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Made available in DSpace on 2021-07-14T10:33:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2018-02-01. Added 1 bitstream(s) on 2021-07-14T11:32:51Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 S1808-16572017000100238.pdf: 195364 bytes, checksum: 745536a7114207253c59806a6501d57a (MD5) A artrite encefalite caprina causa perdas consideráveis para a produção caprina. A principal forma de transmissão do vírus da artrite encefalite caprina é a ingestão de colostro ou leite de fêmeas infectadas. No entanto, algumas transmissões não podem ser explicadas por esta via. Dessa forma, este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a transmissão do vírus da artrite encefalite caprina por via transplacentária (vertical). Foram realizadas coletas de sangue em 283 crias recém-nascidas das raças Anglo-Nubiana e Saanen, provenientes de progenitores soropositivos e soronegativos. As amostras foram coletadas logo após o nascimento e analisadas pelas técnicas de imunodifusão em gel de agarose e western blot. No teste de imunodifusão em gel de agarose, nenhum cabrito foi detectado reagente. Porém, no teste de western blot, quatro cabritos nasceram soropositivos. Esse resultado indica que, apesar de baixa frequência (1,4%), existe a possibilidade de transmissão via transplacentária do lentivírus de pequenos ruminantes. Caprine arthritis encephalitis causes considerable losses in goat production. The main form of the caprine arthritis encephalitis virus transmission is through the ingestion of colostrum or milk from infected females. However, some transmissions cannot be explained in this manner. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate transplacental transmission of caprine arthritis encephalitis virus. Blood samples were collected from 283 newborn kids of Anglo-Nubian and Saanen breeds born from seropositive and seronegative goats. Samples were collected immediately after birth and analyzed with agarose gel immunodiffusion and western blot. All samples were negative in the agarose gel immunodiffusion. However, the western blot test demonstrated that four kids were born positive for caprine arthritis encephalitis virus. This result indicates that although in a low frequency (1.4%), there is a possibility of transplacental transmission of small ruminant lentivirus. Universidade Estadual do Ceará, Faculdade de Veterinária Embrapa Caprinos e Ovinos, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho”, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias Universidade Federal Rural do Semiárido Universidade Federal da Bahia, Escola de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho”, Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias

Caprine arthritis encephalitis causes considerable losses in goat production. The main form of the caprine arthritis encephalitis virus transmission is through the ingestion of colostrum or milk from infected females. However, some transmissions cannot be explained in this manner. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate transplacental transmission of caprine arthritis encephalitis virus. Blood samples were collected from 283 newborn kids of Anglo-Nubian and Saanen breeds born from seropositive and seronegative goats. Samples were collected immediately after birth and analyzed with agarose gel immunodiffusion and western blot. All samples were negative in the agarose gel immunodiffusion. However, the western blot test demonstrated that four kids were born positive for caprine arthritis encephalitis virus. This result indicates that although in a low frequency (1.4%), there is a possibility of transplacental transmission of small ruminant lentivirus. RESUMO: A artrite encefalite caprina causa perdas consideráveis para a produção caprina. A principal forma de transmissão do vírus da artrite encefalite caprina é a ingestão de colostro ou leite de fêmeas infectadas. No entanto, algumas transmissões não podem ser explicadas por esta via. Dessa forma, este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a transmissão do vírus da artrite encefalite caprina por via transplacentária (vertical). Foram realizadas coletas de sangue em 283 crias recém-nascidas das raças Anglo-Nubiana e Saanen, provenientes de progenitores soropositivos e soronegativos. As amostras foram coletadas logo após o nascimento e analisadas pelas técnicas de imunodifusão em gel de agarose e western blot. No teste de imunodifusão em gel de agarose, nenhum cabrito foi detectado reagente. Porém, no teste de western blot, quatro cabritos nasceram soropositivos. Esse resultado indica que, apesar de baixa frequência (1,4%), existe a possibilidade de transmissão via transplacentária do lentivírus de pequenos ruminantes.

It is becoming increasingly clear that organisms have developed a variety of mechanisms to fight against viral infection. The viruses have developed means of counteracting these defences in various ways. The APOBEC3 proteins are a mammalian-specific family of nucleic acid cytidine deaminases that block retroviral infection. These inhibitors are counteracted by the Vif proteins encoded by most lentiviruses. In this paper, we will review the interaction of the lentiviral Vif proteins with the APOBEC3 proteins, with an emphasis on sheep APOBEC3 and maedi-visna virus (MVV) Vif.

The objective of this work was to comparatively study the tissue tropism and the associated pathology of 2 autochthonous small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV) field strains using an experimental infection in sheep through the bone marrow. Fifteen male, SRLV-free lambs of the Rasa Aragonesa breed were inoculated with strain 697 (nervous tissue origin, animals A1–A6), with strain 496 (articular origin, animals B1–B6), or with uninfected culture medium (C1–C3). Clinical, serologic, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) evaluations were performed periodically. Two lambs from each infected group and a control animal were euthanized at 134, 273, and 319 days postinfection. Tissues were analyzed by gross and histopathologic evaluation; immunohistochemistry for CD3, CD4, CD8, CD68, and FoxP3 cell markers; lung morphometric evaluation; and tissue proviral quantification by PCR. All infected animals became positive either by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and/or PCR, with group B lambs showing the highest serologic values and more consistently positive PCR reactions. Group A lambs showed representative lung lesions but only mild histopathologic changes in the central nervous system (CNS) or in carpal joints. Contrarily, group B lambs demonstrated intense carpal arthritis and interstitial pneumonia but an absence of lesions in the CNS. Proviral copies in tissues were detected only in group B lambs. Experimental infection with these SRLV strains indicates that strain 496 is more virulent than strain 697 and more prone to induce arthritis, whereas strain 697 is more likely to reproduce encephalitis in Rasa Aragonesa lambs. Host factors as well as viral factors are responsible for the final clinicopathologic picture during SRLV infections., The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article: Grants by the Ministry of Science and Innovation of the Spanish Government, ref. No. AGL2010-22341-C04-02 and AGL2010-22341-C04-01. P. Pinczowski was a PhD student funded by the Brazilian Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq, ref. No. 202385/2011-6). R. Reina is supported by Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation under a ‘Ramón y Cajal’ contract.

Small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLV) globally affect welfare and production of sheep and goats and are mainly controlled through elimination of infected animals, independently of the viral kinetics within the single animal. Control programs are based on highly sensitive serological tests, however the existence of low antibody responders leads to the permanent presence of seronegative infected animals in the flock, thus perpetuating the infection. On the other hand, long-term non-progressors show a detectable antibody response not indicative of a shedding animal, suggesting immune contention of infection. In this study, we analyse two goat populations within the same herd, harbouring low or high proviral SRLV loads respectively, both showing a robust antibody response. In vivo findings were confirmed in vitro since fibroblastic cell lines obtained from one high and one low proviral load representative goats, showed respectively a high and a faint production of virus upon infection with reference and field circulating SRLV strains. Differences in virus production were relieved when strain CAEV-Co was used for experimental infection. We analysed LTR promoter activity, proviral load, entry step and production of virus and viral proteins. Intriguingly, proteasomal activity was higher in fibroblasts from low proviral load animals and proteasome inhibition increased viral production in both cell lines, suggesting the implication of active proteasome-dependent restriction factors. Among them, we analysed relative expression and sequences of TRIM5α, APOBEC3 (Z1, Z2, Z3 and Z2-Z3) and BST-2 (Tetherin) and found a global antiviral status in low proviral carriers that may confer protection against viral shedding and disease onset., Funded by Spanish CICYT (AGL2010-22341-C04-01 and AGL2013-49137-C3-1-R) and Navarra’s Government (IIQ010449.RI1 and IIQ14064.RI1) and Italian “Fondo di Ricerca Locale 2014, Università degli Studi di Torino - Indagini virologiche, biochimiche e molecolari sui meccanismi di immunità innata nella capra durante l’infezione da lentivirus” and partly funded by: RC IZSPLV06/09 “Studio di geni candidati per ‘selezione assistita da marcatori’, ai fini dell’incremento della resistenza a malattie in specie animali di interesse zootecnico”, finanziata dal Ministero della Salute. R. Reina was supported by Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness “Ramón y Cajal” contract., We acknowledge support in the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI).

A artrite encefalite caprina (CAE) é uma enfermidade crônica causada por um lentivírus de pequenos ruminantes (LVPR), que ocasiona perdas significativas na caprinocultura. O estado real da infecção animal pelo LVPR é de difícil determinação em virtude da complexa patogenia do vírus, incluindo fatores como soroconversão tardia ou intermitente em testes sorológicos. Para o diagnóstico da enfermidade, diversas técnicas sorológicas estão disponíveis, como testes de triagem ou confirmatórios, com variações na sensibilidade e especificidade. Para escolha do teste a ser usado, a disponibilidade de imunorreagentes comerciais, o treinamento da equipe, o antígeno utilizado, e o custo das técnicas devem ser considerados. Esta revisão apresenta os métodos sorológicos disponíveis para uso em diferentes fases dos programas de controle e erradicação da CAE e as medidas de manejo que devem ser adotadas em conjunto com o diagnóstico sorológico da enfermidade. Caprine arthritis encephalitis (CAE) is a chronic disease caused by a small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV), which causes significant losses in goat breeding. The actual state of animal infection with SRLV is difficult to determine due to a complex pathogenesis of the virus, including factors such as delayed or intermittent seroconversion in serological tests. Several serological techniques are available for disease diagnosis, such as screening or confirmation tests, which are different in sensitivity and specificity. Regarding the choice of the test to be applied, availability of commercial immunoreagents, team training, antigen used, and cost of techniques must be considered. This review presents the serological methods available for use in different stages of CAE control and eradication programs, and management measures to be adopted in conjunction with serological diagnosis of the disease.

15 páginas, 7 figuras, 1 tabla., Small ruminant lentiviruses include viruses with diverse genotypes that frequently cross the species barrier between sheep and goats and that display a great genetic variability. These characteristics stress the need to consider the whole host range and to perform local surveillance of the viruses to opt for optimum diagnostic tests, in order to establish control programes. In the absence of effective vaccines, a comprehensive knowledge of the epidemiology of these infections is of major importance to limit their spread. This article intends to cover these aspects and to summarise information related to characteristics of the viruses, pathogenesis of the infection and description of the various syndromes produced, as well as the diagnostic tools available, the mechanisms involved in transmission of the pathogens and, finally, the control strategies that have been designed until now, with remarks on the drawbacks and the advantages of each one. We conclude that there are many variables influencing the expected cost and benefits of control programs that must be evaluated, in order to put into practice measures that might lead to control of these infections.

Abstrract: This study was conducted in order to evaluate the transmission of caprine lentivirus to sheep using different experimental groups. The first one (colostrum group) was formed by nine lambs receiving colostrum from goats positive for small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLV). The second group (milk group) was established by nine lambs that received milk of these goats. Third was a control group, consisting of lambs that suckled colostrum and milk of negative mothers. Another experimental group (contact group) was formed by eight adult sheep, confined with two naturally infected goats. The groups were monitored by immunoblotting (IB), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) and nested polymerase chain reaction (nPCR). All lambs that suckled colostrum and milk of infected goats and six sheep of the contact group had positive results in the nPCR, although seroconversion was detected only in three of the exposed animals, with no clinical lentiviruses manifestation, in 720 days of observation. There was a close relationship between viral sequences obtained from infected animals and the prototype CAEV-Cork. Thus, it was concluded that SRLV can be transmitted from goats to sheep, however, the degree of adaptation of the virus strain to the host species probably interferes with the infection persistence and seroconversion rate.

Pérez, Marta et al., We describe the clinicopathologic features of an arthritis outbreak in sheep induced by small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV), linked to the presence of a new SRLV isolate phylogenetically assigned to caprine arthritis encephalitis virus–like subgroup B2. Thirteen SRLV seropositive Rasa Aragonesa adult ewes were selected from 5 SRLV highly infected flocks (mean seroprevalence, 90.7%) for presenting uni- or bilateral chronic arthritis in the carpal joint. A complete study was performed, including symptomatology, histopathology, immunocytochemistry, immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization, and microbiology. The carpus was the joint almost exclusively affected, with 10 sheep (76%) showing a moderate increase in carpal joint size (diameter range, 18–20 cm; normal range, 15–16 cm) without signs of locomotion problems and with 3 ewes (23%) showing severe inflammation with marked increase in diameter (21–24 cm), pain at palpation, and abnormal standing position. Grossly, chronic proliferative arthritis was observed in affected joints characterized by an increased thickness of the synovial capsule and synovial membrane proliferation. Microscopically, synovial membrane inflammation and proliferation and hyperplasia of synoviocytes were observed. More positive cases of SLRV infection were detected by immunocytochemistry of articular fluid than of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization also detected positive cells in the subsynovial connective tissue, lung, mediastinal lymph node, mammary gland, and mammary lymph node. All animals were negative for the presence of Mycoplasma or other bacteria in the articular space. The present outbreak likely represents an adaptation of a caprine virus to sheep. Our results underline the importance of the arthritis induced by SRLV in sheep, a clinical form that might be underestimated. © The Author(s) 2014.

Glaria, Idoia et al.-- 10 páginas, 5 figuras, 2 tablas., An extensive outbreak characterized by the appearance of neurological symptoms in small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV) infected sheep has been identified in Spain, but the genetic characteristics of the strain involved and differential diagnostic tools for this outbreak remain unexplored. In this work, 23 Visna-affected naturally infected animals from the outbreak, 11 arthritic animals (both groups presenting anti-Visna/Maedi virus serum antibodies), and 100 seronegative animals were used. Eight of the Visna-affected animals were further studied post-mortem by immunohistochemistry. All had lesions in spinal cord, being the most affected part of the central nervous system in six of them. A representative strain of the outbreak was isolated. Together with other proviral sequences from the outbreak the virus was assigned to genotype A2/A3. In vitro culture of the isolate revealed that viral production was slow/low in fibroblast-like cells but it was high in blood monocyte-derived macrophages. The long terminal repeat (LTR) of the viral genome of this isolate lacked an U3-duplication, but its promoter activity in fibroblast-like cells was normal compared to other strains. Thus, viral production could not be inferred from the LTR promoter activity in this isolate. Analysis of the viral immunodominant epitopes among SRLV sequences of the outbreak and other known sequences allowed the design of a synthetic SU peptide ELISA that detected the Visna affected animals, representing a tool of epidemiological interest to control viral spread of this highly pathogenic strain., Spanish CICYT AGL2006-13410-006-01/GAN AGL2010-22341-C04-01 . Government of Navarra, Department of Agriculture Public University of Navarra . Spanish CSIC

p. 494-503 Submitted by Edileide Reis (leyde-landy@hotmail.com) on 2014-04-22T15:43:56Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Gisele Rocha Santos.pdf: 178953 bytes, checksum: 139f8a58881d2ff7ef37eb88cb1e8642 (MD5) Approved for entry into archive by Alda Lima da Silva (sivalda@ufba.br) on 2014-04-22T18:48:12Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Gisele Rocha Santos.pdf: 178953 bytes, checksum: 139f8a58881d2ff7ef37eb88cb1e8642 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2014-04-22T18:48:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Gisele Rocha Santos.pdf: 178953 bytes, checksum: 139f8a58881d2ff7ef37eb88cb1e8642 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar, no território do semiárido baiano, a presença do Lentivirus de pequenos ruminantes (SRLV: Artrite encefalite caprina, CAEV, e Maedi-Visna, MVV) e caracterizar o perfil socioeconômico da caprino/ovinocultura nessa região. Em 134 propriedades do Portal do Sertão, Sisal e Bacia do Jacuípe foram coletadas amostras de soros de caprinos (n=1046) e ovinos (n = 704), para detecção de anticorpos para CAEV e MVV pelo teste de Imunodifusão (IDGA) e ELISA e Western Blot para CAEV. Durante a visita em cada fazenda, aplicou-se um questionário para definir o perfil socioeconômico da caprino/ovinocultura da propriedade. Os resultados mostraram a ausência de soropositivos para MVV e CAEV pelo IDGA, mas 5/755 caprinos foram positivos para CAEV pelo ELISA e confirmados no Western blot. O questionário aplicado mostrou um perfil produtivo pouco tecnificado, com predomínio de propriedades de gestão familiar, sem investimentos tecnológicos, rebanhos de ovinos e caprinos sem raça definida, criados em sistema extensivo e destinados principalmente à subsistência familiar. Concluindo, este trabalho mostra que a região do semiárido baiano tem uma baixa ocorrência do SRLV, e o desenvolvimento da caprino/ovinocultura é voltado à criação de animais para consumo familiar ou obtenção de renda nos mercados locais.

Ramírez, Hugo et al., Antibody-based diagnosis of small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs) has been efficiently achieved using serum and milk, but not semen, for which polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been proposed as a confirmatory technique. This work, involving 296 ovine (Ovis aries) and caprine (Capra hircus) semen donors, investigates whether seminal fluid (SF) can be reliably used in antibody-based SRLV diagnosis. First, a gold standard was established to assess the infection status and determine the sensitivity and specificity of three commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) in serum testing using Western blot and PCR as confirmatory tests. For SF testing, both gold standard and serum testing results were used as reference. The performance of SF testing was affected not only by the ELISA assay sensitivity (related to antigen spectrum) compared with that of the gold standard (as it occurred in serum testing) but also by SF sample quality and SF working dilution. Nonturbid SF samples, commonly collected in artificial insemination centers (AICs), were required. Compared with serum, SF testing had a decreased sensitivity in two of the ELISA assays (with original serum working dilutions ≤1/20 in serum testing) but reached a similar sensitivity (and specificity) in the assay designed to work at the highest serum dilution (1/500). A SF concentration of about 1/2 (250-fold that used in serum testing) was found optimal in this assay, yielding highly repeatable results that were in almost perfect agreement with those of serum testing (κ ± SE, 0.91 ± 0.81). Thus, SF ELISA can be reliably applied in antibody-based SRLV diagnosis. This information may be useful to control infection in AICs and animal and semen trade programs requiring health-certified quality of semen donors. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved., This study was supported by grants from Spanish CICYT (AGL2006-13410-C06-01/GAN) and the Government of Navarra Department of Agriculture (2003-2005). H. Ramírez was supported by the PASPA program, UNAM, and the Public University of Navarra. I. Glaria was supported by the Government of Navarra, Department of Agriculture. We are thankful to P. Lana, C. Santamaría (ITG-Ganadero), the Government of Navarra, and to AICs and farmers, particularly from Navarra and Aragon, as well as CAPRIGAN Breeder Association for kindly providing samples involved this study.

RNA transcripts of the B7 family molecule (CD80) are diminished in blood leukocytes from animals clinically affected with Visna/Maedi virus (VMV) infection. This work investigates whether the use of B7 genes enhances immune responses and protection in immunization-challenge approaches. Sheep were primed by particle-mediated epidermal bombardment with VMV gag and env gene recombinant plasmids together with plasmids encoding both CD80 and CD86 or CD80 alone, boosted with gag and env gene recombinant modified vaccinia Ankara virus and challenged intratracheally with VMV. Immunization in the presence of one or both of the B7 genes resulted in CD4+ T cell activation and antibody production (before and after challenge, respectively), but only immunization with CD80 and CD86 genes together, and not CD80 alone, resulted in a reduced number of infected animals and increased early transient cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) responses. Post-mortem analysis showed an immune activation of lymphoid tissue in challenge-target organs in those animals that had received B7 genes compared to unvaccinated animals. Thus, the inclusion of B7 genes helped to enhance early cellular responses and protection (diminished proportion of infected animals) against VMV infection. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., This study was supported by grants from Spanish CICYT (AGL2003-08977-C03-01 and AGL2007-66874-C04) and European Union (QLK2-CT-2002-00617). Ximena de Andrés was supported by a fellowship FPI from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Education.

Current issues in Sheep Health and Welfare; International audience; Retroviruses are RNA viruses widely distributed in most vertebrate and in many non-vertebrate species. Among the retrovirus family, small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLV), Jaagsiekte sheep retrovirus (JSRV) and enzootic nasal tumor virus (ENTV) infect small ruminants. JSRV and ENTV are oncogenic retroviruses responsible for pulmonary and nasal adenocarcinomas, respectively, which can lead to the death of the animals in few weeks or months. SRLV are non-oncogenic and replication-competent lentiviruses, related to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). SRLV are responsible for slowly evolving progressive degenerative diseases leading to the death of the host after few months or years. These viruses are transmitted through the colostrum or milk and aerosolization of infectious particles. This review focuses on the biology of the small ruminant retrovirus and on the main mechanisms of disease induction.

In bucks semen analyses are useful, although they may not predict actual fertilizing potential, but they predict low fertility and allow exclusion of those samples or even males from an artificial insemination (AI) program. It is therefore advised to test each buck in order to determine the preferred treatment of its semen with respect to resistance to glycerol, extender and removal of seminal plasma. Based on these tests the most preferred storage treatment can be adapted for AI and higher pregnancy rates can be obtained. Economical and physical damage caused by Small Ruminant Lenti Virus (SRLV) infections in sheep and goats can be limited by simple measures to minimize the risk of transmission and prompt recognition of infection. Housing is a critical event herein since the risk of infection is 10 times higher during stabling than at pasture. For the prevention and control of SRLV this means that management systems without housing run little risk of reaching the infection rates that cause economic damage, which implies that preventative measures should relate to the risk associated with the -mainly geographically determined- management system. Also the males have to be identified as risk factor. Shedding of proviral SRLV-DNA in semen has been proven for rams and bucks. Most males shed intermittently. Also a large proportion of the tissue samples from the male genital tract tested positive for SRLV-DNA. These findings support the possibility that SRLV's are sexually transmittable. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests proved to be useful in detecting proviral DNA in blood, tissue and in semen, whereas antibody detecting tests were also used to determine infection. Although the amount of SRLV susceptive cells can vary substantially, they were always detectable in any given sample. The hypothesis that shedding of virus is related to a high number of those susceptive cells in the blood and semen is not supported by our data. This also supports the hypothesis that shedding in semen can be accomplished by alternative routes than the postulated macrophage dependent delivery. Furthermore this thesis shows that there are individual differences with respect to the progressiveness of the lesions, that severe lesions can develop in a few months, that the progressiveness differs between the breeds examined, but that the lesions in the udder and probably the CNS are not inevitably progressive and may even regress. In conclusion: Of optimal pregnancy results after AI, semen treatment and storage should be tuned to the individual male. For efficient SRLV control on farm level, first risk factors should be identified, than a goal should be set followed by a tailor made approach to lower incidence or even eradicate SRLV.

In bucks semen analyses are useful, although they may not predict actual fertilizing potential, but they predict low fertility and allow exclusion of those samples or even males from an artificial insemination (AI) program. It is therefore advised to test each buck in order to determine the preferred treatment of its semen with respect to resistance to glycerol, extender and removal of seminal plasma. Based on these tests the most preferred storage treatment can be adapted for AI and higher pregnancy rates can be obtained. Economical and physical damage caused by Small Ruminant Lenti Virus (SRLV) infections in sheep and goats can be limited by simple measures to minimize the risk of transmission and prompt recognition of infection. Housing is a critical event herein since the risk of infection is 10 times higher during stabling than at pasture. For the prevention and control of SRLV this means that management systems without housing run little risk of reaching the infection rates that cause economic damage, which implies that preventative measures should relate to the risk associated with the -mainly geographically determined- management system. Also the males have to be identified as risk factor. Shedding of proviral SRLV-DNA in semen has been proven for rams and bucks. Most males shed intermittently. Also a large proportion of the tissue samples from the male genital tract tested positive for SRLV-DNA. These findings support the possibility that SRLV's are sexually transmittable. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests proved to be useful in detecting proviral DNA in blood, tissue and in semen, whereas antibody detecting tests were also used to determine infection. Although the amount of SRLV susceptive cells can vary substantially, they were always detectable in any given sample. The hypothesis that shedding of virus is related to a high number of those susceptive cells in the blood and semen is not supported by our data. This also supports the hypothesis that shedding in semen can be accomplished by alternative routes than the postulated macrophage dependent delivery. Furthermore this thesis shows that there are individual differences with respect to the progressiveness of the lesions, that severe lesions can develop in a few months, that the progressiveness differs between the breeds examined, but that the lesions in the udder and probably the CNS are not inevitably progressive and may even regress. In conclusion: Of optimal pregnancy results after AI, semen treatment and storage should be tuned to the individual male. For efficient SRLV control on farm level, first risk factors should be identified, than a goal should be set followed by a tailor made approach to lower incidence or even eradicate SRLV.

Little sequence information exists on the matrix-protein (MA) encoding region of small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLV). Fifty-two novel sequences were established and permitted a first phylogenetic analysis of this region of the SRLV genome. The variability of the MA encoding region is higher compared to the gag region encoding the capsid protein and surprisingly close to that reported for the env gene. In contrast to primate lentiviruses, the deduced amino acid sequences of the N- and C-terminal domains of MA are variable. This permitted to pinpoint a basic domain in the N-terminal domain that is conserved in all lentiviruses and likely to play an important functional role. Additionally, a seven amino acid insertion was detected in all MVV strains, which may be used to differentiate CAEV and MVV isolates. A molecular epidemiology analysis based on these sequences indicates that the Italian lentivirus strains are closely related to each other and to the CAEV-CO strain, a prototypic strain isolated three decades ago in the US. This suggests a common origin of the SRLV circulating in the monitored flocks, possibly related to the introduction of infected goats in a negative population. Finally, this study shows that the MA region is suitable for phylogenetic studies and may be applied to monitor SRLV eradication programs.

Resumo: O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a utilização periódica de testes de diagnóstico mais sensíveis aliados às práticas de manejo, visando ao controle eficaz da artrite encefalite caprina (CAE). Foram realizadas oito coletas de sangue em matrizes e reprodutores. Da primeira à sétima análise, as coletas foram quadrimestrais, utilizando-se os testes de imunodifusão em gel de agarose (IDGA), ensaio imunoenzimático indireto (ELISA-i) e Western Blot (WB). A oitava coleta aconteceu seis meses após a sétima, utilizando-se o WB e a reação em cadeia de polimerase (PCR). A prevalência da CAE foi de 6,8%, 14,9% e 39,2% no IDGA, ELISA-i e WB, respectivamente. Na última análise, foram detectados 0,9% de animais positivos pelo WB e 10,8% pela PCR. Apesar de não erradicarem a CAE, as medidas adotadas, aliadas à utilização periódica dos testes sorológicos e à combinação com a PCR, foram importantes para reduzir significativamente os animais soropositivos no rebanho. [Evaluation of strategic control of caprine arthritis- encephalitis in dairy herd goats]. Abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the periodic use of more sensitive diagnostic tests associated to management practices for the effective control of caprine arthritis-encephalitis (CAE). We carried out eight blood samples in does and bucks. From the first to the seventh analysis, the samples were quarterly, using Agarose Gel Immunodiffusion (AGID), Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (i-ELISA) and Western Blot (WB) tests. The eighth collection was made six months after the seventh, using the WB and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The prevalence of CAE was 6.8%, 14.9% and 39.2% in the AGID, iELISA and WB respectively. The last analysis detected 0.9% of animals positive by WB and 10.8% by PCR. Although they do not eradicate CAE, steps taken together with the periodic use of serological tests and the combination with PCR were important to significantly reduce positive animals in the herd. Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-10T00:39:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CNPC2018Avaliacaodeum.pdf: 237514 bytes, checksum: 0edcbeb2232e9ab334578ae8ea23c8af (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-04-09

Amaç: Küçük ruminant lentivirus enfeksiyonu, koyun ve keçilerde patolojik ve klinik olarak mastitis, maedi, visna ve artritise neden olan bir dizi ana hedef organı aynı anda ve immunpatojenik olarak etkileyebilen kronik ve tedavi edilemez bir karaktere sahiptir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, histopatolojik ve immunohistokimyasal olarak enfekte keçilerin farklı dokularındaki lezyonları ve hücresel dağılımını ortaya koymaktır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Çalışmada, seropozitif olduğu bilinen toplam 6 adet keçi, ayrıca 1 adet abort fötus kullanıldı. Histopatolojik bulgular ve immunohistokimyasal olarak, hücresel dağılımlar tespit edildi. Bulgular: Histopatolojik olarak bronkopnömoni ve kronik intersitisyel pnömoni, enteritis, böbreklerde proksimal ve distal tubulus epitellerinde hidropik dejenerasyon ve nekroz, hiyalin damlacıkları ve hiyalin silindirleri, dalakta konjesyon ve lenfoid hücrelerde azalma, kalpte konjesyon, hiyalin dejenerasyonu ve nekroz ile karaciğerde hidropik dejenerasyon, nekroz ve hepatitis gözlendi. İmmunohistokimyasal olarak akciğerde bronş ve bronşiyollerin epitellerinde, alveoler makrofajlarda ve lenfositlerde, dalakta lenfosit ve makrofajlarda, bağırsaklarda kript ve villus epitellerinde, lenfosit ve makrofajlarda, karaciğerde ise Kupffer hücrelerinde ve lenfositlerde pozitif boyanmalar görüldü. Aksine, böbrekler ve kalpte pozitiflik görülmedi. Öneri: Sonuç olarak, keçi yetiştiriciliğinde önemli bir yeri bulunan küçük ruminant lentivirus enfeksiyonunda elde edilen veriler ve bu verilerin, yeni çalışmalarda ve geliştirilebilecek mücadele programlarında önem arz edeceği düşünülmektedir., Aim: Small ruminant lentivirus infections has chronic and incurable character that might simultaneously and immunopathogenically affect several major target organs, causing pathological and clinical mastitis, maedi, visna, and arthritis in sheep and goats. This study aimed to reveal the lesions and their cellular distribution in different tissues of histopathologically and immunohistochemically infected goats. Materials and Methods: A total of six goats, known as seropositive, and one aborted fetus, were used for the study. Histopathologic findings and immunohistochemical cellular distributions were determined. Results: Histopathologically, bronchopneumonia and chronic interstitial pneumonia, enteritis, hyaline droplets and hyaline cylinders, hydropic degeneration and necrosis of proximal and distal tubular epithelium in the kidneys, congestion and decrease of lymphoid cells in the spleen, congestion, hyaline degeneration and necrosis in the heart, and hydropic degeneration, necrosis and hepatitis in the liver were observed. Immunohistochemically, positive staining was observed in the epithelium of the bronchi and bronchioles, alveolar macrophages and lymphocytes in the lung, lymphocytes and macrophages in the spleen, crypt, and villous epitelium, lymphocytes and macrophages in the intestine, and Kupffer cells and lymphocytes in the liver. In contrast, no positivity was observed in the kidneys and heart. Conclusion: It is anticipated that the data obtained on small ruminant lentivirus infections will have an important place in goat breeding and will be important for new studies and control programs that may be developed.