[Immunological aspects of Marek's disease in chickens with maternal antibodies]

The dynamics of the production of immunoprecipitation antibodies to Marek's disease virus was studied in the serum of chickens with maternal antibodies in relation to the occurrence of the immunoprecipitation antigens of Marek's disease virus in feather follicles. One-day-old chickens were infected by the contact method with Marek's disease virus. The first occurrence of immunoprecipitation antigen was detected on the 14th day after infection and this occurrence persisted throughout the experiment, i. e. until the 112th day after infection. The antibodies were first detected the 28th day after infection and their titre kept rising until the 98th day after infection. Immunoprecipitation antibodies and antigens of Marek's disease virus were detected in some tumorously changed kidneys. Immunoelectrophoretic examination revealed in the same kidneys immunoglobulins of the class IgY, IgA and beta-globulin. The slowest-migrating fraction of IgY, together with IgA, beta-globulin and C-reactive protein were detected in the skin extracts from infected poultry. Indirect haemagglutination enabled the detection of the presence of haemagglutination antibodies in rabbit immunoglobulin to the skin antigen of Marek's disease virus, and in avian immunoglobulin to the same virus. Haemagglutination antigen was revealed in the extract from tumorously changed kidneys.