Message Number: FHL14017 | New FHL Archives Search
From: "Tressie"
Date: 2011-09-12 23:08:14 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] new abstracts
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com

A variety of recent publications of interest:

Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract. 2011 May;14(2):357-67, vii.
Ferret respiratory system: clinical anatomy, physiology, and disease.
Johnson-Delaney CA, Orosz SE.
SourceEastside Avian and Exotic Animal Medical Center, 12930 NE 125th Way, Kirkland, WA 98034, USA.

Abstract
The upper and lower respiratory tracts of ferrets have several similarities to humans, and therefore have been used as a research model for respiratory function. This article describes the clinical anatomy and physiology, and common respiratory diseases of the ferret.


Am J Pathol. 2011 Jul;179(1):30-6. Epub 2011 May 5.
Pathogenesis of Influenza A/H5N1 virus infection in ferrets differs between intranasal and intratracheal routes of inoculation.
Bodewes R, Kreijtz JH, van Amerongen G, Fouchier RA, Osterhaus AD, Rimmelzwaan GF, Kuiken T.
SourceDepartment of Virology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Abstract
Most patients infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza A/H5N1 virus develop severe pneumonia resulting in acute respiratory distress syndrome, with extrarespiratory disease as an uncommon complication. Intranasal inoculation of ferrets with influenza A/H5N1 virus causes lesions in both the respiratory tract and extrarespiratory organs (primarily brain). However, the route of spread to extrarespiratory organs and the relative contribution of extrarespiratory disease to pathogenicity are largely unknown. In the present study, we characterized lesions in the respiratory tract and central nervous system (CNS) of ferrets (n = 8) inoculated intranasally with influenza virus A/Indonesia/5/2005 (H5N1). By 7 days after inoculation, only 3 of 8 ferrets had a mild or moderate bronchointerstitial pneumonia. In contrast, all 8 ferrets had moderate or severe CNS lesions, characterized by meningoencephalitis, choroiditis, and ependymitis, and centered on tissues adjoining the cerebrospinal fluid. These findings indicate that influenza A/H5N1 virus spread directly from nasal cavity to brain, and that CNS lesions contributed more than pulmonary lesions to the pathogenicity of influenza A/H5N1 virus infection in ferrets. In comparison, intratracheal inoculation of ferrets with the same virus reproducibly caused severe bronchointerstitial pneumonia. The method of virus inoculation requires careful consideration in the design of ferret experiments as a model for influenza A/H5N1 in humans.



Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 May 17;108(20):8432-7. Epub 2011 May 2.
Influenza virus aerosol exposure and analytical system for ferrets.
Gustin KM, Belser JA, Wadford DA, Pearce MB, Katz JM, Tumpey TM, Maines TR.
SourceInfluenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.

Abstract
Understanding the transmission ability of newly emerging influenza viruses is central to the development of public health preparedness and prevention strategies. Animals are used to model influenza virus infection and transmission, but the routinely used intranasal inoculation of a liquid virus suspension does not reflect natural infection. We report the development of an inoculation method that delivers an influenza virus aerosol inoculum to ferrets and the characterization of size distribution and viable virus present in aerosols shed from infected ferrets during normal breathing and sneezing. By comparing virus deposition, infectivity, virulence, and transmissibility among animals inoculated intranasally or by aerosols with a human (H3N2) or avian (H5N1) influenza virus, we demonstrate that aerosol inoculations more closely resemble a natural, airborne influenza virus infection and that viable virus is measurable in droplets and droplet nuclei exhaled by infected ferrets. These methods will provide improved risk assessment of emerging influenza viruses that pose a threat to public health.



Emerg Infect Dis. 2011 Aug;17(8):1570-1.
Enteric coronavirus in ferrets, the Netherlands.
Provacia LB, Smits SL, Martina BE, Raj VS, Doel PV, Amerongen GV, Moorman-Roest H, Osterhaus AD, Haagmans BL.
SourceErasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Abstract
To the Editor: Coronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA viruses that can cause acute and chronic respiratory, enteric, and central nervous system disease in a variety of animal species (1). Recently, a novel ferret enteric CoV (FRECV) was indentified in domesticated ferrets (Mustela putorius) in which epizootic catarrhal enteritis had been diagnosed; the illness was characterized by foul-smelling green diarrhea with high mucus content, lethargy, anorexia, and vomiting (2). Another ferret CoV emerged in ferrets for which systemic pyogranulomatous inflammation, resembling the clinical and pathologic features of feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), was diagnosed (3-5).





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