South Dakota

South Dakota State University researchers lead the charge against new turkey virus threat

Published

1 year ago

December 23, 2024

South Dakota State University researchers lead the charge against new turkey virus threat

BROOKINGS, S.D. — South Dakota State University’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory is taking a leading role in combating a new strain of avian metapneumovirus, a virus that is causing significant economic loss to the United States poultry industry.

Avian metapneumovirus, or aMPV, is an upper respiratory tract viral infection that affects all types of poultry but is most harmful to turkeys. The virus is divided into four different subgroups: A, B, C or D. While each subgroup can be found in different parts of the world, the U.S. has previously only experienced outbreaks of subgroup C.

In January 2024, SDSU researchers became the first in the U.S. to identify the first known case of aMPV subgroup B after testing a sample from an outbreak in a North Carolina turkey flock. Since then, the virus has continued to spread throughout the United States, wreaking havoc for poultry breeders across the country.

Sunil Mor, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and section lead for virology at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory.

Kennedy Tesch / Agweek

“A and B, were worldwide in Europe, South America and Asia, but never detected in the U.S.,” said Sunil Mor, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and section lead for virology at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory. “First time introduction of the subgroups A and B in the U.S., it’s a huge economic impact, especially on the turkey industry. The breeders are seeing up to 80% to 90% reduction in egg production.”

In Minnesota, which is home to a major portion of U.S. turkey production, the virus has made a significant impact. Ashley Kohls, executive director of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association, said the Association started conducting surveillance on the virus last spring. From April to June, they found that nearly 100% of the turkey flocks in the state of Minnesota were impacted by aMPV.

Ashley Kohls, executive director of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association.

“It’s unfortunate, and it’s massive,” Kohls said. “In addition to commercial turkeys or the meat birds, our breeder flocks are negatively impacted as well. For breeder birds, they have a significant reduction in the amount of eggs that they lay. Anytime you have breeder flocks impacted, there’s ripple effects, obviously, through the entire industry — less eggs, less poults, less birds, less turkey. It’s kind of been a rolling compound effect. There’s less baby poults, but then there’s also less birds coming out on the back end because of sick flocks.”

While the virus continues to cause issues for poultry producers, researchers at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory are working around the clock. Their quick identification of the virus was a game-changer.

“I remember the first meeting Dr. Mor confirmed that it was subtype B, people were actually not even able to believe that,” said Tamer Sharafeldin, an assistant professor Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and veterinary pathologist at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory. “But, within a week, the USDA confirmed that as well, and that was actually a leading discovery for South Dakota State University.”

With the virus confirmed, SDSU researchers pivoted to focus on vaccine development. They are currently working on three types of vaccines: a killed vaccine, a live attenuated vaccine, and a vector vaccine. The killed vaccine is the quickest to develop, as researchers can isolate the virus, inactivate it, and then test its safety and efficacy.

“We have isolated the virus, so we just inactivate it, test the safety potency, and then get the USDA approval to give it to the birds,” Mor explained.

The team is also working to improve diagnostic tools, however, vaccine development remains the highest priority.

“The process is not going to happen in a day or two. It’s going to take some time. We are actually competing with time to be able to achieve this,” Sharafeldin said. “We have produced the weakened virus — that’s number one. Number two, we are starting to establish the baseline needed for vaccine safety and efficacy.”

Tamer Sharafeldin, an assistant professor Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and veterinary pathologist at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory.

SDSU’s leadership in identifying the virus and developing solutions is vital not only for South Dakota but for the entire U.S. poultry industry.

“There’s a rapid need to develop vaccines for both the breeder flocks but also commercial turkey flocks as well. Developing that vaccine domestically will take some time, but there are a lot of folks working around the clock to make that happen,” Kohls said.

“South Dakota State University is not only the university that serves South Dakota citizens, it’s a university that leads research that would help the whole U.S. poultry industry in different states as well as it plays a very important role to enhance the U.S. economy,” Sharafeldin added.

Kennedy is a reporter for Agweek based out of South Dakota. She grew up on an organic crop farm where her family also raises cattle in eastern South Dakota. She graduated from South Dakota State University in 2023 with a major in agricultural communication and minor in agricultural business. She enjoys connecting with producers and agribusinesses across the region while reporting on all things agriculture.

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South Dakota

DOE selects nine school districts for 2026 South Dakota Perkins Reserve grant

Published

8 minutes ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

DOE selects nine school districts for 2026 South Dakota Perkins Reserve grant

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – Nine school districts have been selected as recipients of the 2026 Perkins Reserve Grant by the South Dakota Department of Education.

The grant provides major equipment upgrades for Career and Technical Education programs, helping to equip students with the skills and experiences needed for post-secondary education and the workforce.

“CTE programs are constantly evolving to match the pace of workforce needs,” said Secretary of Education Dr. Joseph Graves.

“The South Dakota Perkins Reserve Grant aids schools in equipping students with current technologies, resources, and tools, offering students a realistic, hands-on learning experience that will strengthen their marketability to colleges or employers once they leave the K-12 education system.”

The following school districts have been named as the 2026 recipients:

Aberdeen School District:
- Awarded $30,233 for new precision machine equipment for the manufacturing program.
De Smet School District:
- Awarded $15,898 for modernizing metal fabrication within agriculture programs.
Lake Preston School District:
- Awarded $43,160 for expansion of program offers in multiple career clusters to strengthen industrial alignment.
McLaughlin School District:
- Awarded $11,997 to purchase equipment to offer a new culinary arts program.
Menno School District:
- Awarded $32,844 to purchase small engines and attend professional development opportunities to enhance the agricultural mechanics program.
Mitchell School District:
- Awarded $38,663 for the modernization of the automotive technology lab.
Timber Lake School District:
- Awarded $42,400 for the expansion of agriculture course offerings to strengthen industry alignment.
Wakpala School District:
- Awarded $40,145 to purchase a skid steer simulator to enhance the agriculture and construction program.
Wolsey-Wessington School District:
- Awarded $26,201 to purchase industry-aligned equipment to enhance the agriculture and construction program.

You can learn more about the South Dakota Perkins Reserve Grant at doe.sd.gov.

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South Dakota

SD Lottery Powerball, Lotto America winning numbers for March 4, 2026

Published

12 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 4, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 4 drawing

07-14-42-47-56, Powerball: 06, Power Play: 4

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from March 4 drawing

33-38-39-47-51, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Dakota Cash numbers from March 4 drawing

02-18-22-30-32

Check Dakota Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 4 drawing

12-13-36-39-58, Bonus: 03

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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South Dakota

South Dakota lawmakers push bill criminalizing deepfakes nearer to governor’s desk

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

South Dakota lawmakers push bill criminalizing deepfakes nearer to governor’s desk

John Hult
| South Dakota Searchlight

PIERRE — A bill from South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley to criminalize the creation or sharing of deepfakes was amended this week to more clearly define what constitutes nudity before it reaches Gov. Larry Rhoden’s desk.

The amendment, added on the floor of the House of Representatives, came in response to concerns about unintended consequences.

Senate Bill 41 creates a class of felony crime for the creation or distribution of images digitally altered to depict a person in a state of nudity or involved in a sexually explicit act, commonly referred to as deepfakes.

In testimony in the House Judiciary Committee on Monday in Pierre, Jackley pointed to the case of Mark Rathbun, a former Division of Motor Vehicles employee who is accused of taking images of women and girls from state databases and creating sexual images.“This is real, and it’s something that we unfortunately are seeing happen in our state,” Jackley said.

The judiciary committee voted 8-3 to send the bill to the House floor but not before a discussion on its potential to criminalize political memes.

The bill’s definition of nudity originally encompassed a partial state of nudity. Fort Pierre Republican Rep. Will Mortenson asked Jackley if that would include a fabricated topless photo. Jackley said yes. Then Mortenson asked if a fabricated image of Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker without a shirt, if shared by President Donald Trump on social media, would put the president in line for felony charges.

Jackley said a Pritzker image wouldn’t qualify because Pritzker is male, but Mortenson pushed back.

He noted that partially nude fabrications would be a felony if done with the intent to “self-gratify or alarm, annoy, embarrass, harass, invade the privacy of, threaten, or cause emotional, financial, physical, psychological, or reputational harm to that individual.”

Nothing in the bill specified that a person in a digitally fabricated topless image must be female.

“We just said that half-nude is a state of nudity, and so now he’s shirtless, and the point of this is to embarrass this guy,” Mortenson said of his topless Pritzker meme scenario.

Mortenson voted against the bill in committee but brought an amendment Tuesday to define nudity as inclusive of male or female genitalia, buttocks or the female nipple.

The amendment passed, but it did not address every concern about the bill.

Democratic Rep. Kadyn Wittman of Sioux Falls asked Jackley during the bill’s committee hearing why he didn’t use it to enhance penalties for people who film others in states of undress or participating in sexual activity against their will.

That behavior is a felony if it involves the recording of a minor, or if it happens repeatedly. The new penalties for deepfakes would be added to the same chapter of South Dakota law.

“Why is the first time hidden recording a misdemeanor generally, but a digitally fabricated image would automatically be a classified felony,” said Wittman.

Jackley said he feels that the creation of digitally manipulated sexual images, even if they aren’t shared, signals “significant criminal intent.” He told South Dakota Searchlight after the committee meeting that he’s open to addressing that issue, but that SB 41’s primary purpose was to target deepfakes.

On the House floor, Wittman was one of two representatives to say the bill’s felony penalties could be unnecessarily harsh in instances where young people make “a stupid decision” and create a deepfake.

“I feel like, in a lot of situations, this bill covers behavior that could be covered by a lower level of offense,” Wittman said.

Supporters countered that the creation of fake nudes can do real psychological damage to real people, and that the state needs to clearly signal that doing so is a serious crime.

“It’s only fun and games until it happens to you,” said Rep. Mary Fitzgerald, R-St. Onge.

The bill passed the House 60-6. It now moves to the state Senate, which passed the bill 32-0 on Jan. 16. The Senate would need to approve the amended version of the bill before it could be delivered to Gov. Larry Rhoden to sign or veto.

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