The present study was carried out to investigate the pathogenicity and pathogenesis of wild rats(Rattus norvegicus), trapped in nature, intranasally infected with Aujeszky's disease virus(ADV/NYJ-1-87) by histopathology, immunohistochemistry and in si...
The present study was carried out to investigate the pathogenicity and pathogenesis of wild rats(Rattus norvegicus), trapped in nature, intranasally infected with Aujeszky's disease virus(ADV/NYJ-1-87) by histopathology, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization(ISH). Fifteen rats inoculated intranasally were roughened haircoat, anorexia, listlessness, and depression second day after inoculation, and three rats died in 66-72 hours. Eight rats showed severe pruritus at the face that was accompanied by frequent face-washing movements of the forelegs, and then became violent and spasmodic for an hour or until they died. Four rats slowly recovered after showing mild clinical signs of the disease. Microscopic lesions in infected rats were characterized by meningitis, perivascular round cell infiltration, focal gliosis, and neuronal degeneration and necrosis. And intranuclear inclusion bodies were frequently detected in the cerebral cortex and medulla. Positive reaction to ADV by immunohistochemistry and ISH were detected in the following areas : trigermimal ganglion, brain, tonsil, nasal mucosa, spleen, lung and liver. The result has suggested that ADV intranasally infected in wild rats is followed by replication in epithelial calls of nasal mucosa and tonsil, then invade local lymph nodes by way of the lymphatics. It is also believed that the virus invades bipolar olfactory cells and trigerminal ganglion; and then spread into central nervous system.