From:
"Sukie Crandall"
Date: 2009-07-25 02:15:46 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re:Confirmed case of FIP
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
In relation to some segments that Dr. Murray wrote:
> Thanks for sharing the info on your case of ferret
> FIP-like disease. Yes, older ferrets can also get this
> disease.
...
> To diagnose this disease histopath and immunohistochemistry
> staining is needed. Sounds like your pathologist did these 2 tests.
> Most vet labs can do these 2 tests.They use the same monoclonal
> antibody (FIP V3-70) for cats and ferrets with the IHC staining.
> Now what Michigan State can do that most labs cannot do is to
> sequence the coronavirus. This is to test for what strain of coronavirus=
> is causing the problem and may help them develop a PCR or other
> test that can be used for this disease. Thus if your pathologist still ha=
s
> frozen tissue or formalin tissue, the folks at Michigan State will likely=
> be
> interested in them.
> Your question about how contagious is this FIP-like disease is a good one=
.
More info can be found in these locations to see that
the coronavirus which behaves in ferrets like FIP
behaves in cats is actually a systemic mutant of ECE.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18424841
BEGIN QUOTE
Vet Pathol. 2008 Mar;45(2):236-46. Links
Erratum in:
Vet Pathol. 2008 Jul;45(4):598.
Clinicopathologic features of a systemic coronavirus-associated disease res=
embling feline infectious peritonitis in the domestic ferret (Mustela putor=
ius).
Garner MM, Ramsell K, Morera N, Juan-Sall=E9s C, Jim=E9nez J, Ardiaca M, Mo=
ntesinos A, Teifke JP, L=F6hr CV, Evermann JF, Baszler TV, Nordhausen RW, W=
ise AG, Maes RK, Kiupel M.
Northwest ZooPath, 654 W. Main, Monroe, WA 98296, USA. zoopath@aol.com
>From 2002 to 2007, 23 ferrets from Europe and the United States were diagno=
sed with systemic pyogranulomatous inflammation resembling feline infectiou=
s peritonitis (FIP). The average age at the time of diagnosis was 11 months=
. The disease was progressive in all cases, and average duration of clinica=
l illness was 67 days. Common clinical findings were anorexia, weight loss,=
diarrhea, and large, palpable intra-abdominal masses; less frequent findin=
gs included hind limb paresis, central nervous system signs, vomiting, and =
dyspnea. Frequent hematologic findings were mild anemia, thrombocytopenia, =
and hypergammaglobulinemia. Grossly, whitish nodules were found in numerous=
tissues, most frequently the mesenteric adipose tissue and lymph nodes, vi=
sceral peritoneum, liver, kidneys, spleen, and lungs. One ferret had a sero=
us abdominal effusion. Microscopically, pyogranulomatous inflammation invol=
ved especially the visceral peritoneum, mesenteric adipose tissue, liver, l=
ungs, kidneys, lymph nodes, spleen, pancreas, adrenal glands, and/or blood =
vessels. Immunohistochemically, all cases were positive for coronavirus ant=
igen using monoclonal antibody FIPV3-70. Electron microscopic examination o=
f inflammatory lesions identified particles with coronavirus morphology in =
the cytoplasm of macrophages. Partial sequencing of the coronavirus spike g=
ene obtained from frozen tissue indicates that the virus is related to ferr=
et enteric coronavirus.
PMID: 18424841
END QUOTE
with the full article available here:
http://www.vetpathology.org/cgi/reprint/45/2/236
and you can read more about this in
http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/
It is an FIP-like disease but is not FIP. The more basic tests show
that a coronavirus is involved but not WHICH coronavirus. The
sequencing is needed for that and almost no place can do that,
the ferret expert research pathologists at Michigan State in their
Ferret Health team can. What tends to happen is that a coronavirus
is found and then from the symptoms people think "FIP"...
A similar problem happened with early SARS studies. That, too, is
a coronavirus but some of the human health researchers used
ferrets and cats without first checking them for ECE (ferrets) and
FIP (cats) so thoroughly botched up their studies because they
were just using general coronavirus tests instead of sequencing.=20
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