Characterization of fowl aviadenovirus species in backyard flocks in Turkey

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Fowl adenoviruses (FAdVs) have a worldwide distribution in poultry at all ages and the incidence of the disease has been in an increasing trend in the last decade. Most of the studies had revealed the status quo of disease in commercial chickens, especially in broilers; however, there was not sufficient data to estimate in backyards. Thus, the primary goal of this study was to investigate the presence of infections in backyard poultry operations. For this purpose, 389 internal organ samples were collected from 56 flocks from clinically suspected backyard chickens at 10 to 35-week-age. Samples were tested by the PCR method targeting the nucleotide sequences of hexon genes (A-D). Amplified genes were sequenced by the Sanger sequencing method and the elicited data were further used for the phylogenetic analyses. Of the 389 samples, 23.9% were found to be FAdV positive which was equal to 17 out of 56 flocks sampled for this study. This is the first study being carried out in backyard operations and two species (Fowl adenovirus D and Fowl adenovirus C) and four serotypes (FAdV-8a, FAdV-3, FAdV-4, and FAdV-10) have been discovered for the first time in Turkey. As a result, the outcomes of this study provide a better understanding of the epidemiology of FAdV in Turkey; hence, will aid in creating a robust control and prevention strategy.