African Horse Sickness Vaccine a Work in Progress

North America is free of the African horse sickness virus, yet this disease poses an important threat should an infected horse or a biting midge that harbors the virus be introduced.

African horse sickness (AHS) is the most lethal disease known to horses. Fortunately for American horses, AHS is currently enzootic, meaning

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North America is free of the African horse sickness virus, yet this disease poses an important threat should an infected horse or a biting midge that harbors the virus be introduced.

African horse sickness (AHS) is the most lethal disease known to horses. Fortunately for American horses, AHS is currently enzootic, meaning only a limited number of cases occur each year, in sub-Saharan Africa. However incursions into southern Europe, the Middle East, and even the Indian subcontinent occurred in the last century.

“While modified live virus vaccines are available in enzootic countries of sub-Saharan Africa to immunize horses against AHS virus, these vaccines are not licensed in North America and are not problem-free,” reported Alan Guthrie, BVSc, MedVet, PhD, from the University of Pretoria’s Equine Research Centre in South Africa

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Written by:

Stacey Oke, MSc, DVM, is a practicing veterinarian and freelance medical writer and editor. She is interested in both large and small animals, as well as complementary and alternative medicine. Since 2005, she’s worked as a research consultant for nutritional supplement companies, assisted physicians and veterinarians in publishing research articles and textbooks, and written for a number of educational magazines and websites.

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