Bovine serum panel for evaluating foot-and-mouth disease virus nonstructural protein antibody tests.

A panel of 36 sera has been assembled from experimental cattle that had been infected by inoculation or contact exposure with 4 serotypes of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) with or without prior vaccination. Virus replication and persistence had been characterized in all of the animals. The proportion of the sera scored positive by 5 tests for antibodies to the nonstructural proteins of FMDV varied, suggesting that the panel can discriminate between the sensitivity with which such tests are able to identify infected cattle. Use of this panel will help in assessment of new tests and quality control of existing methods.