Seroprevalence of bluetongue virus infection and associated risk factors in domestic ruminants in the south of Iran

A cross-sectional study was designed and 3,872 blood samples were collected from apparently healthy sheep, goats and cows in Fars province, the south of Iran. The sera were screened for detection of bluetongue virus (BTV) antibodies using a commercially competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Overall prevalence rate of BTV antibodies among the domestic ruminants was 57.64% (70.93%, 55.70% and 19.77% for sheep, goat and cow, respectively). Associations between each independent variable, including ruminant type, age, sex, region, farming system and breed, and BTV infection were statistically significant (p<0.05). Females were 1.32 times more likely to exhibit seropositivity. Odds ratio for BTV infection was higher in older animals and traditional farming. The results revealed a wide spread of BTV infection in the domestic ruminants, especially in sheep and goat. Further studies of the distribution of Culicoides vectors in the region, virus isolation and genome sequencing of the isolated viruses are suggested.