Project Number: 5348-32000-024-01
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Jun 01, 2007
End Date: Sep 30, 2009

Objective:
This project is comprised of two objectives designed to address key areas of research related to malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) in bison. These two objectives include: 1) defining ovine herpesvirus 2 gene expression within MCF lesions and 2) developing an immunological control strategy for MCF in clinically susceptible ruminants.

Approach:
ARS and cooperator have recently developed an animal model (bison), in which the infection and disease can be ready induced by aerosol transmission. The first objective of the project focuses on MCF pathogenesis by characterization of lesion development in bison during preclinical and clinical stages and determination of viral genes that are highly expressed during preclinical and clinical stages using a gene expression microarray. The second objective emphasizes the development of an immunological control strategy for MCF in clinically susceptible ruminants. In this objective, bison MHC class I haplotypes will be determined. Immune responses to the virus will be analyzed in bison that survive initial low dose infection and a subsequent high dose challenge. Overall an immunological control strategy will be developed and vaccine candidates evaluated using the animal model. Documents SCA with U. of Wyoming.