NEWCASTLE DISEASE

(Ranikhet)
First time recorded
• In 1926 ----- in Java (Indonesia) & Newcastle (England)
• In 1928 ----- in Ranikhet (India)

• Definition
– An infectious, highly contagious & fatal viral disease
– Chiefly affecting chicken, cage and aviary birds and
wild birds
– Characterized by respiratory, digestive & nervous
symptoms
– High mortality
 ETIOLOGY
Newcastle disease virus
– Family: Paramvxoviridae
– Genus: Paramyxovirus
Characteristics:
 RNA virus
 Enveloped
 Agglutinates avian RBCs
 Destroyed by various physical & chemical
treatments (acids &alkalis)
 VIRAL CLASSIFICATION
On the basis of virulence
• Lentogenic (Vaccine Strain)
Avirulent to mildly virulent e.g. LaSota
• Mesogenic:
Intermediate virulent e.g. Mukteswar,
Clone 30
• Velogenic (Challenge strain)
Highly virulent
On the basis of tissue tropism
• Neurotropic
• Pneumotropic
• Viscerotropic
 TRANSMISSION
• Sick birds secrete virus through
• Feaces
• Nasal secretions
• Probably genital secretions
• Horizontal
– Between flocks
- Poultry products - Mechanical vectors
- Wild birds - Contamination of vaccines
– Within a flock
- Aerosol - Feed and water - Clothing and foot-
wear
• Vertical Not reported
FACTORS IN ESTABLISHING SEVERITY
OF DISEASE
• Virus
Strain
Route of entry
Dose
• Host
Species
Age
Immune status
• Co-infection with other organisms
• Stress
 CLINICAL SIGNS
• Respiratory signs
– Gasping & coughing, Copious mucoid discharge
– Oedema of tissue around eyes, throat & face
– Cyanosis of comb & wattles
• Nervous signs
– Clonic spasm, convulsions
– Torticollis, Opisthotonus
– Drooping of wings
– Paralysis of legs & wings
• Enteric signs
– Greenish diarrhoea is frequently seen
• Mortality ---- frequently upto 100%
 Viscerotropic velogenic
• Sudden appearance
• Spreads rapidly
• Marked depression and loss of appetite
• Sharp drop in egg production
• Increased respiratory
• Profuse bright green diarrhoea
• Oedematous swellings of the head and cyanosis of the combs
and conjunctivitis
• Prostration with many birds dying within a few days
• Nervous signs in those that survive initial phase
• High mortality (>90%) in susceptible flocks
 Neurotropic velogenic
• Acute respiratory and nervous signs predominate
• Sudden depression
• Loss of appetite
• Drop in egg production
• Respiratory distress — severe coughing
• Gasping nervous signs — head tremors, wing and leg
paralysis, torticollis
• Mortality rate in adults 10–20%. May be much higher
in young chickens
 Mesogenic
• Depression
• Weight loss
• Drop in egg production and quality (lasting 1–
3 weeks)
• Acute respiratory disease with coughing
• Gasping nervous signs may develop late in the
clinical course
• Mortality rate about 10%
 Lentogenic
• Mild respiratory signs
• Temporary loss of appetite
• Drop in egg production
• No nervous signs
• Negligible mortality unless concurrent disease
is present
 PATHOGENESIS
– Virus enters in host by inhalation / ingestion
– Attachment of virus to cell receptors
– Fusion of envelop with cell membrane
– Nucleocapsid complex enters the cell
– Virus replication takes place in cytoplasm
– Liberation of virus from host cell
– First viraemia
– Localizes & multiplies in visceral organs
– Second viraemia
– Shedding of virus
POSTMORTEM LESIONS
• Respiratory system
– Haemorrhages in pharynx & trachea
– Catarrhal exudate in nasal passages
– Thickening of air sacs with caseous exudate
• Nervous System
– Congestion and oedema of the brain
• Digestive system
– Haemorrhages in proventriculus is an
outstanding feature
– Bluish red raised necrotic areas in lymphoid
follicles of intestine & caecal tonsils
 DIAGNOSIS
• History, clinical signs & necropsy findings
• Isolation & identification of the virus
Sites for sample collection
– Cloacal & tracheal swabs, Lung, Spleen, Liver, heart & Brain
– alimentary tissues ( proventriculus, intestine,
caecal tonsil) and respiratory tissues (trachea,
lung) for pathogenicity assessment and virus
characterisation
• Serological identification
– HI, ELISA
• Differential diagnosis
– Respiratory signs --- CRD, IC, IB, ILT, AI
– Nervous signs ---Vitamin E deficiency
– Digestive signs ---- Coccidiosis
PREVENTION AND CONTROL
• Biosecurity
– Improvement of biosecurity measures
• Vaccination( Eye drops, D/W, Sprays,
s/c etc)
– Types
• Live vaccine (Attenuated)
• Killed vaccine (Inactivated)
• Oil based vaccine
– Vaccination schedule for broilers
• 1st shot ----- in 1st week of age
• 2nd shot ---- in 3rd week of age
• In case of an outbreak
– No specific treatment
– Supportive therapy
• Vitamin E supplementation
• Treat for secondary bacterial infections
– Provide good quality of feed & water
• Public Health
– In man, ND virus may cause influenza-like
symptoms and pink eye.
– Completely destroyed by normal cooking
High mortality in a flock
TORTICOLLIS
NERVOUS ATTACK ON WHITE
LEG HORN PULLETS
NERVOUS SIGNS IN DESI
PULLETS
Conjunctivitis.
Oedematus swellings of the
head
TORTICOLLIS
TORTICOLLIS IN PIGEON
Tracheitis congestion and
haemorrhages
PROVENTRICULUS SHOWING
HAEMORRHAGES
RAISED NECROTIC AREAS IN
INTESTINES
HARMORRHAGIC CAECAL
TONSILS