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2002
LSU-HHMI Summer Undergraduate Research Program |
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 Eduardo
F. Gallo (University of New Orleans) (Elmer K. Godeny, Dept.
of Pathobiological Sciences, LSU School of Veterinary Medicine)
Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease Virus (EHDV): Passive Immunization
of White-tailed Deer and Growth in Insect Cells
Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) is one of the most
important pathogens affecting deer populations in North America.
In an attempt to determine whether passive immunization could
protect deer from EHDV2, several white-tailed deer were passively
immunized with serum containing anti-EHDV2 antibodies. The animals
were examined daily for 21 days for clinical symptoms of the
disease. They were also bled at various time points and anti-EHDV2
neutralizing antibody titers and virus titers were determined.
Animals which died during the study were necropsied to determine
the cause of death. Animals passively immunized at the time
of virus inoculation were protected: their virus neutralizing
antibody response was delayed and diminished and the virus titers
at day 6 post-inoculation were markedly reduced. All other animal
groups had similar antibody and virus titers. Disease symptoms
were similar to control animals.
EHDV is transmitted by the biting midge fly, Culicoides. Experiments
were carried out to determine if a cell line, CuVaK2, derived
from C. sonorensis could support the replication of EHDV2. The
results indicate that CuVak2 cells are susceptible to EHDV replication
and could be a beneficial cell line for future EHDV studies.
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