Molecular characterization and phylogenetic analysis of virulent Marek's disease virus field strain in broiler chickens in Japan.

Molecular characterization and phylogenetic analysis of virulent Marek's disease virus field strain in broiler chickens in Japan. Avian Pathol. 2017 Aug 01;:1-41 Authors: Abd-Ellatieff HA, Abou Rawash AA, Ellakany HF, Goda WM, Suzuki T, Yanai T Abstract Marek's disease (MD) is a lymphoproliferative disease causing a serious threat in poultry production. Field strains of Marek's disease virus (MDVs) are continuously re-emerging, causing great economical losses to the poultry industry worldwide in spite of the intensive vaccination and restrictive management policy used. Histopathological and molecular characterizations of MDVs are essential for monitoring the changes of viruses and evaluating the effectiveness of existing vaccines. During 2016, 190 visceral tumor tissues representing 30 vaccinated chicken flocks from Gifu prefecture, Japan were analyzed. Pathological examination revealed presence of lymphoproliferative lesions in visceral organs. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening of tissue specimens using specific primers for Avian leucosis virus (ALV), Reticuloendotheliosis Virus (REV), and MDV were positive only for MDV. The PCR products of meq, Pp38, vIL-8, and glycoprotein (gL) MDV genes were sequenced and used for homology, phylogenetic, and similarity level analysis with the published reference of MDVs in the database. The results revealed high similarity between the field isolates, vv and vv+ strains of MDV from the USA...
Source: Avian Pathology - Category: Pathology Authors: Tags: Avian Pathol Source Type: research