Foot & Mouth Disease
Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease (Aphthae epizooticae) is aninfectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever for two or three days, followed byblisters inside the mouth and on the feet that may rupture and cause lameness.
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a severe plague for animal farming, since it is highly infectious and can be spread by infected animals through aerosols, through contact with contaminated farming equipment, vehicles, clothing or feed, and by domestic and wildpredators.[1] Its containment demands considerable efforts in vaccination, strict monitoring, trade restrictions and quarantines, and occasionally the elimination of millions of animals.
Susceptible animals include cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, pigs, antelope, deer, andbison. It has also been known to infect hedgehogs and elephants;[1][2] llamas, and alpacasmay develop mild symptoms, but are resistant to the disease and do not pass it on to others of the same species.[1] In laboratory experiments, mice, rats, and chickens have been successfully infected by artificial means, but they are not believed to contract the disease under natural conditions.[1] Humans are very rarely infected.
The virus responsible for the disease is a picornavirus, the prototypic member of the genus Aphthovirus. Infection occurs when the virus particle is taken into a cell of the host. The cell is then forced to manufacture thousands of copies of the virus, and eventually bursts, releasing the new particles in the blood. The virus is genetically highly variable,[3] which limits the effectiveness of vaccination.
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History
The cause of FMD was first shown to be viral in 1897 by Friedrich Loeffler. He passed the blood of an infected animal through aChamberland filter and found the collected fluid could still cause the disease in healthy animals.
FMD
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a severe plague for animal farming, since it is highly infectious and can be spread by infected animals through aerosols, through contact with contaminated farming equipment, vehicles, clothing or feed, and by domestic and wildpredators.[1] Its containment demands considerable efforts in vaccination, strict monitoring, trade restrictions and quarantines, and occasionally the elimination of millions of animals.
Susceptible animals include cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, pigs, antelope, deer, andbison. It has also been known to infect hedgehogs and elephants;[1][2] llamas, and alpacasmay develop mild symptoms, but are resistant to the disease and do not pass it on to others of the same species.[1] In laboratory experiments, mice, rats, and chickens have been successfully infected by artificial means, but they are not believed to contract the disease under natural conditions.[1] Humans are very rarely infected.
The virus responsible for the disease is a picornavirus, the prototypic member of the genus Aphthovirus. Infection occurs when the virus particle is taken into a cell of the host. The cell is then forced to manufacture thousands of copies of the virus, and eventually bursts, releasing the new particles in the blood. The virus is genetically highly variable,[3] which limits the effectiveness of vaccination.
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History
The cause of FMD was first shown to be viral in 1897 by Friedrich Loeffler. He passed the blood of an infected animal through aChamberland filter and found the collected fluid could still cause the disease in healthy animals.
FMD