Pseudocowpox virus: the etiological agent of contagious ecthyma (Auzdyk) in camels (Camelus dromedarius) in the Arabian peninsula

• Published in: Vector borne and zoonotic diseases (Larchmont, N.Y.) Vol. 7; no. 2; p. 257
• Main Authors: Abubakr, M I, Abu-Elzein, E M E, Housawi, F M T, Abdelrahman, A O, Fadlallah, M E, Nayel, M N, Adam, A S, Moss, S, Forrester, N L, Coloyan, E, Gameel, A, Al-Afaleq, A I, Gould, E A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-06-2007
• Subjects: Animals; Bahrain - epidemiology; Base Sequence; Camelus - virology; Disease Outbreaks - veterinary; DNA, Viral - chemistry; Ecthyma, Contagious - epidemiology; Ecthyma, Contagious - virology; Female; Male; Phylogeny; Poxviridae Infections - epidemiology; Poxviridae Infections - veterinary; Poxviridae Infections - virology; Pseudocowpox Virus - classification; Pseudocowpox Virus - isolation & purification; Saudi Arabia - epidemiology
• ISSN: 1530-3667
• DOI: 10.1089/vbz.2006.0627

We have determined the nucleotide sequence of DNA extracted from pustules, saliva, and blood of camels presenting with contagious ecthyma, in Bahrain and also from a sample (SACamel) of infected tissue from a camel that had presented with contagious ecthyma in 1998 in Saudi Arabia (1). Sequence homologies and phylogenetic analysis showed that this extracted DNA was more closely related to Pseudocowpox virus (PCPV) than Orf virus (ORFV), which infects sheep, goats, and other animal species. The phylogeny also demonstrated that PCPV in Arabian camels was phylogenetically distinct from, and circulates independently of, ruminant-associated PCPV from Europe.