Indirect ELISA for analysis of malignant catarrhal fever virus-specific antibodies in a range of species

George C Russell; Ann Percival; Dawn M Grant

doi:10.1016/j.jviromet.2024.115060

Indirect ELISA for analysis of malignant catarrhal fever virus-specific antibodies in a range of species

J Virol Methods. 2024 Oct 31:331:115060. doi: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2024.115060. Online ahead of print.

Authors

George C Russell¹, Ann Percival², Dawn M Grant²

Affiliations

¹ Moredun Research institute, Pentlands Science Park, Midlothian EH26 0PZ, UK. Electronic address: George.Russell@moredun.ac.uk.
² Moredun Research institute, Pentlands Science Park, Midlothian EH26 0PZ, UK.

PMID: 39488270
DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2024.115060

Abstract

The culture-attenuated alcelaphine herpesvirus 1 (AlHV-1) C500 strain can be grown to high titre and has been used successfully as a candidate vaccine for wildebeest-associated malignant catarrhal fever (MCF). This vaccine virus was also used to develop an indirect ELISA to allow monitoring of virus-specific antibodies in vaccinated cattle. However the extraction method was expensive and time-consuming, and the resulting test was not suitable for use in sheep. Here we describe an improved antigen extraction method that also broadens the application of the assay, allowing its application to sheep samples. The updated assay was tested using control samples from cattle and sheep, and showed a high level of accuracy in both species. This novel assay should prove to be a useful tool in MCF diagnosis and in evaluation of MCF vaccine responses.

Keywords: Antibody; Antigen; Diagnostic test; Malignant catarrhal fever; Serology.