title: Quantification of Equid herpesvirus 5 DNA in clinical and necropsy specimens collected from a horse with equine multinodular pulmonary fibrosis.
abstract: A 15-year-old Belgian gelding was referred for fever, depression, and respiratory distress. Lung biopsy revealed interstitial fibrosis consistent with chronic interstitial pneumonia. Equid herpesvirus 5 (EHV-5) DNA was detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in bronchoalveolar lavage and biopsy specimens. A presumptive diagnosis of equine multinodular pulmonary fibrosis (EMPF) was made, and the horse was administered a systemic treatment with corticosteroids and antiviral drugs. Despite initial clinical improvement, 4 weeks later, the condition of the horse rapidly deteriorated, and the animal was euthanized. Postmortem examination confirmed the presumptive diagnosis of EMPF. The EHV-5 DNA load in different tissues was estimated using a quantitative real-time PCR. Lung had a remarkable viral load, higher than in other organs, especially within the pulmonary fibrotic nodules, and a linkage between high viral burden and the most severely affected tissues was observed. The results suggest that the quantitative real-time PCR is a useful tool to quantify the EHV-5 load in different organs and to understand the relationship between EHV-5 and EMPF. The bronchoalveolar lavage was determined to be a good clinical sample to estimate the EHV-5 load in lung.
authors: Sports Horse Research Centre, Department of Experimental Science and Applied Biotechnology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Perugia, via S. Costanzo 4, 06126 Perugia, Italy. marialuisa.marenzoni@unipg.it
authors: Maria Luisa
authors: ML
authors: Marenzoni
authors: Fabrizio
authors: F
authors: Passamonti
authors: Elvio
authors: E
authors: Lepri
authors: Marta
authors: M
authors: Cercone
authors: Stefano
authors: S
authors: Capomaccio
authors: Katia
authors: K
authors: Cappelli
authors: Michela
authors: M
authors: Felicetti
authors: Giacomo
authors: G
authors: Coppola
authors: Mauro
authors: M
authors: Coletti
authors: Etienne
authors: E
authors: Thiry
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000818:Animals; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D006736:Horses; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D018140:Varicellovirus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D000998:Antiviral Agents