Malignant catarrhal fever-like disease in Barbary red deer (Cervus elaphus barbarus) naturally infected with a virus resembling alcelaphine herpesvirus 2.

ABSTRACT: Eight Barbary red deer (Cervus elaphus barbarus) developed clinical signs suggestive of malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) over a 28-day period. These animals were housed outdoors with four other species of ruminants. Affected red deer had lethargy, ocular signs, and nasal discharge and were euthanatized within 48 h. Lesions included ulcers of the muzzle, lips, and oral cavity associated with infiltrates of neutrophils and lymphocytes. Serologically, six of seven red deer tested during the outbreak were positive by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies to a shared MCF virus antigen. PCR using oligonucleotide primers designed for a conserved protein of alcelaphine herpesviruses 1 (AlHV-1) and 2 (AlHV-2) and for conserved regions of a herpesvirus DNA polymerase gene was p

SUBMITTER: Klieforth R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC130662 | biostudies-literature | 2002 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature