Distribution of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus RNA in experimentally infected rabbits

Adult rabbits were inoculated with liver homogenate from a rabbit haemorrha gic disease (RHD). All experimentally infected rabbits died with typical cl inical, gross and histological findings of RHD. Distribution of RHD virus i n tissues of the infected rabbits was studied by non-isotopic in-situ hybri dization. Both viral plus- and minus-strand RNAs were detected within the c ytoplasm of hepatocytes. Kupffer cells and splenic and alveolar macrophages . mainly in morphologically intact cells. Strand-specific reverse transcrip tase polymerase chain reaction also demonstrated viral minus-strand RNA as well as plus-strand RNA in the liver, lung and spleen of infected rabbits. Those results suggest that viral replication occurs not only in hepatocytes but also in macrophages. The infected macrophages may contribute to viral dissemination in RHD. (C) 2001 Harcourt Publishers Ltd.