Seroprevalence of Borna disease virus in domestic animals in Xinjiang, China

To investigate the animals infected with Borna disease virus (BDV) in Xinji ang, China, we examined for BDV antibodies in the sera from groups of 20 ho rses, sheep and cattle, and from 165 wild rodents (18 species) by ELISA and immunoblot. The serological study disclosed the presence of antibodies to both BDV-p24 and -p40 in the horses (20%) and sheep (25%), whereas no appar ent positive reaction was detected either in cattle or rodents. The results suggested that BDV is prevalent in horses and sheep in the district invest igated. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.