Neonatal Equine Herpesvirus Type 1 Infection on a Thoroughbred Breeding Farm

Of 17 foals born on a Thoroughbred breeding farm between March and April 1995, infection with equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) was associated with neonatal morbidity in 5 foals, 3 of which died or were euthanized. Morbidity and mortality were associated with pulmonary inflammation, and EHV-1 was identified in the lungs of the 3 foals that died. All neonatal EHV-1 infections occurred in foals of mares housed in the same pasture and barn. No other clinical manifestations of EHV-1 infection (eg, abortion, neurologic disease, or respiratory disease) occurred during this outbreak. Three foals were treated with acyclovir (1 died, 2 survived), which may have influenced the clinical outcome in the surviving foals.     

Evaluation by scoring and computerized morphometry of lesions of early Mycoplasma pulmonis infection and ammonia exposure in F344/N rats

To evaluate lesions of ammonia exposure and Mycoplasma pulmonis infection in gnotobiotic F344/N rats, groups of rats were inoculated with M. pulmonis, exposed to 76 micrograms/liter (100 parts per million) ammonia, or both, or served as controls. Six rats from each group were killed 3, 5, 7, and 9 days after inoculation and their respiratory organs prepared for histologic examination. Lesions were assessed by subjective scoring and computerized morphometry, and results obtained by the two methods were compared to assess agreement of results. Lesions were limited to the nasal passages. Ammonia exposure resulted in hyperplastic and degenerative changes in the anterior nasal epithelium. Lesions of mycoplasmosis were more severe in ammonia-exposed than unexposed rats, but qualitative differences in lesions were not apparent. Results of the two methods agreed in assessment of submucosal inflammatory cell accumulation. Epithelial lesions were difficult to evaluate by both methods in infected, ammonia-exposed rats. In evaluation of lesions of ammonia exposure alone, agreement was adequate. Both methods indicated that exudates were significantly greater in ammonia-exposed infected rats than in non-exposed infected rats. Thus, scoring and morphometry provided similar assessments of differences in lesion severity among the treatment groups.