Canine distemper virus--a morbillivirus in search of new hosts?

Abstract

Canine distemper morbillivirus (CDV) induces a multisystemic, often fatal disease in a wide and seemingly expanding host range among the Carnivora. Several genotypes of an otherwise monotypic virus species co-circulate in a geographically restricted pattern. Interspecies transmissions frequently occur, often leading to devastating epizootics in highly susceptible or immunologically naive populations.