Distemper Virus

Because it likes to infect and damage epithelial cells, canine distemper also tends to infect the outer skin of the dog. This damage results in a number of different skin lesions, the most typical being: - 'hardpad' - the pads of the feet become excessively thickened. - 'hardnose' - the nose of the dog becomes excessively thickened and horny..

Arrows point to two distemper virus inclusion bodies, direct physical evidence that the Canine virus is living inside the different white blood cell classes.

Inclusion bodies, are stainable aggregates of viral protein used to make more viruses. Inclusion bodies make new viruses, seeing one is absolute evidence the animal is infected.

A lion with myoclonus, involuntary muscle spasms, brought on by canine distemper virus infection during a 1994 outbreak. Credit: Serengeti Carnivore Disease Project. Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2015-01-lions-distemper-dogs-carriers.html#jCp