Alcelaphine herpesvirus type 1 (malignant catarrhal fever)

Test code: S0218 - Ultrasensitive detection of alcelaphine herpesvirus 1 by real time PCR

Malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) is an infectious viral disease that has a wide clinical spectrum depending on the species of animal being infected. The disease mainly affects ruminants, and rarely, swine. The virus infects domestic cattle, water buffalo, Bali cattle (banteng), American bison, and deer. In addition to these farmed animals, infection has been described in a variety of captive ruminants in mixed zoo collections.

Several members of a group of closely related ruminant gammaherpesviruses of the Rhadinovirus genus are responsible for causing MCF. This group of ruminant rhadinoviruses currently comprises approximately 10 known members but only a few are known to be pathogenic under natural conditions. The principal carriers and their viruses are sheep (ovine herpesvirus 2), wildebeest (alcelaphine herpesvirus 1), and goats (caprine herpesvirus 2). Another strain of unidentified origin has also been reported to cause MCF in white-tailed deer. Virtually all clinical cases of MCF are caused by the sheep or wildebeest strains.

In bison and some deer, MCF is acute and highly lethal, capable of infecting whole herds; however, in cattle the disease is generally seen sporadically and usually does not spread through a herd. Although infection is usually fatal, recovery has been documented in some infected animals, a few of these having developed only mild or subclinical symptoms. Occasionally, MCR presents only as chronic alopecia and weight loss.

Transmission of the virus can be through direct contact with nasal secretions from infected animals or through airborne route. Infection is lifelong in animals that survive, and recrudescence of latent infections is possible.

A preferred method for clinical diagnosis of alcelaphine herpesvirus 1 infection is molecular detection of viral DNA by PCR (Traul et al., 2005).

Utilities:

• Help confirm the disease causing agent
• Shorten the time required to confirm a clinical diagnosis of Alcelaphine herpesvirus-1 infection
• Help ensure that animal herds and populations are free of MCF
• Early prevention of spread of the virus among animals
• Minimize human exposure to the virus
• Safety monitoring of biological products that derive from animals

References:
Traul, D.L., Elias, S., Taus, N.S., Herrmann, L.M., Oaks, J.L., Li, H. (2005) A real-time PCR assay for measuring alcelaphine herpesvirus-1 DNA. J. Virol. Methods. 129:186-190.

Specimen requirements: 0.2 ml whole blood in EDTA (purple top) tube, or nasal or throat swab, or 0.2 ml fresh, frozen or fixed tissue (kidney, intestinal wall, lymph node or brain).

Contact Zoologix if advice is needed to determine an appropriate specimen type for a specific diagnostic application. For specimen types not listed here, please contact Zoologix to confirm specimen acceptability and shipping instructions.

For all specimen types, if there will be a delay in shipping, or during very warm weather, refrigerate specimens until shipped and ship with a cold pack unless more stringent shipping requirements are specified. Frozen specimens should be shipped so as to remain frozen in transit. See shipping instructions for more information.

Turnaround time: 2 business days

Methodology: Qualitative reverse transcription coupled real time PCR

Normal range: Nondetected