Sero-prevalence of Bovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus in Bovine in Punjab, North India

The present study was carried out to determine the seroprevalence of Bovine respiratory Syncytial Virus (BRSV) in cattle and buffaloes from different agroclimatic zones (viz. Submountain undulating, Undulating Plain, Central Plain, Western Plain and Western) in Punjab, north India by using commercially available competitive ELISA technique. A total of 187 serum sample(s) of 40 dairy herds of different age groups were collected and screened for the presence of BRSV antibodies. The overall seroprevalence recorded for BRSV in bovines was 47.05%. Seroprevalences of BRSV in cows and buffaloes was found to be 45.12% (37/82) and 48.57% (51/105), respectively. Animal in large herds and older animals (above 4 years) had the highest seropositivity and the findings were statistically significant on chi-square analysis (p<0.05) which indicated that older animals and large herds are important risk factors for increased seropositivity to BRSV. No significant variation was observed in the haematological values of BRSV sero-positive and sero-negative animals. The present study puts on records of high seroprevalence of BRSV infection in bovines of Punjab, north India and the results indicate that exposure to this agent is common within study areas.