Analysis of deletion within the reindeer pseudocowpoxvirus genome

► Parapoxviruses cause contagious stomatitis in reindeer in Finland. ► Both orf- and pseudocowpoxvirus are connected to the disease. ► Six genes were previously found missing in reindeer pseudocowpoxvirus genome. ► Deleted genes were found to be lost during cell culturing. ► Pseudocowpoxvirus contain homologues to all known orf virus genes.