Borna disease is a sporadic fatal encephalitis which occurs in horses and sheep in Central Europe.
The disease is of economic importance because of the restrictions on the shipment of animals from endemically-infected areas or locations with periodic outbreaks of the disease. Recently, a Borna disease-like infection has been associated with schizophrenia in humans in the U.S. and Germany. An agent has been transmitted from humans to rabbits and tissue culture cells. The human and animal Borna disease agents are serologically related. A cDNA clone designated as B8 has been isolated and is completely specific for Borna disease-infected animals and cell culture systems.