Abstract
Bluetongue (BT) is an infectious, noncontagious, vector-borne viral disease of wild and domestic ruminants. BTV is a member of the Orbivirus genus of the family Reoviridae. The present study aimed to investigate the seroprevalence of BTV in sheep and goats in Kassala State, Sudan. It also aimed to determine risk factors associated with BTV infection. The study was carried out by a structured questionnaire survey, and a total of 809 serum samples were collected from sheep (n = 459) and goats (n = 350) from 9 different localities in Kassala state. These samples were analyzed using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) for the detection of BTV antibodies. The overall seroprevalence of BTV was 91.2% (738/809). In goats, the prevalence of BTV antibodies was comparatively higher (100%) than in sheep (84.5%). The prevalence differed between localities and was the highest in the center section of Kassala and Western Kassala (100%). Animals aged 6–11 months were highly infected (93.9%) compared to 1-year-old (85.5%). Caprine species was more likely to be infected (100%) than ovine (84.5%), and females were highly infected (92.8%) than males (85.5%). BTV infections were higher in the winter season (91.4%). Risk factors that showed significant associations with cELISA positivity included locality and sex (p ≤ 0.003) and species and age (p ≤ 0.000). Factors significantly associated with cELISA positivity in multivariate analysis were localities, species, age, and sex. BTV infection is prevalent in sheep and goat populations in Kassala state.
Highlights
Bluetongue (BT) is an infectious, noncontagious, arboviral disease that affects wild and domestic ruminants including sheep, goats, cattle, buffaloes, deer, most species of African antelope, and various other Artiodactyla [1]
Fayza et al [35] explained the role of apparently healthy cattle as a reservoir of Bluetongue virus (BTV) to sheep in Sudan, and Elzein [31] reported that susceptibility of camels to BTV infection was lower than that of other ruminant species in the country
Our current study has been carried out to investigate BTV seroprevalence and to determine risk factors associated with BTV infection in sheep and goats in this animal resource-rich part of the country
Summary
Bluetongue (BT) is an infectious, noncontagious, arboviral disease that affects wild and domestic ruminants including sheep, goats, cattle, buffaloes, deer, most species of African antelope, and various other Artiodactyla [1]. Serological surveys indicated that BTV antibodies were widespread in the domestic species of livestock including sheep, goats, cattle, and camels in the country [27,28,29]. The virus was isolated from outbreaks of sheep, from apparently healthy cattle, and from Culicoides midges [30,31,32], and five BTV serotypes were reported up to now, serotypes 1, 2, 4, 5, and 16, which are endemic in various states of Sudan [33, 34]. Fayza et al [35] explained the role of apparently healthy cattle as a reservoir of BTV to sheep in Sudan, and Elzein [31] reported that susceptibility of camels to BTV infection was lower than that of other ruminant species in the country. Our current study has been carried out to investigate BTV seroprevalence and to determine risk factors associated with BTV infection in sheep and goats in this animal resource-rich part of the country
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