D2—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 25,1981 Farmland Preservation j < \ f < ¥■ * J J , K ''X ' fK-Sv: %/ s’ s /+l fi ~ ft./ "* > “* r »*i; »,jp>4 *.»**«- V'V'» *3. -►‘'•a t ~ . *{- . v ’- ,W* .;%»✓ i.* -fc. ■> •{i },*'■; •-’: •*».'< S‘S- Rl 9 Lititz, Lancaster County NEWARK, Del. - John K. Rosenberger, a poultry virologist at the University of Delaware’s Agricultural Experiment Station, has received a national com petitive grant for $60,923. The three year grant was awarded under the U.S. Depart ment of Agriculture’s animal health research program. It will permit him to investigate the possibility that certain viruses, known to cause skeletal disorders in broiler chickens, may do so indirectly by damaging the in testinal tracts of infected birds, thus causing malabsorption ot the nutrients needed for proper bone development and growth. Skeletal abnormalities such as crippling or leg weakness in young growing broilers are a major problem for poultry producers on Delmarva and other parts of the U.S. Nationwide, economic losses due to clinically apparent leg «. -> Vi- . i * * \ t ' - A' / > ‘‘ ♦<• * X * r i < w* Poultry virologist wins $60,000 grant * , < ~~ v^ v i^\V J £**?\ * ■%%K<s~ ' / '' i 1 ■•= = ' '«fe#4 1 v ‘’\ ,'V-»' r '‘‘'>4^»y|d !^t^ t’ci >-5 / r'lßs f * * >;'> V * -\ \ : rj^ x jHf.Jtf? ' , 'S. A~' , / i, ' *•_ - j ’’' -, #»'"P* ii T' 1 *■ ’*-'" y r <A ’ V > ‘ 'it weakness alone have been con servatively estimated at $l5 million a year. Additional unrecognized losses may be oc-* curring because of the overall poor performance of afflicted birds, including those which show less obvious effects of infection. Rosenberger and other researchers have demonstrated that skeletal problems such as arthritis and osteoperosis (brittle bones or femoral head necrosis), as well as stunting and feather abnormalities, can be caused by a number of reoviruses which affect poultry. He has isolated 109 such viruses from crippled chicks in com mercial broiler houses on Delmarva since 1978 when he began to study the problem. These viruses can be found not only in leg joints, but also in the intestinal tracts of affected hi r Hs ft has been suggested uiat virus-related in- testmal damage may result in malabsorption of nutrients. "If this proves to be the case,” says the virologist, "no matter how much feed these birds consume, they’re not going to put on weight or grow properly.” Cooperator on the project will be Michael Ruff, a parasitologist at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Center in Beltsville, Md. Ruff has developed a procedure to assay for malabsorption in vitro m the laboratory which will permit the researchers to pinpoint any in testinal problem much more exact ly than would be possible with live birds. Rosenberger, who beads Delaware’s department of animal science and agricultural biochemistry, considers the Maryland parasitologist’s par ticipation highly important because it will save time and duplication ot effort. ~ It’s worth —Photo by Dick Anglestein US'- * ’<, ** A**. ' ' / V '•< *w i'ti frf~ r^'m£> , ! . f!. . **«' *. H •i‘:j:l-- ii. * 0 '* * “Much ot today’s research is so sophisticated that we simply have to cooperate, share equipment and expertise,” he says. “We could do the work here at Delaware to test for malabsorption, but we’d have to cover the same ground Ruff already has, in order to set up the test. That would take a lot of time and doesn’t make sense when he has the expertise and is prepared and willing to cooperate with us.” It’s important to determine the potential role of reoviruses m a possible malabsorption syndrome, Rosenberger says, because the effects of such a syndrome on bird productivity and performance could be of enormous economic significance. Should he and Ruff establish a definite connection, the next step will be for the virologist to try to develop a vaccine to protect broiler chicks from in fection by the reoviruses involved. it > & * (■* *< —^ *r I * . -JL • mi » >
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