ARTERIOSCLEROSIS ASSOCIATED WITH A NATURAL MAREKS-DISEASE INFECTION IN A JAPANESE BANTAM (GALLUS-GALLUS)

A severe case of arteriosclerosis was observed in a female Japanese ba ntam (Gallus gallus) associated with Marek's disease (MD) infection. T he hen, showing clinical, macroscopic and microscopic evidence of MD i nfection, harbored arteriosclerosis in the aorta and large arteries ch aracterized by an extremely thickened intima and marked luminal occlus ion. Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunostaining showed m any labeled nuclei in the thickened intima, and less frequent positivi ty in the media. This is the first report on avian arteriosclerosis in natural MD infection.