Review of Diagnostic and Vaccination Approaches of Infectious Bursal Disease of Poultry

Abstract

Infectious bursal disease, also known as Gumboro disease, is a highly contagious and acute viral disease of poultry characterised by the destruction of lymphoid cells. Diagnosis of infectious bursal disease involves consideration of the flocks’ history, clinical signs, and lesions. The objectives of this paper are to highlight various commonly used diagnostic methods for infectious bursal disease and to review advances made in diagnostic methods and vaccination strategies for infectious bursal disease, with special emphasis on the strengths and weaknesses of each of those techniques. Isolation of infectious bursal disease virus followed by its serological assay and histopathological examination of the bursa is regarded as the gold standard method of infectious bursal disease diagnosis. Serological tests such as agar gel, immune diffusion, enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay, and viral neutralisation tests are commonly used laboratory assays in diagnosing infectious bursal disease viruses. Recently, the most accurate and relatively fast diagnostic method, the molecular technique, is widely used. The molecular diagnostic technique is the simplest and most sensitive of the diagnostic techniques reviewed. The virus causes immunosuppression, so the infected chicken recovers from the acute disease but becomes more susceptible to infections by other pathogens. Therefore, prevention is important and vaccination has become the principal control measure of infectious bursal disease virus infection in chickens. Conventional attenuated live and killed vaccines are the most commonly used vaccines. With the advancement of knowledge and technology, new generation or genetically-engineered vaccines like deoxyribonucleic acid and subunit vaccines have been used. Various vaccination strategies, such as in ovo, at hatch, and post hatch vaccination, are used. Hatchery vaccination is becoming a common practice. Based on this review paper, more affordable and effective infectious bursal disease vaccines that are affordable and readily available must be identified with further cost-benefit analysis.