Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Outbreaks of Vesicular stomatitis Alagoas virus in horses and cattle in northeastern Brazil.
- Journal:
- Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc
- Year:
- 2014
- Authors:
- Cargnelutti, Juliana F et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine · Brazil
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
This article talks about outbreaks of vesicular stomatitis (VS), a disease that causes blisters and sores, in horses and cattle in northeastern Brazil from June to August 2013. Around 15 to 20 horses and 6 cattle were affected across several small farms, but it seems many more animals were involved. The animals showed symptoms like blisters on their lips and mouths, excessive drooling, limping, and weight loss. Some horses also had swollen legs and lips, along with painful sores. The researchers identified the virus responsible for the disease and found that it was related to other VS viruses seen in Brazil over the years. Overall, the study highlights the need for better diagnosis and monitoring of this virus in the region.
Abstract
The current article describes outbreaks of vesicular stomatitis (VS) in horses and cattle in Paraiba and Rio Grande do Norte states, northeastern Brazil, between June and August 2013. The reported cases affected 15-20 horses and 6 cattle distributed over 6 small farms in 4 municipalities, but additional data indicated the involvement of a large number of animals on several farms. The disease was characterized by blisters; eruptive lesions in coronary bands, lips, mouth, and muzzle; salivation; claudication and loss of condition. Swollen lower limbs and lips, and ulcerated and erosive areas in the lips and muzzle were observed in some horses. A necrotizing vesiculopustular dermatitis and stomatitis was observed histologically. Vesicular stomatitis virus was isolated from the vesicular fluid of a horse lesion and shown to be serologically related to the VS Indiana serogroup (VSIV) by virus neutralization. Convalescent sera of affected horses and cattle, and from healthy contacts, harbored high levels of neutralizing antibodies against the isolated virus (named VSIV-3 2013SaoBento/ParaibaE). Genomic sequences of VSIV subtype 3 (Vesicular stomatitis Alagoas virus) were amplified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction out of clinical specimens from a cow and a horse from different farms. Nucleotide sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the phosphoprotein gene indicated that the 2 isolates were derived from the same virus and clustered them in VSIV-3, along with VS viruses identified in southeastern and northeastern Brazil in the last decades. Thus, the present report demonstrates the circulation of VSIV-3 in northeastern Brazil and urges for more effective diagnosis and surveillance.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25274744/