Prevention and Control of diseases through semen

1. • Presented by
ASWINI SIVAN G
MVSc. Scholar-6251
IVRI bareily

2. Introduction
• Millions of units of frozen bovine semen are produced and distributed both
domestically and internationally
• Maintain the health of animals
• Testing in three phases
• Regular testing of semen donors under official veterinary supervision

3. Diseases whose presence and transmission
through semen has already been demonstrated
•
1. Foot and mouth disease.
2. Vesicular Stomatitis.
3. Infectious Bovine Rhino tracheitis (IBR).
4. Bovine Virus Diarrhoea (BVD).
5. Papillomatosis.
6. Leptospirosis.
7. Tuberculosis.
8. Paratuberculosis.
9. Mycoplasma.
10. Anaplasmosis.
11. Brucellosis.
12. Campylobacteriosis.
13. Trichomoniasis.

4. Infectious bovine rhino tracheitis
Red nose
An infectious viral disease characterized by respiratory
infection, conjunctivitis, encephalitis in calves, abortions
in cows and balanoposthitis in susceptible bulls
Bovine Herpes Virus type 1 (BHV 1), subfamily Alpha herpes virinae
• Replicates in the mucosa of the prepuce ,penis and distal part of
the urethra ,and semen is contaminated during ejaculation
(Weiblen etal.,1992;Vogel etal.,2004;Wrathall etal.,2006)
• One of the most common viral pathogens found in bovine semen
( Eaglesome & Garcia, 1997)

5. Balanoposthitis
Necrotising inflammation
of trachea
Abortion

6. International eradication schemes
Vaccination can be used to control BHV-1 infection in bulls in AI Centres (AIC)
(van Oirschot et al., 1993)
OIE
•Maintenance of an IBR-free herd in an AIC or be subjected, with negative
results on 2 occasions , to a serological test for IBR/IPV on a blood sample, at
an interval of not less than 2 months and not more than 12 months;
(Chapter 11.8 of the OIE-Terrestrial Animal Health Code 2018 )
•Should be tested serologically - a minimum of 21 days of entering pre entry area
with negative result

7. • Newly introduced animals should be placed in quarantine for a period of 30
days
• Infected animals should be isolated from the rest of the herd.
• Annual testing of bulls.
• Vaccination- MLV
• Vaccination with IBR vaccine is not indicated once the disease has appeared.
• Movement control.

8. Bovine viral diarrhea
An contagious viral disease characterized by
hypoplasia of cerebellum, ulcers in oral and
nasal mucosa, esophagus, abomasum and
intestines
Pesti virus of Flavi viridae family
BVDV antigen has been detected in the
epithelial cells of the ductus epididymis ,
accessory glands, urethra, Sertoli cells, and
Spermatogonia
(Borel et al., 2007 ; Newcomer et al., 2014 ; Givens .2018 )

9.  Severe sialorrhea
and emaciation
 Cutaneous ulcers
 Multifocal to
coalescing
ulceration -
mucocutaneous
junction.
 Hard palate-
Multifocal areas of
ulceration

10. • Virus can be present in semen from bulls with persistent infection, and acute
infection. (Givens.2018)
• When infected in the first 4 months of pregnancy, cows may deliver persistently
infected (PI)calves that shed the virus throughout life.
(Wentink et al. ,2000)
• The major source of infection is persistently infected (PI) animals present in a
herd.
• The PI bull is capable shedding BVDV for long periods of time and in large
amounts, despite producing semen with normal concentration, motility, and
morphology.

11. Prevention and control
• Elimination of PI’s
• Biosecurity
• Vaccination
• Monitoring

12. OIE
• Prior to entering pre-entry isolation facility
i. Virus isolation test or a test for virus antigen
ii. Serological test to determine the serological status of every
animal
• Should be tested for virus antigen or serologically- a minimum of
21days after entering pre-entry area with negative result

13. • An contagious disease of cloven footed
animals characterized by presence of vesicles
in oral mucosa and foot.
Aptho virus of the family –Picorna viridae
Serotypes A, O, C, SAT-1, SAT-2, SAT-3 and Asia-1

14. Disease risk through semen
• FMD virus is easily transmitted through semen
• In acutely infected cattle, this virus is shed in all secretions and excretions
including semen.
• Virus has been detected in the semen of up to 4 days before the
development of oral vesicles
(Sellers et al., 1968)

15. Control and Prevention
• Rest period of 30 days before semen collection following vaccination
• Laboratory testing of semen upon its arrival in the importing country
OIE
• Show no clinical signs of FMD on the day of collection
• Kept for at least 3 months before collection in a FMD-free country, zone, or
compartment
• Kept in an artificial insemination centre where no animals had a history of
infection with FMDV
(Article 8.8 of the OIE-Terrestrial Animal Health Code 2018)

16. BRUCELLOSIS
Infectious bacterial disease characterized by
abortions in late gestation and formation of
granulomatous lesions in genital organ
Brucella abortus ( occasionally by B .melitensis )
Orchitis

17. Severe necrotic & haemorrhagic placentitis
Aborted foetus- acute diffuse
fibrinous pleuritis

18. Disease risk through semen
• Localize in the reproductive tract of the bull leading to orchitis, epididymitis,
seminal vesiculitis, ampullitis, decreased libido and infertility
(Givens & Marley, 2008)
• Bulls will shed B abortus organisms in semen during the acute phase of infection,
after which shedding will cease or become intermittent
(Bercovich et al., 1998)
• Infected bulls may be serologically positive or negative (Plant et al., 1976)
The organisms survive in the environment in favourable circumstances for prolonged periods

19. Prevention and control
• Live Strain 19 vaccine and the killed 45/20 vaccine
• Strain 19 may produce permanent infections in bulls similar to those of natural disease
(Nicoletti et al.,1986)
• RB51, an avirulent rough mutant lacking an O-chain, can induce a protective cell-mediated
immune response without an accompanying seroconversion
(Schurig et al.,1996)
OIE
• Should come from brucellosis free herd (Article 8.4 of OIE 2018 )
• Should be tested serologically –a minimum of 21 days after entering pre-entry area with negative
result

20. • Surveillance - serological tests, milk ring test, can be used for screening and
play an important role in campaigns to eliminate the disease
• In endemic areas, vaccination is often used to reduce the incidence of
infection. Several vaccines are available that use modified live viruses.
• Test and stamping out program is required to completely eliminate it.
• Pasteurization of milk - zoonotic

21. B suis , B ovis, B canis
• Venereal transmission
• Separate female at the time of birthing to avoid
transmission in kennels or in the farm .

22. LEPTOSPIROSIS
• Leptospira interrogans
Serovars include Hardjo (L. hardjo), L. Pomona, L.
grippotyphosa, L. canicola, and L. icterohaemorrhagiae
• Infectious disease characterized by widespread
hemorrhages in visceral organs, nephritis, icterus, hepatitis
and anemia

23. Disease risk through semen
• Recovered from the semen of naturally (Kiktenko et al., 1976) and experimentally
infected bulls (Sleight et al., 964), and seminal transmission has been reported
(Sleight. 1965)
• Transmission of the organism may be possible through fresh and frozen semen
(Eaglesome et al., 1997; Miraglia et al., 2003)
• Leptospira spp. can be isolated from the genital tract of subclinical bulls and
transmitted in semen (Bon Durant, 2005)

24. Prevention and control
• The addition of antibiotics to extended semen has been shown to be effective in
controlling the number of leptospiral organisms
(Miraglia et al., 2003)
• Control by vaccination
• In a closed herd with no evidence of previous infection all replacements, including bulls,
should be isolated for three weeks and treated with streptomycin 25mg/kg on two
occasions 10-14 days apart before entry into the herd.
• Rodent control

25. VIBRIOSIS/ Campylobacteriosis
Haemorrhagic placentitis
Campylobacter (Vibrio) foetus, particularly the
sub species venerealis
• An infectious diseases characterized by early
abortions, suppurative metritis, cervicitis and
vaginitis.
• A widespread bacterial disease associated
with both bovine infertility and abortion

26. Risk of transmission in semen
• Survive cryopreservation of semen (Peter,1997)
• Transmitted to female cattle at natural or artificial service and causes vaginitis, cervicitis,
endometritis, salpingitis, infertility, delayed return to estrus, early embryonic death, and
rarely abortion
(Peter, 1997 ; Bon Durant, 2005 )
• Organisms reside in the epithelium of the preputial cavity of infected bulls; with
increasing age, the epithelial crypts of the prepuce become deeper, providing a
microaerophilic environment that supports replication of the microbes. Thus, a bull can
develop a life-long infection
• Infection is not accompanied by either pathological lesions or modifications in the
characteristics of the semen (Eaglesome & Garcia, 1997)

27. Prevention and Control
• Regular check up the animal
• Take the previous history of bull
• Field monitoring over inseminated cows is needed to find out infection
• Vaccinate the animal
• Biosecurity and screening of bulls
• If a bull has to be bought in , the best policy is younger the better

28. • Bulls are usually tested in quarantine by culture of preputial samples on three
occasions to ensure that they are free of C.fetus before entering AI centres
• A combination of gentamycin, lincospectin and tylosin, has been
recommended for Liquid or frozen semen
(Shinetal.,1988; Eaglesome & Garcia ,1997)
OIE recommends
• Gentamicin, Tylosin, Lincomycin –Spectinomycin ;Penicillin ,Streptomycin , or
Amikacin and Dibekacin

29. BOVINE TUBERCULOSIS
• Mycobacterium bovis (occasionally by M. tuberculosis)
Chronic bacterial disease characterised by presence of
tubercle nodules in lungs, spleen and lymph nodes
resulting in progressive emaciation of the affected
animal

30. Disease risk through semen
• Tuberculosis is a zoonotic disease and transmission by semen is possible
( Wentink et al., 2000)
• Bull diagnosed with TB on slaughter which was used for AI has resulted infection of
more than 100 cows out of 1000 inseminated
(Raumy ,1966)
• Transmission of tuberculosis has been reported via natural breeding as well as in
fresh and frozen semen samples using PCR
(Bartlett, 1967; Ahmed et al., 1999)
• The organism is resistant to environmental influences and may survive for several
months.

31. Control and Prevention
• CSS requires a negative intradermal tuberculin test within 60 days prior to
entry into the isolation facility (Certified Semen Services, 2015 )
OIE
• Showed negative results to tuberculin tests carried out annually and were
kept in a herd free from bovine tuberculosis; (Article 8.11 of OIE 2018)
• The donor animal showed no clinical sign of bovine tuberculosis on the day
of collection of the semen

32. BOVINE PARATUBERCULOSIS
• Mycobacterium paratuberculosis
• Chronic bacterial disease characterized by dehydration, emaciation, chronic
diarrhea and thickening of intestines
Marked emaciation and adhesion
of faeces

33. Disease risk through semen
• The organisms survive in the environment in favourable circumstances for
prolonged periods
• M .paratuberculosis was found in the semen of bulls suffering from severe
clinical disease.

34. Trichomoniosis
Trichomonas foetus
Protozoan disease characterized by abortion,
vaginitis, metritis and balanitis in cattle
.

35. Control and Prevention
• Cull the infected animals, replace them with virgin certified bulls
• Test the bulls before breeding. All bulls of unknown status should have three
negative tests using PCR or culture.
• Procedures are advised against buying non pregnant cows, as they may be a
source of infection.
• Vaccines developed some time ago for use in cows and evaluated in the field were
not highly effective
• Biosecurity

36. • Consider small sire groups (but not necessarily single-sire), versus large sire
herds, to avoid infecting many bulls in a single season.
• Consider artificial insemination to avoid introducing Trichs or to help break
the cycle of infection in a herd.
• Keep a closed herd and test any animal that you buy.
• Disease-free herds and be tested in quarantine by the direct microscopic and
culture tests on three occasions

37. 1. the donor animals have never been used for natural service; or
2. the donor animals have only mated virgin heifers; or
3. the donor animals were kept in an establishment or artificial insemination
centre where no case of trichomonosis has been reported;
4. the donor animals were subjected to a direct microscopic and cultural
examination of preputial specimens with negative results;
OIE