Prevalence of foot and mouth disease virus in apparently healthy buffaloes brought to Islamabad slaughterhouse in Pakistan.

This study was conducted to determine the sero-prevalence of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) slaughtered at Islamabad slaughterhouse, Pakistan. Sera and oro-pharyngeal (OP) fluid were collected from 630 healthy buffaloes. These animals originated from various livestock markets from 14 districts of Punjab. The age of animals ranged from 1 to 15 years. Sera were analyzed using FMD virus (FMDV) nonstructural proteins (NSP) and indirect ELISA. The sero-prevalence of FMD was 47.1% (n=297). There was a strong association between age of animal and its risk of being positive for FMD NSP ELISA (Odds ratio 1.27; p<0.001; CI 1.22-1.32). The OP fluids were tested for the presence of FMDV by real time PCR. FMDV specific signals were detected in 33 samples (11.1%). Virus recovery attempts were made after treating them with tri-chloro-tri-flouroethane onto LFBK cell line and four FMD isolates were recovered. This study indicated high sero-prevalence of FMDV in buffaloes slaughtered at abattoir in Islamabad. Furthermore, the virus recovery from these animals is suggestive of their possible role in persistence and transmission of FMDV to other animals.