Bovine leukemia virus: current perspectives

Abstract

Enzootic bovine leukosis, caused by bovine leukemia virus (BLV), is the most common neoplasm of dairy cattle. Although beef and dairy cattle are susceptible to BLV infection and BLV-associated lymphosarcoma, the disease is more commonly detected in dairy herds, mostly because of the management practices in dairy farms. The pathogenicity of BLV in its natural host, the bovine, depends mainly on the resistance/susceptibility genetics of the animal. The majority of infected cattle are asymptomatic, promoting the extremely high dissemination rate of BLV in many bovine populations. The important productive losses caused by the BLV, added to the health risk of maintaining populations with a high prevalence of infection with a retrovirus, generates the need to implement control measures. Different strategies to control the virus have been attempted. The most effective approach is to identify and cull the totality of infected cattle in the herd. However, this approach is not suitable for herds with high prevalence of infection. At present, no treatment or vaccine has proven effective for the control of BLV. Thus far, the genetic selection of resistant animals emerges as a natural strategy for the containment of the BLV dissemination. In natural conditions, most of the infected, resistant cattle can control the infection, and therefore do not pass the virus to other animals, gradually decreasing the prevalence of the herd.