Paramyxovirus type 3 (PMV-3) in California turkeys: serologic study of PMV-3 antibody with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for detecting paramyxovirus type 3 (PMV-3) antibody. This test had a higher sensitivity than the hemagglutination-inhibition test, and no cross-reactivity with various paramyxoviruses or avian pathogens was detected when the sera were tested diluted 1:200. The incidence of PMV-3 infection in California was studied by testing 2037 turkey sera from 174 meat and breeder flocks for the presence of PMV-3 antibody using the ELISA. The age at which the infection occurs was around 5 to 8 weeks for meat flocks and 10 to 12 weeks for breeder flocks. Infection with the PMV-3, as determined serologically, was more frequent than manifested cases of disease, and 95.2% of the flocks aged over 11 weeks had PMV-3 antibody. No typical manifestations of PMV-3 disease (respiratory disease plus drop in egg production) were observed, probably because of the early infection which occurred before laying age.