The sensitivities of various erythrocytes in a haemagglutination assay for the detection of psittacine beak and feather disease virus.

The erythrocytes of various species were tested in psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) virus haemagglutination (HA) and haemagglutination inhibition assays to determine which are suitable for use in these assays. HA activity was observed for erythrocytes of the salmon-crested cockatoo, the sulphur-crested cockatoo, the umbrella cockatoo, the goffin's cockatoo and the cockatiel, with differences amongst individuals within species, but not for erythrocytes of humans, the pig, the guinea pig, the chicken, the goose, the rose-ringed parakeet or the budgerigar. Anti-PBFD virus rabbit sera inhibited the virus-induced agglutination of erythrocytes, confirming the specificity of HA activity. This suggests that selection of suitable psittacine species as well as suitable individuals within a species is necessary when obtaining erythrocytes for the PBFD virus HA assay.