Aortic lesions in goats infected with Mycobacterium johnei

Abstract

Aortic lesions occurring in goats infected both experimentally and spontaneously with Mycobacterium johnei were found in the inner zone of the media and were composed of necrotic foci situated in sheets of degenerated elastic fibres. These sheets showed fragmentation, pigmentation and incrustation with calcium and iron. It is postulated that there is a relationship between these lesions and the tissue damage produced elsewhere in the body.