Foot-and-mouth disease persists in Israel and neighboring countries, researchers find

A pattern of recurrent Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), a highly contagious viral infection affecting hooved animals, continues to persist in Israel and neighbouring areas, despite vaccination efforts, requiring a more targeted and collaborative approach to disease management, according to American Friends of the Hebrew University. FMD is caused by the FMD virus (FMDV) and has seven known serotypes (a distinct variation within a species of bacteria or virus or among immune cells of different individuals). Although vaccination is applied both in endemic countries and some disease-free regions as a preventive measure, the virus's high mutation rate leads to diverse genetic lineages. FMD incursions in disease-free regions have significant socio-economic impacts. In a study published in Science Direct Virology, Eyal Klement of the Hebrew University Koret School of Veterinary Medicine and Sharon Karniely of the Kimron Veterinary Institute determined that Israeli FMD strains are similar to ...