Experimental pestivirus infections in pregnant goats.

Fifty pregnant goats, inoculated intramuscularly at different gestational stages with a non-cytopathic ovine pestivirus or a cytopathic bovine pestivirus, all developed pestivirus-neutralizing antibodies within 5 weeks of inoculation. The incidence of reproductive failure was similar for the two agents. Parturition at term with only healthy kids occurred in 13 (26 per cent) of the goats. Viable kids were not born to any of the 17 goats inoculated at about day 40 of gestation. Three of the 17 delivered dead or weak kids, seven aborted and three of seven which were necropsied during pregnancy had markedly underdeveloped and autolysed or mummified fetuses in utero, while four were barren. When inoculated at around the 60th day of gestation, two of 18 animals gave birth to only healthy kids, 12 to dead and/or weak kids, two aborted and, at necropsy, a small, decomposed fetus was found in one goat while one other was barren. In this group, one kid was ataxic and seven others had body tremors characteristic of border disease. One of the latter kids was viable. Of 15 goats inoculated at around day 100 of gestation, 11 gave birth to healthy kids only, three to dead and/or weak kids and one aborted. In 23 progeny, histological changes in the central nervous system (CNS) consisted mainly of cerebral white matter necrosis, cerebellar dysplasia, hypercellular areas in white matter and lymphocytic perivascular cuffings. All seven weak-born kids with signs of border disease had CNS lesions, particularly cerebellar dysplasia and/or hypercellular areas. Non-cytopathic pestivirus was isolated from tissues from all eight progeny examined in the 40-day inoculation group, from tissues and/or serum from 10 of 23 progeny in the 60-day group, and from four of 24 in the 100-day group. Persistent infection was demonstrated in a healthy kid, in a viable shaker and in two other kids which appeared normal at birth. Examination of offspring before ingestion of colostrum revealed pestivirus antibodies in one kid in each of the 40- and 60-day inoculation groups and in five kids in the 100-day group.