Isolation and molecular characterization of Orf virus from natural outbreaks in goats of Assam

Outbreaks of contagious ecthyma (caused by a Parapox virus) in goats were investigated in 6 districts of Assam, a north eastern state of India. Diagnosis of the disease was carried out employing both standard virological as well as molecular methods. Four representative isolates from different places were selected for phylogenetic analysis. The major envelop protein (B2L) of Orf virus was targeted for molecular analysis. The sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the selected sequences at nucleotide level revealed that the Orf virus isolates were closely related to each other (97.6-100 %) and showed highest similarity to the Orf virus isolate 82/04 (98.4 %), reported from Shahjahanpur, India. The data will provide an insight in transmission of the virus from northern to North eastern part of the country.