Experimental infection and vertical transmission of reticuloendotheliosis virus in the turkey.
Groups of turkey poults were infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV) at 1 day of age, 4 weeks of age and by contact exposure from 1 day of age. Mortality from reticuloendotheliosis occurred in all three groups, but was at a lower level and later in life in turkeys inoculated at 4 weeks of age. Using a plaque neutralisation test, antibody to REV was detected in birds inoculated when 4 weeks old and in contact exposed birds, but not in turkeys inoculated at 1 day of age. Neutralising antibody persisted to 40 weeks of age and was present in individual birds which subsequently died from reticuloendotheliosis. REV viraemia was present in poults inoculated at 1 day of age and persisted throughout the 40 weeks of the experiment. A transient viraemia was also detected in individual contact exposed birds, but was not present in tests on turkeys inoculated at 4 weeks of age. Turkey hens from each group were brought into production and inseminated with turkey semen from uninfected male turkeys. REV was isolated from two of 20 eggs produced by viraemic turkey hens, but not from 92 eggs cultured from contact exposed hens or from 27 eggs from hens inoculated at 4 weeks of age.
McDougall
J S
JS
Houghton Poultry Research Station, Houghton Huntingdon, Cambs., United Kingdom.
Shilleto
R W
RW
Biggs
P M
PM