Neuropathological survey reveals underestimation of the prevalence of neuroinfectious diseases in cattle in Switzerland.

Truchet, Laura Rosyne Hedwig; Walland, Julia Gianna Marlene; Wüthrich, Daniel; Boujon, Céline; Posthaus, Horst; Bruggmann, Rémy; Schüpbach, Gertraud; Oevermann, Anna; Seuberlich, Torsten (2017). Neuropathological survey reveals underestimation of the prevalence of neuroinfectious diseases in cattle in Switzerland. Veterinary microbiology, 208, pp. 137-145. Elsevier 10.1016/j.vetmic.2017.07.027

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Neuroinfectious diseases in livestock represent a severe threat to animal health, but their prevalence is not well documented and the etiology of disease often remains unidentified. The aims of this study were to generate baseline data on the prevalence of neuroinfectious diseases in cattle in Switzerland by neuropathological survey, and to identify disease-associated pathogens. The survey was performed over a 1-year period using a representative number of brainstem samples (n=1816) from fallen cattle. In total, 4% (n=73) of the animals had significant lesions, the most frequent types of which were indicative of viral (n=27) and bacterial (n=31) etiologies. Follow-up diagnostics by immunohistochemistry, PCR protocols and next-generation sequencing identified infection with Listeria monocytogenes (n=6), ovine herpesvirus 2 (n=7), bovine astrovirus CH13 (n=2), bovine herpesvirus 6 (n=6), bovine retrovirus CH15 (n=2), posavirus 1 (n=2), and porcine astroviruses (n=2). A retrospective questionnaire-based investigation indicated that animals' owners observed clinical signs of neurological disease in about one-third of cases with lesions, which was estimated to correspond to approximately 85 cases per year in the adult fallen cattle population in Switzerland. This estimate stands in sharp contrast to the number of cases reported to the authorities and reveals a gap in disease surveillance. Systematic neuropathological examination and follow-up molecular testing of neurologically diseased cattle could significantly enhance the efficiency of disease detection for the purposes of estimating the prevalence of endemic diseases, identifying new or re-emerging pathogens, and providing "early warnings" of disease outbreaks.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

05 Veterinary Medicine > Research Foci > NeuroCenter
05 Veterinary Medicine > Research Foci > Veterinary Public Health / Herd Health Management
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health (DCR-VPH) > Veterinary Public Health Institute
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health (DCR-VPH) > Experimental Clinical Research
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathobiology (DIP) > Institute of Animal Pathology
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathobiology (DIP)
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health (DCR-VPH)
08 Faculty of Science > Department of Biology > Bioinformatics and Computational Biology

UniBE Contributor:

Truchet, Laura Rosyne Hedwig, Walland, Julia Gianna Marlene, Wüthrich, Daniel, Boujon, Céline, Posthaus, Horst, Bruggmann, Rémy, Schüpbach-Regula, Gertraud Irene, Oevermann, Anna, Seuberlich, Torsten

Subjects:

600 Technology > 630 Agriculture

ISSN:

0378-1135

Publisher:

Elsevier

Language:

English

Submitter:

Susanne Agnes Lerch

Date Deposited:

02 May 2018 09:28

Last Modified:

02 Mar 2023 23:30

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.vetmic.2017.07.027

PubMed ID:

28888628

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Cattle Infectious disease Neurology Neurovirology Surveillance Zoonosis

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.111277

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/111277

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