Venereal colibacillosis (acute vaginitis) in turkey breeder hens.

Two flocks of turkey breeders experienced an increased mortality and high culling rate in the first weeks of egg production. The majority of dead and culled hens had cheesy core in the cloaca and vagina. Postmortem examination revealed fibrinous pseudomembranes in the vagina and cloaca.

Virulence of recent isolates of Mycoplasma synoviae in turkeys.

Systemic Mycoplasma synoviae (MS) infection was induced experimentally in commercial turkeys with recent MS isolates (K4822D and K4774J) from turkey breeder flocks that exhibited no clinical signs typical of MS infection except for a low incidence of swollen footpads. The virulence of each strain was compared by evaluating gross and microscopic lesions, serologic responses, and MS isolation rates at 10 and 21 days postchallenge and by comparing these results with those obtained from a known virulent isolate (K1968), another previously characterized field isolate (K4463B), and unchallenged controls. All strains induced lesions typical of infectious synovitis but showed distinct differences in the extent of the gross and microscopic lesions and in the isolation rates from the tissues in turkeys.

Differentiating between parthenogenetic and "positive development" embryos in turkeys by molecular sexing.

In mated or inseminated turkeys, 5 to 15% of eggs set for incubation show only rudimentary development. Most of these embryos die during the first 24 to 48 h of incubation and contain only unorganized sheets of tissue. This abnormal development is termed "positive development" (PD).

Hepatic lipidosis in turkeys.

Two flocks of 14,000 twenty-week-old turkey hens each experienced increased mortality due to hepatic lipidosis. Some hens showed signs of dyspnea and cyanosis before death. Necropsy revealed dark muscles and enlarged livers with pale areas and numerous hemorrhages.

The relation of egg specific gravity to the incidence of spontaneous cardiomyopathy in tom turkeys.

The specific gravity and weight of eggs were determined for two groups of 600 eggs each, originating from Nicholas and British United Turkey of America (BUTA) turkey breeder flocks. A total of 137 Nicholas and 190 BUTA toms hatched from these eggs were used for the experiment. At days 21, 33, 40, 47, 56, and 61, toms that showed retarded growth were euthanatized, along with a corresponding number of normal birds.

Necrotic enteritis in turkeys.

Three flocks of turkey hens (16,000 each) between 7 and 12 weeks of age experienced outbreaks of necrotic enteritis. Necropsy revealed a dilated duodenum and jejunum with mucosal surfaces covered with a diphtheritic membrane. Intestinal scrapings showed very few oocysts of Eimeria sp.

Application of the immunoperoxidase technique FDR the detection of Derzsy's disease virus antigen in cell culture and goslings.

Application of a direct immunoperoxidase technique for the detection of Derzsy's disease virus antigen in cell culture and goslings is described. Anti-virus globulins were labelled with horseradish peroxidase by use of sodium periodate as a coupling agent. Virus antigen was detected in the nuclei of goose embryo fibroblasts from 48 to 72 hours post-inoculation and in the nuclei of hepatic cells between 5 to 8 days after infection.

Active and passive immunisation against nephritis induced by an avian infectious bronchitis virus.

Intranasal vaccination with the H120 strain of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) produced serum neutralisation indices of three or more in nine out of 12 birds. This afforded complete protection against intravenous challenge with the nephritogenic H52 strain of IBV and prevented the multiplication of virus in the kidney. Passive immunisation with homologous convalescent serum protected the kidney but not the respiratory tract against similar challenge.

The agar-gel precipitin response to the H120 and H52 vaccines of infectious bronchitis virus.

The respiratory and agar-gel precipitin response of chickens to H120 and H 52 vaccines of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) were studied. On aerosol exposure of 3-weeks-old chicks to H120, slight respiratory symptoms were observed in 30% while 70% produced precipitins. Eleven-weeks-old chicks inoculated intratracheally with H52 alone showed severe symptoms and 100% produced precipitins.