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Published on: October 9, 2011
First Report of Marek's Disease Virus in Commercial Turkeys in Slovenia
Zoran Žlabravec1, Brigita Slavec1, Ema Rožmanec2
1Institute of Poultry, Birds, Small Mammals, and Reptiles, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Gerbičeva ulica 60, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Abstract:
Marek's disease (MD), caused by Mardivirus gallidalpha 2 (GaAHV-2), also known as MD virus (MDV), is a lymphoproliferative disease that primarily affects chickens. Recently, MDV has been detected in lymphomatous tumors in turkeys in various countries. Between 2021 and 2023, three cases ranging from no to severe clinical disorders (depression, lameness, and increased mortality) occurred in commercial turkey flocks in Slovenia. In all cases, MDV was detected by PCR in DNA samples extracted from organs developing tumor infiltrations. Sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the meq gene revealed that the GaAHV-2 detected has molecular features of a very virulent pathotype and genetic similarity with GaAHV-2 detected in chickens in Tunisia. This is the first report of MDV in commercial turkeys in Slovenia.
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