Prevalence and implications of feline coronavirus infections of captive and free-ranging cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus).
نویسندگان
چکیده
The extent and progression of exposure to feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) virus in the cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, was monitored by a world-wide serological survey with indirect fluorescent antibody titers to coronavirus. The indirect fluorescent antibody assay was validated by Western blots, which showed that all indirect fluorescent antibody-positive cheetah sera detected both domestic cat and cheetah coronavirus structural proteins. There was a poor correlation between indirect fluorescent antibody results and the presence of coronaviruslike particles in cheetah feces, suggesting that electron microscopic detection of shed particles may not be an easily interpreted diagnostic parameter for FIP disease. Low, but verifiable (by Western blots [immunoblots]) antibody titers against coronavirus were detected in eight free-ranging cheetahs from east Africa as well as from captive cheetahs throughout the world. Of 20 North American cheetah facilities screened, 9 had cheetahs with measurable antibodies to feline coronavirus. Five facilities showed patterns of an ongoing epizootic. Retrospective FIP virus titers of an FIP outbreak in a cheetah-breeding facility in Oregon were monitored over a 5-year period and are interpreted here in terms of clinical disease progression. During that outbreak the morbidity was over 90% and the mortality was 60%, far greater than any previously reported epizootic of FIP in any cat species. Age of infection was a significant risk factor in this epizootic, with infants (less than 3 months old) displaying significantly higher risk for mortality than subadults or adults. Based upon these observations, empirical generalizations are drawn which address epidemiologic concerns for cheetahs in the context of this lethal infectious agent.
منابع مشابه
Evermann JF, Laurenson MK, McKeirnan AJ, Caro TM. 1993. Infectious Disease Surveillance in Captive and Free-Living Cheetahs: An Integral Part of the Species Survival Plan. Zoo Biology 12(1):125-33. Keywords: Acinonyx jubatus/captive breeding/cheetah/disease/free-ranging/health/herpesvirus/ management/survival/veterinary
During the formulative stages of developing the Species Survival Plan (SSP) for the cheetah, the impact of infectious disease upon its survival in captivity was of prime consideration, together with genetics, nutrition, physiology, and behaviour. This paper summarizes the results of an infectious disease surveillance program, initially designed to monitor the infectious agent associated with cl...
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We examined 1,092 skulls of captive and free-living individuals, representing 33 felid species, to determine the prevalence of focal palatine erosion (FPE). FPE was detected in 3.2% of cats evaluated, including cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) and 14 other felid species. The prevalence of FPE between cheetah (9.4%; n = 64) and non-cheetah species (2.8%; n = 1,028) (χ(2) test; P = 0.004) and between c...
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عنوان ژورنال:
- Journal of virology
دوره 64 5 شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 1990