Aquatic Birds Surveillance for Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV) in Khozestan Province

Abstract

Background:Wild aquatic birds are considered as reservoir hosts for Newcastle disease viruses (NDVs) and may act as vectors for transferring these viruses to poultry, causing outbreaks of disease. Recent studies suggested that the velogenic viruses arise from avirulent strains originating from wild birds. Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to determine whether the aquatic birds of Khozestan province were infected with NDV. Materials and Methods: In winter, 24 Muscovey ducks from Shoshtar, 20 geese from Dezfoul and 51 geese from Khorramshahr (Aquatic birds of Khozestan province) were bled, and birds' sera were collected and used in HI assay and antibody titer to NDV were determined. Beta procedure of hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay was performed in U-bottomed 96-well microtiter plates with 0.5% chicken erythrocytes.Results: All serum samples tested for antibodies against hemagglutinin by HI assay had positive results, and all of these birds had high levels of antibody titer to the NDV. Conclusion:The results in the present study clearly showed that the aquatic birds of Khozestan province population in Iran carries NDVs, and may act as one of the important reservoirs for this virus. So it was concluded that detection and elimination of these birds can be a valuable tool for the control of Newcastle Disease outbreaks.

Monitoring of aquatic birds and surveillance of avian influenza and Newcastle disease of waterfowls at the National Park of Urmia Lake

“…Regarding the method of detection and differentiation of NDV used in this study, it has been documented that although RT‐PCR and RRT‐PCR cannot replace the virus isolation completely, they are recommended for surveillance programs technique and are useful for rapid screening of at‐risk poultry flocks (Abd‐Elfatah et al., 2021; Camenisch et al., 2008; Wise et al., 2004). The positive cases of waterfowl to Newcastle virus as observed in this study (Table 5) are much higher than previously reported from exotic zoo birds in Tehran (Madadgar et al., 2013) but less than that reported from aquatic birds in Khuzestan province (Talazade & Mayahi, 2013). Comparison of the results obtained in this study with those reported from the neighbouring countries indicated that the number of positive cases in our study was also higher than those reported from Azerbaijan (Zeynalova et al., 2015), Turkey (Boynukara et al., 2013; Turan et al., 2020) and Pakistan (Wajid et al., 2017; Wajid et al., 2018) but less than that reported from Oman (Al‐Shekaili et al., 2015).…”

Effect of genetic strains (Ross 308, Cobb 500 and Hubbard F15) on immune response against Newcastle disease vaccine in broiler chickens

“…This virus can cause diarrhea, respiratory problems, circulatory and central nervous system disorder. 7…”

Comparative immunocompetence and interspecies transmission of avian orthoavulavirus-1 in feral birds originating from rural and urban settings

“…Consequently, we propose that urban feral birds possess better resistance against the country's endemic pathogens, such as the velogenic strain of avian orthoavulavirus-1 (AOAV-1) which causes clinical Newcastle disease (ND) in wild birds and poultry (commercial and backyard). Wild/feral birds, including waterfowl, shorebirds, doves, pigeons, double-crested cormorants, and other free-flying birds serve as continuous reservoirs of AOAV-1 and shed the virus into the environment without displaying typical clinical signs [9][10][11] . However, there is a paucity of experimental evidence on the spectra of immunocompetence among feral birds representing either urban or rural settings.…”