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 positive for tissues from all eight clinically affected animals and negative for eight out of eight red deer without clinical signs of MCF. DNA sequencing of PCR amplicons from the diseased red deer indicated that they were infected with a novel herpesvirus closely related to AlHV-2; immunohistochemistry using polyclonal anti-AlHV-2 serum and in situ hybridization demonstrated the presence of virus within salivary glands adjacent to oral lesions of affected animals. A survey of other ruminants near the outbreak subsequently showed that normal Jackson's hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus jacksoni) that were cohoused with the diseased red deer were infected with the same virus and were shedding the virus in nasal excretions. These findings suggest that a herpesvirus closely related to AlHV-2 caused the MCF-like disease epizootic in Barbary red deer and that the virus may have originated from Jackson's hartebeest.

Meningoencephalitis in a Polar Bear Caused by Equine Herpesvirus 9 (EHV-9)

“…12,25,24 Fresh sections of brain and liver were also frozen at 220uC or 270uC. Genomic DNA was obtained from frozen tissues and from paraffin-embedded fixed brain using standard extraction methods as previously described 15 and analyzed with conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for chlamydia, 5 adenovirus, 14 rabies, 21 paramyxovirus, 23 and West Nile Virus.…”

An Outbreak of Sheep-Associated Malignant Catarrhal Fever in Bison (Bison Bison) after Exposure to Sheep at a Public Auction Sale

“…6 The association between sheep and MCF in cattle has been recognized since the late 1700s. 4 Early epidemiological studies reported that cattle stabled next to sheep were often at risk of developing MCF.…”

“…Previously published primers designed to amplify mammalian adenoviruses were used to detect viral DNA. 5,6 The primer sequences were: 5Ј-GCC GCA GAT GGT CTC TAC ATG CAC ATC-3Ј and 5Ј-CAG CAG CTG ACC GCG GAT GTC AAA GAT-3Ј.…”

Sheep associated malignant catarrhal fever: an emerging disease of bovids in India

“…OvHV-2 is enzootic worldwide in domestic sheep [5] and causes sheep-associated MCF when transmitted to a wide variety of domestic and wild ruminants, including pigs [54,78,84]. AlHV-2 causes MCF in hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus P) and topi (Damaliscus korrigum O) [38,58]. Hippotragine herpesvirus 1 (HiHV-1) has been detected in the roan antelope (Hippotragus eguinus D) and oryx (Oryx gazella) L [43,67].…”