Natural Infection in a Bull with Two Different Subtypes of Bovine Herpesvirus Type 1

Abstract

The objective of the present work is to communicate the natural infection of a bull with two different subtypes of bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BoHV-1). The two isolates, Uy-1999 (subtype 1) and Uy-2004 (subtype 2a), were recovered from the same animal, 5 years apart. After BoHV-1.1 Uy-1999 was isolated, the animal remained seronegative until five years later, when BoHV-specific neutralizing antibodies were detected.The bull was then immunosuppressed with corticosteroids, with the purpose of reactivating and attempting to recover latent virus. The BoHV-1.2 aisolate (Uy-2004) was recovered from seminal fluid and prepucial sawbs between days 7 and 10 postimmunossupression; however, the isolate Uy-1999 could not be recovered. Although infections with different BoHV-1 subtypes of the same animal has been previously demonstrated experimentally, there are noreports of isolation of two different BoHV subtypes from the same animal.