Mansoura Veterinary Medical Journal

Isolation and molecular identification of inclusion body hepatitis in broiler chickens in Egypt

Amal Ramadan, Department of Poultry and Rabbit Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, EgyptFollow
Abdel Sattar M. Arafa, National Laboratory for Veterinary Quality Control on Poultry Production, Animal Health Research Institute, Dokki, Giza 12618, Egypt.
Sanaa S. A. Awad, Department of Poultry and Rabbit Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt
Kamel I. Abou El-Azm, Department of Poultry and Rabbit Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt

Document Type

Original Article

Keywords

Broiler chickens, Egypt, Fowl adenovirus, Polymerase chain reaction, Sequencing analysis, Hexon gene, ECE

Abstract

Objective: Isolation and molecular identification of fowl adenovirus (FAdV) in broilers from different farms in EI.Dakahlia and EL.Gharbia, Egypt. Design: Descriptive study. Animals: Fifty chicken flocks (250 broiler chickens) Procedures: A total of 250 diseased chickens were collected from 50 farms in E. Dakahlia and E. Gharbia, Egypt. Chickens suffer from ruffled feathers, diarrhea, melena, dehydration, and crouching. The chickens were euthanized, and samples were collected and pooled (liver, lung, kidney, spleen, heart fluid, and cloacal swabs were pooled separately). Histopathology was performed on liver samples. Polymerase chain reaction based on the hexon gene was performed for all 50 pooled samples. Viral isolation was performed for PCR ECE cases in ECE via CAM. Isolates were retested after isolation in embryos by PCR and sequence analysis was performed. Results: Four positive samples from 50 flocks were detected by PCR according to the hexon gene, with an expected product size of 890 bp. Phylogenetic analysis based on the partial nucleotide sequence of the hexon gene revealed that the Egyptian virus in this study was placed in the same group as adenovirus serotype 11. Histopathology showed basophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies in the hepatocytes. Congestion, hemorrhage, and death of embryos were a consequence of egg inoculation with the four isolates. The liver of the embryo appeared swollen with focal necrosis and petechial and ecchymotic hemorrhage. The CAM was opaque, congested, and/or hemorrhagic. Conclusion and clinical relevance: This study showed the molecular identification and characterization of inclusion body hepatitis (IBH) viruses in Egyptian poultry farms based on full hexon gene sequencing

How to Cite This Article

Ramadan, Amal; Arafa, Abdel Sattar M.; Awad, Sanaa S. A.; and El-Azm, Kamel I. Abou (2023) "Isolation and molecular identification of inclusion body hepatitis in broiler chickens in Egypt," Mansoura Veterinary Medical Journal: Vol. 24: Iss. 4, Article 8.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.35943/2682-2512.1206