Isolation, characterization and molecular diagnosis of pigeon pox virus and fowl pox virus from field outbreaks in Chhattisgarh

Abstract

The present study was undertaken to isolate, identify, and characterize pigeon pox virus (PPV) and fowl pox virus (FPV) from field outbreaks in Durg district of Chhattisgarh, India. Virus isolation was carried out using embryonated chicken eggs (ECE) via the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) route. Distinct pock lesions were produced on CAM, and progressive histopathological changes such as oedema, congestion, necrosis, haemorrhage, and intracytoplasmic inclusions were recorded at 48, bnv72, 96, and 120 hours post-inoculation. Serological assays including agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) and counter immune-electrophoresis (CIE) confirmed the antigenic identity of field and vaccine strains, showing precipitation bands and complete lines of identity. The haemagglutination (HA) test revealed titres up to 1:640 for PPV and 1:320 for FPV in both field and vaccine strains, indicating stable haemagglutinin activity across passages. Molecular confirmation was achieved through polymerase chain reaction (PCR), where amplification of the conserved P4b gene produced the expected 578 bp product, confirming the presence of avipoxvirus. The study concludes that field and vaccine strains of PPV and FPV are antigenically similar, with stable haemagglutination properties and confirmatory molecular detection, suggesting their suitability for diagnostic and immunological applications.