Incursion of Bluetongue in Tunisia: Molecular Characterization of Viral Strains

Abstract

In December 1999, the bluetongue was declared in Tunisia. Other cases of the disease have also been reported in other countries in the Mediterranean basin. The aim of this work was to characterize viral isolates obtained during the epizootic, which occurred from December 1999 to March 2000, and to perform serotype determination. The three genomic segments, 2, 7 and 10, corresponding to the proteins VP2, VP7 and NS3/NS3A, were amplified by PCR and sequenced. Sequences of the various genomic segments obtained from Tunisian viral isolates were compared with the Corsican vaccinal and wild-type strain, as well as with other bluetongue virus strains published in GenBank. The results are presented in the form of phylogenetic trees and tables in which nucleotide sequences are compared, thus showing the common origin of the Tunisian viral strain (serotype 2) and the Corsican strain that was responsible for the October 2000 epizootic.