A teratoma in a Muscovy duck ( Cairina moschata ).

Radiographic and ultrasonic examination of a sick, 5-month-old female domestic Muscovy duck revealed a large ill-defined mass in the abdominal cavity. Gross and histopathological examination characterized the mass as an intra-abdominal teratoma based on the presence of a variety of different epithelial and mesenchymal tissues, including squamous epithelium, tubular structures, feather follicles, cartilage and small amounts of osseous tissues.

[The serologic detection of virus-induced infections in the domestic goose (Anser anser dom.)]. / Zum serologischen Nachweis virusbedingter Infektionen bei der Hausgans (Anser anser dom.).

The most important virus-induced diseases associated with heavy losses in the domestic goose are Derzsy's disease which is caused by a goose parvovirus and duck plague (duck viral enteritis) which is caused by an avian herpesvirus. Both diseases still occur but can be prevented by timely vaccinations. Antibodies against Influenza A viruses of the subtypes H1, H5, and H7 as well as against avian paramyxoviruses of the serogroups 4, 6, and 8, respectively, were not detected in any of the examined sera. However, antibodies against paramyxovirus type 1 were detected in sera of one source. Haemagglutination inhibition or neutralizing antibodies against avian adenoviruses (EDS76 virus and goose adenovirus of the serotypes 1, 2, and 3) were quite often detected. Based on the present knowledge their pathogenic potential is minor. Neutralizing antibodies against a reovirus originating from Muscovy ducks and against a chicken reovirus (strain U Con S 1133) were quite frequently detected. In 35 of 564 examined geese sera hepatitis B virus was found.

[Vaccination of ostriches (Struthio camelus, Linnaeus, 1758) against Newcastle disease: evidence for vaccine compatibility and seroconversion after vaccinations using the hemagglutination inhibition and virus neutralization tests]. / Zur Schutzimpfung des Strausses (Struthio camelus, Linné, 1758) gegen die Newcastle-Krankheit: Nachweis von Impfstoff-Verträglichkeit und Serokonversion post vaccinationem mittels HAH- und VN-Test.

Newcastle disease (ND) remains to be the worldwide most important infectious disease of poultry. This epizootic is in Germany and many other countries a notifiable disease. Prophylactic vaccination is the major tool for the control of ND in poultry and other birds. Eighty-three ostriches (Struthio camelus) which were kept on farms in Germany were checked for the presence of NDV-specific antibodies. Some of these birds are said to be vaccinated against Newcastle disease. Only some of these ostriches contained antibodies which were measurable in haemagglutination inhibition and virus neutralisation tests. Twenty-three previously unvaccinated ostriches were vaccinated with commercially available vaccines. Both the LaSota live and inactivated oil emulsion vaccines were well tolerated following conjunctival or subcutaneous application, respectively. Neither local nor systemic side reactions were observed. After the vaccinations high antibody titres were detected in hemagglutination inhibition and virus neutralisation tests. A strong correlation between both established methods (r = 0.92; < 0.001) were noted.

Response of domestic geese to lentogenic and velogenic strains of Newcastle disease virus.

A total of 54 domestic white meat-type geese were included in vaccination/challenge trials to evaluate susceptibility to disease and humoral immune responses using the haemagglutination inhibition (HI) and virus neutralization (VN) tests against Newcastle disease (ND). Two groups of twenty geese, five weeks of age, were conjunctivally vaccinated with either 100 x 10(6) or 2.5 x 10(6) EID50 (egg infectious dose 50 per cent) per bird of live La Sota virus, respectively, and 14 geese remained unvaccinated. At 15 weeks of age all vaccinated geese and seven unvaccinated geese were subcutaneously injected with 0.5 ml of inactivated oil emulsion ND vaccine, whereas seven geese remained as negative controls. At an age of 20 weeks, all 54 geese were challenged with 10(8.0) EID50 per bird of the viscerotropic velogenic NDV strain Herts 33/56. Live virus application as well as the oil emulsion vaccine did not induce discernible clinical signs and have no detrimental effect on body weight gains. At days 1, 3, 5, 8, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27 after the application of lentogenic vaccine pharyngeal and cloacal swabs were taken, after challenge samples were taken at days 2, 5 and 8. Lentogenic as well as velogenic virus were never reisolated. Low and shortlived antibody responses post vaccination were equally well measured in HI and VN tests. Only two out of seven unvaccinated but challenged geese developed signs of ND whereas all vaccinated/challenged geese remained normal but developed high to moderate levels of HI and VN antibodies. Since domestic geese do not readily excrete NDV's in detectable amounts and since they do not contain detectable amounts of the challenge virus fourteen days post challenge in their tissues the assumption is promoted that geese do not play a major role in the epidemiology of Newcastle disease.

Avian host spectrum of avipoxviruses.

A review is given of the occurrence of poxviruses in different bird species. The first publications appeared in Europe around 1850. At that time, pox as a definite disease entity was diagnosed on the basis of clinical signs, while later the detection of Bollinger's inclusion bodies (1877) allowed an aetiological diagnosis by microscopically visible viral aggregates. Virus isolation in embryonated chicken eggs and direct electron microscopy gained importance as diagnostic tools in the 1950s. Also briefly described are avipoxvirus taxonomy, virus characteristics, clinical signs, modes of prevention and diagnostic procedures. Of the approximately 9000 bird species, about 232 species in 23 orders have been reported to have acquired a natural poxvirus infection. However, it is likely that many more birds are susceptible to avipoxviruses.