Serodetection of astroviruses in runted commercial broilers and turkeys in southwest Nigeria

Infections with divergent strains of astroviruses appear to be endemic in commercial poultry. In order to investigate enteric viruses associated with hatchery condemnations in Nigerian poultry, an indirect immunofluorescence test with CAstV-612- (Group A), CAstV-11672- (Group B) and ANV-1-infected cells was used to screen sera obtained from commercial broilers (n = 164) and turkeys (n = 97) in farms and hatcheries in southwest Nigeria. Of the 261 sera tested, 16 (6.1%) were positive for CAstV antibodies after immunofluorescent staining with CAstV-11672-infected cells. Thirteen (81.3%) of the positive sera were from broilers with three (18.7%) being from turkeys. Conversely, all tested sera were negative for CAstV-612 and ANV-1 antibodies. Since CAstV-11672, a group B CAstV is known to be antigenically and genetically distinct from CAstV-612 that belongs to group A, these findings reveal that the circulating serotype of CAstV in commercial broilers and turkeys in southwest Nigeria belongs to group B of CAstV. Education of veterinary personnel and poultry farmers about this emerging virus and its impact on commercial poultry in Nigeria, as well as continuous monitoring of chicken and turkey flocks for infections caused by it are therefore imperative in order to facilitate the implementation of effective prevention and control measures.