detection of peste des petits ruminants virus in aborted fetuses and blood samples from sheep and goats in east-azerbaijan province, iran

Sheep and goat breeding is a vital component of animal husbandry in west asia, significantly contributing to food security and the livelihoods of rural and urban households. abortion in small ruminants causes a critical challenge, leading to economic losses and increased non-productive females within herds. peste des petits ruminants (ppr) virus as a significant infectious agent associated with abortion in small ruminants causes a highly contagious disease. this study focuses on the prevalence of ppr virus in aborted fetuses and blood samples from sheep and goats in east-azerbaijan province, iran.a comprehensive study was conducted in the nine counties of east-azerbaijan province, iran, including, tabriz, marand, charuymaq, khoda afrin, jolfa, heris, bostan abad, mianeh, and hashtrud. a total of 62 aborted fetuses and 373 blood samples were collected from sheep and goat flocks. the conventional- pcr method was employed for ppr virus detection after the extraction of viral rna and cdna synthesis from buffy coat (sheep and goat) and fetal spleen tissue samples. the formalin-fixed tissue samples from the aborted fetuses were conducted for histopathological examination. the results indicated a prevalence of 9.67% positive cases for ppr virus in the spleens of aborted fetuses and 4.29% positivity in blood samples from the surveyed small ruminant populations. histopathological studies revealed severe necrotic hemorrhagic enteritis and focal hepatitis associated with severe vascular congestion in the brain samples. the detection of ppr virus in both aborted fetuses and blood samples indicate that the ppr virus may play a notable role in the abortion of sheep and goats in east azerbaijan. therefore, fundamental management and vaccination strategies are necessary for the prevention and control of the disease in the region.