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Blue-eye disease is an emergent viral swine infection caused by porcine rubulavirus (PoRV). We have developed a qRT-PCR method to detect and quantify expression of the nucleoprotein gene for different PoRV strains. The limit of detection for this assay was 10(2) copies of synthetic RNA. Viral RNA from PoRV was detectable at a TCID50 of 0.01. Significant differences were observed between viral RNA quantification and virus titration results for nine PoRV strains. For nasal and oral swab samples that were collected from experimentally infected pigs, the qRT-PCR assay was more sensitive (87.1-83.9 %) for the detection of positive samples than methods involving isolation of virus. The implementation of highly sensitive assays that yield results quickly will be of great assistance in the eradication of PoRV from Mexico. We also believe that the newly developed qRT-PCR assay will help reduce the spread of this viral infection to other countries.

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The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of adding conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to boar diets on semen production and characteristics, the fatty acid profile of spermatozoa, and on testicle and boar carcass parameters. Ten lean-type terminal-line (Yorkshire × Landrace × Pietrain) adult boars were randomly assigned to one of two treatments: (1) a control diet and (2) the same diet with 1 % CLA. The research was conducted in Mexico, and animals were exposed to ambient temperatures between 13.5 and 26.3 °C. Boars were ejaculated twice per week during a 12-week period to examine semen production and characteristics. The results suggest that supplementation of boar diets with CLA did not affect the spermatozoa fatty acid profile, semen volume, sperm concentration, viability, or motility, nor did it cause abnormal sperm morphology. Compared to controls, boars fed a CLA diet had a higher seminal pH and increased backfat thickness. In summary, this study indicates that CLA addition in boar diet does not change the semen characteristics or fatty acid profile of spermatozoa; however, it increases backfat thickness in sexually mature boars.Keywords: Semen quality; Backfat thickness; Testicular characteristics. IntroductionSemen quality, including ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, and percentages of sperm mortality and abnormality, determines the economic value of boars. 1 Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), mainly ω-3 and ω-6 acids, are abundant in the plasma membrane of boar spermatozoa 2 and provide the sperm plasma mem- Conjugated Cite this as:Zamora-Zamora V, Figueroa-Velasco JL, Cordero-Mora JL, Nieto-Aquino R, García-Contreras AC, Sánchez-Torres MT, Carrillo-Domínguez S, Martínez-Aispuro JA. Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation does not improve boar semen quality and does not change its fatty acid profile. Veterinaria México OA. 2017;4(3).