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An Outbreak of Mucosal Disease in a Dairy Herd

Eit utbrot av mucosal disease i ein buskap av mjølkekyr

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 30, pages 321–327 (1989)Cite this article

Abstract

An outbreak of mucosal disease (MD) was studied in a dairy herd, comprising 12 cows, 9 heifers and 18 calves. During a period of 1 month, six 5 to 8 month-old calves showed typical signs of MD. They all died or were killed in extremis after 2-8 days with progressively worsening clinical signs. Post mortem lesions were examined in one calf. Non-cytopathogenic MD virus was isolated from serum or tissues from 3 clinically affected calves and from 1 healthy heifer. All cows and heifers except for the viremic one possessed neutralizing antibodies against bovine pestivirus. According to the current MD-pathogenesis concept, the affected calves were probably infected transplacentally during the first half of foetal life with pestivirus from the persistently infected heifer in the herd.

Sammendrag

Eit utbrot av mucosal disease (MD) vart undersøkt i ein buskap av Norsk Rødt Fe som omfatta 12 mjølkekyr, 9 kviger og 18 kalvar. I eit tidsrom av 1 månad viste 6 kalvar typiske teikn på MD. Alle desse kalvane døydde eller vart avliva i moribund tilstand etter ein 2–8 dagars periode med forverrande sjukdom.

Noncytopatogent MD virus vart isolert frå serum eller vev frå 3 sjuke kalvar og l frisk kvige. Alle kyrne og kvigene utanom den eine som vart funne viremisk, hadde nøytraliserande antistoff i serum mot bovint pestivirus. I samsvar med patogenesen ved MD vart dei affiserte kalvane truleg infiserte transplacentalt i første halvdel av Fosterlivet med pestivirus frå den persistent infiserte kviga i buskapen.

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Acknowledgements

We are indebted to Dr. H. Stenwig, National Veterinary Institute, Oslo, for bacteriological examinations, and to the herd owner for all his assistance and detailed registrations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Veterinary Institute, P. O. Box 8156, Dep., N-0033 Oslo 1, Oslo, Norway

    T. Loken, H. Gamlem & O. Lysbakken

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  1. T. Loken
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  2. H. Gamlem
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  3. O. Lysbakken
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Loken, T., Gamlem, H. & Lysbakken, O. An Outbreak of Mucosal Disease in a Dairy Herd. Acta Vet Scand 30, 321–327 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548038

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Keywords

  • cattle
  • mucosal disease
  • pestivirus
  • persistent infection
  • BVD/MD virus
  • neutralizing antibodies.

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica

ISSN: 1751-0147