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Virulence evaluation of Israeli Marek’s disease virus isolates from commercial poultry using their meq gene sequence

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Abstract

Fifty-seven Gallid alphaherpesvirus 2 (GaHV-2) isolates, collected during a 30-year period (1990–2019) from commercial poultry flocks affected by Marek’s disease (MD), were molecularly characterised. The GaHV-2 meq gene was amplified and sequenced to evaluate the virus virulence, based on the number of PPPPs within the proline-rich repeats (PRRs) of its transactivation domain. The present illustration of virus virulence evaluation on a large scale of field virus isolates by molecular analysis exemplifies the practical benefit and usefulness of the molecular marker in commercial GaVH-2 isolates. The alternative assay of GaVH-2 virulence pathotyping is the classical Gold Standard ADOL method, which is difficult and impossible to employ on a large scale using the Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) chicks of the ADOL strains kept in isolators for two months. The phylogenetic analysis performed in the present study showed that the meq gene amino acid sequences of the 57 Israeli strains divide into 16 phylogenetic branches. The virulence evaluation was performed in comparison with 36 GaHV-2 prototype strains, previously characterised by the in vivo Gold Standard ADOL assay. The results obtained revealed that the GaHV-2 strains circulating in Israel have evolved into a higher virulence potential during the years, as the four-proline stretches number in the meq gene decreased over the investigated period, typically of very virulent virus prototypes. The present study supports the meq gene molecular markers for the assessment of field GaVH-2 strains virulence.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. Luca Maddaloni

    Present address: Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza, University of Rome, Rome, Italy

  2. Giulia Mescolini

    Present address: Operating Unit of Animal Health and Hygiene of Livestock Production, Department of Public Health, AUSL della Romagna, Forlì, FC, Italy

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kimron Veterinary Institute, Bet Dagan, Israel

    Irit Davidson

  2. Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Ozzano dell’Emilia, Bologna, Italy

    Caterina Lupini, Elena Catelli, Giulia Quaglia & Giulia Mescolini

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  1. Irit Davidson
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  2. Caterina Lupini
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  3. Elena Catelli
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Contributions

ID collected and characterized the samples from commercial flocks, provided them for sequencing and wrote the manuscript. GM carried out the study conception and design, the experiment analysis, interpretation of results and manuscript preparation. EC and CL provided critical feedback and helped shape the research, analysis and manuscript. GC carried out the experiment and manuscript preparation. LM carried out the experiment.

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Correspondence to Irit Davidson.

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Ethical statement

The study reported in this paper was non-interventional and only used existing samples that were submitted for routine diagnostic purposes.

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Edited by Nicola Decaro.

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Davidson, I., Lupini, C., Catelli, E. et al. Virulence evaluation of Israeli Marek’s disease virus isolates from commercial poultry using their meq gene sequence. Virus Genes 60, 32–43 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11262-023-02042-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11262-023-02042-7

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