Pathogenesis of Infectious Bursal Disease in Chickens Infected with Virus at Various Ages

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Abstract
Chickens free from infectious bursal disease (IBD) maternal antibody were inoculated with a virulent strain of IBD virus at 1, 5 or 11 wk of age. Chickens inoculated at 5 wk developed severe clinical signs and had reduced levels of serum complement within 2-4 days postinoculation; those inoculated at 1 or 11 wk did not. At 1, 2, 4 and 8 days postinoculation, the rate of virus recovery from different tissues, severity of microscopic lesions and frequency of detection of viral antigens in lymphoid organs of chickens inoculated at 5 wk were comparable to those of chickens inoculated at 1 or 11 wk of age. Evidently, age resistance to clinical manifestations of IBD is probably independent of the ability of virus to replicate and induce lesions in the host.