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WELCOME TO THE MALIGNANT
CATARRHAL FEVER WEB SITE AT WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY
This
site is dedicated to Malignant Catarrhal Fever (MCF), on which a
major research effort has been underway for about 15 years at
Washington State University (WSU).
The site includes a general description of the disease,
detailed information about work done here, recent research progress
here and elsewhere, information relating to MCF diagnosis and
control, and links to other sources of MCF information.
MCF,
a disease syndrome primarily of ruminant species, is caused by a
member of an expanding group of Rhadinoviruses in the Gammaherpesvirinae
subfamily. These
viruses exist in nature as inapparent infections in well-adapted
ruminants that act as reservoir hosts.
MCF is increasingly being recognized as the cause of
significant economic losses in several major ruminant species,
including cattle, bison and deer, as well as a threat to certain
threatened species held in mixed-species confinement. Most cases in
the U.S. are caused by the virus known as ovine herpesvirus 2
(OvHV-2), which exists as a ubiquitous subclinical infection in
domestic sheep. Historically, control of MCF has been hampered by a
lack of knowledge of its etiology, epidemiology, and pathogenesis.
That is changing. This
site is designed to help persons interested in MCF to stay abreast
of the developments underlying that change.
MCF
research at Washington State University is funded by the USDA
Agricultural Research Service (ARS), by Washington State University,
and through extramural grants.
It is conducted through a joint effort by the Animal Disease
Research Unit, USDA-ARS and the Department of Veterinary
Microbiology and Pathology, WSU.
Other actively collaborating institutions include the
University of Wyoming, the US Sheep Experiment Station, and several
other institutes in North America and Europe.
The
overall purpose of the project is to generate information needed to
understand and control MCF. The objectives are to develop improved diagnostic methods for
the MCF virus group, to define the disease’s etiology,
epidemiology and pathogenesis, to propagate OvHV-2 in vitro, and to develop methods for MCF control.
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