Effects of reticuloendotheliosis virus and Marek's Disease virus infection and co-infection on IFN-gamma production in SPF chickens

Abstract

Two experiments were used to examine the potential role of IFN-γ in chickens infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV) and Marek's disease virus (MDV). First, chickens were infected with REV and/or MDV at 5 days of age and examined from 3 to 50 days post-infection (dpi). In REV+MDV co-infection chickens, IFN-γ ELISA demonstrated a 3-fold increase at 7 dpi compared to the controls, while REV alone caused a 5-fold increase, the IFN-γ levels peaked, and then gradually decreased. IFN-γ levels significantly decreased in MDV infection at 3 dpi and 15 dpi. Second, experiments were designed to determine the effects of different viruses and ConA on IFN-γ production. For REV- or MDV- infected chickens, the IFN-γ levels decreased slightly after adding ConA. This is the first report of IFN-γ production in SPF chickens infected with REV and MDV measured by directly quantitative method.