Bovine herpesvirus-1 (BoHV-1) is associated with the syndrome bovine respiratory disease, which is the major cause of morbidity and mortality within feedlots in Australia and around the world. Currently there are no vaccines that completely prevent BoHV-1 infections and viral shedding. The most efficacious vaccines used are live attenuated which have the potential to revert to wild type and cause disease. DNA vaccines are ideal vaccine candidates as they not only induce humoral and cellular immunity, they are also inexpensive and easy to produce. However, DNA vaccines although efficacious in small animal models have not yielded similar success in large animals. The inconsistent translation of DNA vaccines to large animal models, including cattle, has been associated with poor delivery of the vaccine to the nuclei of cells which is required for antigen transcription. Recently, the human herpesvirus-1 protein VP22 (hVP22) was demonstrated to exhibit the uncommon capacity to spread intercellularly from the cell of expression to the nuclei of neighbouring cells in a golgi and energy independent process. This process was very efficient with hVP22 being identified in all cells of a monolayer after transfection. hVP22 was quickly used to promote the efficiency of DNA vaccines by fusing the hVP22 gene with antigen genes in the vaccine resulting in the increased delivery of the antigenic protein to neighbouring cells. The fusion protein was subsequently degraded and presented as peptides on the cell surface in association with major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules that lead to an increase in fusion protein specific antibody production. This pathway, although successful augmenting the humoral response, did not increase the amount of antigen presented on MHC class I molecules which is essential for protection against intracellular pathogens. This thesis describes the development of a methodology whereby VP22, fused to a DNA binding protein, was hypothesised to increase the number of cells the DNA vaccine was delivered to and then to facilitate the transport of the DNA vaccine to their nuclei. A homologue of hVP22 has been identified in BoHV-1 and the capacity of the BoHV-1 protein to spread intercellularly and localise in the nuclei of cells was determined in this thesis using a novel and definitive model. Although retaining similar translocation capabilities to hVP22 the BoHV-1 VP22 homologue could not be expressed in bacteria and was subsequently not able to be used to demonstrate the proposed vaccine concept. hVP22 instead was fused to the DNA binding protein, Gal4, for bacterial expression. The purified fusion protein was demonstrated to bind not only oligonucleotides encoding the Gal4 binding sequence but also to a model DNA vaccine encoding Gal4 binding sequences in vitro. However, application of the hVP22 fusion protein:vaccine complex alone or condensed with poly-L-lysine to mammalian cells did not promote the delivery of the DNA vaccine to the nuclei of cells. As part of the DNA vaccine development for BoHV-1 the first nucleotide sequence of the Unique Short region of the Australian BoHV-1 strain V155 (8925 nucleotides) was determined. The sequence information generated permitted insights into epitopes contained within BoHV-1 antigens, particularly glycoprotein D which has been identified as the most appropriate glycoprotein for the purpose of vaccination. Furthermore, comparison of the Unique Short sequence variations between different subtypes of BoHV-1 provided molecular data that may be associated with the observed variation in virulence. Further optimisation of the methodology described in this study is required to facilitate the delivery of the DNA vaccine into cells by the VP22 fusion protein. The future development of strategies that utilise polypeptides to augment delivery of DNA vaccines into cells and then to facilitate the transport of the vaccine to the nuclei of cells, resulting in increased antigen expression, may ultimately lead to the successful application of this vaccine technology in animal models.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) is a member of the Alphaherpesvirinae subfamily and is the prototype ruminant herpesvirus. BHV-1 causes a number of complications in cattle including upper respiratory tract disorders, conjunctivitis, genital disorders, abortions, and immune suppression. Like all herpesviruses, reactivation from latency can occur throughout the animal’s life. Of particular economic importance is the bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) or ‘shipping fever’, in which BHV-1 plays a major role. BRDC is an enormous economic concern as it costs the US cattle industry approximately one billion dollars annually. In order to generate improved gene-deleted vaccines against BHV-1, there is a need to understand the contributions of viral gene products during infection. US3 is a serine/threonine kinase present in BHV-1 and is thought to play major roles during viral infection. As in other herpesviruses, US3 in BHV-1 is expected to phosphorylate several cellular and/or viral proteins. We recently presented evidence that BHV-1 US3 phosphorylates both VP8 and VP22; however, further functional characteristics of BHV-1 US3 during viral infection have not been elucidated. The hypothesis of this project is that the deletion of the US3 gene leads to reduced BHV-1 fitness. To explore this hypothesis, we generated a US3-deleted (ΔUS3) and subsequent US3-rescued (US3R) BHV-1 virus. Using these viral mutants, we characterized the growth properties of the viruses, evaluated the effect of the US3 deletion on major structural BHV-1 proteins, characterized the protein composition of the mature virions, and, identified viral processes that were impaired in the deletion mutant. Initially, the ∆US3 virus was generated through a 3-step PCR strategy which replaced the gene of interest with an antibiotic resistance cassette. Following this, the US3 gene was rescued via a two-step en passant mutagenesis strategy which has been previously used to generate insertions, deletions, and substitutions in herpesvirus-containing bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) DNA. In vitro characterization of ∆US3 BHV-1 has demonstrated that US3 deletion affects BHV-1 growth characteristics, expression kinetics of major structural proteins, mature virion composition, cell to cell spread, and the subcellular localization of key viral proteins during infection. Growth kinetics of ∆US3 BHV-1 were impaired compared to wild-type (WT) BHV-1, especially at late times post-infection. Plaque sizes formed by ∆US3 BHV-1 were significantly smaller than those formed by either WT or US3R BHV-1, demonstrating that US3 is important for cell to cell spread. The expression kinetics of major structural and regulatory BHV-1 proteins were different between cells infected with ∆US3 or WT BHV-1, and incorporation of these proteins into the mature viruses differed, demonstrating that US3 is instrumental in ensuring proper protein expression and mature virus composition in vitro. Of particular importance, glycoprotein B (gB), was shown to be expressed in higher quantities earlier during infection in the absence of US3, and that this protein was incorporated in significantly higher amounts in mature virions which lacked US3. Qualitative analysis of ∆US3 BHV-1 infected monolayers suggested the abolishment of cell to cell projections characteristic of WT BHV-1 infection. Finally, the disruption of gB in ∆US3 BHV-1 infected cells was confirmed by confocal microscopy and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis. Through confocal microscopy, evidence was provided that infection with ∆US3 BHV-1 possibly results in earlier expression of gB on the surface of cells and less intracellular accumulation of this protein during late stages of infection. The observed effect on the localization of intracellular gB in ∆US3 BHV-1 infected cells was quantified by flow cytometry. ∆US3 BHV-1 infected cells had approximately 25% higher gB expression on the surface of cells and a corresponding 25% decrease in intracellular gB. Although these differences have not yet been demonstrated to be statistically significant and not confirmed through infection with US3R BHV-1, this suggests that US3 may influence the synthesis and cellular trafficking of gB in vitro.

Master of Science / Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology / Shafiqul I. Chowdhury / Bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1) is an important pathogen of cattle that can cause severe respiratory tract infection known as infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), abortion in pregnant cows, and is an important component of the Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex (BRDC, “Shipping fever”). The ability of BHV-1 to transport anterogradely from neuron cell bodies in trigeminal ganglia to axon termini in the nasal and ocular epithelia of infected cattle complicates the control of the disease in both vaccinated and infected cattle populations. In calves and rabbits, Us9 deleted viruses have defective anterograde neuronal spread from cell bodies in the trigeminal ganglia to nerve termini in the nose and eye but retrograde spread remains unaffected. To characterize the neuronal spread of BHV-1, we developed primary neuronal cultures using the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) of rabbit embryos. We successfully used microfluidic chamber devices to isolate DRG in the somal compartment and allowed for efficient growth of axons into the axonal compartment. This enabled us to study axon mediated neuronal spread of infection as well as viral transport in axons. Thus, rabbit DRG neuronal culture was susceptible to BHV-1 mutant and wild-type infection, and the method allowed visualization of viral spread in chamber cultures using live cell imaging and fluorescent microscopy. Lastly, using the microfluidic chamber compartmentalized neuron culture system we showed that Us9 acidic domain-deleted and Us9 null mutant BHV-1 viruses had defective anterograde neuronal transport relative to BHV-1 wild type and/or Us9 rescued viruses.

Bovine herpesvirus-1 (BoHV-1) is a pathogen of cattle, which most commonly affects the upper respiratory tract to cause infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR). It can also spread systemically to cause fatalities in calves and abortion in pregnant cattle. The virally encoded mechanisms of this systemic spread are poorly understood and therefore have been addressed by comparing isolates from the respiratory form of disease with isolates that have previously demonstrated systemic spread. A survey of 400 bovine abortions in Scotland from 2007-2009 demonstrated a BoHV-1 prevalence of 2.5%. It also demonstrated the importance of real-time PCR as a diagnostic technique when analysing samples from natural cases. The study of BoHV-1 distribution in the placenta and foetal tissue provided support for a haematogenous route of viral spread. Whole genome sequencing of 11 BoHV-1 isolates using Illumina Solexa technology was completed and added significantly to the sequencing data of BoHV-1. In terms of identifying genetic variation between isolates causing respiratory infection and those causing systemic infection, no differences were observed by SNP or phylogenetic analysis. However, there were significant differences in the extent of variation between essential and non-essential genes, which may reflect the evolution of BoHV-1. An in vivo challenge of the natural host to compare two isolates representing the respiratory and systemic forms of infection showed differences in clinical presentation, histopathological analysis, viral distribution and viral transcript expression, measured throughout the infection period. In particular, it was noted that a more severe ocular infection, rather than respiratory based infection was caused by infection with the ‘systemic’ isolate. Differences in the tropism of the virus were observed early in the infection with the ‘systemic’ isolate showing more association with the nasal mucosa than the trachea. The tonsils demonstrated different responses to the virus and differences in viral transcript expression. However, this may simply represent different stages of virus infection. Both isolates demonstrated spread to the brain at day 10 post infection. In vitro methods were used to study the differences in transcript expression in more detail. In a bovine turbinate cell infection faster replication of the respiratory isolate was observed by a significantly faster development of cytopathic effect. This was also reflected in the higher gene expression levels of the respiratory isolate in the first 12 hours of infection. More isolates were studied to investigate whether these differences were consistent, or as suggested by the sequencing, random differences between isolates. Six isolates were used to infect bovine lung slices. Differences in transcript expression were minimal between the two isolate groups. Immunofluorescence did not provide the sensitivity to detect virus in all samples where PCR showed replication. This compromised the study of co-localization but did show promise as a model to study the tropism of respiratory viruses. Overall, this work has showed that systemic spread of BoHV-1 does not appear to be controlled by virally encoded mechanisms. The in vivo experimental infection suggested host factors may play a large part. Further work is also needed to consider any differences that may exist between reactivated virus and the original infecting isolate.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2007. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (p.281-340).

Submitted by Tássia de Paula Giroto (tassiagiroto13@yahoo.com.br) on 2015-12-21T14:51:26Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Pronta Tássia.pdf: 1266459 bytes, checksum: 865343b89e94980c883c0603fb556588 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Juliano Benedito Ferreira (julianoferreira@reitoria.unesp.br) on 2015-12-21T15:30:59Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Pronta Tássia.pdf: 1266459 bytes, checksum: 865343b89e94980c883c0603fb556588 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-12-21T15:30:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Pronta Tássia.pdf: 1266459 bytes, checksum: 865343b89e94980c883c0603fb556588 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-12-14 / A meningoencefalite por herpesvírus bovino 5 (BHV5) foi descrita em várias regiões do mundo. A doença ocorre na forma de surtos ou de casos isolados. No Brasil, encefalites causadas pelo BHV5 têm sido confirmadas de forma crescente nos rebanhos, sendo considerada a segunda maior causa de encefalite com etiologia determinada em bovinos. Nesse sentido, o presente estudo objetivou caracterizar as regiões do sistema nervoso central (SNC) com maior freqüência do BHV5, o envolvimento de diferentes populações de lincócitos e a expressão de citocinas relacionadas ao processo inflamatório. As amostras (n=8) foram submetidas às análises histopatológica, imuno-histoquímica e molecular. A principal lesão observada foi caracterizada como infiltrado perivascular, classificado em leve, moderado e severo. Em todos os casos o infiltrado perivascular foi notado de forma severa no bulbo olfatório, lobos frontal, temporal e parietal. A expressão de citocinas foi principalmente detectada nas regiões do bulbo olfatório e lobo piriforme. Este estudo abordou que a incidência do BHV5 ocorreu principalmente na região frontal, visto que a contaminação pelo vírus ocorre de forma nasal, tendo como primeiro contato a região frontal do cérebro com o BHV5. / Meningoencephalitis caused by bovine Herpesvirus 5 (BHV5) has been described worldwide. The disease occurred as outbreaks of isolates clinical cases. In Brazil, encephalitis caused by BHV5 has been confirmed by the increase of positive animals, being the second major cause of bovine viral encephalitis. Likewise, the aim of this study was to characterize brain regions from central nervous system (CNS) presenting high frequency of BHV5 antigen and genome, phenotype lymphocytes subpopulations among perivascular cuffs and compare these results with cytokines transcription. The samples (n=8) were submitted to histopathological analysis, immunohistochemistry and molecular evaluation. The main histopathological lesions were characterized as perivascular cuffs, classified as severe, and sometimes moderate. All cases, perivascular infiltrates were severe in olfactory bulb, and frontal, temporal and parietal lobes. The cytokines expression was considered up regulated in olfactory bulb and piriform lobe. This study addressed the BHV5 distribution mainly observed in frontal regions from CNS, what confirmed the respiratory route as important for virus infection.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:32:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2012-01-16Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:44:07Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 alexandrino_b_dr_jabo.pdf: 403623 bytes, checksum: a596d9d91434dd37dd44458b1b70eb74 (MD5) / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo avaliar a utilização de cobaias e caprinos para teste de vacinas contra o herpesvírus bovino tipo 1 (BoHV-1) e os vírus da diarreia viral bovina tipos 1 (BVDV-1) e 2 (BVDV-2). Inicialmente foi realizada a infecção experimental em cobaias e bovinos, com esses três vírus, para verificar a máxima resposta imunogênica em ambas as espécies. As médias geométricas dos títulos de anticorpos (GMT) dos bovinos foram altas para todos os agentes virais; em cobaias foi possível observar que o BoHV-1 induziu elevadas GMT, para o BVDV-1 a indução foi moderada, enquanto para o BVDV-2 foi baixa, podendo comprometer a viabilidade dos testes antigênicos. Após essa etapa, foram vacinados bovinos, cobaias e caprinos, com seis vacinas comerciais de antígenos inativados, para verificar a indução de anticorpos por estímulo vacinal. Nos bovinos, as GMT obtidas para o BoHV-1 mostraram que as vacinas utilizadas promoveram a indução moderada na resposta imunológica, e apenas três delas foram consideradas satisfatórias. Para o BVDV-1, apenas uma vacina pode ser considerada eficiente, e em relação ao BVDV-2 nenhuma delas poderia ser assim classificada. Os resultados da vacinação com os caprinos mostraram que, apesar de os animais serem reagentes ao BoHV-1 no início do experimento, as formulações foram capazes de induzir a produção de anticorpos com títulos elevados contra os três vírus estudados. As cobaias, por sua vez, receberam doses fracionadas de uma vacina comercial nacional e, das frações testadas, 3,2mL foi a que apresentou melhores resultados, sendo esta estabelecida para testar as demais vacinas nesta espécie. Depois da imunização, os resultados mostram que para o BoHV-1 as GMT foram altas; em relação ao BVDV-1, apenas duas vacinas foram capazes de induzir... / The present research had as objective to evaluate the use of guinea pigs and goats in test of vaccines against the bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BoHV-1) and the bovine viral diarrhea viruses types 1 (BVDV-1) and 2 (BVDV-2). First, an experimental infection was realized in guinea pigs and bovines, using these three viruses, to verify the maximum immune response in both species. The geometric means of antibodies titres (GMT) for bovines were high for the viral agents; in guinea pigs was possible to observe that the GMT induced by BoHV-1 was high, by BVDV-1 was moderate and by BVDV-2 was weak and could compromise the viability of antigenic tests. After this stage, the bovines, guinea pigs and goats were vaccinated using six commercial vaccines with inactivated antigens to verify the induction of antibodies production by vaccinal stimulus. In bovines, the GMT obtained for BoHV-1 showed the vaccines induced a moderate immune response, being only three of them considered satisfactory. For BVDV-1 only one and for BVDV-2 none of them can have the same classification. The results obtained with the goats, despite they were positive to BoHV-1 in the sorting, showed the formulations were able to induce high antibody production against the three virus studied. The guinea pigs, on the other hand, received fractional doses of a commercial vaccine well-established in the domestic trade and, from the fractions tested, 3.2 mL showed the best results, being established to test the other vaccines. After immunization, the results of GMT for BoHV-1 was high; relating to BVDV-1, only two vaccines were capable to induce antibodies production, but their GMT were weak; and there was no immune response against BVDV-2. Thus, goats can be ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Orientador: Samir Issa Samara / Banca: Moacir Marchiori Filho / Banca: Fabio Carvalho Dias / Banca: Adolorata Aparecida Bianco Carvalho / Banca: Luís Antonio Mathias / Resumo: A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo avaliar a utilização de cobaias e caprinos para teste de vacinas contra o herpesvírus bovino tipo 1 (BoHV-1) e os vírus da diarreia viral bovina tipos 1 (BVDV-1) e 2 (BVDV-2). Inicialmente foi realizada a infecção experimental em cobaias e bovinos, com esses três vírus, para verificar a máxima resposta imunogênica em ambas as espécies. As médias geométricas dos títulos de anticorpos (GMT) dos bovinos foram altas para todos os agentes virais; em cobaias foi possível observar que o BoHV-1 induziu elevadas GMT, para o BVDV-1 a indução foi moderada, enquanto para o BVDV-2 foi baixa, podendo comprometer a viabilidade dos testes antigênicos. Após essa etapa, foram vacinados bovinos, cobaias e caprinos, com seis vacinas comerciais de antígenos inativados, para verificar a indução de anticorpos por estímulo vacinal. Nos bovinos, as GMT obtidas para o BoHV-1 mostraram que as vacinas utilizadas promoveram a indução moderada na resposta imunológica, e apenas três delas foram consideradas satisfatórias. Para o BVDV-1, apenas uma vacina pode ser considerada eficiente, e em relação ao BVDV-2 nenhuma delas poderia ser assim classificada. Os resultados da vacinação com os caprinos mostraram que, apesar de os animais serem reagentes ao BoHV-1 no início do experimento, as formulações foram capazes de induzir a produção de anticorpos com títulos elevados contra os três vírus estudados. As cobaias, por sua vez, receberam doses fracionadas de uma vacina comercial nacional e, das frações testadas, 3,2mL foi a que apresentou melhores resultados, sendo esta estabelecida para testar as demais vacinas nesta espécie. Depois da imunização, os resultados mostram que para o BoHV-1 as GMT foram altas; em relação ao BVDV-1, apenas duas vacinas foram capazes de induzir... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The present research had as objective to evaluate the use of guinea pigs and goats in test of vaccines against the bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BoHV-1) and the bovine viral diarrhea viruses types 1 (BVDV-1) and 2 (BVDV-2). First, an experimental infection was realized in guinea pigs and bovines, using these three viruses, to verify the maximum immune response in both species. The geometric means of antibodies titres (GMT) for bovines were high for the viral agents; in guinea pigs was possible to observe that the GMT induced by BoHV-1 was high, by BVDV-1 was moderate and by BVDV-2 was weak and could compromise the viability of antigenic tests. After this stage, the bovines, guinea pigs and goats were vaccinated using six commercial vaccines with inactivated antigens to verify the induction of antibodies production by vaccinal stimulus. In bovines, the GMT obtained for BoHV-1 showed the vaccines induced a moderate immune response, being only three of them considered satisfactory. For BVDV-1 only one and for BVDV-2 none of them can have the same classification. The results obtained with the goats, despite they were positive to BoHV-1 in the sorting, showed the formulations were able to induce high antibody production against the three virus studied. The guinea pigs, on the other hand, received fractional doses of a commercial vaccine well-established in the domestic trade and, from the fractions tested, 3.2 mL showed the best results, being established to test the other vaccines. After immunization, the results of GMT for BoHV-1 was high; relating to BVDV-1, only two vaccines were capable to induce antibodies production, but their GMT were weak; and there was no immune response against BVDV-2. Thus, goats can be ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Bovine Infected Cell Protein 0 (bICP0) is an immediate-early protein encoded by Bovine Herpesvirus-1 that modulates host immune response, activates transcription for all viral promoters, and causes ubiquitin-dependent degradation of proteins. Presented herein is a bICP0 protein-protein interaction (PPI) profile, consisting of 98 cellular and 15 viral proteins, generated through co-immunoprecipitation of bICP0 and its binding partners. The PPI profile was analyzed computationally to identify potential sites of interaction with bICP0 and any cellular pathways that may be influenced by bICP0. Some interactors fall in conjunction with bICP0’s known roles during infection, and others are consistent with known associations of bICP0 homologs. However, some proteins in the PPI profile are involved in apoptosis signaling and mRNA spicing—processes both significant during viral infection and novel to the known functions of bICP0 and its homologs. The interaction and co-localization of some of these proteins with bICP0 was further examined.

No presente estudo, buscou-se avaliar quais seriam as cepas de herpesvírus bovinos tipos 1 (BoHV-1) e 5 (BoHV-5) seriam mais adequadas para uso como vírus de confrontação em testes de soroneurtralização (SN). Oitocentas e dez amostras de soros de duas regiões geograficamente distintas foram avaliadas à SN frente a seis diferentes cepas virais, incluindo tipos e subtipos diversos (BoHV-1.1: EVI123/98 e Los Angeles; BoHV-1.2a: SV265/96; BoHV-5a: EVI88/95; BoHV-5b: A663 e BoHV-5c: ISO95/97). A maior sensibilidade foi revelada pelo somatório de soropositivos identificados com as seis cepas utilizadas no estudo. Uma combinação de quatro vírus (BoHV-1.1: LA e EVI123/98, BoHV-5a: EVI88/95 e BoHV-5b: A663) foi capaz de detectar 99,1% das amostras soropositivas. Estes quatro vírus foram selecionados para serem utilizados em um levantamento soroepidemiológico com o intuito de estimar a prevalência das infecções causadas pelos BoHV-1 e BoHV-5 no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul. Para tanto, soros de 2200 fêmeas bovinas adultas (>24 meses), representativos da população bovina do Rio Grande do Sul, foram submetidos à SN frente às quatro cepas virais escolhidas. om esta combinação, a soroprevalência média das infecções por BoHV-1 e BoHV-5 encontrada foi de 29,2%. Além disso, analisando outros fatores que pudessem influenciar a prevalência das infecções, foram considerados fatores de risco o tipo de exploração corte, a ausência da prática de ordenha, o contato dos bovinos com ovinos/caprinos e animais silvestres, a venda de animais de reprodução, o uso de piquetes de parto/pós-parto, o uso de assistência veterinária privada e a criação de animais de raças européias de corte. Os resultados obtidos no presente trabalho demonstraram que, para que a SN seja capaz de detectar animais soropositivos ao BoHV-1 e BoHV-5 com a máxima sensibilidade, o teste deve ser realizado com várias amostras de BoHV-1 e BoHV-5, não necessariamente de tipos ou subtipos diferentes, pois amostras do mesmo tipo de vírus apresentarrm diferentes sensibilidades. Além disso, as amostras de confrontação podem variar de acordo com a região geográfica de origem dos soros. Os resultados obtidos nesse levantamento revelam que anticorpos anti-BoHV-1 e anti-BoHV-5 encontram-se amplamente distribuidos nos rebanhos gaúchos. No entanto, não foi possível determinar a prevalência tipo-específica destas infecções com os testes realizados. Assim, a proporção de animais que estão infectados com o BoHV-1 ou com o BoHV-5 (ou ambos) na região examinada permanece desconhecida. / In this study a search was carried out to determine which of a number of available strains/isolates of bovine herpesviruses types 1 (BoHV-1) and 5 (BoHV-5) would be more suitable for use as challenge virus in serum neutralization (SN) tests. Eight hundred and ten bovine serum samples collected from two geographically distinct regions were evaluated in SN tests against six BoHVs of different types and subtypes (BoHV-1.1: EVI123/98 and Los Angeles; BoHV-1.2a: SV265/96; BoHV-5a: EVI88/95; BoHV-5b: A663 and BoHV-5c: ISO95/97). The highest sensitivity was achieved when the SN-positive sera obtained with the six different viruses were added. A combination of four viruses (BoHV-1.1 LA, and EVI123/98, BoHV-5a EVI88/95 and BoHV-5b A663), was able to detect 99.1% of the seropositive samples. These four viruses were selected to carry out a seroepidemiological survey to estimate BoHV-1 and BoHV-5 prevalence in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. In order to achieve that, sera from 2,200 bovine female cows (>24 months-old), representative of the bovine population of Rio Grande do Sul state were tested on SN tests against the four selected viruses. With such combination, seroprevalence of BoHV-1 and BoHV-5 infections was 29.2%. After examining potential factors that might affect the prevalence of such infections, the following were considered as significant risk factors: the type of exploitation (beef cattle > dairy), use of milking procedures, concomitant presence of sheep, goats or wild animals in farm; sale of animals for reproductive purposes; use of pre and postparturition paddocks; use of private veterinary assistance and farming of European beef breeds. The results obtained here indicate that for the SN test to provide the highest sensitivity in detecting BoHV-1 and BoHV-5 seroposivive animals, it must be performed against a number of BoHV-1 and BoHV-5 strains, though not necessarily of different types and subtypes as viruses within a same subtype may display different sensitivities. Besides, challenge viruses may vary for geographically distinct areas. The serological survey performed with four distinct bovine herpesviruses reveal that antibodies to BoHV-1 and BoHV-5 are widely distributed among cattle flocks in Rio Grande do Sul. However, it was not possible to determine type-specific prevalence with the tests performed. Thus, the proportion of cattle actually infected with either BoHV-1 or BoHV-5 (or both) in the examined region remains undetermined.