Two hundred and three sera obtained in 1993–96 from red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), lynx (Lynx lynx), brown bears (Ursus arctos) and wolverines (Gulo gulo) in Fennoscandia (Norway, Sweden, and Finland) were examined for the presence of anti-orthopoxvirus antibodies by a competition enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). High prevalences were found for the red foxes in Norway (7/62, 11%) and Finland (7/14, 50%). While only one of 73 (1%) lynx from Finland had anti-orthopoxvirus antibodies, a high prevalence was found in sera from the Sarek National Park in Sweden (5/17, 29%). In addition, anti-orthopoxvirus antibodies were found in one brown bear from the same area (1/45, 2%), whereas none of the 14 wolverines were seropositive. This is the first report of anti-orthopoxvirus antibodies in the brown bear and the lynx, and the first screening for such antibodies in Sweden and Finland. These results indicate that orthopoxviruses are distributed in Sweden and Finland as well as in Norway, and that the red fox and the European lynx may serve as indicator species for the presence of orthopoxviruses in the local populations of small mammals.
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Research Article|
July 01 1998
ANTIBODIES AGAINST ORTHOPOXVIRUSES IN WILD CARNIVORES FROM FENNOSCANDIA
Morten Tryland;
Morten Tryland
5,
1 Department of Arctic Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, N-9005 Tromsø, Norway
2 Department of Virology, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
6 Present address: Department of Immunoprophylaxis, National Veterinary Institute, P.O. Box 8156, Dep., N–0033, Oslo, Norway
5 Corresponding author (e-mail: morten.tryland@vetinst.no)
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Tore Sandvik;
Tore Sandvik
1 Department of Arctic Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, N-9005 Tromsø, Norway
2 Department of Virology, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
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Jon M. Arnemo;
Jon M. Arnemo
1 Department of Arctic Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, N-9005 Tromsø, Norway
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Gudbrand Stuve;
Gudbrand Stuve
1 Department of Arctic Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, N-9005 Tromsø, Norway
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Ørjan Olsvik;
Ørjan Olsvik
3 Department of Medical Microbiology, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
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Terje Traavik
Terje Traavik
2 Department of Virology, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
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J Wildl Dis (1998) 34 (3): 443–450.
Article history
Received:
April 21 1997
Citation
Morten Tryland, Tore Sandvik, Jon M. Arnemo, Gudbrand Stuve, Ørjan Olsvik, Terje Traavik; ANTIBODIES AGAINST ORTHOPOXVIRUSES IN WILD CARNIVORES FROM FENNOSCANDIA. J Wildl Dis 1 January 1998; 34 (3): 443–450. doi: https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-34.3.443
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