OUTBREAK OF LUMPY SKIN VIRAL DISEASE OF CATTLE AND BUFFALO IN INDIA IN 2022: ETHNOVETERINARY MEDICINE APPROACH

This literature review paper highlights the recent outbreak of Lumpy Skin viral Disease (LSVD) affecting thousands of dairy cattle and domestic water buffaloes in India in 2022. Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) was first time reported from India in 2019 and second outbreak is recorded in 2022 has emerged as a challenge for the dairy sector. A lump like nodules in the external skin and mucous membrane with fever and swollen lymph nodes are the preliminary noticeable clinical signs of this devastating disease. Lumpy skin disease (LSDV) is caused by the double - stranded DNA virus belongs to genus Capripoxvirus and family Poxviridae. Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) is not zoonotic infecting cattle's but not humans. Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) is a contagious vector-borne disease spread by the vectors like mosquitoes, some biting flies, and ticks. The hallmark feature of LSD is the skin lesions with nodules. Vaccination along with strict quarantine measures and vector control could be effective for preventing the spread of the disease. In India, the Goat Pox Virus Vaccine (GTPV) Uttarkashi strain is being evaluated for the level of protection against Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) as compared to the LSDV vaccine and is already used for emergency vaccination. Ethno veterinary practices concern to animal healthcare is as old as the domestication of various livestock species. There is a rich and efficient ethno veterinary traditions exist in the villages of India. However, ethno-veterinary medicines are often not as fastworking and potent as allopathic medicines. Therefore, Ethno-veterinary medicines may be less suitable to control and treat epidemic and endemic infectious diseases. Ethno-veterinary medicines have promising potential and are widely used, many of them remain untested and their use also not monitored.