FRINGED MEMBRANOUS PARTICLES AND VIRUSES IN FECES FROM HEALTHY TURKEYPOULTS AND FROM POULTS WITH PUTATIVE POULT ENTERITIS COMPLEX SPIKING MORTALITY

The purpose of the present study was to use clinical epidemiologic too ls to define the relationship between production performance data, vir us particles, and intestinal fringed membranous particles (FMPs) in he althy turkey poults and in poults that were experiencing an outbreak o f poult enteritis complex (PEC) and spiking mortality syndrome (SMS). Small and large intestines from flocks of healthy poults and poults wi th PEC/SMS were collected, processed, and examined for viruses. Produc tion performance parameters were collected and analyzed. Flocks of tur keys with PEC/SMS in the present study had low survival expectancy (li vability) and poor growth compared to their healthy turkey counterpart s. The only significant association between sickness and intestinal vi rus was the presence of coronavirus.