boughton, and later also to other technicians, was to carry out the tasks entered daily in a diary especially reserved for the purpose of, for example, the treatment of illnesses associated with intensive management which occurred in the herd of specific pathogen free (SPF) cattle kept under tick-free conditions for the production of calves. These were raised for vaccine production (see above) and for research on tick-borne and occasionally other protozoan diseases, such as besnoitiosis. All procedures carried out on an animal – such as injections, vaccinations, splenectomies and tick infestations – were reported to the Technical Records section, where a card system involving every individual beast on the campus of the Institute was meticulously maintained by Victor de Kock for
F.l.t.r.: H.S.Walters, F. W. Boughton, W.O. Neitz and an assistant collecting ticks from an ox fitted with special ear bags
Protozoology
1908-2008
Years