Publication Type
Journal Article
Publication Date (Issue Year)
2023
Journal Name
Veterinary Sciences
Abstract
Newcastle disease virus is a significant avian pathogen with the potential to decimate poultry populations all over the world and cause enormous economic losses. Distinct NDV genotypes are currently causing outbreaks worldwide. Due to the high genetic diversity of NDV, virulent strains that may result in a lack of vaccine protection are more likely to emerge and ultimately cause larger epidemics with massive economic losses. Thus, a more comprehensive understanding of the circulating NDV genotypes is critical to reduce Newcastle disease (ND) burden. In this study, NDV strains were isolated and characterized from backyard poultry farms from Tanzania, East Africa in 2021. Reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) based on fusion (F) gene amplification was conducted on 79 cloacal or tracheal swabs collected from chickens during a suspected ND outbreak. Our results revealed that 50 samples out 79 (50/79; 63.3%) were NDV-positive. Sequencing and phylogenetic analyses of the selected NDV isolates showed that 39 isolates belonged to subgenotype VII.2 and only one isolate belonged to subgenotype XIII.1.1. Nucleotide sequences of the NDV F genes from Tanzania were closely related to recent NDV isolates circulating in southern Africa, suggesting that subgenotype VII.2 is the predominant subgenotype throughout Tanzania and southern Africa. Our data confirm the circulation of two NDV subgenotypes in Tanzania, providing important information to design genotype-matched vaccines and to aid ND surveillance. Furthermore, these results highlight the possibility of the spread and emergence of new NDV subgenotypes with the potential of causing future ND epizootics
Keywords
newcastle disease virus (NDV), tanzania, East Africa, poultry, genotypes, phylogeneticanalyse
Rsif Scholar Name
Charlie Frank Arthur N'guessan Amoia
Thematic Area
Food security and Agribusiness
Africa Host University (AHU)
Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Tanzania
Funding Statement
C.F.A. was awarded a Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) through thePartnership for Skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) in order to com-plete doctoral studies at the SACIDS Africa Centre of Excellence for Infectious Diseases, SACIDSFoundation for One Health, Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania. The SouthAfrican National Research Foundation (NRF) and Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology(COSTECH) have jointly funded G.M.’s OR Tambo Africa Research Chair in Viral Epidemics ofShort-Cycle Animal Stocks.
Recommended Citation
Amoia, C. F., Hakizimana, J. N., Duggal, N. K., Chengula, A. A., Rohaim, M. A., Munir, M., Weger-Lucarelli, J., & Misinzo, G. (2023). Genetic diversity of Newcastle disease virus involved in the 2021 outbreaks in backyard poultry farms in Tanzania. Veterinary Sciences, 10 (7), 477. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci10070477