A serological investigation of the Bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1) infection in sheep and goats in Aydin and Izmir provinces

Bovine Herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) is one of the viral agents causing significant economic losses in large ruminants and adversely affecting livestock production. Infection with the virus which results in the loss of meat and milk production and fertility is one biggest health problems in cattle husbandry. The infection primarily affects cattle. However, presence of infection in other ruminants as well as transmission among species is known. There are no data available on BHV-1 infection in sheep and goats in our region. In this study it was determined to the serological presence and prevalence of BHV-1 infection in sheep and goats in the Aydın and İzmir provinces. And it was investigated the relationship between BHV-1 seropositivity and breeds, age, gender and sampling provinces. In this thesis, 460 blood serum samples were collected from 128 goats and 332 sheep in in Aydın and İzmir provinces. BHV-1 specific antibodies in the serum samples were investigated using IBR / IPV Colorado strain of the virus in Virus Neutralization Tests. Antibodies against BHV-1 were detected in 64.84% (83/128) of the goats, and in 0.60% (2/332) of the sheep. Statistical analysis showed that seropositivity in the goats and sheep were significantly different (P <0.001). 25 of the 39 (64.1%) goat samples from İzmir and 58 of the 89 (65.17%) goat samples from Aydın were seropositive. The lowest seropositivity seen in 6 moths-1 year age goats and it was observed that significantly increased from 3 years age (P<0,001). It was determined that the seropositivity was higher in female goats (%79,12) than male goats (%29,72) (P<0,001). The significant difference was found between breed and seropositivity (P<0,001), but unable to determine a statistically significant correlation between positive antibody response and the sampled provinces. The results of the study, BHV-1 infection in goats than sheep were found to be more common. These findings indicate those goats are more sensitive to the BHV-1 infection, and might play a role in infection epizootiologia. It also appears to be quite common infection in both cities. In this context, it is suggested that the epizootiologic and virological studies of BHV-1 infection in goats should be improved. According to the findings obtained in this study, it is concluded that the susceptibility of infection varies according to species, gender, age and breed.