In vitro and in vivo studies on the pathogenicity of avian pneumovirus for the chicken oviduct.

The pathogenicity of avian pneumovirus (APV) for the chicken oviduct was studied in vitro using oviduct organ cultures (OOC), in vivo in young chicks with artificially enlarged oviducts and in adult female chickens. The OOCs were prepared from artificially enlarged oviducts of young chicks induced by oestrogen treatment and from normal oviducts of adult hens. The pathogenicity of APV for OOCs in vitro and oviducts in vivo were assessed by virus titrations and immunofluorescence. While in vitro experiments revealed an intrinsic susceptibility of oviduct epithelium to APV infection, in vivo studies failed to show APV replication in the hen oviduct, even after intravenous inoculation.