Experimental Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis virus infection of the bovine.

Two groups of four dairy cows (Bos taurus) were infected subcutaneously with the epizootic Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis virus (VEE) strains MF-8 and San Pelayo, respectively. Animals experienced no clinical illness, but all developed significant neutropenia. Virus was recovered once each from the blood of three animals but did not exceed 10(2.2) SMICLD(50) (Suckling mouse intracerebral lethal dose(50))/ml. Specific neutralizing antibodies appeared in the serum of all animals, but there were no significant differences in titers against different naturally occurring VEE subtypes. Dairy cattle thus appear to play no role in virus transmission during VEE epizootics but may serve as retrospective immunological sentinels of virus activity.