The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of the Newcastle disease virus (NDV) infection and its virulence in exotic cage birds over a limited area and time period. A set of 335 samples was collected from 24 different species of exotic unvaccinated cage birds kept in the zoological gardens and bird markets of the Tehran province of Iran during 1.5 years. Except for three pigeons, all of the sampled birds were healthy with no clinical signs of Newcastle disease. NDV was detected in three sick pigeons by haemagglutination assay (HA), haemagglutination inhibition (HI) and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests while two of them were identified as virulent types by RT-PCR. Although the remaining samples were negative by Newcastle-disease-specific HA and HI tests, 35 of them (10%) were identified as positive and 25 (72%) were determined as the velogenic type by RT-PCR test. Five PCR products were sequenced and all were confirmed as NDV but sequences were different from each other and from other sequences from Iran. In total, 14 species (58%) were infected and 10 species were uninfected with the velogenic type without showing any signs. Pigeons are very sensitive to NDV infection and play an important role in its epidemiology. In this study, the PCR test was found to be a more sensitive and powerful method than the HA and HI tests for detection of NDV reservoirs and carrier status in exotic birds. Also, the frequency of infection with the virulent type showed that the exotic birds should probably be considered one of the main causes of recurrent annual epidemics of Newcastle disease in endemic regions.
Aim: Bluetongue is a non-contagious, infectious viral disease of domestic and wild ruminants; which is believed to have originated in Africa. The epidemiology of Bluetongue virus infection is poorly defined in many parts of the world, including a wide range of Asia and the Middle East. This paper reports the results of a Bluetongue serological survey in sheep from some provinces of Iran during 2007-2008. Material and Methods: A total of 996 sheep sera were collected from 8 provinces in Iran and tested for Bluetongue virus specific using c-ELISA. Results: The results showed that the Bluetongue virus seroprevalence of sheep over the entire study areas was 34.93%, with the highest and lowest prevalence seen in West-Azerbaijan (64.86%) and Qom (12.1%) areas respectively. Conclusion: The results demonstrated a high prevalence of Bluetongue antibodies in Iranian sheep, giving serological evidence of extensive exposure to Bluetongue virus infection in some provinces of the country. [Vet World 2013; 6(3.000): 122-125
Bovine leukemia virus (BLV), the causative agent of enzootic bovine leukosis (EBL) is an exogenous C-type oncovirus in the Retroviridae family. It causes significant economic losses associated with the costs of control and eradication programs due to carcass condemnation at slaughter and restrictions of export of cattle and semen to importing countries. The main objective of this research was to determine the seroprevalence of BLV infection in cattle herds in central region of Iran (Isfahan province) using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect serum antibodies against BLV. Samples of blood serum were collected from 403 female dairy cattle (Holstein-Friesian) from 21 livestock farms and 303 animals (81.9%) were BLV seropositive. A significant association was found between age as a potential risk factor and BVL seroprevalence with animals ≥ 4 years (86.6%) having a significantly (χ(2) = 35.6, p < 0.001) higher seroprevalence compared to those < 4 years (54.2%). We found no significant statistical association between seroprevalence and pregnancy, lactation status and farming systems as potential risk factors in this study (p > 0.1). It is concluded that BLV infection is a very common problem in the study area. Hence, control measures should be instituted to combat the disease and further studies are required to investigate the impact of this disease on dairy production in the country.
Nasal vaccination is a promising, needle-free alternative route for parenteral vaccination. This study introduces a simple, scalable nasal vaccine delivery formulation for Foot and Mouth Disease virus (FMDv) using chitosan (CS) nanoparticles and assesses the potential of fungal CS for use as nanocarriers for mucosal vaccines. Fungal CS was extracted from fungal biomass and physiochemically characterized. FMDv-loaded CS nanoparticles, prepared using an ionic gelation technique, were characterized for particle size, zeta potential, morphology, loading efficiency and virus particle release. The immunogenicities of nasally applied FMDv-loaded fungal or commercial shrimp CS were compared with intraperitoneally administered fluid vaccine in guinea pigs. The nanoparticles had varied sizes (221.9-281.2 nm), positive electrical charge (+7 to +13 mV) and excellent antigen-loading capacity (93-97%). In vitro release studies revealed a biphasic virus particle release for all CS nanoparticles. Higher serum titers were developed with CS formulations than with free virus and were comparable with the titers for intraperitoneally administered fluid vaccine. Significantly higher IgA levels were found after the administration of nasal vaccine than after fluid vaccine or free virus. Overall, CS-FMDv nanoparticles stimulated humoral and mucosal immunity following intranasal administration. Fungal CS polymers were potent mucosal immunoadjuvants and showed promise as alternative sources of CS for mucosal vaccine formulations.
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