Serologic Survey for Selected Microbial Pathogens in Bison from Kansas

Abstract

A serologic survey was conducted on an American bison (Bison bison) herd in Kansas for antibodies against Brucella spp., Leptospira interrogans serovar canicola, pomona, grippotyphosa, icterohaemorrhagiae, and hardjo, Anaplasma spp., bluetongue virus, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus and bovine viral diarrhea virus. There was an increase in prevalence of bluetongue antibodies from 38% in 1987 to 100% in 1989 in animals greater than or equal to 24-mo-old. Prevalences of antibodies against the other livestock pathogens were either negative or at levels associated with previous vaccination.

Polymerase Chain Reaction and DNA Sequencing for Detection of Ovine Herpesvirus 2 in American Bison (Bison Bison)

“…6,8,9,12 Typical microscopic lesions include lymphocytic vasculitis, epithelial necrosis, and lymphoproliferation. 6,8,11 Recent studies have shown that MCF can cause chronic disease and a pansystemic proliferative arteriopathy in bison. 11 Previous work indicates that a low percentage of bison (0-9%) are seropositive to SA-MCF but are clinically normal.…”

Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease Outbreak in a Captive Facility Housing White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Bison (Bison bison), Elk (Cervus elaphus), Cattle (Bos taurus), and Goats (Capra hircus) in Colorado, USA

“…4,15,16 Similar to elk, evidence of exposure to EHDV in wild bison herds has been investigated but not confirmed, although antibodies to BTV have been documented in free-ranging bison. 28,29 It is possible that, in a captive setting with multiple species, such as that at the Wildlife Research Facility, bison and elk, in addition to cattle, may have served as asymptomatic sources of the virus to more susceptible species, such as white-tailed deer. There is experimental evidence that infection and viremia can occur in both bison and elk.…”

Colonization of bison (Bison bison) wallows in a tallgrass prairie by Culicoides spp (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

“…American bison ( Bison bison ) are among the ruminant species susceptible to infection with EHDV and BTV. While clinical disease is thought to occasionally occur, infection in most individuals is likely subclinical and the broader epidemiological role of bison is largely unknown (Vestweber et al , Ruder et al in press).…”