A phylogenetic analysis of Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus (BVDV) isolates from six different regions of the UK and links to animal movement data.

Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus (BVDV) is a pestivirus which infects cattle populations worldwide and is recognised as a significant source of economic loss through its impact on health and productivity. Studies investigating the molecular epidemiology of BVDV can give invaluable information about the diversity of viral strains present in a population and this, in turn, can inform control programs, drive vaccine development and determine likely infection sources. The current study investigated 104 viral isolates from forty farms across the UK.

Validation of endogenous reference genes for RT-qPCR normalisation in bovine lymphoid cells (BL-3) infected with Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus (BVDV).

Reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) is a highly sensitive tool that can be used for accurate and reliable gene expression analysis; however, careful normalisation to a set of stably expressed endogenous reference genes is essential. Expression levels of many reference genes in RT-qPCR analyses can be extremely variable under different experimental conditions, producing potentially erroneous results (Bustin, 2002). This limitation can be overcome with a systematic evaluation of candidate reference genes to determine the most stable.

Infectivity of pestivirus following persistence of acute infection.

Bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) is an endemic pathogen worldwide and eradication strategies focus on the identification and removal of persistently infected (PI) animals arising after in utero infection. Despite this, acute infections with BVDV can persist for months or years after the removal of the PI source despite repeated screening for PIs and tight biosecurity measures. Recent evidence for a prolonged duration of viraemia in the testicles of bulls following acute BVDV infection suggests the possibility of a form of chronic persistence that may more closely resemble the persistence strategies of hepatitis C virus (HCV).

Partial redistribution of the Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus chitinase in virus-infected cells accompanies mutation of the carboxy-terminal KDEL ER-retention motif.

During virus infection of insect cells, the Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus chitinase is localized primarily within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), which is consistent with the presence of a carboxy-terminal ER retention motif (KDEL). Release of chitinase into the extracellular medium appears to be concomitant with terminal cell lysis, rather than by active secretion. In this study, we have shown that mutation of the KDEL motif induces a partial redistribution of the chitinase at both early and late times post-infection.