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Title: INCREASED SEVERITY OF BOVINE RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS INFECTION IN PRETERM LAMBS

Author
item MEYERHOLZ, DAVID - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item GRUBOR, BRANKA - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item FACH, SASHA - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item Sacco, Randy
item Lehmkuhl, Howard
item GALLUP, JACK - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
item ACKERMANN, MARK - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/21/2004
Publication Date: 10/22/2004
Citation: Meyerholz, D.K., Grubor, B., Fach, S.J., Sacco, R.E., Lehmkuhl, H.D., Gallup, J.M., Ackermann, M.R. 2004. Increased severity of bovine respiratory syncytial virus infection in preterm lambs [abstract]. Bi-Annual All-Iowa Virology Symposium. Paper No. 12.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a significant cause of respiratory disease in children. Preterm infants are more susceptible to severe manifestations of RSV disease requiring hospitalization. Animal models reflecting the age-dependent RSV severity seen in preterm infants are lacking. Sheep are naturally susceptible to bovine RSV, an analogous pneumovirus, and infection produces similar lesions to human RSV. The hypothesis of this study was that preterm lambs have differences in select RSV disease parameters compared to full-term neonatal lambs. Preterm lambs (139+/-1 gestational age, term 147 days) were inoculated intratracheally with bovine RSV (10**3.5 TCID50/ml) or sterile media control. The full-term lambs were similarly inoculated but also with an additional high-dose bovine RSV (10**7 TCID50/ml) group. Tissues were collected at 7 days PI which corresponds to the time of active viral clerance. All RSV infected lambs had gross and microscopic lesions with immunoreactivity for RSV antigen while the control animals were free of lesions and immunoreactivity. The preterm lambs had significantly greater cellular distribution of RSV antigen (p<0.05) along with syncytial cell formation (P<0.05) than did either group of neonatal lambs. The age-dependent BRSV disease severity in the lamb model is similar to RSV infection in preterm infants.