Development of the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) for the Detection and the Prevalent Study of Psittacine Beak and Feather Disease Syndrome Virus (PBFDV) Infection in Cockatoo
Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University; 2Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University; 3Center for Agricultural Biotechnology, Kasetsart University, Kamphaengsaen Campus
Bangkok, Thailand
Objectives
To develop the polymerase chain reaction for the detection of PBFDV and to study the prevalence of PBFD in Thailand
Materials & Methods
Skin biopsy from a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo that positive for PBFDV inclusion bodies was subjected to DNA extraction and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The PCR product was sequenced and compared with the sequence published on GenBank. During 2001-2002, feather follicles from 34 suspected cases of PBFDV infection were used to perform PCR.
Results
PCR product from the skin biopsy from a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo had approximately 900 bp in size. The sequence comparison result of this PCR and the sequence published on GenBank was similar. Nineteen out of thirty four suspected cases of PBFDV infection were positive.
Conclusion
This result showed that PBFDV infection in Cockatoo was common in Thailand.