PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS AMONG THE CALIFORNIA 2002/2003 AND OTHER RECENT NORTH AMERICAN 1996/2000 VIRULENT NEWCASTLE DISEASE VIRUS ISOLATES

Authors: PEDERSEN, JANICE - NVSL - AMES, IOWA; SENNE, DENNIS - NVSL - AMES, IOWA; WOOLCOCK, PETER - UNIV OF CA -FRESNO, CA; KINDE, HAILU - U OF CA-SAN BERNARDINO, C; King, Daniel; Wise, Mark; PANIGRAHY, BRUNDABAN - NVSL - AMES, IOWA; Seal, Bruce

Submitted to: Journal of Clinical Microbiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/27/2004
Publication Date: 5/10/2004
Citation: Pedersen, J.C., Senne, D.A., Woolcock, P.R., Kinde, H., King, D.J., Wise, M., Panigrahy, B., Seal, B.S. 2004. Phylogenetic Relationships Among The California 2002/2003 And Other Recent North American 1996/2000 Virulent Newcastle Disease Virus Isolates. Journal of Clinical Microbiology 2004, p.2329-2334.

Interpretive Summary: Highly virulent Newcastle disease virus (NDV) isolates are List A pathogens for commercial poultry, and reports of its isolation among member nations must be made to the Office of International Epizootes (OIE). During the autumn of 2002 and spring of 2003 an outbreak of highly virulent Newcastle disease (ND) occurred in the southwestern United States including southern California (CA), southern Nevada (NV) and western Arizona (AZ). A separate small outbreak of virulent ND also occurred in Texas (TX) during the spring of 2003. A portion of the NDV genome from isolates obtained during these outbreaks was analyzed genetically to determine the degree of similarity among the isolates. The genetic information from these viruses was also used to compare with other NDV isolates from neighboring countries and with NDV from worldwide sources. Genetic analyses demonstrated that the CA 2002/03, AZ, NV and TX viruses were most closely related to isolates from Mexico and Central America. An isolate from Texas obtained during 2003 appeared to represent a separate introduction of highly virulent NDV into the U.S. as this virus was more closely related to the Mexico 2000 isolates than the CA, AZ and NV viruses. Therefore, continued surveillance of commercial and non-commercial poultry is warranted for early detection of highly virulent NDV.

Technical Abstract: Isolates from the 2002/2003 virulent Newcastle disease virus (v-NDV) outbreak in southern California (CA), Nevada (NV), Arizona (AZ) and Texas (TX) of the United States (U.S.) were compared to each other along with recent v-NDV isolates from Mexico, Central America and reference avian paramyxovirus type-1 strains. Nucleotide sequencing and phylogenetic analyses were conducted on an 1195 base genomic segment composing the 3' region of the matrix (M) protein gene and a 5' portion of the fusion (F) protein gene including the M-F intergenic region. This area of the genome encompasses coding sequences for the nuclear localization signal of the M protein and the F protein cleavage activation site. A dibasic amino acid motif was present at the predicted F protein cleavage activation site in all v-NDV viruses, including the CA 2002/03, AZ, NV, TX, Mexico and Central America isolates. Phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that the CA 2002/03, AZ, NV and TX viruses were most closely related to isolates from Mexico and Central America. An isolate from Texas obtained during 2003 appeared to represent a separate introduction of v-NDV into the U.S. as this virus was more closely related to the Mexico 2000 isolates than the CA, AZ and NV viruses. Due to this close phylogenetic relationship between the recent 2002/2003 U.S. v-NDV isolates and those viruses from countries geographically close to the U.S., continued surveillance of commercial and non-commercial poultry is warranted for early detection of highly virulent NDV.