Cornell microbiologists have shown that a single amino acid variation in an enzyme that is part of the DNA copying process of equid herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) creates a different type of EHV-1, which causes the neurological disorders in horses. Both types of EHV-1 can also cause abortions.
The horse herpes virus, a close relative of the chickenpox virus in humans, lives in horses' nostrils and is commonly spread by droplets in the air. And horses remain infected for life. Recently, veterinarians noticed a rise in outbreaks of the neurological form of EHV-1, which can devastate entire herds. Close to one-third of horses that develop the neurological disease end up dying or being euthanized.
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