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Equine rhinitis A virus (ERAV) is closely related to foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), belonging to the genus Aphthovirus of the Picornaviridae. How picornaviruses introduce their RNA genome into the cytoplasm of the host cell to initiate replication is unclear since they…

Atypical scrapie is a relatively recent discovery, and it was unknown whether it was a new phenomenon or whether it had existed undetected in the United Kingdom national flock. Before 1998, the routine statutory diagnosis of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) in…

African horse sickness virus (AHSV) is an orbivirus that is usually transmitted between its equid hosts by adult Culicoides midges. In this article, we review the ways in which AHSV may have adapted to this mode of transmission. The AHSV particle can be modified by the pH or…

The recent arrival in Northern and Western (NW) Europe of bluetongue virus (BTV), which causes the ruminant disease ‘bluetongue’, has raised the profile of this vector-borne ruminant disease and sparked discussions on the reasons for its sudden emergence so far north. This…

Herpesviruses account for 134 out of the 140 virus-encoded microRNAs (miRNAs) known today. Here we report the identification of 11 novel miRNAs encoded by herpesvirus of turkey (HVT), a virus used as a live vaccine in poultry against the highly oncogenic Marek's disease…

Viruses have evolved to use cellular pathways to their advantage, including the ubiquitin–proteasome pathway of protein degradation. In several cases, viruses produce proteins that highjack cellular E3 ligases to modify their substrate specificity in order to eliminate…

Suppression or elimination of vector populations is a tried and tested method for reducing vector-borne disease, and a key component of integrated control programs. Genetic methods have the potential to provide new and improved methods for vector control. The required…

Rhinoviruses cause serious morbidity and mortality as the major etiological agents of asthma exacerbations and the common cold. A major obstacle to understanding disease pathogenesis and to the development of effective therapies has been the lack of a small-animal model for…

European Community national reference laboratories participated in two inter-laboratory comparison tests in 2006 to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of their ‘in-house’ ELISA and RT-PCR assays for the detection of bluetongue virus (BTV) antibodies and RNA. The first…

Adjuvants are substances that enhance immune responses and thus improve the efficacy of vaccination. Few adjuvants are available for use in humans, and the one that is most commonly used (alum) often induces suboptimal immunity for protection against many pathogens. There is…