COWPOX IN BRITISH VOLES AND MICE

Serosurveys indicate that bank voles, field voles and woodmice are pro bably reservoir hosts of cowpox: virus in western Europe, although vir us has not yet been isolated from these species. In this study, bank v oles, field voles, woodmice and laboratory mice were shown to be susce ptible to combined intradermal and subcutaneous inoculation with 3-20 plaque-forming units (pfu) of cowpox virus. Bank and field voles, but not laboratory mice, were also susceptible to combined oral and nasal inoculation with 50 pfu. Few clinical signs were seen and virus was ge nerally recovered only from inoculation sites. Bank voles were not sus ceptible to injection of ectromelia virus (5000 pfu) into the skin (as described above). These results provide information on which further pathogenesis and transmission studies can be based, and support the vi ew that the orthopoxvirus antibody detected in British wild voles and woodmice indicates infection with cowpox virus. However, further inves tigation of the pathogenesis of cowpox in these species is needed to u nderstand better the epidemiology of the disease. (C) 1997 W.B. Saunde rs Company Limited.