Evaluation of different serological tests for the detection of antibodies against highly pathogenic avian influenza in experimentally infected ostriches (Struthio camelus)

Anna Toffan (1) , Adriaan Olivier (2) , Marzia Mancin (3) , Valentina Tuttoilmondo (1) , Daniele Facco (1) , Ilaria Capua (1) , Calogero Terregino (1)

1 Virology
2 Ostrich Laboratory
3 Centro Regionale di Epidemiologia Veterinaria (CREV)

In this study we collected 177 serum samples from ostriches (Struthio camelus) infected experimentally with A/ostrich/South Africa/Middleton/2004 (H5N2) HPAI virus. We tested these samples using the haemagglutination inhibition (HI) test, the agar-gel immunodiffusion (AGID) test and three ELISA kits. We considered the HI test, with homologous antigen and including pre-treatment of sera with 10% chicken red blood cells, as gold standard. Detectable specific antibodies appeared on day 7 post infection and persisted until the termination of the experiment. The relative sensitivity and specificity of the tests under evaluation and Cohen's K value were calculated. The results reported herein could be of assistance to decision makers in drafting guidelines for the definition of the health status of ostriches and for trade purposes.

Mots clés: Life Sciences

Anna Toffan, Adriaan Olivier, Marzia Mancin, Valentina Tuttoilmondo, Daniele Facco, et al.. Evaluation of different serological tests for the detection of antibodies against highly pathogenic avian influenza in experimentally infected ostriches (Struthio camelus). Avian Pathology, 2010, 39 (01), pp.11-15. ⟨10.1080/03079450903431390⟩. ⟨hal-00557319⟩