Cetacean morbillivirus

Cetacean morbillivirus
Virus classification
Group: Group V ((-)ssRNA)
Order: Mononegavirales
Family: Paramyxoviridae
Genus: Morbillivirus
Species: Cetacean morbillivirus

Cetacean morbillivirus (CeMV) is a virus that infects marine mammals in the order Cetacea, which includes dolphins, porpoises and whales.[1] Three genetically distinct strains have been identified: dolphin morbillivirus (DMV), pilot whale morbillivirus (PWMV) and porpoise morbillivirus (PMV).[2] Symptoms of infection are often a severe combination of pneumonia, encephalitis and damage to the immune system, which greatly impair the cetacean's ability to swim and stay afloat unassisted.[3][4] Since its discovery in 1987, CeMV has been responsible for numerous epizootics of mass mortality in cetacean populations.[3] Epizootics of CeMV can be easily identified by a significant increase in the number of "stranded" cetaceans on beaches and shores.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Barrett, T. (1999). "Morbillivirus infections, with special emphasis on morbilliviruses of carnivores". Veterinary microbiology 69 (1–2): 3–13. doi:10.1016/S0378-1135(99)00080-2. PMID 10515262.
  2. ↑ Bellière, E. N.; Esperón, F.; Fernández, A.; Arbelo, M.; Muñoz, M. J.; Sánchez-Vizcaíno, J. M. (2011). "Phylogenetic analysis of a new Cetacean morbillivirus from a short-finned pilot whale stranded in the Canary Islands". Research in Veterinary Science 90 (2): 324–328. doi:10.1016/j.rvsc.2010.05.038. PMID 20576281.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Guardo, G. D.; Marruchella, G.; Agrimi, U.; Kennedy, S. (2005). "Morbillivirus Infections in Aquatic Mammals: A Brief Overview". Journal of Veterinary Medicine Series A 52 (2): 88–93. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0442.2005.00693.x. PMID 15737178.
  4. ↑ Stone, B. M.; Blyde, D. J.; Saliki, J. T.; Blas-Machado, U.; Bingham, J.; Hyatt, A.; Wang, J.; Payne, J.; Crameri, S. (2011). "Fatal cetacean morbillivirus infection in an Australian offshore bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)". Australian Veterinary Journal 89 (11): 452–457. doi:10.1111/j.1751-0813.2011.00849.x. PMID 22008125.
  5. ↑ Peterson, B. (23 October 2013). "Dolphin-killing morbillivirus arrives in South Carolina". The Post and Courier. Retrieved 9 November 2013.