Orbiviruses (Reoviridae family) are vectored to particular vertebrate species (e.g., sheep, cattle, horses, deer, etc.) by arthropods (gnats, ticks, or mosquitoes depending on the virus) replicating in both insect and mammalian hosts.
The two most common orbiviruses are Bluetongue virus (BTV) and Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV), each with multiple serotypes.
Both BTV and EHDV are transmitted from animal to animal by the same Culicoides vectors (gnats) and are responsible for considerable economic losses to international livestock industries [1, 2]
Both viruses have been endemic in many parts of the world and recently emerged in countries and regions that were previously free of these viruses.
EHDV, which is particularly endemic in the United States and Canada, causes significant epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus),
however, recent reports of EHD in cattle are currently increasing, particularly in the Mediterranean basin where EHDV caused high morbidity and mortality in domestic cattle.