Differentiation between pathogenic serotype 1 isolates of Marek's disease virus and the Rispens CVI988 vaccine in Australia using real-time PCR and high resolution melt curve analysis

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Two real-time PCR assays were developed which enable quantitation and differentiation between pathogenic Australian isolates of Marek's disease virus (MDV) serotype 1 and the serotype 1 vaccine strain Rispens CVI988. The assays are based on a DNA sequence variation in the meq gene between pathogenic and vaccinal MDV1 which has been confirmed by sequencing of 20 Australian field strains of MDV. Complete specificity has been demonstrated in samples containing pathogenic MDV (n=20), Rispens (3 commercial vaccine strains), or both. The limit of detection of both the Rispens-specific and the pathogenic MDV1-specific assays was 10 viral copies/reaction. The tests successfully differentiated and quantified MDV in mixtures of pathogenic and vaccinal Rispens virus. A high resolution melt curve analysis targeting the same SNP used for the real-time PCR assays was also developed which successfully detected sequence variation between Md5, six Australian MDV1 isolates and the three Rispens vaccines. However it was ineffective at differentiating mixtures of pathogenic and vaccinal MDV1. The real-time PCR assays have both diagnostic and epidemiological applications as they enable differentiation and quantitation of Rispens CVI988 and pathogenic MDV1 in co-infected chickens in Australia.