Phylogenetic and Pathotypic Characterization of Newcastle Disease Viruses Circulating in South China and Transmission in Different Birds

Abstract

Although Newcastle disease virus (NDV) with high pathogenicity has frequently been isolated in poultry in China since 1948, the mode of its transmission among avian species remains largely unknown. Given that various wild bird species have been implicated as sources of transmission, in this study we genotypically and pathotypically characterized 23 NDV isolates collected from chickens, ducks, and pigeons in live bird markets (LBMs) in South China as part of an H7N9 surveillance program during December 2013–February 2014. To simulate the natural transmission of different kinds of animals in LBMs, we selected three representative NDVs—namely, GM, YF18, and GZ289—isolated from different birds to evaluate the pathogenicity and transmission of the indicated viruses in chickens, ducks, and pigeons. Furthermore, to investigate the replication and shedding of NDV in poultry, we inoculated the chickens, ducks, and pigeons with 106 EID50 of each virus via intraocular and intranasal routes. Eight hour after infection, the naïve contact groups were housed with those inoculated with each of the viruses as a means to monitor contact transmission. Our results indicated that genetically diverse viruses circulate in LBMs in South China's Guangdong Province and that NDV from different birds have different tissue tropisms and host ranges when transmitted in different birds. We therefore propose the continuous epidemiological surveillance of LBMs to support the prevention of the spread of these viruses in different birds, especially chickens, and highlight the need for studies of the virus–host relationship.

Phylogenetic and Pathotypic Characterization of a Newcastle Disease Virus Strain Isolated from Ducks and Pigeons in Hubei, China

“…The vaccine-like viruses indicate that transmission from vaccinated to nonvaccinated poultry may be recurrent in Hubei. In addition, some reports also found the same phenomenon in a surveillance study with ducks in Guangdong province, China (Kang et al, 2016). These findings suggest that the NDV viruses used in attenuated live vaccines in domestic ducks may exhibit reversion to virulence.…”

“…In recent years, NDV has caused large-scale outbreaks in many countries, including China (Qin et al, 2008;Zhang et al, 2010;Kang et al, 2016), Kazakhstan (Bogoyavlenskiy et al, 2009), Indonesia , and in North America (Kang et al, 2014). China is the world's largest waterfowl producing and consuming country, and accounts for than 70% and 90% of global duck and goose production, respectively; therefore, it is also known as "king of waterfowl world".…”

Recombinant Newcastle disease virus (NDV) expressing Duck Tembusu virus (DTMUV) pre-membrane and envelope proteins protects ducks against DTMUV and NDV challenge

“…After virus challenge, there was no viral shedding for the immunized ducks, which indicates that a two-dose immunization can yield full protection. Although the mean HI titer of the LaSota vaccine was higher than 5.0 log 2 , viral shedding was not prevented even though the virus was not completely shed after NDV infection (Kang et al, 2016). The sporadic reports of virulent NDV in waterfowl and outbreaks in intensive raising areas may be attributed to the lack of immunization or the efficiency of commercial vaccines.…”

Tibet Tavuklarından İzole Edilen Newcastle Hastalığı Virüsünün Genetik Karakterizasyonu ve Kalıtsal Analizi

“…Newcastle disease can lead to high mortality and morbidity rates, and creates a big potential threat to the poultry industry in terms of serious economic losses in China [10] . In recent years, although many dynamic measures have been adopted to prevent and control this disease, however, it is still the major infectious disease, and as a big potential threat to the chicken industry in China.…”

“…This breed is of great economical importance to local herdsman, as the meat of Tibetan chickens is rich in protein, with a tender texture, and high content of amino acids [8] . In recent years, NDV has been reported with large-scale outbreaks and considerable economical losses to poultry industry in many provinces of China [9][10][11] . Until now, no information is available about the genetic characterization of NDV in Tibetan chickens.…”