Seroprevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) and Animal Owners' Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) Towards the Disease in Selected Districts of East Wollega Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia.

PURPOSE: Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) is one of the most important diseases affecting production and productivity. METHODOLOGY: Cross-sectional study was aimed at to determine the seroprevalence of IBR and associated risk factors, and animal owners' knowledge, attitude and practice towards the disease from April 2021 to June 2022. Accordingly, a total of 384 serum samples were collected from both crossbreed (70) and local breed (314) cattle from purposively selected districts of East Wollega zone of Western Ethiopia. Competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used for testing glycoprotein antibodies (anti-gB) for bovine herpes virus-1 (BoHV-1) virus in collected serum, and the obtained data were analysed by multiple logistic regressions by using R software 3.62 version. However, questionnaire data were analysed for descriptive statistics by SPSS version 20.0 (IBM. Corp, 2011). RESULT: The total prevalence of IBR in the study area was found to be 70.54% at herd and 80.47% at individual cattle level. The significant association (p  < 0.05 $ < \ 0.05$ ) was found for breed, age, body condition and herd size but not for district and sex as risk factors. The BoHV-1 virus seropositivity in adult animals increased significantly, with an odds ratio of 1.65 (95% CI 0.705-3.85) compared to young. Local breed cattle were 2.055 times more likely to test positive for IBR with an odds ratio of 0.77 (95% CI 0.23-2.22) compared to crossbreed cattle. The chances of cattle in medium herds testing positive for the BoHV-1 virus with an odds ratio of (1.78 95% CI 1.303-7.50) are greater than the chances of cattle in smaller herds testing positive. The survey results showed that 70% of animal owners identified IBR as a major challenge in animal production, whereas 35% mentioned long calving intervals. However, 92% of the participants were not informed about the level of knowledge and attitude regarding particular diseases such as IBR. CONCLUSION: This study showed that there is a high prevalence of IBR in cattle in the study area, and that owners have low awareness of the disease. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an immediate control system and conduct additional research on molecular detection to evaluate its effects on reproductive performance.

The seasonality as a relevant aspect to be considered for differential diagnosis of Trypanosoma vivax infection and co-infections in female cattle.

Bovine Trypanosomiasis and other infectious diseases cause relevant loss for the livestock industry impacting productive/reproductive indices. This study intended to better understand the frequency, seasonality, and profile of infections associated with Bovine Trypanosomiasis. A total of 1443 serum samples were screened for T. vivax infection and other infectious diseases: Neosporosis, Leptospirosis, Bovine Leukosis Virus infection/(BLV), Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis/(IBR) or Bovine Viral Diarrhea/(BVD). Distinct methods were used for screening and diagnosis: immunofluorescence assay (Trypanosomiasis), ELISA (Neosporosis,BLV,IBR,BVD) and microscopic agglutination test (Leptospirosis). Our findings demonstrated that the seropositivity for Trypanosomiasis=57% was similar to Neosporosis=55%, higher than Leptospirosis=39% and BVL=34%, but lower than IBR=88% and BVD=71%. The seropositivity for Trypanosomiasis was higher in the autumn and lower in the winter. Regardless the season, the IBR seropositivity (min=73%;max=95%) was higher than Trypanosomiasis (min=48%;max=68%). Moreover, Neosporosis (min=71%;max=100%) and BVD (min=65%;max=76%) were more frequent than Trypanosomiasis in the summer, winter and spring. The diagnosis outcome revealed that Trypanosomiasis&IBR=43% and Trypanosomiasis&Neosporosis=35% were the most frequent co-infections with higher seropositivity in the autumn (58%) and summer (80%), respectively. Noteworthy, high seropositivity to Trypanosomiasis&BVD was registered in the autumn (46%). Together, our data re-enforce the relevance of differential diagnosis between Trypanosomiasis with other bovine infectious diseases and that differences in the seasonality profile is a relevant aspect to be considered while selecting the differential diagnosis to be applied.

Presence of co-infection between bovine leukemia virus and bovine herpesvirus 1 in herds vaccinated against bovine respiratory complex.

The aim of this study was molecular identification of bovine leukemia virus and possible co-infection with bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) viral agents in Mexican dairy herds. We collected 533 blood samples from cattle vaccinated against the BRDC virus in 9 states across Mexico. Peripheral blood leukocytes were removed and genetic material was extracted to detect bovine leukemia virus (BLV), bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), bovine parainfluenza virus 3 (BPIV-3), and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) infection using polymerase chain reaction. We identified high BLV infection rates in 270 cattle (50.65%). One hundred and thirty-three cows (24.95%) tested positive for BoHV-1, of which 65 samples were positive for both viruses (BoHV-1 and BLV) and 68 were only positive for BoHV-1. Only 4 samples tested positive for BPIV-3 and no sample was positive for BVDV or BRSV. Relative risk and odds ratio analyses did not identify that the presence of BLV infection favors BoHV-1 co-infection in vaccinated herds.

Le but de cette étude était l'identification moléculaire du virus de la leucémie bovine et une éventuelle co-infection par des agents viraux du complexe des maladies respiratoires bovines (BRDC) dans des troupeaux laitiers mexicains. Nous avons recueilli 533 échantillons de sang de bovins vaccinés contre le virus BRDC dans neuf états du Mexique. Les leucocytes du sang périphérique ont été prélevés et le matériel génétique a été extrait pour détecter le virus de la leucémie bovine (BLV), le virus de l'herpès bovin 1 (BoHV-1), le virus de la diarrhée virale bovine (BVDV), le virus parainfluenza bovin 3 (BPIV-3), et le virus respiratoire syncytial bovin (BRSV) par réaction d'amplification en chaîne par la polymérase. Nous avons identifié des taux élevés d'infection par le BLV chez 270 bovins (50,65 %). Cent trente-trois bovins (24,95 %) ont été testés positifs pour le BoHV-1, desquels 65 échantillons étaient positifs pour les deux virus (BoHV-1 et BLV) et 68 étaient uniquement positifs pour le BoHV-1. Seuls quatre échantillons ont été testés positifs pour le BPIV-3 et aucun échantillon n'a été positif pour le BVDV ou le BRSV. Les analyses du risque relatif et des rapports de cotes n'ont pas identifié que la présence d'une infection par le BLV favorise la co-infection par le BoHV-1 dans les troupeaux vaccinés.(Traduit par les auteurs).

A retrospective evaluation of pooled serum ELISA testing in the frame of the French eradication program for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis.

Pooled serum testing using whole-virus indirect ELISA has been recently recognized as an official method for surveillance of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV1) in cattle herds in Europe. In this study, a retrospective analysis of data from the French BoHV1 surveillance campaign 2018-2019, including 7434 BoHV1-free certified herds and 157 infected herds, was performed in order to evaluate the diagnostic specificity and sensitivity of two pooled serum indirect ELISAs (from IDEXX and IDVet), in comparison with individual testing by blocking ELISAs targeting the gB and gE proteins. Pooled serum testing showed a relative specificity higher than 97.5% and a detection rate of 100% since all gB+/gE+ samples were found in positive pools. At the herd level, no more than one false positive pool was observed in most of BoHV1-free certified herds, leading to a herd relative specificity of 85.1% and 86.0% for the IDEXX and IDVet pooled serum ELISAs, respectively. Among infected herds tested by pool sizes up to 10 sera (n = 122), 46% of herds were detected through pools of size 10 containing a single positive sample, 23% through pools of size 10 containing at least two positive samples, and 31% through pools of smaller sizes. A complementary study based on manually constituted pools revealed that at least one positive sample in 100% and 93.4% of herds could be detected individually by pools of size 10 with the IDEXX and IDVet ELISAs, respectively. However, pooled serum ELISAs were influenced by the level of individual reactivity, since pools composed of either one weak-positive sample or one gB+/gE- sample could yield negative results. Altogether, these results provided the first evidence that pooled serum testing (pool size up to 10) is a suitable strategy for surveillance of BoHV1-free cattle farms.

Use of pooled serum samples to assess herd disease status using commercially available ELISAs.

Pooled samples are used in veterinary and human medicine as a cost-effective approach to monitor disease prevalence. Nonetheless, there is limited information on the effect of pooling on test performance, and research is required to determine the appropriate number of samples which can be pooled. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the use of pooled serum samples as a herd-level surveillance tool for infectious production-limiting diseases: bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD), infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), enzootic bovine leukosis (EBL) and Neospora caninum (NC), by investigating the maximum number of samples one can pool to identify one positive animal, using commercial antibody-detection ELISAs. Four positive field standards (PFS), one for each disease, were prepared by pooling highly positive herd-level samples diagnosed using commercially available ELISA tests. These PFS were used to simulate 18 pooled samples ranging from undiluted PFS to a dilution representing 1 positive in 1,000 animals using phosphate-buffered saline as diluent. A 1:10 dilution of the PFS resulted in positive results for IBR, BVD and EBL. Moreover, for IBR and BVD, results were still positive at 1:100 and 1:30 dilutions, respectively. However, for NC, a lower dilution (8:10) was required for a seropositive result. This study indicates that, at herd-level, the use of pooled serum is a useful strategy for monitoring infectious diseases (BVD, IBR and EBL) but not NC, using readily available diagnostic assays.

A large-scale epidemiological model of BoHV-1 spread in the Irish cattle population to support decision-making in conformity with the European Animal Health Law.

We present a new modelling framework to address the evaluation of national control/surveillance programs planned in line with the European Animal Health Law (AHL) for livestock diseases. Our modelling framework is applied to the cattle sector in Ireland where there is need for policy support to design an optimal programme to achieve bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BoHV-1) free status under the AHL. In this contribution, we show how our framework establishes a regional model that is able to mechanistically reproduce the demography, management practices and transport patterns of an entire cattle population without being dependent on continuous livestock registry data. An innovative feature of our model is the inclusion of herd typing, thereby extending these beyond the categories of dairy, beef and mixed herds that are frequently considered in other regional modelling studies. This detailed representation of herd type-specific management facilitates comparative assessment of BoHV-1 eradication strategies targeting different production types with individual strategy protocols. Finally, we apply our model to support current discussions regarding the structure and implementation of a potential national BoHV-1 eradication programme in Ireland.

Control programs for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) in European countries: an overview.

Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), caused by Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1), is a disease of cattle responsible for significant economic losses worldwide. IBR is under certain communitarian regulations. Every member state can approve its own national IBR control program for the entire territory - or part of it - and can demand additional guarantees for bovids destined to its territory; therefore, every member state can be officially declared as entirely or partly IBR-free. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of IBR control and eradication programs in European countries. BoHV-1 control schemes were first introduced in the late 1970s, mainly in Northern and Central Europe. Depending on the seroprevalence rate, control strategies rely on identification and removal of seropositive animals or the use of glycoprotein E (gE)-deleted marker vaccines in infected herds. The implementation of a novel law for disease eradication at the EU level and of a European IBR data flow could make the goal of IBR eradication in all European countries easier to achieve.

Epidemiology of age-dependent prevalence of Bovine Herpes Virus Type 1 (BoHV-1) in dairy herds with and without vaccination.

Many studies report age as a risk factor for BoHV-1 infection or seropositivity. However, it is unclear whether this pattern reflects true epidemiological causation or is a consequence of study design and other issues. Here, we seek to understand the age-related dynamics of BoHV-1 seroprevalence in seasonal calving Irish dairy herds and provide decision support for the design and implementation of effective BoHV-1 testing strategies. We analysed seroprevalence data from dairy herds taken during two Irish seroprevalence surveys conducted between 2010 and 2017. Age-dependent seroprevalence profiles were constructed for herds that were seropositive and unvaccinated. Some of these profiles revealed a sudden increase in seroprevalence between adjacent age-cohorts, from absent or low to close to 100% of seropositive animals. By coupling the outcome of our data analysis with simulation output of an individual-based model at the herd scale, we have shown that these sudden increases are related to extensive virus circulation within a herd for a limited time, which may then subsequently remain latent over the following years. BoHV-1 outbreaks in dairy cattle herds affect animals independent of age and lead to almost 100% seroconversion in all age groups, or at least in all animals within a single epidemiological unit. In the absence of circulating infection, there is a year-on-year increase in the age-cohort at which seroprevalence changes from low to high. The findings of this study inform recommendations regarding testing regimes in the context of contingency planning or an eradication programme in seasonal calving dairy herds.

Seroprevalence and risk factors assessment of the three main infectious agents associated with abortion in dairy cattle in Isfahan province, Iran.

This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence and identify the risk factors associated with Neospora caninum, Bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1), and Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) infection on industrial Holstein dairy cattle farms in Isfahan province, Central Iran. Blood samples were taken from 216 apparently healthy cattle from 16 randomly selected Holstein dairy farms in the North, South, East, and West of Isfahan in the summer of 2017. The antibodies to N. caninum, BHV-1, and BVDV were detected using a commercially available ELISA kit. The overall seroprevalence for N. caninum, BHV-1, and BVDV was 19%, 72.2%, and 52.8%, respectively. The significant major risk factors of BHV-1 in cattle were identified as farm direction, age groups, parity, and milk yield by the univariate analysis (p < 0.05). The significant major risk factors of BVDV in cattle were identified as age groups, parity, milk yield, and stage of pregnancy (p < 0.05). The only significant major risk factor of N. caninum was farm direction (p < 0.05). A significant association of concurrent infection with BVDV and BHV-1 has shown in the current study (p < 0.05). This study is the first to report the risk factors for N. caninum, BHV-1, and BVDV infection in the central part of Iran and allows us to conclude that these agents are widely distributed in this region.

Sero-prevalence and risk factors of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus (type 1) in Meru County, Kenya.

The aim of the study was to determine the antibody sero-prevalence of Bovine Herpesvirus-1 which cause Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) and to identify risk factors associated with BHV-1 antibody seropositivity among smallholder dairy farms in Meru County, Kenya. A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Naari area of Meru County, Kenya between September-October 2016 and March-April 2017. The 149 farmers were randomly selected from members of the Naari Dairy Farmers Cooperative Society who were actively delivering milk to the society at the time of the study. Serum samples were obtained from 403 female dairy cattle. Farm level management and animal factors were collected through direct interviews with the owner or someone who was knowledgeable about the animals. All serum samples were processed with an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (gB ELISA) to determine the presence of antibodies to BHV-1. The overall farm-level and animal-level sero-prevalences of BHV-1 antibodies were 30.9 % (95 % CI: 23.6%-39.0%) and 17.4 % (95 % CI: 13.8%-21.4%), respectively. In the final multivariable analysis, the factors significantly associated with BHV-1 antibodies included; age of the dairy cattle (OR = 1.200, p = 0.001), age of the principal female farmers (OR = 0.182, p = 0.001) and rearing goats in the farm (OR = 26.77, p = 0.000). There was a significant interaction between rearing goats on the farm and age of the dairy cattle (p < 0.010); younger cattle seemed to have been exposed to BHV or a cross-reacting caprine herpesvirus when goats were on the farm. The results showed that BHV-1 was circulating among the cattle population in the Naari area of Meru County. Given that there is not BHV-1 vaccination use in this study population, training on the importance of biosecurity and vaccination for BHV-1 are recommended to reduce the transmission and impacts of BHV-1.

The role of sheep in the epidemiology of Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1).

Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) as a cusative agent for some diseases in cattle infects sheep and goat; and it is believed that these animals may be reservoir host for this virus. Thus, BoHV-1 infection in sheep and goat should be considerd when there is a program for control and eradication of this virus in cattle. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of BoHV-1 in sheep, relationship between host and environmental factors with infection, and the role of sheep in the epidemiology of the BoHV-1. Blood samples were randomly collected from 310 healthy sheep in 6 cities of Khuzestan province (Southwest of Iran) including Ahvaz, Hendijan, Shushtar, Dezful, Masjed Soleyman and Behbahan. Sera were analyzed by virus neutralisation (VN) test for detection antibodies to BoHV-1. According to VN test, apparent and true seroprevalence seroprevalence of BoHV-1 infection was 28.4 % (95%CI: 23.4-33.4%) and 28.4 % (95%CI: 23.3-33.4%), respectively. Logistic regression revealed that the odds of infection between the age was 1.06 (95%CI: 0.9-1.25) (P > 0.05), implying that the odds of infection increased 6 % with rising one year of age. Besides, the relative frequency of infection in males was more than females', and the odds of infection in male sheep was identified to be 1.13 (95%CI: 0.47-2.71) (P > 0.05), compared to that in females. Moreover, in comparison to sheep with no history of abortion, the odds of infection in sheep with a history of abortion was 1.28 (95%CI: 0.57-2.87) (P > 0.05). The seroprevalence in Shushtar, Masjed Soleyman, Dezful, Ahvaz, Hendijan, and Behbahan were found to be 48.3, 46.7, 31.7, 20, 16.7, and 12 percent, respectively and 13.1 of fluctuation in infection can be justified by different geographical locations investigated in this study (P < 0.001). Considering the significant seroprevalence of BoHV-1, present study confirmed the role of sheep in the epidemiology of this virus and control of BoHV-1 in sheep should be considered by animal health authorities in areas where BoHV-1 is prevalent.

A serological investigation of Bovine enterovirus-1, Bovine herpesvirus-1, Bovine viral diarrhea virus, and Parainfluenza-3 infections in camelsin Western Turkey.

Camels (Camelus dromedarius) are bred in Western Turkey, particularly in the province of Aydin, for touristic, social and cultural purposes. Bovine enterovirus­1 (BEV­1), Bovine herpesvirus type­1 (BHV­1), Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), and Parainfluenza­3 (PI­3) virus infections are significant causes of health and/or economic concerns in several animal species. These agents have not been investigated in the camel population in Turkey. The objective of this study was to serologically investigate the presence and infection rates of these viruses in camels in Aydin province, Western Turkey. Ninety­two serum samples were taken from clinically healthy camels that were kept in private farms or brought to the local slaughterhouses. Serum neutralization test was performed to assess the presence and the titers of specific antibodies against BEV­1, BHV­1, BVDV, and PI­3 virus in camel sera. Of the 92 camels tested, 30 (32.61%), 2 (2.17%), 54 (58.7%), and 20 (21.74%) were seropositive for BEV­1, BHV­1, BVDV, and PI­3, respectively. These results suggest that, except for BHV­1, these viral infections are common among camels in Western Turkey. To our knowledge, this the first comprehensive, large­scale study investigating these viral infections in camels in Turkey.

Improvement of eradication program for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis in France inferred by serological monitoring of singleton reactors in certified BoHV1-free herds.

Within the framework of the national voluntary eradication program for Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV1) in France, the proportion of certified-free herds which experienced no more than two positive animals (termed singleton reactors) steadily increased to reach up to 95% in 2015. The aim of this study was to collate and evaluate serological data to gain insight into these epidemiological questionable BoHV1 seropositive animals. Preliminary evaluation of the performances of BoHV1 ELISA kits using a collection of 997 field sera with well-defined status revealed a relatively low specificity of the two gB blocking ELISAs most used in France for confirmatory testing (93.2% and 97.5% for gB-IDVet and gB-Idexx, respectively). In both ELISAs, the suboptimal specificity was associated with the presence of antibodies against BoHV2. Reassessment of the cut-offs led to a specificity and a sensitivity higher than 99.3%. Consequently, a comprehensive analysis of gB-positive sera from 2551 singleton reactors was performed by using gB ELISAs with optimized cut-offs, combined with viral neutralization test (campaign 2014-2015) or gE ELISA (campaign 2015-2016). Fifty percent of the 728 sera collected in 2014-2015 reacted below the optimized cut-offs in both gB ELISAs. Analysis of new blood samples collected at a minimum 6-week interval showed that these weak-positive reactions did not increase with time and could not be confirmed by confirmatory tests. Among the 1823 sera collected in 2015-2016, only 84 samples tested positive by gE ELISA, most of them corresponding to sera with reactivity above the optimized cut-offs in gB ELISAs. Screening for BoHV2 antibodies revealed a significantly increased prevalence among herds with singleton reactors, compared with the between-herd prevalence in French cattle herds. Altogether, these results provided suitable analytical strategies to limit the occurrence of false-positive BoHV1 reactions and inappropriate withdrawal of the BoHV1-free status, without alteration of diagnostic costs and reliability of eradication programs.

Bayesian estimation of herd-level prevalence and risk factors associated with BoHV-1 infection in cattle herds in the State of Paraíba, Brazil.

A cross-sectional study was carried out to estimate the animal- and herd-level prevalence of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) infection in cattle in the State of Paraíba, and to identify risk factors associated with herd-level infection. The state was divided into three sampling strata, and for each stratum, the prevalence of herds infected with BoHV-1 was estimated through a two-stage sampling survey carried out from September 2012 to January 2013. In total, 2443 animals were sampled from 478 herds. A virus-neutralization test was used for BoHV-1 antibody detection. A Bayesian latent-class model was used to describe the data, taking into account imperfect diagnostic test characteristics and the non-independence of test results from animals within the same herd, and using a dynamic within-model risk factor selection method based on indicator variable selection. The adjusted herd-level prevalence was estimated to be 84% (95% CI: 80-88%) for the State of Paraíba, and the animal-level prevalence was estimated to be 73% (95% CI: 66-84%). Only five of the available risk factors were used by the model, with the three most influential being disposal of aborted foetuses (3.78, 95% CI: 1.11-13.85), sharing resources with other farms (3.0, 95% CI: 1.1-8,6), and a herd size of > 23 animals (2.5, 95% CI: 1.1-6.0). Our findings suggest that the animal- and herd-level seroprevalence of BoHV-1 infection in the State of Paraíba is high. While some risk factors such as herd size and sharing resources were identified as risk factors for BoHV-1 infection, these risk factors are initially likely to be of only minor relevance in a control programme due to the extremely high prevalence of infected farms. However, the results are relevant to the risk of reintroduction of disease on farms that have previously eradicated the disease.

The role of goats as reservoir hosts for bovine herpes virus 1 under field conditions.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV1) is the cause of economically significant viral infections in cattle. Respiratory symptoms associated with the infection are known as Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR). Sheep and goats are less sensitive to the infection although their role in inter-species viral transmission under field conditions is subject to controversy. The objective of this study was to investigate seroprevalence of BoHV1 infections in cattle, sheep, and goats raised together for at least a year. Blood serum samples were taken from 226 cattle, 1.053 sheep, and 277 goats from 17 small- to medium-scale farms. BoHV1-specific antibody presence and titers were determined using virus neutralization test. In total, 73 of the 226 cattle (32.3%) were seropositive. The infection was detected in 13 of the 17 farms. Infection rates ranged from 5.8 to 88.8%. Only one of the 1053 sheep (0.09%) was seropositive. However, 58 of the 277 (20.9%) goats were seropositive. Goat samples taken from 8 of the 17 farms were seropositive with infection rates ranging from 17 to 38.9%. Statistical analysis showed a significant correlation in infection rates between cattle and goats but not sheep. These results suggest that goats may be more sensitive to the BHV1 infection than sheep and the role of goats as possible reservoirs for BoHV1 in the control and eradication of BHV1 in cattle should be considered in future studies.

National surveillance plan for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) in autochthonous Italian cattle breeds: Results of first year of activity.

Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR)/infectious pustular vulvovaginitis (IPV) caused by Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) is a significant disease in domestic and wild cattle. In June 2015, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry in Italy approved a national surveillance plan to control and eradicate IBR in beef cattle breeds. The objective of this study was to evaluate the results of the first year of the IBR voluntary surveillance plan in Italy. The aim of the plan is to eradicate IBR in all bovines recorded in the National Herd Book for Italian beef cattle breeds over six years. Monetary incentives are used to encourage breeders to achieve the annual seroprevalence ranges stated in the plan. A Ministerial decree states that all bovines in breeding herds and aged older than 12 months should be serologically tested. Serum samples were tested for presence of the antibody to glycoprotein E of BoHV-1 using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The national herd seroprevalence was 55.49% (95% confidence interval [CI] 52.01-58.92). Of 25,121 bovines tested for antibodies against BoHV-1, 8014 were positive. The seroprevalence in animals from autochthonous Italian cattle breeds was 31.89% (95% CI 31.31-32.47). Seroprevalence was highest in Podolica cattle (55.14%; 95% CI 54.07-56.21), lowest in Maremmana cattle (9.95%; 95% CI 7.99-12.31), and intermediate in Chianina (22.01%; 95% CI 21.03-23.01), Marchigiana (24.85%; 95% CI 23.52-26.23), and Romagnola (15.60%; 95% CI 14.62-16.64) cattle. These seroprevalence rates indicate a need for intervention to decrease the inevitable severe economic losses arising from BoHV-1 infection. Although some regions in Italy have a long history of combatting BoHV-1 infection, only the province of Bolzano has eradicated IBR.

Bovine herpesvirus-1 in three major milk sheds of Ethiopia: Serostatus and association with reproductive disorders in dairy cattle.

Bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1) causes infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), and infectious pustular vulvovaginitis (IPV) in cows and infectious pustular balanopostitis (IPB) in bulls worldwide. Infection of seronegative cattle with BHV-1 leads to abortion, retention of fetal membranes, increased service per conception, metritis and oophoritis. As part of an ongoing study on infectious causes of reproductive disorders in Ethiopia, this investigation aims at assessing the role of BHV-1 in the disorders and the risk factors affecting its seroprevalence. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 1379 randomly selected dairy cattle from 149 herds. These dairy cattle were sampled from milks sheds of central (n = 555), western (n = 195) and southern (n = 629) Ethiopia. Blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (B-ELISA) was applied to detect antibodies specific to BHV-1. Additionally, a semi-structured questionnaire was administered and farm records were assessed to capture potential risk factors associated with BHV-1 seropositivity. Univariable and multivariable random-effects logistic regression analyses were used to assess potential risk factors associated with BHV-1 serostatus. Model fitness and reliability were assessed using the Hosmer and Lemeshow method and the receiver operating curve (ROC) respectively. An overall herd level BHV-1 seroprevalence of 81.8% (95% confidence interval (CI): 74.7-87.7%) and individual animal level seroprevalence of 41.0% (95% CI: 38.4-43.7%) were found. In a random-effects multivariable logistic regression model, the seroprevalence of BHV-1 exposure was higher in dairy cattle from breeding (Odds ratio [OR] = 1.3; p = 0.036) than in commercial (OR = 0.9; p = 0.137) and small-holder farms. Geographically, the prevalence was higher in western (OR = 1.4; p < 0.001) and southern Ethiopia (OR = 1.2; p < 0.001) than in central regions. BHV-1 seropositive cows had higher (p < 0.05) odds of clinical reproductive disorders including abortion, retained fetal membranes, stillbirth, birth of weak calf and metritis compared to seronegative cows. Thus, it is suggested that BHV-1 should be considered as differential diagnosis among improved dairy cattle herds with reproductive disorders in Ethiopia.

Quantification of the probability of reintroduction of IBR in the Netherlands through cattle imports.

In the Netherlands, the feasibility of a national control program for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) is discussed. The aim of this program would be to achieve freedom from BoHV1 circulation (the causal agent of IBR), in the Dutch cattle population. When IBR would be eradicated, maintaining the free status is essential and insight in the probability of introduction of IBR through cattle imports is crucial. Values for input parameters such as the number of imports per country of origin, herd level prevalence and probability that a random imported animal per age category was either acutely or latently infected with IBR were quantified. A stochastic simulation model was built to predict the basic risk and the efficacy of four risk mitigating scenarios were evaluated. These scenarios involved testing prior to import, import restrictions and vaccination. The model output predicted that IBR infected animals are imported regularly. In an IBR free situation, 571 (5th and 95th percentile: 431-781) cattle herds will be newly infected. Latent infections account for most newly infected herds (77%). When the virus in the imported latently infected animal does not reactivate, subsequent impact of such infections remains limited. The model predicted that most of the herds infected by introduction of acutely infected animals would be veal herds. The scenario in which imports were only allowed from status 9 or 10 countries combined with testing cattle that originated from status 9 countries was most effective in reduction of the import risk to 70 herds per year. The scenario in which vaccination of calves was combined with testing of older cattle was estimated to reduce the number of newly infected herds to 82 per year. The stakeholders classified the latter scenario as most realistic because this scenario was deemed both feasible and rather effective. This study did not evaluate the impact of introduction of IBR in the cattle population, which might differ depending on the type of infection (acute vs. latent) and the herd type in which the virus is introduced. Moreover, when making the final decision about the optimal intervention, the economic perspective should also be taken into account. This study predicted that introduction of IBR will remain a risk for the Dutch cattle population after virus circulation is eliminated from the Netherlands. The import risk is reduced most in scenarios in which testing and vaccination are combined.

Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis in Scotland.

A cattle dashboard has recently been developed to share surveillance information gathered from submissions to the Great Britain veterinary diagnostic network. Data relating to Scotland come from the SAC C VS. This article, by Tim Geraghty, relates to cases of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis in Scotland, as summarised on the APHA Cattle Dashboard.