An experimental mouse model of progressive atrophic rhinitis of swine.

Pasteurella multocida is responsible for a variety of diseases of veterinary importance, including the pig disease progressive atrophic rhinitis (PAR). The feasibility of using the mouse as an experimental model of PAR was evaluated. We experimentally infected the upper respiratory tract of immature mice with a pig isolate of P. multocida that produces the toxin responsible for causing the nasal lesions characteristic of PAR. We tracked the health status and weight gain of these mice for one month following infection, after which the mice were killed and the integrity of the nasal turbinates was examined. Mice infected with P. multocida appeared healthy throughout the study, although the growth rate of these mice was reduced significantly compared with non-infected control animals. Infected animals also demonstrated marked nasal atrophy analogous to that seen in naturally occurring PAR of swine, with shortening and thinning of the turbinate scrolls and inflammatory cell involvement. The mouse therefore provides a convenient model for the further investigation of PAR of swine.