Department of Veterinary Microbiology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad-38040, Pakistan

Abstract

 The reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), reverse passive haemagglutination assay (RPHA) and agar gel precipitation test (AGPT) were compared for the detection of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) in various organs of experimentally infected broilers. RT-PCR and RPHA required a time of 8 and 1 hour, respectively, whereas AGPT showed precipitation reaction at least after 24-48 hours of incubation. RT-PCR and RPHA were found sensitive to detect IBDV in tissues, whereas AGPT was less sensitive in the detection of IBDV. The RT-PCR was significantly more sensitive to detect IBDV as compared to RPHA, which was significantly more sensitive than AGPT in bursa of Fabricius, liver, kidneys, spleen and thymus samples. RPHA has given economical results for the detection of IBDV in samples from various organs and can be used in field conditions. However, RT-PCR was found to be the most sensitive test among the three tests compared in this study.

Key words: Broilers, Infectious bursal disease virus, RT-PCR, RPHA, AGPT.