The influenza A viruses (IAVs) cause acute respiratory infection in both humans and animals. As a member of the initial lines of host defense system, the role of mast cells during IAV infection has been poorly understood. Here, we characterized for the first time that both avian-like (α-2, 3-linked) and human-like (α-2, 6- linked) sialic acid (SA) receptors were expressed by the mouse mastocyto...

Chicken pox (Varicella) infection is generally present in children and caused by Varicella Zoster Virus (VZV). There are quite a number of case reports of hypercoagulable state leading to deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and other thromboembolic sequelae following varicella induced auto antibodies to natural anticoagulants in children. But such a clinical entity is rarely seen in adults. Here we re...

After an initial acute infection with cell killing, chicken or duck embryo fibroblasts infected in culture with reticuloendotheliosis viruses set up a chronic infection with no cell killing or morphological transformation. Essentially all of the chronically infected cells produced virus. The virus production was not sensitive to cytosine arabinoside or mitomycin C as was virus production in an ...

Inoculation of 200 mean egg infectious doses (EID(50)) of lentogenic Newcastle disease virus strain B1 (NDV-B1) into the air sac of 4-day-old specific-pathogen-free chicks provided significant protection against challenge of the air sac with 100 chicken mean lethal doses (LD(50)) of velogenic NDV-H but no protection against reinfection when the challenge was by the eye. Conversely, inoculation ...

The mechanism of transfection by Rous sarcoma virus DNA was investigated by assaying DNA-mediated transformation under conditions which restricted secondary virus infection. Chicken embryo fibroblasts which were genetically resistant to virus infection as a result of the absence of receptors for virus penetration were also resistant to transformation by integrated or unintegrated Rous sarcoma v...

Avian Tembusu virus (ATMUV) is a newly emerged flavivirus that belongs to the Ntaya virus group. ATMUV is a highly pathogenic virus causing significant economic loss to the Chinese poultry industry. However, little is known about the role of host innate immune mechanism in defending against ATMUV infection. In this study, we found that ATMUV infection significantly up-regulated the expression o...

Avian polyomavirus (APV) is the causative agent of an acute fatal disease in psittacine and some non-psittacine birds. In contrast to mammalian polyomaviruses, the APV genome encodes the additional capsid protein VP4 and its variant VP4Delta, truncated by an internal deletion. Both proteins induce apoptosis. Mutation of their common initiation codon prevents virus replication. Here, the generat...

Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is an avian coronavirus affecting the respiratory tract of chickens. To analyze IBV infection of the lower respiratory tract, we applied a technique that uses precision-cut lung slices (PCLSs). This method allows infection of bronchial cells within their natural tissue composition under in vitro conditions. We demonstrate that IBV strains 4/91, Italy02, and QX ...

Yolk retention and yolk sac infection is considered as an important cause of death in chicken as well as in guinea fowl, duck, turkey, quail and goose. The factors which slow down the rate of yolk absorption and may in turn, lead to yolk retention are discussed. Yolk sac infection of bacterial origin is most important among these factors. Other factors which may contribute include posthatch sta...

Occasional cell cultures made from chicken embryos were resistant to infection with Rous sarcoma virus (RSV). A virus was isolated from the medium of these cultures that caused sensitive cultures to become resistant. This virus belonged to the avian lymphomatosis group. Other viruses of the group also induced resistance to infection by RSV. Thisprovided the first assay in vitro for leukemia vir...