The isolation and characterization of foot-and-mouth disease virus from clinically normal herds of cattle in Botswana

Abstract

SUMMARY: The results of a survey of the foot-and-mouth disease carrier state in three localities of an FMD enzootic area of Botswana are presented. The collection, storage and handling of the samples is mentioned and the isolation of virus on calf thyroid monolayer tissue cultures is described. Type SAT 3 virus was isolated from up to 20% of the animals sampled at periods between 7 and 12 months after natural infection. Sera were tested for all the animals from which virus was recovered and compared with similar numbers of sera from virus-negative animals. No correlation was found between the carrier state and serum antibody titres.Antigenic studies are described which indicated not only an antigenic variation of some carrier viruses isolated from the outbreak strain but also antigenic differences between strains of carrier virus from different animals in the same herd. There was no evidence at the time of sampling of the persistence as carrier virus of the attenuated vaccine strains of FMDV used previously in the cattle sampled.The results suggest that transference of carrier virus from animal to animal may occur in the absence of clinical infection.