Effect of the caprine arthritis encephalitis virus in the reproductive system of male goats

Abstract

THE EFFECT OF THE CAPRINE ARTHRITIS ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS (CAEV) ON THE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM OF THE MALE GOAT WAS EVALUATED. FOURTEEN ADULT MALES DISTRIBUTED INTO 4 GROUPS WERE STUDIED: I) NEGATIVE CONTROL (UNINFECTED ANIMALS) (N=3); II) ANIMALS EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED WITH AN AUTOCHTHONOUS CAEV (FES-C.UNAM ISOLATE) (N=3); III) NATURALLY INFECTED ANIMALS (N=5); IV) ANIMALS EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED WITH CAEV REFERENCE STRAIN FROM THE AMERICAN TYPE CULTURE COLLECTION (ATCC) (N=3). BLOOD AND SEMEN SAMPLES WERE COLLECTED EVERY 30 DAYS AND ANIMALS WERE CLINICALLY EVALUATED (ESPECIALLY FOR POSSIBLE EXTERNAL GENITAL ALTERATIONS) DURING 10 MONTHS. NO DIFFERENCES IN SCROTAL DIAMETER, SEMINAL MOTILITY, SEMINAL PH, COLOR AND VOLUME WERE FOUND AMONG THE FOUR GROUPS. ANTIBODIES AGAINST CAEV WERE DETECTED BY ELISA IN BLOOD SERUM AND SEMINAL FLUID IN ANIMALS INFECTED WITH THE AUTOCHTHONOUS STRAIN AFTER 7 MONTHS, IN ANIMALS EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED WITH THE REFERENCE STRAIN AFTER 3 MONTHS AND ANIMALS NATURALLY INFECTED REMAINED POSITIVE THROUGHOUT THE EXPERIMENT. BY WESTERN BLOT, ANTIBODIES AGAINST PROTEINS P14, P16, P19, P25, P27, P45, P71, P90 AND GP135 THOUSAND KDA WERE FOUND IN SEMINAL FLUID AND IN BLOOD SERUM AGAINST PROTEINS P16, P19, P25, P27, P71, P90, AND GP135 THOUSAND KDA. ANIMALS WERE HUMANELY SACRIFI CED 10 MONTHS AFTER INOCULATION. NO PATHOLOGICAL ALTERATIONS WERE FOUND IN THE GENITAL ORGANS OF ANIMALS BELONGING TO GROUPS I AND IV. IN GROUP II ONLY ONE ANIMAL WAS FOUND WITH A GRANULOMA IN THE HEAD OF THE EPIDIDYMIS OF THE RIGHT TESTIS WITH A YELLOWISH CREAMY SUBSTANCE. IN GROUP III ONE ANIMAL WAS FOUND WITH HYDROCELE THAT CONTAINED A SEROUS LIQUID, ANOTHER WITH EDEMA IN THE HEAD OF THE RIGHT TESTIS AND ANOTHER ONE WITH SYNCYTIA IN SEMINAL VESICLE. IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL STUDIES SHOWED CAEV ANTIGENS IN EPITHELIAL CELLS OF THE SEMINAL VESICLES, AMPULLA AND BULBOURETHRAL GLANDS IN GROUPS II, III AND IV. BY PCR, CAEV WAS DETECTED IN SEMINAL FL UID AT THE TIME OF SACRIFI CE. NO HISTOLOGICAL ALTERATIONS WERE FOUND EXCEPT IN ONE ANIMAL BELONGING TO GROUP III WHICH PRESENTED SYNCYTIA IN THE SEMINAL VESICLE. THE PRESENCE OF ANTIGEN IN THE TISSUES DEMONSTRATES THAT THESE MAY ACT AS DISSEMINATORS OF CAE.