BACKGROUND: Infection by infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) in turkeys may  lead to immunosuppression effects and therefore turkeys could not resist against pathogenic or less pathogenic agents. OBJECTIVE: The aim of present study was to examine the effects of IBDV on response of turkey’s poults to avian influenza virus (AIV).METHODS: A total of 100 day-old poults were divided randomly into 4 equal groups. Groups 1 and 2 were infected with 104CID50 of IBDV by oral route at 1 day of age; groups 1 and 3 were infected with 106 EID50 of AIV (H9N2) by the oculo-nasal route at day 30. Poults of  group 4 were kept  as uninfected control group. All groups were vaccinated with Newcastle disease virus (NDV) vaccine. Blood  samples  via wing web were collected at days 0, 30, 37, 44, 51  and 58 and anti- NDV and anti-AIV serum titers were measured by HI test. At days 33 and 41 three poults of each group were euthanized and their splenic lymphocytes proliferation repose to phytohaemagglutinin was assessed. RESULTS: Influenza clinical signs were prolonged and more intensive in group 1 than group 3. The mean HI titers to NDV were significantly lower in group 1 than group 3, in all sampling times, but anti-AIV titers were significantly lower in group 1 compared to group 3  from days 14 AIV (H9N2) post infection. The lymphocyte proliferation assay with PHA did not show any differences between groups 1 and 3. CONCLUSIONS: IBDV suppresses immune response in turkey and causes prolonged and more intensive clinical signs after challenge with AIV.

Turkey histomonosis poses a serious threat to poultry production due to the ban on the use of effective drugs. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of a phytoncidal feed supplement on the course of histomonosis. The preparation was also analysed for immunomodulatory properties.

Introduction: In the present study, some of the commercial fish farms located in the Black Sea region of Turkey, were screened for bacteria between 2012 and 2014.

Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT) causes significant economic losses to the poultry industry around the world. The bacterium often affects poultry as part of multiple infections causing very serious clinical signs that are usually not limited only to the respiratory system. This study’s main objective was the retrospective detection and identification of ORT in turkey flocks.

In this study, positive blood and organ samples were obtained from different mixed herds of sheep and cattle against ovine herpesvirus 2 (OvHV-2) infection. Target-positive DNA was sequenced and compared with worldwide distributed OvHV-2 sequences. Tegument gene (422 base pairs) and glycoprotein B (gB) gene (2800 base pairs) amplicons of OvHV-2 genome were used for understanding of epidemiology of malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) infection in Turkey. The results of nucleotide sequencing of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products indicated presence of sheep-associated form for MCF infection in Turkey. Although the obtained sequences were genetically different from each other, it was found that genetic variations were limited.

Molecular detection and differentiation of Pasteurella multocida strain involved in a separate fowl cholera outbreak in a turkey flock farm located in El-Menofia Governorate, Egypt early 2008 was investigated. The isolated strain was compared with an Egyptian Pasteurella multocida isolate that was previously isolated from turkey flock during last decade besides four vaccinal strain (A:5, A:8, A:9 and D:2) on phenotypic and genotypic characterization basis. Phenotypically all the strains were similar as all the strains produce non haemolytic colonies on blood agar, and all the strains revealed similar biochemial behaviour. On the other hand, the genomic typing of all the stains using rep-PCR techniques [repetitive BOX elements, enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC) and repetitive extragenic palindromic (REP) polymerase chain reaction (PCR)] differentiated the six Pasteurella multocida strains into six different profiles. The molecular identity between the Pasteurella multocida 2008 strain and the previously isolated strain was 76.6 % and were ranged from 65.2% to 79.2% with the 4 vaccinal strains. These results reported the continuous mutations of the field Pasteurella multocida strains among poultry flocks in Egypt indicating the urgent need for the frequent and continuous molecular epidemiological investigations of fowl cholera outbreaks in various poultry flocks to detect these new strains and update the fowl cholera vaccines.

Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT) causes significant economic losses to the poultry industry around the world. The bacterium often affects poultry as part of multiple infections causing very serious clinical signs that are usually not limited only to the respiratory system. This study’s main objective was the retrospective detection and identification of ORT in turkey flocks. ORT identification was performed in 6,225 samples taken from 133 different flocks between 2015 and 2020. Molecular methods were used, specifically real-time PCR and traditional PCR. We focused on partial 16S rRNA gene sequences of isolates, which were compared with sequences obtained from GenBank. The reaction products were analysed phylogenetically. Molecular methods indicating secondary infections was carried out, and the bacterial composition of the upper respiratory tract was 16S metasequenced for selected flocks to identify any other pathogens. The presence of ORT was detected in 30.83% of samples by real-time PCR and 28.57% by PCR. Phylogenetic analysis of the PCR products from the turkeys samples showed that their sequences resolved into two main genetic groups. Tests for the occurrence of secondary infections showed the presence of Mycoplasma gallisepticum and M. synoviae in some samples but the total absence of Bordetella avium. The upper respiratory tract in turkeys was dominated by two major phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. At the genus level, the genera Ornithobacterium, Mycoplasma, Gallibacterium, Avibacterium, and Escherichia-Shigella were found which may include pathogenic bacteria that can cause clinical symptoms. The results of the analysis of multiple infection carried out in flocks with respiratory signs are probably associated with outbreaks of ornithobacteriosis in turkey flocks in Poland.

Turkey histomonosis poses a serious threat to poultry production due to the ban on the use of effective drugs. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of a phytoncidal feed supplement on the course of histomonosis. The preparation was also analysed for immunomodulatory properties. Clinical observations and production monitoring were conducted in a flock of turkeys with histomonosis from their 11ᵗʰ to 56ᵗʰ weeks of life which were treated with the adiCoxSᴼᴸPF soluble supplement in a dose of 2.5 mL/L water. Later the preparation was used in a preventive dose (1 mL/L). The influence on the immune system was evaluated in broiler turkeys having been given adiCoxSᴼᴸPF for 3 days in doses of 1 or 3 mL/L. The T and B lymphocyte percentages in turkey blood and spleen tissue were analysed with flow cytometry. ELISA was implemented to evaluate antibody titres after Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale vaccination, and biochemical analyses were performed to evaluate the supplement’s safety. AdiCoxSᴼᴸPF was found effective in therapy and prevention of histomonosis. Additionally, adiCoxSᴼᴸPF stimulated both humoral and cell-mediated immune mechanisms, without impairing the functions of internal organs. The treated turkeys also yielded better production results (eggs/hen, fertility, and hatchability). AdiCoxSᴼᴸPF possesses immunomodulatory properties and it can be used successfully in the prevention and therapy of histomonosis in turkeys.

Fowl adenovirus can cause important diseases in chickens such as inclusion body hepatitis, hepatitis hydropericardium syndrome, and gizzard erosion and ulceration. Inclusion body hepatitis has been regularly reported from many countries. This is the first case report from Turkey, describing an outbreak of inclusion body hepatitis in broiler farms due to fowl adenovirus-8b (FAdV-8b). Broiler flocks with mortality about 10% were visited in Turkey, and necropsy was performed on dead birds. Samples were subjected to PCR assay to detect FAdV and other viral pathogens. After sequencing, phylogenetic analysis was performed and the nucleotide sequences of hexon genes were compared with the FAdV sequences data available in GenBank. Clinical signs such as anorexia, depression, ruffled feathers, huddling, and greenish diarrhoea were observed. Mortality started at the 8ᵗʰ day of age and ranged from 10% to 14%. Necropsy showed severe hepatitis, jaundice, and pancreatitis. The main necropsy findings included a pale, enlarged, haemorrhagic, and friable liver along with swollen and haemorrhagic kidneys and spleen. PCR and sequence analysis revealed the presence of fowl adenovirus serotype 8b (FAdV-E). This is the first report on characterisation and the pathological lesions associated with FAdV in broilers in Turkey. Our findings suggest that FAdV strains could be an emerging pathogen in Turkish broilers and could actively contribute to hepatitis and immunosuppression.

Introduction: Bovine parainfluenza virus-3 (BPIV3) and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) are the cause of respiratory disease in cattle worldwide. With other pathogens, they cause bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) in ruminants. The aim of the study was the detection and molecular characterisation of BPIV3 and BRSV from nasal swabs and lung samples of cows in and around the Erzurum region of eastern Turkey. Material and Methods: In total, 155 samples were collected. Of animals used in the study 92 were males and 63 females. The age of the animals was between 9 months and 5 years, mean 1.4 years. Most males were in the fattening period and being raised in open sheds; females were in the lactating period and kept in free stall barns. All samples were tested for the presence of viral genes using RT-PCR. Gene-specific primers in a molecular method (RT-PCR) identified BRSV (fusion gene) and BPIV3 (matrix gene) strains at the genus level. Results: RNA from BRSV and BPIV3 was detected in two (1.29%) and three (1.93%) samples, respectively, one of each of which was sequenced and the sequences were aligned with reference virus strains. Phylogenetic analyses clustered the strains in genotype C/BPIV3 and subgroup III/BRSV. Conclusion: The results indicate that BRSV and BPIV3 contribute to bovine respiratory disease cases in Turkey. This is the first report on their detection and molecular characterisation in ruminants in Turkey.