Malignant catarrhal fever in a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig

Abstract

Malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) represents a sporadic and often fatal disease in various ungulate species including rarely swine. A close contact between susceptible and reservoir species of ovine herpesvirus-2 (OvHV-2) is a requirement for virus transmission. As in ruminants, a rapid course of disease with lymphohistiocytic meningoencephalitis and necrotizing vasculitis in multiple organs is frequently seen in porcine MCF. This report describes a case of MCF in a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, which was kept in a zoological exhibit with direct contact to various ruminants. It represents the first description of porcine MCF with proven natural OvHV-2 infection in Germany. OvHV-2 should be considered as cause of fatalities among swine especially in mixed-species exhibits as present in many zoological gardens. Also farm pigs kept in free ranging husbandry systems with potential contact to sheep and other ruminant species may be at risk.

Subclinical Ovine Gammaherpesvirus 2-Related Infections in Free-Ranging Wild Boars (Sus scrofa) from Southern Brazil

“…Additionally, a review of all previously reported cases of SA-MCF in pigs worldwide revealed that oral lesions were described only in an outbreak from the UK [ 27 ] and in one pig from a Swiss study [ 30 ]. Alternatively, similar lesions were not reported in pigs with SA-MCF from Finland [ 28 ], Germany [ 26 ], Norway [ 25 ], USA [ 24 , 29 ], and Brazil [ 16 ]. Therefore, it seems that oral lesions may not be frequent clinical manifestations of OvGHV2-related infections in pigs, so the oral detection of OvGHV2 in animal #21 may be a possible source of dissemination for this virus.…”

“…However, subclinical infections due to OvGHV2 have been described in several ruminant species, including cattle [ 20 , 21 ] and the American bison [ 21 , 22 , 23 ]. Pigs infected with OvGHV2 frequently develop the classical clinical manifestations of SA-MCF after contact with the asymptomatic carrier hosts [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ], and the acquired disease is similar to that identified in cattle [ 31 ]. Surprisingly, pigs reared on commercial farms from Brazil were infected by OvGHV2 and had no contact with sheep [ 16 ].…”

Malignant catarrhal fever: recent update

“…But it is common among Bali cattle and a serious problem in countries where bison and cervids are reared as farm animals as these are highly susceptible (Li et al 2006, Russell et al 2009. Pigs are also infected with SA-MCF virus, which was reported mainly from Norway, however, reports have been pouring from other countries too (Loken et al 1998, Syrjala et al 2006, Alcaraz et al 2009, Azevedo et al 2010, Lapp et al 2015. Circumstantial evidence (antibodies to MCF viruses in some gnotobiotic and specific pathogen-free sheep) and the identification of virus-infected cells in colostrum and milk, suggest that vertical transmission of OvHV-2 is possible (Rossiter 1981).…”