These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: Congenital abnormalities in newborn lambs after infection of pregnant sheep with Akabane virus.
    Author: Parsonson IM, Della-Porta AJ, Snowdon WA.
    Journal: Infect Immun; 1977 Jan; 15(1):254-62. PubMed ID: 832900.
    Abstract:
    Akabane virus (a Bunyavirus) has been associated with epizootics of congenital deformities in cattle, sheep, and goats. Experimental studies using mouse-adapted virus inoculated intravenously into pregnant sheep gave an inapparent infection. Neutralizing antibodies were detected on day 5, and peaks in the titer were seen at days 10 and 48. Ewes infected at day 30 to 36 of pregnancy produced five (31% incidence) deformed lambs. Sera from four of these possessed neutralizing antibodies to Akabane virus before ingesting colostrum. Two lambs had arthrogryposis, hydranencephaly, kyphosis, scoliosis, and brachygnathia; one had micrencephaly; and the other two had porencephaly. The two lambs with arthrogryposis and hydranencephaly also had extensive lesions in other tissues. In the spinal cord there was a marked decrease in the number of ventral horn neurones and a depletion of myelin. Skeletal muscles showed marked atrophy. The medulla of the thymus possessed large Hassall's corpuscles and a reduced number of thymocytes in the cortex. It would appear that the pathogenic effects of Akabane virus are related to the gestational age (30 to 36 days) at which the fetus is infected. Akabane virus can now be included in the growing list of teratogenic viruses and provides an interesting system for studying such congenital diseases.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]