[Caprine arthritis-encephalitis virus (CAEV). Short review].

After a short history, this work shows frequency of the articular form of the disease in France, and isolation of the virus. Although related to retrovirus, CAEV and maedi-visna have some differences: tropism of CAEV only for goats, low replication and expression in vitro, characteristic differences in protein composition. The virus seems to be transmitted during neonatal life; aerial transmission is still unclear. Separation of affected and non-affected goats is the only eradication technique when flocks are highly infected. An intervention a non-specific parameters is necessary to limit the spreading of the disease. Medical prophylaxis is non-existent. It is important to obtain a specific antigen in ELISA test for earlier detection of affected animals. Moreover, this research work could be a good model for further investigation into the rheumatoid-like syndrome in man.