Neuropathology and diagnostic features of rabies in a litter of piglets, with a brief review of the literature

Porcine rabies is exceedingly rare worldwide. We describe herein the neuropathology and the diagnostic features of an outbreak of rabies in a litter of piglets attacked by a skunk in Georgia, United States. Rabies viral infection was confirmed in 2 of 3 piglets submitted for testing. Inflammatory an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation 2020-01, Vol.32 (1), p.166-168
Main Authors: Siepker, Christopher L., Dalton, Martha F., McHale, Brittany J., Sakamoto, Kaori, Rissi, Daniel R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Brain - pathology
Brain - virology
brain stem
Brief Communications
cerebellum
fluorescent antibody technique
Georgia
Georgia - epidemiology
meningoencephalitis
necrosis
neurons
neuropathology
piglets
Procyon lotor
rabies
Rabies - diagnosis
Rabies - epidemiology
Rabies - veterinary
Rabies lyssavirus
Rabies virus - classification
Rabies virus - isolation & purification
skunks
Swine
Swine Diseases - diagnosis
Swine Diseases - epidemiology
Swine Diseases - virology
United States
viral inclusion bodies
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Summary:Porcine rabies is exceedingly rare worldwide. We describe herein the neuropathology and the diagnostic features of an outbreak of rabies in a litter of piglets attacked by a skunk in Georgia, United States. Rabies viral infection was confirmed in 2 of 3 piglets submitted for testing. Inflammatory and degenerative changes were more prominent in the brainstem and consisted of lymphoplasmacytic meningoencephalitis with glial nodules, neuronal necrosis, and neuronophagia. No viral inclusions (Negri bodies) were observed in multiple sections of brain. A fluorescent antibody test on fresh samples of brainstem and cerebellum was confirmatory for the eastern United States raccoon rabies virus variant. Immunoreactivity for rabies virus was detected across all brain sections in both cases but was more prominent in the thalamic and brainstem nuclei, as well as in the medial lemniscus. Rabies is an important differential diagnosis in pigs with neurologic disease.
ISSN:1040-6387
1943-4936
1943-4936
DOI:10.1177/1040638719898687