Researchers Develop Reovirus Vaccines for Turkeys

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USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announce the completion of a funded research project, aimed at developing six vaccines for reovirus in turkeys, by researchers in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine at the University of Minnesota. Made possible by an endowing Foundation gift from West Liberty Foods, the research is part of the Association’s comprehensive research program encompassing all poultry and egg production and processing phases. A summary of the completed project is below.

Project #734: Development of Live Attenuated Vaccine for Reoviruses Causing Arthritis and Hepatitis in Turkeys

(Dr. Sagar Goyal, Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.)

Turkey arthritis reovirus (TARV) causes lameness and hepatitis in turkeys resulting in huge economic losses and can also lead to welfare concerns. Dr. Goyal and colleagues aimed to develop live attenuated vaccines that could provide broad protection against TARVs and turkey hepatitis reoviruses. The six vaccines developed in the study indicated they were safe to use in turkey poults. However, a single dose of the developed vaccines in 10-day-old poults was insufficient to protect against the disease.

The research summary can be found on the USPOULTRY website. Information on other Association research may also be obtained by visiting the USPOULTRY website, uspoultry.org.

Source: US Poultry & Egg Association