Treatment of Neonatally Aleutian Disease Virus (ADV) Infected Mink Kits with Gammaglobulin Containing Antibodies to ADV Reduces the Death Rate of Mink Kits

Abstract

Aleutian disease virus (ADV) can cause pneumonitis in newborn kits up to 3 weeks old. In many cases the pneumonitis is fatal, but can be reduced by treatment with antibodies to ADV. The present report describes antibody therapy in both experimentally infected mink kits and in mink kits from a farm, where an ADV epidemic developed during the whelping period in the spring of 1987. In both cases the antibody treatment was found to have a beneficial effect on the survival rate of the mink kits. One hundred percent survival rate was found for the experimentally infected mink kits. The most pronounced effect for the naturally infected mink was found in the wildtype mink kits, where the death rate was 9.6 % for the antibody treated group versus 16.9 % for the untreated group (p < 0.001). In general the success rate of the gammaglobulin treatment seemed to correlate with the ADV-infection level in the mink sheds. The highest success rate was found in the sheds with the highest ADV-infection level (the standard and wildtype mink), while no effect whatsoever was found for the pearl mink, which were placed in a shed with a low ADV-infection level.

Sammendrag

Plasmacytosevirus (Aleutian disease virus (ADV)) kan fremkalde pneumonitis hos nyfødte minkhvalpe (op til 3 uger gamle). I mange tilfælde er denne pneumonitis dødelig, men den kan forebygges ved behandling med antistoffer mod ADV. Nærværende rapport beskriver antistofterapi af både eksperimentelt ADV-inficerede minkhvalpe og minkhvalpe fra en farm, hvor en ADV-epidemi udbrød i yngleperioden i foråret 1987. I begge tilfælde havde antistofbehandlingen en gunstig virkning på minkhvalpenes overlevelsesprocent. Der var en overlevelsesprocent på 100 blandt de eksperimentelt inficerede minkhvalpe. Den mest udtalte effekt hos de naturligt inficerede minkhvalpe fandtes hos wildtype hvalpe, hvor dødeligheden var 9,6 % hos hvalpe behandlet med antistof mod 16,9 % hos ubehandlede hvalpe (p < 0.001). Det blev generelt fundet, at virkningsgraden af gammaglobulin behandlingen syntes at korrelere med infektionsniveauet af plasmacytose-virus i minkhallerne. Den største virkningsgrad blev fundet i de haller, der havde det højeste ADV infektionspres (standard og wildtype mink), medens der ingen effekt af behandlingen blev fundet for pearl mink, der var i en hal med et lilie plasmacytosevirus infektionsniveau.