ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF AN ADENOVIRUS ASSOCIATED WITH INCLUSION-BODY HEPATITIS IN PSITTACINE BIRDS

An outbreak is reported of inclusion body hepatitis in psittacines fro m a private aviary, in which several birds aged between 35 and 75 days had died without showing any clinical signs. Histological examination of the livers revealed severe hepatic damage with presence of large b asophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies. Avian adenoviruses were isola ted from the affected livers. Characterization of the isolates by mean s of restriction endonuclease analysis showed that they were similar t o reference strain SR49 (serotype 3) which is associated with inclusio n body hepatitis in chickens. This finding was confirmed by the virus neutralization test.