Abstract
This study was conducted to reexamine the hypothesis that human metapneumovirus (hMPV) will not infect turkeys. Six groups of 2-week-old turkeys (20 per group) were inoculated oculonasally with 1 of the following: noninfected cell suspension; hMPV genotype A1, A2, B1, or B2; or avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) subtype C. Poults inoculated with hMPV showed nasal discharge days 4-9 postexposure. Specific viral RNA and antigen were detected by reverse-transcription PCR and immunohistochemical evaluation, respectively, in nasal turbinates of birds exposed to hMPV. Nasal turbinates of hMPV-infected turkeys showed inflammatory changes and mucus accumulation. Each of the 4 hMPV genotypes caused a transient infection in turkeys as evidenced by clinical signs, detection of hMPV in turbinates, and histopathologic examination. Detailed investigation of cross-species pathogenicity of hMPV and aMPV and its importance for human and animal health is needed.
Highlights
This study was conducted to reexamine the hypothesis that human metapneumovirus will not infect turkeys
The United States was considered free of avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) until an outbreak of respiratory tract infection occurred in turkey flocks in Colorado in May 1996 [13]
Clinical Sign Scoring Poults inoculated with any of the 4 human metapneumovirus (hMPV) genotypes had unilateral or bilateral nasal discharge (Table 1; Figure 1), which varied from watery to thick mucus
Summary
This study was conducted to reexamine the hypothesis that human metapneumovirus (hMPV) will not infect turkeys. The disease caused by hMPV ranges from mild upper respiratory tract infection to severe bronchiolitis or bronchitis and pneumonia It affects all age groups, but it is more severe in young, elderly, and immunocompromised persons [6]. Recent studies have shown that avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) subtype C isolates from domestic turkeys and wild birds in the United States show high sequence homology to hMPV [10,11]. Both viruses belong to genus Metapneumovirus and share a projected amino acid identity of 56%–88% [11]. A previous attempt to experimentally infect chickens and turkeys with hMPV
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