The pathogenicity of a fowl adenovirus serotype-1 (FAdV-1, K181 strain) isolated from a case of gizzard erosion in layer chickens was investigated in specific-pathogen-free (SPF) chicks by T-H. Lim of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Konkuk University in Seoul and co-workers there and at the National Veterinary Research & Quarantine Service of the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in Anyang.

In a paper published recently in Poultry Science, the researchers explain that one-week-old specific pathogen-free (SPF) chicks were inoculated orally or intramuscularly with the isolate of FAdV-1 and euthanised for necropsy at on days 7, 14 and 21 post inoculation.

Although there were no clinical signs after inoculation, gizzard erosions were observed during gross examination and the virus was recovered from the gizzards in the inoculated chickens. Histologically, in the chickens that were infected orally, the lesions found in the gizzard consisted of severe degeneration and necrosis of glandular epitheliums and eosinophilic inclusion bodies.

These results indicate that the Korean FAdV-1 isolate could induce gizzard lesions in chickens, concluded Lim and co-authors. Moreover, the present investigation reproduced an outbreak of gizzard erosion caused by FAdV-1 infection and, for the first time, described the isolation of FAdV-1 from chickens in Korea. These findings provide important information on the epidemiology and pathogenesis of FAdV-1 infection in chickens, the research team added.

Reference

Lim T-H., B-Y. Kim, M-S. Kim, J-H. Jang, D-H. Lee, Y-K. Kwon, J-B. Lee, S-Y. Park, I-S. Choi and C-S. Song. 2012. Outbreak of gizzard erosion associated with fowl adenovirus infection in Korea. Poult. Sci. 91(5): 1113-1117. doi: 10.3382/ps.2011-02050

Further Reading

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