Schmallenberg virus detection in bovine semen after experimental infection of bulls

To study Schmallenberg virus (SBV) excretion in bovine semen after experimental infection, two bulls were inoculated subcutaneously with a SBV isolate (1 ml Vero cell culture 10(6) TCID(50)). After inoculation (at day 0), semen was collected daily from both animals for 21 days and samples were tested for SBV by qRT–PCR assay. At 24 days post-inoculation both animals were subjected to necropsy and the genital organs and lymph nodes draining these organs were also tested for SBV RNA (qRT–PCR). After SBV infection both animals in the study showed viraemia (qRT–PCR) with fever and diarrhoea. SBV RNA could be detected in semen from both animals. The highest SBV RNA concentrations in semen were found in the first week (days 4–7 post-inoculation) but concentrations were relatively low (Ct values 30–39). Viable SBV was only isolated from blood samples and not from semen or genital tissues.