Morphologic and Immunohistochemical Characterization of the Hepatic Lesions Associated with European Brown Hare Syndrome

• Published in: Veterinary Pathology
• Main Author: Gavier-Widén, D.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publications 1994
• Subjects: Lepus timidus
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/030098589403100305; https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/030098589403100305

Liver lesions were studied in 40 free-living adult European brown hares ( Lepus europaeus) and varying hares ( Lepus timidus) of both sexes that had died in Sweden with the viral infection European brown hare syndrome (EBHS). The lesions were characterized by their histopathologic, immunohistochemical, and electron microscopic findings. Periportal to massive coagulation necrosis was a distinctive feature of EBHS. Lytic necrosis, inflammation, fatty degeneration, and cholangitis occurred variably. Accumulation of basophilic granules in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes was commonly observed; these lesions corresponded ultrastructurally to mitochondrial calcification. Viral antigen was revealed in the cytoplasm and nucleus of hepatocytes and in the cytoplasm of macrophages.