title: Transplacental Transmission of Ovine Herpesvirus 2 in Cattle with Sheep-associated Malignant Catarrhal Fever.
abstract: Sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever (SA-MCF) is an important infectious disease of ruminants worldwide that is caused by ovine herpesvirus 2 (OvHV-2). OvHV-2 is transmitted predominantly by contact between infected and susceptible hosts, while the documentation of vertical transmission is rare. This report presents the pathological and molecular findings associated with transplacental transmission of OvHV-2 in cattle. Two Girolanda cows with corneal oedema, lethargy, mucopurulent nasal discharge and ulcerative stomatitis died spontaneously; one of these was pregnant with a 4-month-old fetus. Significant pathological findings included widespread lymphoplasmacytic necrotizing vasculitis and lymphoplasmacytic accumulations in several organs of both cows and the fetus. A polymerase chain reaction that targeted the tegument protein gene of OvHV-2 amplified viral DNA from the brain of the pregnant cow and her fetus, as well as from the kidney of the pregnant cow. The pathological findings observed in the cow and her fetus, together with the presence of OvHV-2 DNA in tissues of these animals, are suggestive of transplacental transmission of OvHV-2 in SA-MCF in cattle.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Animal Pathology, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Paraná, Brazil; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil. Electronic address: selwyn.headley@uel.br.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Headley
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Pimentel
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Virology, Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: V H S
authors.initials: VH
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Toma
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Virology, Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Alfieri
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil.
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: dos Santos
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Virology, Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Paraná, Brazil; Multi-User Animal Health Laboratory, Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Alfieri
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D005260:Female; D006564:Herpesviridae; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D008304:Malignant Catarrh / Q000635:transmission*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011247:Pregnancy; D012756:Sheep; D012757:Sheep Diseases
keywords: cattle; malignant catarrhal fever; ovine herpesvirus 2; transplacental transmission