The apoptosis of RK13 cells induced by RHDV was investigated with DAPI staining,DNA ladder,Caspase 3 activity and flow cytometry,etc.The results showed that nuclear staining of infected cells with DAPI showed gradually morphological changes of the nuclei.As shown in the paper,a canonic oligonucleosome-sized DNA ladder was observed in cells harvested at 24h,48h and 72h post-infection,confirming that DNA fragmentation was induced by RHDV infection.The results of flow cytometry showed that about 63 % of cells were in apoptosis at 48h post-infection.Besides,we also demonstrated that the activation of Caspase 3 occurred during the infection process.In conclusion,our results showed that apoptosis in RHD might be determinant in the development of the pathogenesis of RHD.
