Course of malignant catarrhal fever in immunosuppressed and immunostimulated rabbits.
Rabbits pretreated with cyclophosphamide for 7 days (CY+) and control rabbits (CY-), were infected with cell-associated malignant catarrhal fever virus (MCFV), and CY treatment of the CY+ group was continued to day 20 p.i. The time of onset and degree of antibody formation to bovine serum albumin was significantly suppressed in the CY+ group whilst the humoral antibody response to MCFV appeared to be delayed rather than suppressed. Although incubation periods of the disease were comparable in the CY+ and CY- groups, the disease course was much shorter in the CY- group, 100% mortality occurring within a mean of 4.5 days, as opposed to a mean of 15 days in CY+ animals. Mortalities did not occur in the CY+ group until a mean of 5.5 days following withdrawal of CY. In further experiments it was shown that pre-existing antibody to MCFV had no effect on the incubation period and course of MCF in rabbits. The results thus suggest that MCF may not be an immune complex disease.
D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D000917:Antibody Formation / Q000187:drug effects; D001831:Body Temperature; D002417:Cattle; D003520:Cyclophosphamide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests; D006564:Herpesviridae / Q000276:immunology*; D007114:Immunization; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy; D008304:Malignant Catarrh / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D011817:Rabbits; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000276:immunology
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D003520:Cyclophosphamide