Characterisation and separation of infectious bursal disease virus-like particles using aqueous two-phase systems

Infectious bursal disease(IBD)causes considerable economic losses in the commercial poultry industry worldwide.The principal way to control IBD virus(IBDV),the causative agent of IBD,is still through vaccination programs.Virus-like particles(VLPs)are recognised as a safe and potent recombinant vaccine platform.This research work explores the characterisation and separation of infectious bursal disease virus-like particles(IBD-VLPs)from crude feedstock.Various characteristics were studied with highperformance size-exclusion chromatography(HP-SEC),sodium dodecyl sulphate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis(SDS-PAGE)and transmission electron microscopy(TEM)analyses.Subsequently,the separation of IBD-VLPs using polyethylene glycol(PEG)/sodium citrate-based aqueous two-phase systems(ATPSs)was conducted and optimised.Moreover,a scale-up study of the best ATPS constituted of 15%PEG 6000,11%sodium citrate and 10%crude feedstock was performed to compare the separation performance of IBD-VLPs with and without centrifugation-assisted.The results indicated that the optimised ATPS with centrifugation-assisted for both 5 g and 50 g systems showed good recovery of IBDVLPs of>97%in the interphase between the PEG-rich top and salt-rich bottom phases.These optimised systems also showed high removal efficiencies of impurities of>95%.The results demonstrated that aqueous two-phase extraction could be a promising technology for efficient VLPs separation.

Effect of Astragalus polysaccharides on Erythrocyte Immune Adherence of Chickens Inoculated with Infectious Bursal Disease Virus

Two hundred and forty specific pathogen free leghorn chickens were randomly divided into four groups and reared in isolated pens. The tested chickens were negative to infectious bursal disease virus （IBDV） at 25 d old. Group 1 was treated with saline, whereas Groups 2, 3, and 4 were inoculated with 0.3 mL IBDV suspension intranasally the next day. Groups 3 and 4 were also administered with Astragalus polysaccharides （APS） intramuscularly twice daily at 5 or 10 mg kg-1 BW, respectively, until 31 d old. The erythrocyte-C3b receptor rosette rate （E-C3bRR） and the erythrocyte-C3b immune complex rosette rate （E-ICRR） were measured at 25, 29, 32, 35, and 38 d old. The results showed that IBDV significantly reduced E-C3bRR and E-ICRR when compared with the control group （P 〈 0.05）, while simultaneous administration of APS with 1BDV maintained E-C3bRR at similar levels to the control group （P 〉 0.05） and increased E-ICRR when compared with the control group and the group non-treated with APS （P 〈 0.05）. APS treatment reduced the morbidity and mortality of chickens inoculated with IBDV （P 〈 0.05）. The results suggest that APS may enhance the immune adherence of chickens erythrocytes by affecting the activity and/or the number of complement receptors on the erythrocyte membrane. These findings can be beneficial in providing an understanding of the basic mechanisms required for the rational application of APS in modern medicine.

Application of monoclonal antibodies against chicken infectious bursal disease virus(IBDV)

Preliminary study has been made to test wether three strains McAb（1B1,5D6, 6D8）are against the same antigen determinant.Througn ELISA additive and competition expeiments,itproved that these three strains are against different antigen determinant.The result of positiveserum antigen component analysis with 2 strains IBDV McAb showed that sample IBD positiveserum had obvious inhibition against combination of 5D6 McAb with corresponding antigen.Theresults of substitution of corresponding component in ELISA inhibition experiment and compari-son of non-IBD serum （SPF chicken serum,ND,MD,IA positive serum）proved that IBD anti-serum was the only one showing inhibition against 5D6 McAb.Comparison with AGP and electro-microscope observation showed that ELISA inhibition experiment was characterised by high-specificity,rapidity and sensitiveness.799 serum samples were tested with ELISA inhibition anddouble immunodiffusion（AGP） experiments.ELISA had gotten 486 positive,with positive rate of60.83%;and AGP 334。

Study on Propagation of Chicken Infectious Bursal Disease Virus on Vero Cells Using Microcarriers in Fermentor

It was in flask optimization tests proved that 2% serum, pH 7.0, 5:10 000 inoculation concentration of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) and 108 hours cultivation for IBDV harvest after its inoculation were the optimal conditions when IBDV was propagated on Vero cells. 250 ml self-made spinner bottle and 5 L stirring fermentor tests proved that IBDV could maintain higher liters for a long time and the highest liters of IBDV in a spinner bottle and a fermentor were 8.875 and 8.58 ( - lgTCID50/0.1 ml) respectively when IBDV was proliferated on Vero cells using 2 g/L microcarriers in a spinner bottle and a fermentor and was cultivated under the optimum conditions obtained from flask tests after Vero cells had developed a confluent monolayer on microcarriers, which were at least one titer higher than the highest titer in the traditional rolling bottle. All these results suggested that this technology could be applied to large scale production for IBDV.

An improved scheme for infectious bursal disease virus genotype classification based on both genome-segments A and B

Infectious bursal disease(IBD)is caused by infectious bursal disease virus(IBDV),which has a genome consisting of two segments of double-stranded linear RNA.IBDVs have been traditionally divided into four phenotypes based on their pathogenicity and antigenicity,including classic,variant,very virulent,and attenuated IBDV.With the emergences of divergent molecular characteristics of novel strains produced by continuous mutations and recombination,it is increasingly difficult to define new IBDV strains using the traditional descriptive classification method.The most common classification scheme for IBDV with segmented genome is based solely on segment A,while the significance of segment B has been largely neglected.In this study,an improved scheme for IBDV genotype classification based on the molecular characteristics of both VP2(a viral capsid protein encoded by segment A)and VP1(an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase protein encoded by segment B)was proposed for the first time.In this scheme,IBDV was classified into nine genogroups of A and five genogroups of B,respectively;the genogroup A2 was further divided into four lineages.The commonly used phenotypic classifications of classic,variant,very virulent,and attenuated IBDVs correspond to the A1 B1,A2 B1,A3 B2,and A8 B1 genotypes of the proposed classification scheme.The novel variant IBDVs including the strains identified in this study were classified as belonging to genotype A2 d B1.The flexibility and versatility of this improved classification scheme will allow the unambiguous identification of existing and emerging IBDV strains,which will greatly facilitate molecular epidemiology studies of IBDV.

Immunogenicity of formaldehyde and binary ethylenimine inactivated infectious bursal disease virus in broiler chicks

Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) was inactivated by two different chemicals—formaldehyde and binary ethylenimine (BEI). Formaldehyde was used at 0.1% and 0.2%, while BEI was used at concentrations of 0.001 and 0.002 mol/L. These four vaccines were tested for their efficiency in generating humoral immune response in different groups of broiler chicks. Both BEI-inactivated vaccines gave relatively higher antibody titers and were almost twice as efficient as formaldehyde-inactivated ones.

Inactivation of infectious bursal disease virus by binary ethylenimine and formalin

In this experiment conducted to study the inactivation dynamics of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) by binary ethylenimine (BEI) in comparison with formalin, IBDV was isolated from the bursa of infected chickens and its confirmation was done by agar gel precipitation test. Viral suspensions were subjected to inactivation with BEI and formalin for pre-set time in-tervals. BEI was employed at concentrations of 0.001 and 0.002 mol/L while formalin was used at 0.1% and 0.2%. Sampling was done at 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 h of incubation and samples were tested for their inactivation status in 9-day-old embryonated eggs and 3-week-old broiler chickens. IBDV was completely inactivated by 0.001 and 0.002 mol/L BEI after 36 h of incubation at 37 °C, whereas formalin at 0.1% and 0.2% concentrations inactivated IBDV in 24 h.

Molecular Differentiation of Different Pathogenic Phenotypes of Infectious Bursal Disease Viruses by RT-PCR Combined with Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism(RFLP) Assay

Accurate differentiation of the pathogenic phenotypes of infectious bursal disease viruses(IBDVs) will instruct effective vaccination programs and improve the study of the molecular epidemiology of IBDVs. In this study, an 833 bp hypervariable nucleotide region was identified in VP2 genes of known IBDVs with different virulences through multiple sequence alignment.Moreover, using NEBcutter software analysis, two restriction enzyme sites, SpeⅠ(generating 531 and 302 bp fragments) and StuⅠ(generating 242 and 591 bp fragments) were found presented in very virulent but not attenuated IBDVs. Moreover, the restriction enzyme site SacⅠ(generating 218 and 615 bp fragments) presented in attenuated IBDVs but not very virulent IBDVs. Therefore,a reverse-transcription(RT)-PCR combined with a restriction fragment length polymorphism(RFLP) assay was developed to differentiate attenuated and very virulent IBDVs. The RT-PCR assay was used to confirm 282 IBDV positive samples from 310 suspicious dead chicken samples. The 60 IBDV positive samples were used to evaluate the assay, followed by confirmation via gene sequencing and histopathological examinations of the bursas of Fabricius from chickens infected by these IBDVs. The results showed that 24 viral strains with SpeⅠand StuⅠsites were very virulent, causing severe pathological damage in the bursas of Fabricius, while36 viral strains with the SacⅠsite were attenuated IBDVs, exhibiting only slight pathological damage. The combined RT-PCR and RFLP assay provided a useful approach for differentiating the pathogenic phenotypes of IBDVs.

The circulation of unique reassortment strains of infectious bursal disease virus in Pakistan

Infectious bursal disease(IBD),caused by IBD virus(IBDV),is one of the most devastating and immunosuppressive diseases of the poultry and has been a constraint on the sustainable poultry production around the globe including Pakistan.While the disease is threatening the poulty industry,the nature of predominant strains of IBDV in Pakistan remained l-defined.In this study,an epidemiology survey was conducted in the main chicken-farming regions of Pakistan.The batch of Pakistan IBDVs genes simultaneously covering both VP1 and VP2 were amplified,sequenced,and analyzed.The unique segment-reassortant IBDVs(vv-A/Uniq-B),carrying segmentA from vvIBDV and segment B from one unique ancestor,were identifed as one important type of circulating strains in Pakistan.The data also discovered the characteristic molecular features of Pakistan IBDVs,which will contribute to scientific vaccine selection and effective prevention of the disease.

Analysis of the function of D279N mutation of VP2 of infectious bursal disease virus

Infectious bursal disease virus（IBDV）is responsible for the highly contagious infectious bursal disease of chickens.Further understanding the gene-function is necessary to design the tailored vaccine.The amino acid residue 279,located on strand P_F of VP2,is one of the three residues that have been reported to be involved in cell-tropism but with some inconsistency.In this study,to further clarify the amino acids involved in the cell tropism of IBDV,a series of mutations about residue 279were introduced into the VP2 of vv IBDV Gx strain.With the reverse genetic system,we found single mutation of D279N,double mutations of D279N/A284T or Q253H/D279N were not enough to adapt IBDV to chicken embryo fibroblast（CEF）cell.To evaluate whether residue 279 could influence the replication and virulence of IBDV,the virus r Gx HT-279 with three mutations（Q253H/D279N/A284T）was rescued and evaluated.Results showed that the mutation of residue 279 in VP2had no efficient effects on both the replication efficiency in vitro and the virulence to SPF chickens of IBDV.In summary,the results demonstrated that residue 279 of VP2 did not contribute efficiently to cell tropism,replication efficiency,and virulence of IBDV at least in some strains.These findings provided further information for understanding the gene function of IBDV.

Evaluation of the Protection against Infectious Bursal Disease (IBD) Challenge in Progeny Born to Parents Having Received a Vaccination Program Using a Herpesvirus of Turkey-Infectious Bursal Disease (HVT-IBD) Vector Vaccine

Broiler breeder vaccination against IBD is usually based on the injection of at least one inactivated vaccine in oil adjuvant, typically included in a combined vaccine. Priming using one or several IBD vaccine (s) has been the most common way to immunize the breeders so far. In summary, protection against vvIBD challenge in chicks of one commercial genetic line vaccinated in ovo with the HVT-IBD vector vaccine was demonstrated. The parents’ IBD vaccination program, using the HVT-IBD vector vaccine alone, the HVT-IBD vector vaccine plus IBD inactivated vaccine, and inactivated IBD vaccine alone, did not impair their progeny’s in ovo HVT-IBD vector vaccine take and subsequent protection against vvIBD virus challenge. An advantage in terms of immunization of the progeny against vvIBD was shown in the chicks born to breeders vaccinated with the HVT-IBD vaccine as a primer, as compared to breeders vaccinated with the inactivated vaccine alone. High level of IBD maternally-derived antibodies transmitted to the progeny by their parents induces together with an early onset of immunity by in ovo injection of a HVT-IBD vector vaccine clinical protection, as monitored on bursas, after vvIBD virus challenge.

Effect of Chicken Akirin2 Gene on Immune Response Induced by VP2 DNA Vaccine of Infectious Bursal Dis-ease Virus

[ Abstracts ] In order to investigate the effect of chicken Akirin2 gene on the immune response induced by VP2 DNA vaccine of infectious bursal disease virus （IBDV）. [ Methods] The 14-day-old SPF chickens were immunized with recombinant plasmids expressing VP2 protein and Akirin2 protein, and strength- ened immunization was conducted at the 14＇~ day after the first immunization. Finally, test chickens were challenged with IBDVBC6-85 virulent strain. [ Resultss ] Test results showed that Akirin2 gene could enhance the specific immune response induced by VP2 DNA vaccine, improve the proliferation of peripheral blood lym- phocytes and ＇affect the expressing of cytokines TNF-a, IFN-Y, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL 6, IL-9, IL-10, IL-17 and IL-18. Effects of recombinant plasmids co-ex- pressing Akirin2 protein and VP2 protein on cytokine expression showed some differences with the recombinant plasmids expressing Akirir/2 protein or VP2 protein along. [ Conclusions] Chicken Akirin2 gene could significantly enhance the humoral immune response and cellular immune response induced by VP2 DNA vaccine of IBDV.

Circulation of Immunosuppressive Viruses and Avian Encephalomyelitis Virus in Backyard Chicken Flocks

The objective of this study was to evaluate the circulation of Chicken Anemia Virus (CAV), Infectious Bursal Disease Virus (IBDV), Avian Reovirus (ARV) and Avian Encephalomyelitis virus (AEV) in properties of backyard chickens and carry out an epidemiological analysis. We evaluated 200 samples of chickens from 19 backyard chicken property. Only one property (P10) did not present serological titers for the diseases evaluated. This property is close to industrial farms as well as the other properties, however, P10 remained a few years without the breeding of chicks and these were the first poultry to be housed on site. This reinforces the importance of the fallow period for poultry production. The prevalence of virus-seroreactive birds was 78% (156/200), 64.5% (129/200), 78% (156/200), 78% (156/200) for CAV, IBDV, ARV and, EA, respectively. All the free-range farms studied are within a radius of 500 meters to 6 Km away from some establishments of industrial poultry. There was a correlation between serological titers for CAV and the frequency of disease in poultry (r = 0.6178). In places where birds are frequently sick, 30.76% reported that the disease occurs in chicks, 30.76% in broilers, 23.07% in broiler chickens and 7.69% in birds of all ages. Birds get sick more often in the summer period. The owners reported that the most common signs of disease were respiratory signs (snoring and nasal discharge) (46.15%), diarrhea (30.76%), and paralysis of wings and/or paws (38.46%). There was a correlation between the presence of untreated water in the property and serological titers for ARV (r = 0.5576). This report draws attention not only to high serological prevalence for the viruses studied but also important epidemiological aspects of backyard chicken diseases that may indirectly influence the industrial production.

一株麻鸡传染性法氏囊病毒新型变异株的分离鉴定

近几年,鸡传染性法氏囊病毒新型变异株在我国广泛流行,主要发生于肉鸡,其致病力弱、隐蔽性强但能造成法氏囊严重萎缩。本研究从山东济宁地区临床出现法氏囊萎缩的发病麻鸡中采集法氏囊病料,接种SPF鸡胚进行病毒分离,通过RT-PCR方法进行病毒鉴定,将分离毒株回归SPF鸡进行致病性试验,同时对其主要抗原基因VP2进行进化分析。结果发现,该毒株能致死鸡胚;对其VP2基因进行测序比对和进化树分析发现,其与近几年的新型变异株基因序列的进化关系较近,同源性为96.1%~99.2%;人工感染SPF鸡第7 d法氏囊即出现较为明显的萎缩,第14 d萎缩更为明显,囊体比显著小于对照组(P<0.01)。本研究分离到的麻鸡源传染性法氏囊病毒JN22株属于新型变异株,能导致SPF鸡法氏囊显著萎缩。

非编码RNA在传染性法氏囊病病毒感染中的研究进展

传染性法氏囊病(infectious bursal disease, IBD)是由传染性法氏囊病病毒(IBD virus, IBDV)引起的急性、高度传染性和免疫抑制性禽类疾病。近年来,随着新型变异毒株的出现,IBDV仍然威胁着全球家禽养殖业的健康发展,宿主和IBDV之间的“战役”似乎永不停息。因此,迫切需要制定一种更全面和更有效的策略来控制该疾病,而深入了解IBDV与宿主之间的相互作用,将有助于开发新型疫苗。非编码RNA(non-coding RNA,ncRNAs)是一类丰富的不编码蛋白质的RNA分子,其中包括微小RNA(microRNAs, miRNAs)、长链非编码RNA(long non-coding RNA,lncRNAs)和环状RNA(circular RNA,circRNAs)。近年来,研究发现ncRNAs广泛参与IBDV与宿主的相互作用过程,在IBDV感染中发挥重要的调控作用。本文阐述了宿主miRNAs、lncRNAs和circRNAs在IBDV感染中的作用,以期为IBDV的感染与致病机制研究提供理论参考和新思路。

2株肉鸡源传染性法氏囊病病毒的分离鉴定

为了解传染性法氏囊病病毒(infectious bursal disease virus,IBDV)的流行情况,监测其优势流行毒株的基因型变化,对疑似IBDV感染的临床病料进行检测,通过有限稀释法对IBDV毒株进行分离纯化,对分离毒株进行遗传进化分析和致病力分析。结果显示:从阳性病料中成功分离得到2株纯净的IBDV毒株;遗传进化分析结果显示,HN-2022-1株属于经典株,其VP2蛋白高变区具备经典毒株分子标志;AH-2022-1株属于HLJ0504样超强毒株,存在节段重配现象,其VP2蛋白高变区除具备超强毒株分子标志外,还具备经典株、早期变异株分子标志。此外,AH-2022-1株在VP2蛋白第一亲水区还发现了3处从未报道过的氨基酸突变,这导致第一亲水区的亲水性下降,可能引起该毒株发生毒力变化。致病力分析结果显示,2株IBDV均可引起严重的法氏囊萎缩,发病率100%,但仅AH-2022-1株可引起20%死亡率,与HLJ0504样株报道的60%~80%死亡率并不一致。提示:IBDV处于不断进化中,IBDV经典毒株仍在我国持续流行,研究结果为我国IBDV感染的防控提供了一定参考。

MDV-1 VP22 conjugated VP2 enhancing immune response against infectious bursal disease virus by DNA vaccination in mice

VP22 of Marek’s disease virus serotype 1 (MDV-1) could function in protein transduction. In this study, an infectious bursal disease virus VP2 gene was fused to the carboxyl termini of VP22. It showed that the fusion protein did not spread into the bystander cells from the cells transfected with pVP22-VP2, as the VP22 alone could. The VP22 proteins were found to be translocated into all the nuclei in the neighboring COS-1 cells, as analyzed by a fluorescence assay. Although mice were immunized with the recombinant DNAs mixed with polyethylenimine (PEI) at a dose of 1:2, it failed to enhance the antibody response against IBDV VP2, as measured by the indirect ELISA assay, yet the cell mediated immune response was significantly increased. The ratio of CD8+/CD4+ T cells was significantly increased in the immunized group with the fusion genes, compared with the group immunized with VP2 (P<0.05). Our results demonstrated that VP22 indeed enhances the cell-mediated response in the fused VP2 in a mice model system, possibly due to the fact that the IBDV VP2 could be carried into the surrounding cells at a limited level under pressure from MDV VP22.

Molecular characteristics and evolutionary analysis of a very virulent infectious bursal disease virus

Infectious bursal disease virus(IBDV) poses a significant threat to the poultry industry. Viral protein 2(VP2), the major structural protein of IBDV, has been subjected to frequent mutations that have imparted tremendous genetic diversity to the virus. To determine how amino acid mutations may affect the virulence of IBDV, we built a structural model of VP2 of a very virulent strain of IBDV identified in China, vv IBDV Gx, and performed a molecular dynamics simulation of the interaction between virulence sites. The study showed that the amino acid substitutions that distinguish vv IBDV from attenuated IBDV(H253Q and T284A) favor a hydrophobic and flexible conformation of ?-barrel loops in VP2, which could promote interactions between the virus and potential IBDV-specific receptors. Population sequence analysis revealed that the IBDV strains prevalent in East Asia show a significant signal of positive selection at virulence sites 253 and 284. In addition, a signal of co-evolution between sites 253 and 284 was identified. These results suggest that changes in the virulence of IBDV may result from both the interaction and the co-evolution of multiple amino acid substitutions at virulence sites.

A single mutation in the PBC loop of VP2 is involved in the in vitro replication of infectious bursal disease virus

To test whether amino acid mutations in the PBC and PHI loops of VP2 are involved in the replication and virulence of infectious bursal disease virus(IBDV), a pair of viruses, namely the moderately virulent IBDV(rG x-F9VP2) and the attenuated strain(rGt), were used. Residue mutations A222P(P_(BC)) and S330R(PHI), selected by sequence comparison, were introduced individually into r Gx-F9VP2 by using a reverse genetics system. In addition, the reverse mutation of either P222 A or R330 S was introduced into r Gt. The four modified viruses were then rescued and evaluated in vitro(CEF cells) and in vivo(SPF chickens). Results showed that A222 P elevated the replication efficiency of rG x-F9VP2 while P222 A reduced that of rG t in CEF cells. A mutation at residue 330 did not alter IBDV replication. In addition, animal experiments showed that a single mutation at either residue 222 or 330 did not significantly influence the virulence of IBDV. In conclusion, residue 222 in PBC of VP2 is involved in the replication efficiency of IBDV in vitro but does not affect its virulence in vivo, further facilitating our understanding of the gene-function of IBDV.

Generation of VP5 deficient mutant of infectious bursal disease virus strain HZ2

Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) is a bi-segmented, dsRNA virus of the Birnaviridae family. The nonstructural protein VP5 has been re- ported to be associated with virus-induced cell apoptosis and pathogenicity, but its role in viral rep- lication has not been unequivocally identified. Based on a PCR introduced mutagenesis strategy, the 33 bp of 96―129 bp located between ORF A1and ORF A2 of genomic segment A of IBDV strain HZ2 were de- leted, and an Nhe I (GcTaGc) site was inserted at 96―102 bp simultaneously. The mutated segment A was ligated into pCI, resulting in pCI-ANhe3. A chi- meric and deficient IBDV strain, named strain ANhe3, was recovered from chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) cells by co-transfection with pCI-ANhe3 and pCI-mB, derived from the genomic segment B strain HZ2. The indirect fluorescent assay identified that strain ANhe3 could replicate on CEF cells without expression of VP5. Further examination showed that the patho- genesis of strain ANhe3 replicating on SPF chicken embryos was attenuated compared to strain HZ2. This paper provides a new rapid rescue strategy for gene-deleted virus. This strategy lays a basis for gene-deleted vaccine of IBDV.