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Bovine Coronavirus as the Causative Agent of Winter Dysentery: Serological Evidence

Bovint coronavirus som orsak till vinterdysenteri: Serologiska bevis

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 32, pages 163–170 (1991)Cite this article

Abstract

Sera from 9 dairy herds with epizootic enteritis (winter dysentery) were examined for antibodies to bovine coronavirus (BCV) and bovine virus diarrhoea virus (BVDV). Cows in 8 of the 9 herds seroconverted to BCV alone, while the animals in the ninth herd, which showed severe symptoms of the disease, seroconverted both to BCV and BVDV. The BCV antibodies, which were present in high titres 1 year postinfection, were transferred to the offspring via the colostrum and were then detectable in sera of calves until these were approximately 5 months old.

A serological survey of 549 Swedish heifers showed that 61 % of the animals were reactors to BCV. The prevalence of seroreactors to BCV was equally distributed over Sweden but was commonly either high or low in herds.

In conclusion, BCV is commonly detected in animals suffering from winter dysentery. A co-infection with BVDV appears to aggravate the disease.

Sammanfattning

Sera från kor i 9 besättningar med vinterdysenteri undersöktes på förekomst av antikroppar mot bovint coronavirus (BCV) och bovint virusdiarré virus (BVDV). Kor i 8 av de 9 besattningarna serokonverterade mot BCV, men ej mot BVDV. I den nionde besättningen, där symptomem var grava, serokonverterade djuren både mot BCV och BVDV. Korna hade hoga antikroppstitrar mot BCV ännu 1 år efter genomgången infektion. Antikropparna overfordes från modern till kalven via råmjölken och kvartstod i kalvens serum tills dess att den var ungefar 5 månader gammal.

En serologisk undersokning av 549 kvigor i Sverige visade att 61 % hade antikroppar mot BCV. Prevalensen av antikroppspositiva djur var likartad mellan olika områden i Sverige men var vanligen antingen hög eller låg i enskilda besättningar.

Konklusionen är att BCV är en vanlig orsak till vinterdysenteri och att en saminfektion med BVDV tycks forvärra symptomen.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Veterinary Institute and Department of Cattle and Sheep Diseases, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P. O. Box 7073, S-750 07, Uppsala, Sweden

    S. Alenius, R. Niskanen, N. Juntti & B. Larsson

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  1. S. Alenius
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  2. R. Niskanen
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  3. N. Juntti
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  4. B. Larsson
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Alenius, S., Niskanen, R., Juntti, N. et al. Bovine Coronavirus as the Causative Agent of Winter Dysentery: Serological Evidence. Acta Vet Scand 32, 163–170 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03546976

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Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica

ISSN: 1751-0147