| First Author | Calvo-Pinilla E | Year | 2009 |
| Journal | PLoS One | Volume | 4 |
| Issue | 4 | Pages | e5171 |
| PubMed ID | 19357779 | Mgi Jnum | J:148164 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3843701 | Doi | 10.1371/journal.pone.0005171 |
| Citation | Calvo-Pinilla E, et al. (2009) Establishment of a bluetongue virus infection model in mice that are deficient in the alpha/beta interferon receptor. PLoS One 4(4):e5171 |
| abstractText | Bluetongue (BT) is a noncontagious, insect-transmitted disease of ruminants caused by the bluetongue virus (BTV). A laboratory animal model would greatly facilitate the studies of pathogenesis, immune response and vaccination against BTV. Herein, we show that adult mice deficient in type I IFN receptor (IFNAR((-/-))) are highly susceptible to BTV-4 and BTV-8 infection when the virus is administered intravenously. Disease was characterized by ocular discharges and apathy, starting at 48 hours post-infection and quickly leading to animal death within 60 hours of inoculation. Infectious virus was recovered from the spleen, lung, thymus, and lymph nodes indicating a systemic infection. In addition, a lymphoid depletion in spleen, and severe pneumonia were observed in the infected mice. Furthermore, IFNAR((-/-)) adult mice immunized with a BTV-4 inactivated vaccine showed the induction of neutralizing antibodies against BTV-4 and complete protection against challenge with a lethal dose of this virus. The data indicate that this mouse model may facilitate the study of BTV pathogenesis, and the development of new effective vaccines for BTV. |
