Description of the pathology of a gazelle that died during a major outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Israel.

Naturally occurring foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in wildlife is a relatively mild condition but occasionally it can be devastating as has been documented in impala in South Africa and in mountain gazelles in Israel. This report describes pathological changes in an adult male gazelle with FMD from an outbreak in the Nature Reserve of Ramot-Issachar region and the lower Galilee in Israel. The outbreak was characterised by the malignant form of the disease, which is uncommon among domestic animals. Lesions observed included, ulceration in the oral cavity, oesophagus and ruminal pillars, coronitis, multifocal cardiac necrosis and pancreatic necrosis and inflammation. Pneumonia, caused by Muellerius capillaries was an incidental finding.

The detection of an unidentified type of adenovirus in the stools of calves with weak calf syndrome by use of a commercial kit designed for the detection of human adenoviruses.

An outbreak of polyarthritis in newborn calves in a large collective dairy herd was characterized by intra-articular blood-tinged synoviae, blood tainted faeces and massive subcorneal haemorrhages. Faecal samples from eight clinical newborn cases, 10 from unrelated dairy farms and 10 faecal samples from healthy calves were examined by the Rida Quick rotavirus/adenovirus-combi test . A specific adenovirus antigen precipitin-line was seen in the reaction in all the faecal samples from the diseased calves (n = 8), while all the others (n = 20) were negative. In addition, the same positive reaction was noted when one aqueous humor and two synovial samples were tested with this kit. Several other enteropathogens were found sporadically, but no conclusive significance could be attributed to their presence. Bovine viral diarrhoea and infectious bovine rhinothracheitis viruses as well as Chlamydia spp. and Mycoplasma spp. were not involved in this episode.

Nucleotide sequence of the P1 region of serotype Asia1 foot-and-mouth disease virus.

Differences in the amino acid sequence of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) virion proteins (VP) among the various FMDV serotypes, particularly in the VP1 polypeptide, are the basis for antigenic diversity of this virus group. This phenomenon provides the basis for type diagnosis of FMDV by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In order to specifically identify the Asia1 FMDV serotype by PCR, the nucleotide sequence of its P1-coding region was determined. The sequence exhibited over 70% homology with the P1 gene segment of type O1k. The deduced amino acid sequence shares 79% homology with that of the P1 region of serotype O1k.

Mouse footpad Langerhans cells as an indicator for safety of foot and mouth disease virus vaccines.

The effect of various vaccines against foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) was tested on Langerhans cell density in the footpad epidermis of mice. Injection of monovalent, bivalent and trivalent FMDV vaccines caused a reduction in Langerhans cell density in the murine skin, which was more marked at the center of the footpad, the site of injection, than at the periphery. Testing of the various components of the vaccine showed that saponin caused a marked reduction in Langerhans cells while injection of aluminium hydroxide had a lesser effect and the virus alone had no effect on these cells. Thus Langerhans cell density could serve as an efficient marker to test the safety of vaccines to FMDV since the integrity of Langerhans cells, which are the antigen-presenting cells in the skin epidermis, is needed for an effective immune response to the vaccine.