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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Pullman, Washington » Animal Disease Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #188391
Title: SHEEP-ASSOCIATED MALIGNANT CATARRHAL FEVER VIRUS: PROSPECTS FOR VACCINE DEVELOPMENT

Author
item Li, Hong
item Taus, Naomi
item OAKS, J - WSU

Submitted to: Expert Review of Vaccines
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/28/2005
Publication Date: 2/3/2006
Citation: Li, H., Taus, N.S., Oaks, J.L. 2006. Sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever virus: prospects for vaccine development. Expert Review of Vaccines. 5(1): 133-141.

Interpretive Summary: Sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) is a frequently fatal herpesviral disease of wild and domestic animals. The disease is emerging as a significant problem for several ruminant species worldwide. The disease is currently the leading cause of acute fatalities for commercial bison in North America. A major limitation in sheep-associated MCF vaccine development is the inability to grow the virus in culture. Recent molecular technology advances have provided powerful tools for investigating this hard-to-study virus. Identification of the infectious virus source, establishment of experimental animal models, and completion of sequencing the virus genome have positioned us to pursue the development of vaccines for control of the disease. In this review, we mainly discussed strategies to develop vaccines for sheep-associated MCF and summarized the current knowledge about the virus.

Technical Abstract: Sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever is emerging as a significant problem for several ruminant species worldwide. The inability to propagate the causative agent, ovine herpesvirus 2, in vitro has seriously hindered research efforts in the development of effective programs for control of the disease in clinically susceptible hosts. Recent molecular technology advances have provided powerful tools for investigating this hard-to-study virus. Identification of the infectious virus source, establishment of experimental animal models, and completion of sequencing the genome for ovine herpesvirus 2 have positioned us to pursue the development of vaccines for control of the disease. In this review, we briefly describe our current understanding of ovine herpesvirus 2, and prospectively discuss vaccine development against the virus.