猪圆环病毒3型感染BALB/c小鼠的实验观察

目的研究猪圆环病毒3型(porcine circovirus3,PCV3)对BALB/c小鼠的感染情况。方法将雌性BALB/c小鼠分为两组,实验组感染PCV3组织毒,对照组接种同样剂量的PBS。感染后每天观察小鼠状态,并在第0,3,7,11和14天采血进行荧光定量PCR检测和ELISA检测。实验结束后,对所有动物进行安乐死和剖检,对心脏、肝、脾、肺、肾、脑和淋巴结取样进行荧光定量PCR检测,并制片进行组织病理学检查。选择PCR检测阳性组织进行PCV3CAP基因测序分析。结果PCV3组织毒感染小鼠不引起明显的临床症状和病理变化。病毒可在感染早期的血清中检测到,病毒含量最高的器官是肝脏和脾脏,PCV3感染小鼠后核酸序列未发生变化。随着感染时间的增加血清中抗体水平逐渐升高。结论PCV3可以感染BALB/c小鼠,并在小鼠体内增殖。本研究结果为猪圆环病毒3型致病性的研究以及防控提供了参考。     

Effect of Dietary Selenium Yeast Supplementation on Porcine Circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) Infections in Mice

The present study was performed to determine the protective role of dietary selenium (Se) yeast supplementation in porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) infected mice. Forty-eight Kun Ming female mice were randomly assigned to Se yeast group (0.3%Se +basal diet, n = 24) and control group (basal diet, n = 24). After 3 days of adaptive feeding and 15 days treatment with the experimental feed, mice were challenged by intraperitioneal injection of PCV2 at the dosage of 2000 TCID₅₀ (50% tissue culture infection dose, TCID₅₀). Serum total superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, malondialdehyde (MDA) level, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) levels were measured at 5, 10, 15, 20 days post infection (dpi). The PCV2 virus load in the liver, spleen and lung, and the microscopic lesions in the liver, spleen and lung also were determined on 5, 10, 15, and 20 dpi. Dietary Se yeast supplementation decreased (Pμ0.05) the serum levels of TNF-α, but had no significant effect on the activity of SOD and the levels of MDA, CRP and IL-1β between experimental and control groups. Dietary Se yeast supplementation had little effect on the PCV2 virus load in the liver, spleen and lung. However, mice in the selenium yeast group showed a significant decrease in microscopic lesion scores in the lung and spleen compared with those in the control group (Pμ0.05). These data indicate Se yeast attenuated the PCV2 infection through altering the systemic inflammation and maintaining the normal organ morphology.     

PMWS病猪猪圆环病毒2型全基因组序列分析

根据GenBank中发表的猪圆环病毒2型(PCV2)全基因序列,设计一对特异性引物,用PCR方法直接从5省病料中分别扩增出5个PCV2毒株的全基因组,分别命名为FujianPCV、GuangxiPCV、HainanPCV、HunanPCV和ShandongPCV。将扩增片段克隆于pMD18一T载体,进行序列测定,结果表明,除FujianPCV株核苷酸长度为1768bp,其余四株均为1767bp。应用DNAstar序列分析软件分析表明,本实验的5个PCV2分离株与世界上其它地区的PCV2分离株密切相关,核苷酸序列同源性达93％-98．8％,与PCVl毒株的序列同源性只有68．4％～70％。其中ORFl和ORF2所编码的氨基酸序列与国内外PCV2毒株比较,同源性也很高,分别为98．1％499．4％和88％99．1％。     

PMWS病猪猪圆环病毒2型全基因组序列分析

根据GenBank中发表的猪圆环病毒2型(PCV2)全基因序列,设计一对特异性引物,用PCR方法直接从5省病料中分别扩增出5个PCV2毒株的全基因组,分别命名为FujianPCV、GuangxiPCV、HainanPCV、HunanPCV和ShandongPCV.将扩增片段克隆于pMD 18-T载体,进行序列测定,结果表明,除FujianPCV株核苷酸长度为1768bp,其余四株均为1767 bp.应用DNAstar序列分析软件分析表明,本实验的5个PCV2分离株与世界上其它地区的PCV2分离株密切相关,核苷酸序列同源性达93%～98.8%,与PCV1毒株的序列同源性只有68.4%～70%.其中ORF1和ORF2所编码的氨基酸序列与国内外PCV2毒株比较,同源性也很高,分别为98.1%～99.4%和88%～99.1%.     

Leishmania infantum: mixed T-helper-1/T-helper-2 immune response in experimentally infected BALB/c mice

The main goal of the present study was to characterise the course of infection and immunological responses developed by Leishmania infantum infected BALB/c mice. Parasite load was determined by Real-time TaqMan PCR while cytokine and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) production were assessed by ELISA. Leishmania DNA was detected in spleen and liver as soon as day 1 post-inoculation (pi) and the parasitism was sustained until the end of the experiment. The cytokine kinetics in spleen and liver was generally associated with the oscillations of parasite load. Overall, it was not observed a distinct Th1 or Th2 pattern of cytokine production during the time of experiment. The infected mice developed a mixed immune response, with concomitant production of IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-10, both in spleen and liver, and both IgG isotypes. However, our results suggest that, compared to liver, the spleen is more susceptible to L. infantum infection.     

A mouse-adapted SARS-coronavirus causes disease and mortality in BALB/c mice

No single animal model for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) reproduces all aspects of the human disease. Young inbred mice support SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) replication in the respiratory tract and are available in sufficient numbers for statistical evaluation. They are relatively inexpensive and easily accessible, but their use in SARS research is limited because they do not develop illness following infection. Older (12- to 14-mo-old) BALB/c mice develop clinical illness and pneumonitis, but they can be hard to procure, and immune senescence complicates pathogenesis studies. We adapted the SARS-CoV (Urbani strain) by serial passage in the respiratory tract of young BALB/c mice. Fifteen passages resulted in a virus (MA15) that is lethal for mice following intranasal inoculation. Lethality is preceded by rapid and high titer viral replication in lungs, viremia, and dissemination of virus to extrapulmonary sites accompanied by lymphopenia, neutrophilia, and pathological changes in the lungs. Abundant viral antigen is extensively distributed in bronchial epithelial cells and alveolar pneumocytes, and necrotic cellular debris is present in airways and alveoli, with only mild and focal pneumonitis. These observations suggest that mice infected with MA15 die from an overwhelming viral infection with extensive, virally mediated destruction of pneumocytes and ciliated epithelial cells. The MA15 virus has six coding mutations associated with adaptation and increased virulence; when introduced into a recombinant SARS-CoV, these mutations result in a highly virulent and lethal virus (rMA15), duplicating the phenotype of the biologically derived MA15 virus. Intranasal inoculation with MA15 reproduces many aspects of disease seen in severe human cases of SARS. The availability of the MA15 virus will enhance the use of the mouse model for SARS because infection with MA15 causes morbidity, mortality, and pulmonary pathology. This virus will be of value as a stringent challenge in evaluation of the efficacy of vaccines and antivirals.     

Replacement of the Replication Factors of Porcine Circovirus (PCV) Type 2 with Those of PCV Type 1 Greatly Enhances Viral Replication In Vitro

Porcine circovirus type 1 (PCV1), originally isolated as a contaminant of PK-15 cells, is nonpathogenic, whereas porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) causes an economically important disease in pigs. To determine the factors affecting virus replication, we constructed chimeric viruses by swapping open reading frame 1 (ORF1) (rep) or the origin of replication (Ori) between PCV1 and PCV2 and compared the replication efficiencies of the chimeric viruses in PK-15 cells. The results showed that the replication factors of PCV1 and PCV2 are fully exchangeable and, most importantly, that both the Ori and rep of PCV1 enhance the virus replication efficiencies of the chimeric viruses with the PCV2 backbone.Porcine circovirus (PCV) is a single-stranded DNA virus in the family Circoviridae (34). Type 1 PCV (PCV1) was discovered in 1974 as a contaminant of porcine kidney cell line PK-15 and is nonpathogenic in pigs (31-33). Type 2 PCV (PCV2) was discovered in piglets with postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) in the mid-1990s and causes porcine circovirus-associated disease (PCVAD) (1, 9, 10, 25). PCV1 and PCV2 have similar genomic organizations, with two major ambisense open reading frames (ORFs) (16). ORF1 (rep) encodes two viral replication-associated proteins, Rep and Rep′, by differential splicing (4, 6, 21, 22). The Rep and Rep′ proteins bind to specific sequences within the origin of replication (Ori) located in the intergenic region, and both are responsible for viral replication (5, 7, 8, 21, 23, 28, 29). ORF2 (cap) encodes the immunogenic capsid protein (Cap) (26). PCV1 and PCV2 share approximately 80%, 82%, and 62% nucleotide sequence identity in the Ori, rep, and cap, respectively (19).In vitro studies using a reporter gene-based assay system showed that the replication factors of PCV1 and PCV2 are functionally interchangeable (2-6, 22), although this finding has not yet been validated in a live infectious-virus system. We have previously shown that chimeras of PCV in which cap has been exchanged between PCV1 and PCV2 are infectious both in vitro and in vivo (15), and an inactivated vaccine based on the PCV1-PCV2 cap (PCV1-cap2) chimera is used in the vaccination program against PCVAD (13, 15, 18, 27).PCV1 replicates more efficiently than PCV2 in PK-15 cells (14, 15); thus, we hypothesized that the Ori or rep is directly responsible for the differences in replication efficiencies. The objectives of this study were to demonstrate that the Ori and rep are interchangeable between PCV1 and PCV2 in a live-virus system and to determine the effects of swapped heterologous replication factors on virus replication efficiency in vitro.     

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) vaccination is effective in reducing disease and PCV2 shedding in semen of boars concurrently infected with PCV2 and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae

The objectives were to determine whether the amount of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) shed in semen increased in boars experimentally coinfected with Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (MHYO), and whether PCV2 vaccination of boars prior to PCV2 exposure reduced PCV2 viremia and virus shedding in semen. Twelve specific-pathogen-free PCV2- and MHYO-naïve boars were randomly and equally assigned to one of four groups. Six boars were vaccinated against PCV2 (VAC) on Day 0; three PCV2 vaccinated and three non-vaccinated boars were inoculated with MHYO on Day 21, and all boars were challenged with PCV2 on Day 35. The four treatment groups included PCV2-Infected (I), VAC-PCV2-I, MHYO-PCV2-Coinfected (CoI), and VAC-MHYO-PCV2-CoI. Semen, blood swabs, feces, and serum samples were collected weekly until Day 70. All vaccinated boars had seroconverted to PCV2 by Day 35. Between Days 28 and 35, MHYO boars developed moderate respiratory disease, characterized by coughing, respiratory distress, mucopurulent nasal discharge and loss of body condition. One MHYO-PCV2-CoI boar died on Day 50. Boars in the PCV2-I and MHYO-PCV2-CoI groups had significantly higher PCV2 DNA loads in blood swabs than the remaining boars. Moreover, PCV2 vaccination significantly reduced the incidence and amount of PCV2 shedding in semen and feces. In summary, although concurrent MHYO infection did not influence PCV2 shedding patterns, coinfection of boars with PCV2 and MHYO resulted in severe clinical disease and viral shedding was significantly decreased by PCV2 vaccination.     

Osteosarcomas in BALB/c female mice

Osteosarcomas were found in 16 of 24,192 (0.066%) BALB/c female mice, 14 were in 21,816 (0.064%) 2-acetylaminofluorene-treated mice, and two were in 2,376 (0.084%) untreated controls. The osteosarcomas were classified into osteoblastic, fibroblastic, and mixed types. Seven of the osteosarcomas metastasized to the lungs. The osteosarcomas in control and 2-acetylaminofluorene-treated mice showed little or no difference in the incidence, type, size, or site of origin, indicating that 2-acetylaminofluorene did not affect the development of osteosarcomas in BALB/c female mice.U     

Immunocontraception is induced in BALB/c mice inoculated with murine cytomegalovirus expressing mouse zona pellucida 3

Immunocontraception, the prevention of oocyte fertilization through immunological means, could potentially be used to control plaguing mouse populations in Australia. This paper describes the construction of a mouse-specific betaherpesvirus, murine cytomegalovirus, which has been engineered to express the murine zona pellucida 3 (ZP3) gene. A single inoculation of this recombinant virus resulted in almost complete infertility, persistent anti-ZP3 antibody production, and profound changes to ovarian morphology in BALB/c mice in the absence of significant virus replication during the acute phase of infection. Murine cytomegalovirus may prove to be useful as a vector for the delivery of a mouse-specific immunocontraceptive agent to target populations of wild mice in the field.     

Spontaneous heart failure in BALB/c mice

The hearts of BALB/c mice are known to acquire pronounced greyish white spots (cardiac white spots). BALB/c male mice were examined for the relationship between the incidence of cardiac white spots and weekly age, and compared with DDY male mice. During the observation period of 0.4-30 weeks, cardiac white spots on the right ventricle of BALB/c mice were first detected at three weeks (6 of 20 mice; 30%), and the maximal incidence of cardiac white spots was obtained at nine weeks (39 of 44 mice; 88%). In contrast, DDY mice were completely devoid of cardiac spots. Histopathologically, the cardiac spots were dystrophic calcinosis. There were significant increases in the relative organ weights of the heart and kidney of BALB/c mice compared with those of DDY mice. However, there was no significant difference between BALB/c and DDY mice in serum calcium concentration or histological characteristics of the parathyroid gland or bone marrow. The cardiac white spots of BALB/c mice were considered to be controlled by genetic susceptibility that occurred spontaneously with aging. The results described here suggest that BALB/c mice are adequate experimental animals for the study of myocardial disease that occurs spontaneously.     

Effects of orally administered retinol on natural killer cell activity in wild type BALB/c and congenitally athymic BALB/c mice

Summary Retinoids have been shown to inhibit the growth and development of neoplastic cells in many systems. One mechanism of action may be through activation of the immune system, specifically natural killer (NK) cell activity. The effect of retinol on NK cell cytotoxicity was examined in three groups of mice: BALB/c (wild-type), BALB/c nu/nu (athymic), and BALB/c nu/nu previously injected with human tumor cells. In untreated mice, NK activity was highest in athymic mice without tumors and lowest in wild-type mice, although serum and liver retinol concentrations were identical in all three groups. In mice fed graded, nontoxic doses of retinol daily for 3 weeks, serum retinol levels in all three groups exhibited a sharp peak and decline following daily bolus retinol administration. Retinol stores in the livers showed a dose-dependent increase in all treated animals. However, NK cell activity, differed for each group. Athymic mice without tumors exhibited no change in NK activity as a result of retinol treatment. Athymic mice with tumors had NK levels that tended to increase with increasing retinol doses, but these changes were not statistically significant. Wild-type mice, on the other hand, demonstrated significantly higher NK levels after treatment with retinol doses of 300 and 600 g/day. In subsequent time course experiments, there was a peak in NK activity 1 h following bolus retinol administration similar to the peak seen in serum retinol concentrations, suggesting either an acute activation or recruitment of cytotoxic cells. Retinol thus appears to increase NK activity in wild-type BALB/c mice, and this activity may be an important component of its antineoplastic activity.This investigation was supported by Biomedical Research Support Grant RRO 5424, the Veterans Administration, and PHS Grant number CA 33589-01A2, awarded by the National Cancer Institute, DHHSThis work was done in partial fulfillment of a Ph. D. thesis by L. Fraker in the Department of Pathology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine     

猪圆环病毒2型与猪圆环病毒相关性系统疾病的回顾及展望

猪圆环病毒2型(Porcine circovirus type 2,PCV2)引起猪的免疫抑制,是猪圆环病毒相关性系统疾病(PCV2-systemic disease,PCV2-SD)的主要病原,给养猪业带来了巨大的经济损失。文中从PCV2的进化历程、编码蛋白、对免疫系统的影响及技术防控四方面入手,对PCV2及PCV2-SD进行了全面回顾与展望。     

Mouse adenovirus type 1 causes a fatal hemorrhagic encephalomyelitis in adult C57BL/6 but not BALB/c mice.

Mouse adenovirus type 1 (MAV-1) produces a lethal disease in newborn or suckling mice characterized by infectious virus and viral lesions in multiple organs. Previous reports of MAV-1 infection of adult mice generally described serologic evidence of infection without morbidity or mortality. However, our current results demonstrate that MAV-1 causes a fatal illness in adult C57BL/6(B6) mice (50% lethal dose, [LD50], 10(3.0) PFU) but not in adult BALB/c mice at all of the doses tested (LD50, > or = 10(5.0) PFU). Adult (BALB/c x B6)F1 mice were intermediately susceptible (LD50, 10(4.5) PFU). Clinically, the sensitive B6 mice showed symptoms of acute central nervous system (CNS) disease, including tremors, seizures, ataxia, and paralysis. Light microscopic examination of CNS tissue from the B6 animals revealed petechial hemorrhages, edema, neovascularization, and mild inflammation in the brain and spinal cord. Analysis by electron microscopy showed evidence of inflammation, such as activated microglia, as well as swollen astrocytic endfeet and perivascular lipid deposition indicative of blood-brain barrier dysfunction. Outside of the CNS, the only significant pathological findings were foci of cytolysis in the splenic white pulp. Assessment of viral replication from multiple tissues was performed by using RNase protection assays with an antisense MAV-1 early region 1a probe. The greatest amounts of viral mRNA in MAV-1-infected B6 animals were located in the brain and spinal cord. Less viral message was detected in the spleen, lungs, and heart. No viral mRNA was detected in BALB/c mouse tissue, with the exception of low levels in the heart. Viral titers of organ tissues were also determined and were concordant with RNase protection findings on the brain and spinal cord but failed to demonstrate significant infectious virus in additional organs. Our experiments demonstrate that MAV-1 has a striking tropism for the CNS that is strain dependent, and this provides an informative in vivo model for the study of adenoviral pathogenesis.     

Taenia crassiceps antigens induce a Th2 immune response and attenuate injuries experimentally induced by neurotoxoplasmosis in BALB/c mice

Toxoplasma gondii is a pathogenic agent responsible for causing both systemic and local disease which elicits a typically pro-inflammatory, Th1 immune response. Taenia crassiceps antigen induces a Th2 immune response that immunomodulates Th1 based infections. Therefore the aim of this study was to evaluate whether T. crassiceps cysticerci antigens are able to modulate the inflammatory response triggered in experimental neurotoxoplasmosis (NT). BALB/c mice were inoculated with T. gondii cysts and/or cysticerci antigens and euthanized at 60 and 90 days after inoculation (DAI). The histopathology of the brains and cytokines produced by spleen cells culture were performed. The animals from the NT group, 90DAI (NT90), presented greater intensity of lesions such as vasculitis, meningitis and microgliosis and cytokines from Th1 profile characterized by high levels of IFN-gamma. While in the T. crassiceps antigens group, 60DAI, there were more discrete lesions and high levels of IL-4, a Th2 cytokine. In the NT co-inoculated with cysticerci antigens group the parenchyma lesions were more discrete with lower levels of IFN-gamma and higher levels of IL-4 when compared to NT90. Therefore the inoculation of T. crassiceps antigens attenuated the brain lesions caused by T. gondii inducing a Th2 immune response.     

Foreign serum-induced bile duct lesion (BDL) in athymic BALB/c nude mice

To investigate a role of cellular immunity in foreign serum-induced bile duct lesion (BDL) in mice, athymic BALB/c nude (nu/nu) mice were intraperitoneally injected with swine serum (SS) twice a week up to 8 weeks and were compared with euthymic BALB/c heterozygote (nu/+) and wild-type (+/+) mice treated with SS in the same way for 4 weeks. All immunized nu/+ and +/+ mice developed marked BDL, and their sera showed high anti-SS IgE and IgG1 antibody titers, whereas no immunized nu/nu mice developed lesions, and their sera showed no elevation of antibody titers. Next, nu/nu mice were reconstituted with splenocytes derived from nu/+ mice, and then were intraperitoneally injected with SS twice a week for 3 weeks. Most of the reconstituted nu/nu mice developed BDL, and their sera showed the elevation of anti-SS IgE and IgG antibody titers. These results suggest that cellular immunity may play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of swine serum-induced BDL.     

Non-sand fly transmission of a North American isolate of Leishmania infantum in experimentally infected BALB/c mice

Leishmania infantum, an etiologic agent of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis, is endemic in the foxhound population in the United States and Canada. Leishmaniasis is usually transmitted by blood-feeding sand flies; however, epidemiological data do not support a significant role for sand flies in the maintenance of foxhound infections in North America, and an alternate mode of transmission may exist. The present study was conducted to determine if transplacental or direct transmission occurs in pregnant BALB/c mice experimentally infected with L. infantum isolated from a naturally infected foxhound from Virginia as well as to determine if the parasite was directly transmitted to the males used to breed the mice. Female BALB/c mice were intravenously inoculated with 1 x 10(6) promastigotes of the LIVT-1 strain of L. infantum. Mice were bred to uninfected male BALB/c mice 2 mo postinoculation. Pregnant mice were killed between days 13 and 18 of gestation. Pups and placentas were collected at necropsy, divided, and used for parasite culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyses. Culture and PCR analyses were performed on spleens from the male mice to determine the possibility of sexual transmission. Leishmania sp. DNA was detected in 4 of 88 pups and 3 of 16 placentas from LIVT-1-inoculated mice. One male mouse used to breed infected females was PCR positive. This work provides evidence for a low level of nonvector transmission of North American L. infantum in a mouse model.     

Passage of hybridomas in male BALB/c mice

For cultivating hybridomas in the ascitic form there are usually used female mice BALB/c and not male ones. Efficiency of production of monoclonal antibodies with cultivation of the hybridomas in male and female mice BALB/c was studied comparatively. The animals were stimulated to form ascite by administration of the incomplete Freund's adjuvant or 3 per cent peptone with petrolatum oil. Some parameters of the ascite formation were studied: viability of the hybridoma cells, ascitic fluid formation period and volume, hybridoma cell concentration and titers of monoclonal antibodies in the ascitic fluid. In regard to all the parameters studied the male animals were not inferior to the female ones and in case of one of the hybridomas even surpassed them twofold by the volume of the ascitic fluid formed. This is evident of possible using male mice for mass cultivation of hybridoma cells with a purpose of obtaining preparative amounts of monoclonal antibodies in production of immunodiagnostic agents on their basis.     

Reproduction in porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) seropositive gilts inseminated with PCV2b spiked semen

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Since 1999, field evidence of transplacental infection by porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) and reproductive failure has been reported in pigs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and pathological consequences of PCV2 infection in conventional PCV2-seropositive gilts by insemination with PCV2b-spiked semen. RESULTS: Six PCV2 seropositive gilts were inseminated with PCV2b-supplemented semen (infected) and three animals with semen and cell culture medium (controls). Only three out of the six infected animals were pregnant by ultrasonography on day 29 after insemination, while two out of the three controls were pregnant. One control gilt aborted on day 23 after insemination but not due to PVC2. Viraemia was demonstrated in four out of six infected and in one control gilt that became infected with PCV2a. Anti-PCV2 antibody titres showed dynamic variations in the infected group throughout the study. Among infected gilts, the animal with the lowest anti-PCV2 titre (1/100) at the beginning of the experiment and another that reached a similar low value during the experiment showed evident seroconversion over time and had also PCV2 positive foetuses. One placenta displayed mild focal necrosis of the chorionic epithelium positively stained by immunohistochemistry for PCV2 antigen. CONCLUSIONS: PCV2-seropositive gilts can be infected with PCV2 after intrauterine exposure and low maternal antibody titre may increase the probability of a foetal infection.