Cattle are a potential reservoir of bubaline herpesvirus 1 (BuHV1)

MAIDANA S. S; F. DELGADO; L. VAGNONI; A. MAUROY; E.THIRY; S. ROMERA

Veterinary Record Open

British Veterinary Association

Año: 2016

2052-6113

In the present work, controlled experimental infection and transmission studies in domestic cattle (Bos taurus) and water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) were carried out to study the in vivo behavior of bubaline herpesvirus 1 (BuHV1). Two bovine and two buffalo calves were infected with BuHV1 (20287N isolate) by intranasal aerosolization. Two sentinel cattle did not receive the virus challenge, but were housed with infected buffaloes to evaluate horizontal transmission. All experimentally inoculated animals showed viral infection and respiratory clinical signs. BuHV1 experimentally infected calves showed intermittent viral excretion between 2 and 18 days post infection (dpi) with a maximum titer of excretion of 106 TCID50/ml and moderate rhinitis between 2 and 20 dpi. BuHV1 experimentally inoculated buffaloes showed mild respiratory signs, which consisted mainly of serous nasal secretions during the infection period. Sentinel calves showed mucosal specific IgG1 antibodies at 7 days post contact. Viral DNA was detected by PCR and sequencing in both buffaloes and sentinel calves, which could be associated with latency. In conclusion, this study showed the susceptibility of cattle to BuHV1 after both experimental infection and contact with infected buffaloes. These data increase the scarce knowledge on the pathogenesis in natural host and the susceptibility of cattle to BuHV1 experimental infection.