Presence of virus neutralizing antibodies in cerebral spinal fluid correlates with non-lethal rabies in dogs.
BACKGROUND
Rabies is traditionally considered a uniformly fatal disease after onset of clinical manifestations. However, increasing evidence indicates that non-lethal infection as well as recovery from flaccid paralysis and encephalitis occurs in laboratory animals as well as humans.


RESULTS
Non-lethal rabies infection in dogs experimentally infected with wild type dog rabies virus (RABV, wt DRV-Mexico) correlates with the presence of high level of virus neutralizing antibodies (VNA) in the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) and mild immune cell accumulation in the central nervous system (CNS). By contrast, dogs that succumbed to rabies showed only little or no VNA in the serum or in the CSF and severe inflammation in the CNS. Dogs vaccinated with a rabies vaccine showed no clinical signs of rabies and survived challenge with a lethal dose of wild-type DRV. VNA was detected in the serum, but not in the CSF of immunized dogs. Thus the presence of VNA is critical for inhibiting virus spread within the CNS and eventually clearing the virus from the CNS.


CONCLUSIONS
Non-lethal infection with wt RABV correlates with the presence of VNA in the CNS. Therefore production of VNA within the CNS or invasion of VNA from the periphery into the CNS via compromised blood-brain barrier is important for clearing the virus infection from CNS, thereby preventing an otherwise lethal rabies virus infection.
Department of Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America.
Clement W
CW
Gnanadurai
Ming
M
Zhou
Wenqi
W
He
Christina M
CM
Leyson
Chien-Tsun
CT
Huang
Gregory
G
Salyards
Stephen B
SB
Harvey
Zhenhai
Z
Chen
Biao
B
He
Yang
Y
Yang
D C
DC
Hooper
Berhnard
B
Dietzchold
Zhen F
ZF
Fu
D000818:Animals; D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000276:immunology*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D004285:Dogs; D011818:Rabies / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D011820:Rabies virus / Q000276:immunology*; D016019:Survival Analysis
D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing; D000914:Antibodies, Viral