Abstract
BackgroundFowl adenovirus outbreaks have occurred in China since June 2015. This virus is an emerging infectious disease that causes hydropericardium syndrome and inclusion body hepatitis (HPS-IBH), resulting in significant economic loss to poultry farmers. Five fowl adenovirus (FAdV) strains (HN, AQ, AH726, JS07 and AH712) were isolated from Jiangsu and Anhui provinces.ResultsPhylogenetic analysis revealed that the five isolates belonged to species C fowl adenovirus serotype 4. An 11 amino-acid deletion in ORF29, relative to an older viral isolate, JSJ13, was observed for all five strains described here. In chicken experiments, 80–100% birds died after intramuscular inoculation and displayed lesions characteristic of HPS-IBH. The viral DNA copies were further detected by hexon-probe based real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the chicken samples. The viral loads and cytokine profiles were recorded in all the organs after infections. Despite minor genetic differences, the 5 strains displayed significantly different tissue tropisms and cytokine profiles.ConclusionsOur data enhance the current understanding some of the factors involved in the pathogenicity and genetic diversity of the FAdV serotype 4 (FAdV-4) in China. Our work provides theoretical support for the prevention and control of HPS-IBH in chickens.
Highlights
Fowl adenovirus outbreaks have occurred in China since June 2015
Identification and characterization of fowl adenovirus (FAdV) serotype 4 (FAdV-4) variant isolates Chicken liver samples containing lesions indicative of inclusion body hepatitis-pericarditis syndrome were inoculated into specific pathogen free (SPF) eggs
Five viral isolates were identified as FAdVs and designated as HN, AQ, JS07, AH712, and AH726, respectively
Summary
Fowl adenovirus outbreaks have occurred in China since June 2015. This virus is an emerging infectious disease that causes hydropericardium syndrome and inclusion body hepatitis (HPS-IBH), resulting in significant economic loss to poultry farmers. FAdV4 causes Hydropericardium syndrome (HPS), Inclusion body hepatitis (IBH), respiratory tract disease, and/or gizzard erosion in chickens [7,8,9]. Since mid-2015, outbreaks of novel genotype FAdV-4 infections in China and Korea have caused great economic losses in the poultry industry, leading to high mortality, characterized by congestive kidney, pericardial. Recent Chinese FAdV-4 isolates have significant deletions in their genome compared with FAdV serotype 4 strains from other countries [13, 14]. The molecular mechanisms underlying the infection and pathogenesis of FAdV-4 remain unclear
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