Abstract

Bovine papillomaviruses (BPV) are double-stranded DNA viruses that infect the cutaneous and mucosal epithelia inducing hyperplasic lesions in cattle. BPV is the etiologic agent of the papillomatosis and neoplasia of the upper gastrointestinal tract and urinary bladder. The benign and malignant tumors caused by BPV are emergent diseases important for beef and dairy cattle in the world. Although BPV associated tumors have veterinary and agricultural relevance, they have also been studied as a relevant model of human papillomavirus (HPV). Recent studies in BPV biology have shown a great diversity of BPV types and new putative BPV types infecting and co-infecting the herd in several parts of the world. This review will briefly summarize the genomes and structure of BPV and the bovine papillomatosis; will describe in greater detail the genotypic diversity, BPV cross-species infection, relevant aspects of BPV and co-infection and its possible routes of transmission. These new approaches about BPV may be very useful to understand the oncogenic potential of the virus, the relationship between virus and co-factors, and the development of anti-viral vaccines.

Key words: Bovine papillomavirus, co-infection, virus transmission, BPV diversity.