THE DEVELOPMENT OF LIGHTCYCLER~(TM) POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION TESTS TO DETECT VARIOUS PATHOGENS IN SEMEN OF INFECTED BOARS

摘要

It is generally known that infected boars can spread various pathogens through their semen. Short after the Classical Swine Fever (CSF) outbreak in The Netherlands (1997) it was shown in an animal infection experiment that semen of infected boars contained CSF-Virus. Consequently it was decided to develop fast and sensitive PCR tests with defined specificity to detect Classical Swine Fever Virus (CSFV), Foot and Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV), Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) and Pseudorabies Virus (PRV). To obtain relevant clinical samples, in 4 independent animal experiments boars were infected with CSFV, FMDV, PRV and PRRSV. Semen for analysis was collected during a period directly after infection. Clinical signs were observed and serological screening on blood as well as virus isolation on blood and semen was done simultaneously. The aim of this paper is to present the development and validation of the PCR's specific for application in boar semen.