Caprine arthritis encephalitis

Description

The Caprine arthritis and encephalitis (CAE) virus is a lentivirus (slow virus) in the family Retroviridae. CAE virus infection is widespread in dairy goat breeds. Most goats acquire the infection at an early age and they remain infected for life. Only a proportion develop clinical disease months to years later. CAE is primarily transmitted through ingestion of virus-infected colostrum or milk; however horizontal transmission also occurs by direct animal contact or contaminated fomites.

CAE virus infection in kids from one to six months old may result in encephalomyelitis and includes clinical signs of posterior weakness and ataxia progressing to paralysis. Arthritis occurs predominantly in adult goats and is most noticeable in the carpal joints, giving rise to the term ‘big knee’. Clinical signs in adult animals may include lameness, ill thrift, weight loss, viral and indurative mastitis (‘hard udder’) and chronic progressive pneumonia.

Diagnosis and tests available

Diagnosis

Diagnosis is supported by history, clinical signs, viral serology and histopathology.

Since the majority of infected animals are subclinical, viral serology is the preferred method for detecting infection in individual goats and herds. A positive viral serology result infers infection, but does not confirm that the clinical signs are caused by CAE virus.

Histopathology can assist in providing a definitive diagnosis.

Tests available

Click on + in the tables below for sampling requirements and additional test information

Code	Name	Samples required	Species	Turnaround time	Price (excl. GST)	Notes	Test days
CAE_ABEL	CAE Virus Antibody ELISA	Clotted blood (Red top) 10ml of blood collected into a plain red top tube Submit chilled Milk Submitted in Milk Preservative (bronopol)- You can order Bronopol vials (10 per order minimum) here Keep Chilled DO NOT Freeze	Caprine	Up to 7D	$15.55	D (number of working days) and W (number of weeks). Test TAT does not include weekends and public holidays.	Batch tested weekly
CAEMV_ABEL	CAE Virus/Maedi-Visna Virus Antibody ELISA	Clotted blood (Red top) 10ml of blood collected into a plain red top tube Submit chilled	Ovine	Up to 7D	$15.55	D (number of working days) and W (number of weeks). Test TAT does not include weekends and public holidays.	Batch tested weekly
CAE_RTPCR	CAE Virus PCR*	EDTA (Purple top) 10ml of blood collected into an EDTA (purple top) Submit chilled Preserved milk	Caprine	2-3D	$109.35	* Denotes analyses not covered by the NATA scope of accreditation. D (number of working days) and W (number of weeks). Test TAT does not include weekends and public holidays.
HIST_HE1	Histopathology – Preparation & Examination	Fixed Tissues- General Fresh tissues immediately placed in formalin Tissue pieces should not be greater than 1cm cubed to ensure proper fixation Submit fixed in neutral buffered formalin at a 10:1 ratio of formalin: tissue Fixed Tissues- Nervous tissues Submission of whole brain is required to ensure preservation of TSE target sites submit fixed in neutral buffered formalin at a ratio of 10:1 formalin: tissue Brains submitted for Nervous tissues are processed once a week, separate to general tissues to ensure consistent and reliable results. Urgent cases can be processed out of cycle if clearly marked on the Submission Form however this may reduce the quality of the brain histology results, so should only be requested in extremely urgent cases. Fresh Tissues Fresh tissues can be submitted following necropsy The quality of the tissues will be reduced due to the effects of autolysis so ideally fixed tissue should be submitted in neutral buffered formalin at a ratio of 10:1 formalin: tissue	All species	Up to 10D	$84.95	D (number of working days) and W (number of weeks). Test TAT does not include weekends and public holidays.	Monday - Friday
CAE_ABEL_M	CAE Virus Antibody ELISA for bulk tank milk	Bulk tank milk Submitted in Milk Preservative (bronopol)- You can order Bronopol vials (10 per order minimum) here Keep Chilled DO NOT Freeze	Caprine	Up to 7D	$15.55	D (number of working days) and W (number of weeks). Test TAT does not include weekends and public holidays.	Batch tested weekly

Additional Test Information:

Histopathology Sample Requirements:

Fixed tissue
Carpal joint, brain, spinal cord, lung and mammary gland Submitted fixed in neutral buffered formalin at a 10:1 ratio of formalin: tissue TAT: Up to 2 weeks for brain samples. Up to 5 days for all other sample types.

Additional Information

Interpretation of viral serology: Adult does should not be tested in the period of one month before or after kidding as inconsistent results may occur. In addition, no goat should be tested within one month of vaccination. The antibody against CAE virus is not a protective antibody, so any antibody positive animal should be regarded as infected. Because the virus is transmitted in colostrum, a kid that has acquired antibody through colostrum is likely to be infected. It can take up to three months, rarely up to two years, for antibodies to develop after exposure to the virus. Suspect animals with a negative test result should be retested in a few months' time to confirm their negative status.
For more comprehensive information on the disease, testing and control in NSW, see the Primefact, Caprine arthritis encephalitis (CAE) (PDF, 74.21 KB).
NSW DPIRD administers a CAE accreditation scheme. For information on the scheme contact biosecurity@dpi.nsw.gov.au

Customer Service

Contact Customer Service for enquiries relating to testing and results, quotations and pricing, couriers, sample submission and invoicing.

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CONTACT DETAILS
Phone	1800 675 623
Email	laboratory.services@dpird.nsw.gov.au
Operating Hours	8:30am-4:30pm Monday-Friday (excluding public holidays) 8:30am-12:00pm Saturday (for deliveries only)
Postal Address	Private Bag 4008, Narellan NSW 2567

Quotations

For Animal export, Plant health or Veterinary quotations, please complete the online quotation request

For Edible oil & oilseed or Feed quality quotations and pricing enquiries, please contact DPIRD AgEnviro Labs at Wagga Wagga on (02) 6938 1957

Submission Forms

Veterinary Specimen Advice Form

Please Note: These documents are not fully web accessible, please contact Customer Service (laboratory.services@dpird.nsw.gov.au) for more information.

Courier services and specimen delivery

For NSW submissions, please contact the relevant Customer Service team for courier account details and to order consignment notes.

For submitters outside of NSW, Couriers can be contacted directly to make bookings and arrange collection of packages at the submitters own cost.

Commercial couriers may use either road or air transport and specimens should therefore be packed in accordance with International Air Transport Association (IATA) requirements. Most submission sent by veterinarians to the APHL for testing are defined as “Biological Substance Category B” and must be packed according to the IATA packing instructions 650 (Biological Substance Category B). As requirements for transport can change, customers should consult with their transport agent to obtain current requirements.

Samples may also be hand delivered to the site during normal business hours (8.30am - 4.30pm).

Sample Type	Laboratory	Street Address
Animal (including aquatic animals)	NSW Animal and Plant Health Laboratories (APHL)	EMAI, Woodbridge Road, Menangle NSW 2568