Cargando…

Serological evidence of avian HEV antibodies in apparently healthy chickens in southwest Nigeria

Avian hepatitis E virus (aHEV) is associated with hepatitis-splenomegaly syndrome, big liver and spleen disease and hepatic rupture haemorrhage syndrome. However, the knowledge about aHEV in commercial layer chickens in Nigeria is scarce. In this study, 460 serum samples obtained from 36 apparently...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Osamudiamen, Fisayo Temilade, Akanbi, Olusola Aanuoluwapo, Oluwayelu, Daniel Oladimeji, Bock, C. -Thomas, Klink, Patrycja
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7909675/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33635917
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247889
Descripción
Sumario:Avian hepatitis E virus (aHEV) is associated with hepatitis-splenomegaly syndrome, big liver and spleen disease and hepatic rupture haemorrhage syndrome. However, the knowledge about aHEV in commercial layer chickens in Nigeria is scarce. In this study, 460 serum samples obtained from 36 apparently healthy commercial layer chicken flocks in three states (Ogun, Osun and Oyo States) of southwestern Nigeria were analysed by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for the presence of anti-aHEV immunoglobulin Y (IgY) antibodies. In total, the overall seroprevalence of anti-aHEV antibodies was 14.6%. The serological analysis revealed that 75% of the flocks examined were positive for anti-aHEV IgY antibodies from chickens of various ages in all three states. The percentage of the seropositive chickens in the three states varied from flock to flock ranging from 60% to 88.8% and seropositive chickens were detected at any age (24–52 weeks of age) without significant differences between the age groups. This is the first report assessing the presence of aHEV antibodies in chickens from Nigeria. The detection of anti-aHEV antibodies in commercial layer chickens in this study emphasizes the importance of serosurveillance in disease monitoring due to the economic threat posed by aHEV as a result of decreased egg production and increased mortality in affected commercial layer chicken farms. However, further studies are essential to reveal the clinical implications and to assess the real burden of aHEV in Nigeria.