This has been a major research and service focus for the laboratory for many years, due to the importance of BVDV in western range herds.  Dr. Todd Cornish, a pathologist at the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory in the Department of Veterinary Sciences, recently published an important paper describing how various methods to detect BVD compare.  Other recent studies in the department include research on the effectiveness of commercial vaccines for fetal protection, mechanisms of cytopathogenicity of BVDV, the epidemiology of BVDB in Wyoming beef herds, pestivirus infections of free-ranging North American ruminants, and the effect of BVDV on expression of host genes.  For more information on practical testing for BVDV in Wyoming ranches see  #1 and #2

Investigator: Dr. Todd Cornish

Publications

Cornish TE, van Olphen AL, Cavender JL, Edwards JM, Jaeger PT, Vieyra LL, Woodard LF, Miller DR, O'Toole D.: 2005, Comparison of ear notch immunohistochemistry, ear notch antigen-capture ELISA, and buffy coat virus isolation for detection of calves persistently infected with bovine viral diarrhea virus. J Vet Diagn Invest. 17(2):110-7.

Van Campen H, Ridpath J, Williams ES, Cavender J, Edwards J,  Smith S, Sawyer H: 2001, Isolation of bovine viral diarrhea virus from a free-ranging mule deer in Wyoming.  J Wildl Dis, 37(2) 306–311.

Van Campen H, Williams ES, Edwards J, Cook W, Stout G 1997, Experimental infection of deer with bovine viral diarrhea virus. J Wildl Dis 33(3):567-573.  

Van Campen H, Huzurbazar, S, Edwards J, Cavender JL 1998, Distribution of antibody titer to bovine viral diarrhea virus in infected, exposed and uninfected beef cattle. J Vet Diagn Invest 10(2): 183-186.