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Title: Limited susceptibility and lack of systemic infection by an H3N2 swine influenza virus in intranasally inoculated chickens

Author
item Thomas, Colleen
item MANIN, TIMOFEY - FGI-ARRIAH, RUSSIA
item ANDRIYASOV, ARTEM - FGI-ARRIAH, RUSSIA
item Swayne, David

Submitted to: Avian Diseases
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/19/2008
Publication Date: 9/1/2008
Citation: Thomas, C., Manin, T.B., Andriyasov, A.V., Swayne, D.E. 2008. Limited susceptibility and lack of systemic infection by an H3N2 swine influenza virus in intranasally inoculated chickens. Avian Diseases. 52(3):498-501.

Interpretive Summary: Highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses (AIV) cause severe disease and death with virus growth in meat, but low pathogenicity AIV cause milder disease without death and the virus does not grow in meat. Swine influenza viruses (SIV) have been shown to cause respiratory disease in turkeys but little is known about there ability to grow in chickens. In this study, none of the intranasally SIV-inoculated chickens displayed disease, but the virus did grow efficiently in the chickens. A few egg-producing chicken strain shed low levels of virus, mostly from the intestines, but viral shedding was not detected in meat-type chickens. The SIV virus did not grow in meat indicating low potential for dissemination through trade in chicken meat.

Technical Abstract: Chickens were intranasally inoculated with the swine influenza virus A/swine/NC/307408/04 (H3N2) (NC/04 SIV) to determine the infectivity of a North American SIV for chickens, as well as the possibility of chicken meat serving as a transmission vehicle for SIV. White Leghorn (WL) layer-type chickens were used for initial pathotyping and infectivity tests, and a more comprehensive intranasal pathogenesis study was done with White Plymouth Rock (WPR) broiler-type chickens. None of the NC/04 SIV-inoculated WL or WPR chickens displayed clinical signs. Serological tests showed that the virus was able to infect both intranasally inoculated WL and WPR chickens, but the antibody titers were low suggesting inefficient replication. Some of the NC/04 SIV-inoculated WL chickens shed low levels of virus, mostly from the alimentary tract, but viral shedding was not detected in NC/04 SIV-inoculated WPR chickens. The comprehensive pathogenesis study demonstrated that the virus did not cause systemic infections in WPR chickens, and feeding breast and thigh meat from the NC/04 SIV-inoculated WPR to WL chickens did not transmit NC/04 SIV.