SEROPREVALENCE OF BLUETONGUE VIRUS IN SHEEP IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Abstract

At the end of August 2002, clinical symptoms of bluetongue in the sheep flocks in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina were recorded. In an extensive testing campaign, a total of 8967 blood serra of sheep were tested for the presence of anti-bluetongue virus antibodies using competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA) and the standard agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) test. The c-ELISA and the AGID test detected BTV-seropositive reactions in 187 (1.94%) and 141 (1.53%) samples, respectively. Virus neutralizing test (VN) performed at the G. Caporale Institute in Teramo, Italy, detected serotype 9 bluetongue virus, which was at the time present throughout the Mediterranean basin. Key words: bluetongue virus (BTV), cELISA, AGID