ARS | Publication request: Ulcerative and Hemorrhagic Typhlocolitis in An Angus Heifer Associated with Natural Bovine Enterovirus Type-1 Infection

Submitted to: American Association Of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians
Publication Acceptance Date: June 1, 2004
Publication Date: October 21, 2004
Citation: Blas-Machado, U., Boileau, M.J., Saliki, J.T., Caseltine, S.L., Goens, S.D., Duffy, J.C., Welsh, R.D. 2004. Ulcerative And Hemorrhagic Typhlocolitis In An Angus Heifer Associated With Natural Bovine Enterovirus Type-1 Infection. [abstract]. American Association Of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians 47th Annual Meeting. October 21 - 28, 2004, Greensboro, North Carolina.

Technical Abstract: A 2-year-old, 7 months pregnant Aberdeen-Angus bovine presented with acute, progressive abdominal pain died within 10 hours of hospitalization. Significant post mortem findings were limited to the intestines. The serosa of the distal jejunum, ileum, cecum, and spiral colon were diffusely hyperemic. The contents of the spiral colon were bloody; its mucosal surfaces were dark red, with widely scattered foci of mucosal ulceration. At the ceco-colonic junction, there were multiple, discrete white foci covered by fibrinous exudate mixed with blood. Microscopically, the colon had multiple foci of hemorrhage, necrosis, and ulceration. There was moderate to severe depletion and lymphocyte necrosis of the submucosal lymphoid tissues of the colon and small intestine. The splenic white pulp was moderately depleted. Virus isolation from the intestinal lesions yielded a cytopathic virus, which was classified by electron microscopic examination as a member of the Picornaviridae family. Further characterization classified the virus isolate as bovine enterovirus type 1 (BEV-1). Additional testing of the colonic lesions by PCR was positive for BEV-1. No other significant pathogens (viral or bacterial) were detected. Our results suggest that BEV-1 isolated was associated with the lesions described; however, a direct cause-and-effect relationship was not established. Nevertheless, in the absence of other detectable pathogens, the clinical history, the pathological lesions, and the laboratory results obtained suggest that the BEV-1 isolated from this case could represent a virulent strain. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of intestinal lesions and localization in BEV-1 infection, and the first report of BEV-1 from North America.