Variation in foot-and-mouth disease virus isolates in Kenya: an examination of field isolates by T1 oligonucleotide fingerprinting.

Ribonuclease T1 oligonucleotide maps of strains of 4 of the endemic serotypes of foot-and-mouth disease virus isolated in Kenya between 1964 and 1982 have been compared with data obtained in complement-fixation and neutralization tests. There was a continual change in the oligonucleotide maps obtained for all the serotypes examined. This genetic heterogeneity was generally associated with antigenic variation. Viruses isolated during the 12-month course of an epidemic of the SAT 1 serotype showed few changes in their oligonucleotide fingerprints, and were serologically related. These maps form a data base that will be useful in future epidemiological studies on the maintenance and spread of foot-and-mouth disease virus in this region.