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Viral Diseases
Viral Diseases
• The FMDV – Aphthovirus in the family of Picorna viridae. It is a non-enveloped, single stranded RNA
(ss RNA)
• There are seven immunologically distinct serotypes – O, A, C, SAT 1, SAT 2, SAT 3 and ASIA 1.
• Serotypes- O, A, C & Asia 1 are prevalent in India. In cattle, “O” is predominant type and then Asia 1.
• Cattle are usually the most important maintenance hosts for FMDV
Sources of virus: All secretions and excretions -including expired air, saliva, milk, urine, faeces and semen.
Large quantities in vesicle fluid and peak transmission usually occurs when vesicle rupture
Routes of spread:
• Inhalation of aerosolized virus, Ingestion, through skin abrasions or mucous membrane
Pathogenesis:
Tongue -------- multiplication in stratum spinosum causing cytolysis ------- viraemia -----hoof
In calves - There is heavy mortality in young calf due to cardiac damage with absence of appreciable
vesicular lesions.
Heart musculature shows striped appearance – “Tiger heart / Tigroid heart” (necrotising myocarditis /
myocardial necrosis/ fatty infiltration/ thrush breast heart).
Symptoms: vesicles (blisters) on: the feet, in and around the mouth, and on the mammary gland.
Excessive salivation (due to difficulty in swallowing because of painful lesions in the mouth), Abortion
Panters – Thyroid endocrine dysfunction – thermo regulation activity hampered by long grown hair
Pig: Most severe lesions on the feet. Mouth lesions are usually small and less apparent than in cattle, and
drooling is rare
Sheep and goat: Mild in sheep and goats.
Foot and mouth disease (FMD)
• Loss of epithelium is most common on the dorsal surface of the anterior two-thirds
of the bovine tongue
• Foot-and-mouth disease virus does not produce any observable viral inclusions
Samples collection:
• The preferred sample is: epithelium from unruptured or freshly ruptured vesicles or
vesicular fluid.
• If vesicles are not available, blood (serum) and esophageal-pharyngeal fluid
Rinderpest (Syn: Cattle plague)
• Rinderpest virus is a member- Morbillivirus;Paramyxoviridae family, RNA virus. RP virus is a very fragile
• Antigenically closely related to the viruses of Measles (in humans) Canine distemper, Peste-des-petits-ruminants
(PPR) (in sheep & Goats) & Equine morbillivirus
Spread:
• Close contact between infected and non-infected. Virus is excreted through urine, faeces, nasal discharge, and
sweat.
Transmission: ingestion of contaminated feed, or inhalation of aerosol (infected droplets)
Pathogenesis:
• “Great affinity of virus for lymphoid tissue (Marked leukopaenia) and alimentary mucosa (Focal necrotic
stomatitis and enteritis) ”
• Immunosuppression (due to lymphocytolysis) aggravates these infections, Death is usually due to severe
dehydration
• Immunity is associated with first IgM, and later IgG and IgA (HI).
Lesion:
Large intestine: large intestine – is more affected . Streaks of congestion along the folds of mucosa produce a
characteristic “Zebra-striped” (Zebra markings), or “barred” appearance in rectum. No vesicle formation
Peyer’s patches: Haemorrhages → Sloughening →“Ulcers” in the intestinal wall (deep craters)
Histopathology lesion:
• Eosinophilic both intracytoplasmic inclusion and intranuclear inclusions bodies in mucosal epithelium & giant
cells. multinucleated giant cells in St. spinosum
Samples collection:
• Live animals (preferably before the onset of diarrhoea) , Blood sample, Swabs of lachrymal fluid, Necrotic tissue
of oral cavity, Aspirations of superficial lymph nodes
• Dead animals: Spleen, lymph node, tonsil
Malignant catarrhal fever (MCF)
Synonym: infectious pustular vulvovaginitis, coital exanthema, vesicular venereal disease, vesicular vaginitis, coital
vesicular vaginitis or coital vesicular exanthema & Red nose
Characterised by : upper respiratory disease, conjunctivitis, encephalitis, mastitis, infectious pustular vulvovaginitis and
balanoposthitis, abortion, and systemic infection in calves.
Source: nasal exudate and coughed-up droplets, genital secretions, semen and foetal fluids
Route of infection: Aerosol (droplet) infection-respiratory disease; Venereal transmission is genital diseases. The IBR virus
may survive for up to 1 year in frozen semen.
Acute : The principal gross lesions are seen in the gastrointestinal tract.
In chronic condition: skeletal disorder of cattle, termed “hyena disease” - premature growth plate (physis) closure
Blue Tongue
Etiology: Orbivirus, double stranded RNA virus; Endotheliotropic virus (Gross and microscopic lesion)
Characterised by: Catarrhal stomatitis, rhinitis, enteritis and lameness, but adults seem to be affected
more than lambs
Pathogenesis:
Lesions originate from replication of the virus in endothelial cells
↓
Edema, hyperaemia, haemorrhage and infarction
Lesions:
- The striking lesion is edema and cyanosis of the tongue (bluish).
- Flushing of coronet
- Petechiae haemorrhage at the base of the pulmonary artery
Clinical signs: Serous nasal and ocular discharges ; Matting is common around the eyes, ; profuse diarrhoea and Necrotic
and ulcerative lesion in mouth, nasal cavity, vulva and vagina, In the late stages of the disease, small nodules
resembling contagious ecthyma or sheep/goat pox can appear in the skin around the muzzle.
Gross lesions:
GI tract: inflammatory and necrotic lesions in the oral cavity – lips, gums, abomasum, duodenum and the terminal ileum
Respiratory lesions - bronchopneumonia. (Pneumonic lesions are prominent than GI form- Differ from RP)
The lymph nodes- of respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts, congested, enlarged and edematous.
Histopathology lesions:
- Syncytial cells (multinucleated giant cells) in early stage of the disease.(in stratified Squamous epithelium of the Upper
respiratory tract
- Intracytopalsmic inclusions in intestinal epithelium; Intranuclear inclusions in respiratory epithelium
Samples to be collected:
1. Swabs of conjunctival, nasal, buccal and rectal discharges Whole blood collected on heparin
2. Lymph nodes, especially mesenteric and bronchial nodes, Spleen, Large intestine and lungs Transport under
refrigeration
Pasteurellosis can also be a secondary complication of PPR.
Equine Infectious Anemia
Synonym: Swamp Fever, Mountain Fever, Slow Fever, Equine Malarial Fever, Coggins
Disease
Etiology: Equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV): lentivirus family Retroviridae – RNA virus
Transmission: Vector borne – Biting insects - Tabanus, stomoxys and mosquitoes
Pathogenesis: In horses, this virus persists in blood leukocytes for life, and also occurs in
plasma
Clinical signs: Based on clinical signs: Acute, subacute and chronic; Acute phase is
characterised by normocytic and normochromic anaemia
- Anaemia due to hameolysis, erythrophagocytosis, decreased production of
erythrocytes, thrombocytopaenia and elevation of serum immunoglobulin level.
- Coombs’ test results are positive (Antiglobulin test; Immune mediate haemolytic
anaemia)
Diagnosis:
- Coombs’ test results are positive (Antiglobulin test; Immune mediate haemolytic anaemia-
to detect antibody and complement
Coggins’ test (agar immunodiffusion) is a sensitive diagnostic test for equine infectious
anemia developed by Dr. Leroy Coggins.
African Horse Sickness
• African horse sickness is a highly fatal, infectious disease of horses, mules, and donkeys, caused
by an orbivirus.
Etiology: - orbivirus belonging to the family Reoviridae - double-stranded RNA
Susceptible host: Horses Mules Donkeys
Transmission: Vector borne – Biting insects (midges) of Culicoides namely Culicoides imicola, C.
bolitinos; C. variipennis
Clinically, the disease may occur in one of the four forms :
1) Acute pulmonary form – DUNKOP – most common type ; The most characteristic features are the
Severe dyspnoea caused by pulmonary edema, often with frothy exudates in the nostrils.
2) Sub acute cardiac form- DIKKOP - characterized by edema of the head, neck, lips, eyelids, cheek,
and tongue; edematous bulging of the supra orbital fossa
3) Mild form- known as horse sickness fever
4) Mixed form.
Gross lesions: The most prominent changes are seen in the respiratory system, hydrothorax, frothy
fluid from nostrils and hydropericardium
Equine Encephalomyelitis
Etiology: - Arbo virus (Arthopod borne) belonging to the family Reoviridae - double-stranded RNA
Three strains: Western” strain , “Eastern” strain and “Venezuelan” strain.
Transmission: Vector – Mosquitoes (Culex, Aedes); Wild birds – Resorvoir
Pathogenesis: Affect central nervous system and neurological disorder. It has zoonotic potential
Pseudorabies
Synonym: “infectious bulbar paralysis”, “Aujeszky’s disease”, “mad itch”
Etiology: herpesvirus suis – ds DNA virus
Host: Natural infection occurs in cattle, sheep, pigs, dogs, cats, and rats, but it is of greatest
importance in cattle, in which the disease is almost always fatal. Pigs (Natural host) and
rats (reservoir hosts) for herpesvirus suis
Route of infection: Abraded skin; Zoonotic Significance
Transmission: Direct contact ; Pigs serve as the source of infection for cattle and sheep; Pig
is a lifetime carrier
Pantropism - mainly in the respiratory tract and other organs like skin and brain
(olfactory, glosso- pharyngeal, or trigeminal nerves).
Signs: Pig – only nervous signs (non-purulent encephalitis); Pruritis is not common
Cattle – violent itching, bulbar involvement (i.e., of medulla oblongata), hence the
name “bulbar paralysis
Histopathology : Pig – Brain – Intranuclear inclusions; Cattle – skin- Intranuclear inclusions
Rabies Pseudorabies
Long incubation period, virus seen in saliva Short incubation period, virus not seen in
saliva
No itching present Itching present
Paralysis of larynx often Paralysis of larynx not often
Classical Swine fever
Synonym: Hog Cholera, Swine Plague
Etiology: Pestivirus of the family Flaviviridae, single stranded RNA and is closely related to the viruses
of bovine viral diarrhoea and Border disease.
Source of infection: Blood, secretions and excretions
Route of infection: ingestion (most common), conjunctiva or mucous membranes, skin abrasions,
genital transmission, artificial insemination, percutaneous blood transfer
Pathogenesis: vascular endothelial damage (Endotheliotropic) --- congestion, haemorrhage and
infarction); Thrombosis of small and medium-sized arteries is another feature
Gross lesions: Button ulcer in intestine, Petechiae in kidneys (Turkey egg), infarction in spleen and
haemorrhagic lymph nodes are due to vascular endothelial damage caused by the virus.
Congenital form :
• Central dysmyelinogenesis, cerebellar hypoplasia, microencephaly, Pulmonary hypoplasia,
hydrops and other malformations
Microscopic lesion: The most constant change is swelling and proliferation of endothelial cells. The
capillary wall may become completely hyalinized, resulting in partial or complete occlusion
Diagnosis:
• Live animals: whole blood from multiple febrile cases; Refrigerate and ship to laboratory as quickly
as possible in EDTA or Heparin (live cases)
• Tissues from recently dead animals- Tonsil, Lymph nodes (pharyngeal, mesenteric), spleen,
kidney and distal ileum
Swine influenza (“Swine flu”)
Etiology: Parvo virus, ds DNA, The virus is more than 98% identical in DNA with
feline panleukopaenia virus
Characterised by: two different clinico-pathological forms of the disease.
1) Intestinal form, which is the main form (Adult dog)
2) Cardiac form – Affect young puppies
Spread: Direct dog to dog; contaminated faeces of from the environment
Pathogenesis:
Intestinal Form :Necrotizing enteritis of the small intestine; This form occurs in
dogs of all ages, severe more than 6 weeks.
• It i s characterized by vomiting, diarrhoea, and dehydration. There may be fever
and leukopaenia.
• Intranuclear inclusion bodies - intestinal epithelial cells
Cardiac Form : Affect younger dogs - puppies of 2-8 weeks of age. Death is due to
myocardial necrosis. This form may exist with or without, signs or lesions in the
small intestine
Histopathology: multiple foci of myocardial necrosis; Intranuclear inclusion bodies
are present in muscle fibres
Jaagsiekte
Synonym: Ovine pulmonary adenoma, Ovine pulmonary adenomatosis, Pulmonary
carcinoma of sheep; Driving sickness/disease
- Jaagsiekte is a neoplastic disease of older sheep ; hypertrophy and hyperplasia of
alveolar epithelium “jaagsiekte means a “driving sickness/disease” (jaagt = drive; siekte
= sickness).
Etiology: type D oncovirus (a retrovirus) ; RNA virus
Spread and source: Naturally, transmitted by inhalation of infected droplets from respiratory
secretions.
Pathogenesis: Virus --- replication in the type II pneumocytes in the alveolus and Clara cells
in Terminal Bronchioles ---- Transformation of the cells in the terminal bronchioles ---
intra-alveolar and intra-bronchiolar polypoid ingrowths ---- copious production of fluid
The adenomatous ingrowths encroach alveolar space -----Anoxic anoxia
Clinical signs: incubation period in natural cases is 1-3 years; rare in sheep younger than 2
years and is most common at 3-4 years of age; Moist crackles (slowly boiling porridge)
Microscopic lesions: Pronounced thickening of the alveolar walls and partial obliteration of
the alveolar spaces by small adenocarcinomas
Diagnosis: wheelbarrow test where one lifts the hind legs of the animal above the head to
observe lung exudate flow out the nose and mouth.This fluid contains infectious virus.
Maedi
• Caused by a Capri-poxvirus
• Highly infectious disease of cattle and buffaloes (Neethling virus). Nodules on all parts of the skin
and oral, nasal, genital mucous membranes and enlarged lymphnodes
• Spread by insect vectors, mainly flies.
Lesions:
Acanthosis (thickened epidermis), Parakeratosis (thickened Stratum corneum with pyknotic nuclei)
and hyperkeratosis (thickened s tratum corneum) of the epidermis with necrosis and vesicle
formation.
• Eosinophilic cytoplasmic inclusion bodies in keratinocytes, fibroblasts, and macrophages
Diseases caused by Para-Poxviruses
1) Contagious Pustular Dermatitis: Parapox
Synonyms: “contagious ovine ecthyma”, “infectious labial dermatitis”, scabby mouth’, ‘sore mouth’
and “orf
Spread: by contact
• There is a severe systemic reaction - alimentary tract -gastroenteritis, and trachea may be followed
by bronchopneumonia
• The epidermis proliferates and becomes several times than normal and deep into the dermis.
• Although hyperplasia of the epidermis is seen in most poxvirus infections, it is particularly striking
in ecthyma
• Zoonotic: Transmissible to humans. Mild transitory (of short duration) pustular lesions
Bovine Papular Stomatitis
Synonym: Infectious ulcerative stomatitis and oesophagitis’.
Characterised by: mild viral disease of young cattle- papules on the muzzle,
nostrils, and in the oral cavity. Lesions also occur in the oesophagus, rumen,
reticulum and omasum.
Etiology: Para-poxvirus. It is closely related to pseudo-cowpox virus.
The affected keratinocytes often contain spherical eosinophilic cytoplasmic
inclusion bodies.
Pseudo-Cowpox
Synonym: Milker’s nodule
Etiology: Para-poxvirus. Pseudo-cowpox is called paravaccinia, but is not related to
vaccinia or cowpox. It is closely related to contagious pustular dermatitis virus
and bovine pustular stomatitis virus
Lesions are limited to the teats and udders of milking cows, and appear as red
papules and vesicles.
Zoonotic Significance: transmissible to humans -“milker’s nodules” on the hand