title: Detection of mustelid herpesvirus-1 infected European badgers (Meles meles) in the British Isles.
abstract: The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of mustelid herpesvirus-1 (MusHV-1) infection in free-ranging badgers (Meles meles) in the British Isles. A polymerase chain reaction assay was developed that detected MusHV-1 DNA in 95% (18/19) and 100% (10/10) of anticoagulant-treated blood samples collected from free-ranging badgers sampled in the southwest of England and the Republic of Ireland, respectively. An indirect immunoassay was also developed to detect MusHV-1-specific immunoglobulin-G in serum samples. Using an arbitrary cutoff of twice the optical density obtained with a virus-negative preparation, 32.7% (36/110) of sera sampled from badgers were positive. The conclusion drawn from these data is that infection with MusHV-1 is common among free-ranging badgers in the British Isles.
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Woodham Lane, Addlestone, Surrey KT15 3NB, UK. donald.king@bbsrc.ac.uk
authors.forename: Donald R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: King
authors.forename: Naledi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mutukwa
authors.forename: Sandrine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lesellier
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cheeseman
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Malcolm
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Banks
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild / Q000821:virology; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D002335:Carnivora / Q000821:virology*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D006564:Herpesviridae / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D007118:Immunoassay / Q000662:veterinary; D007494:Ireland / Q000453:epidemiology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D004279:DNA, Viral