Volume 15, Number 9—September 2009
Borna [bor′nә] disease virus
Borna disease virus was named after the town of Borna in Saxony, southeastern Germany, where in 1885 many horses in a German cavalry regiment died of a fatal neurologic disease. The ill horses exhibited abnormal behavior—running about excitedly, walking into walls, being unable to chew food. A similar disease had been observed in horses, sheep, and cattle for more than 100 years. The causative agent was later found to be a negative-stranded RNA virus, which may also be a human pathogen.
Source: Carabone KM. Borna disease virus and its role in neurobehavioral disease. Washington: ASM Press; 2002.
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