Transmission of Bovine Mucosal Disease using Virus Recovered from Urine

Abstract

Summary Two colostrum-deprived calves were experimentally infected intranasally with mucosal disease virus recovered in bovine kidney tissue culture from urine of another experimentally infected calf. A third calf in the same pen served as a contact control animal. All 3 animals developed the experimental mucosal disease syndrome and were necropsied at 25, 39, and 56 days post-inoculation (p.i.). The animal killed 25 days p.i. (Hi 533) had, in addition to lesions of chronic experimental bovine mucosal disease, an arteritis, affecting most vessels in the body, but particularly those in smooth and striated muscle, especially cardiac muscle. Milder arterial and periarterial lesions were found in the other 2 calves. Calf No. Hi533 also had numerous Anitschkow cells in the cardiac musculature.