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Updated: Aug 8, 2026
Ex Vivo Infection of Murine Epidermis with Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1
Published on: August 24, 2015
[The detection of bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV 1) using an intradermal test. I. Field studies]
Insights
An intradermal test effectively diagnoses Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV1) infection in cattle. This delayed hypersensitivity test shows high accuracy when skin reactions are measured on day three post-injection.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Immunology
- Diagnostic Microbiology
- Bovine Infectious Diseases
Context:
- Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV1) causes significant economic losses in dairy farming.
- Accurate diagnostic tools are crucial for managing BHV1 outbreaks.
- Current serological tests may be confounded by vaccination status.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the efficacy of an intradermal delayed hypersensitivity test for BHV1 diagnosis in cattle.
- To compare the intradermal test results with serological ELISA findings.
- To determine the optimal timing for assessing skin reactions.
Summary:
- An intradermal test using concentrated, purified, and inactivated BHV1 antigen was assessed in 791 cattle.
- Skin fold thickness measured on day three post-injection showed high correlation with serological BHV1 status.
- The test demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity, distinguishing between natural infection, vaccination, and negative cases, even in younger animals.
Impact:
- Provides a potentially valuable, cost-effective diagnostic method for BHV1 in cattle.
- Aids in differentiating between natural BHV1 infection and vaccination responses.
- Supports improved herd health management and disease control strategies for BHV1.
Abstract:
An intradermal test (delayed hypersensitivity test) for the diagnosis of BHV1 infection was evaluated in 791 cattle of 16 dairy farms. The skin reactions were compared with the results of serological examinations using a commercial BHV1 ELISA kit (Trachitest). As antigen concentrated, purified and inactivated BHV1 was used. The skin reaction (increase of the skin fold thickness) was used for the interpretation of test results. The best results were obtained with the control of the skin reaction on the third day after injection of the antigen. From 393 serologically BHV1 negative cattle with an age of more than 6 months 391 (99.5%) had a skin reaction up to 1.0 mm and 2 animals (0.5%) had a reaction of 1.3 and 1.9 mm, respectively. The mean increase of skin fold thickness was 0.2 mm. Out of 291 serologically BHV1 positive cattle with an age of more than 6 months 270 had antibodies from natural infection and, partially, from additional vaccination with inactivated BHV1 vaccine. 266 (98.5%) of these animals showed a skin reaction of more than 2.0 mm, in 3 animals (1.1%) a skin reaction up to 1.0 mm was observed and 1 animal (0.4%) had a reaction of 2.0 mm. The mean increase of the skin fold thickness was 6.3 mm. 21 animals had BHV1 antibodies only because of vaccination with inactivated BHV1 vaccine. Only 4 animals had a skin reaction of more than 2.0 mm. Among 107 animals with an age up to 6 months 30 were serologically BHV1 positive and 77 were BHV1 negative. In all animals the skin reaction was less than 1.0 mm, the mean was 0.2 mm.
