Effect of Equid Herpesvirus 1 Infection on Parturition of Mice

Abstract

Intranasal infection with 10⁵ TCID₅₀/25 μl of the HH1 strain of EHV-1 in pregnant BALB/cA mice at 15 to 17 days of gestation resulted in not only clinical signs in dams such as suppression of body weight gain, ruffled fur, hunched posture and depression but also fetal growth retardation and death which were indicated by the degree of decrease in body weight at parturition, litter size and gross appearance of neonates, but the virus could not be demonstrated in any neonates tested.