Blood testing -- a practical overview

摘要

Blood testing has a key role to play in modern poultry production and most blood tests are undertaken to see if antibody is present. In many cases the amount of antibody present is also determined. So, what is antibody and what is its significance? All infectious agents such as viruses, bacteria and mycoplasma have on their surfaces, chemical entities known as antigens. These antigens are unique for the micro-organism they are on. Thus, for example, the antigens found on the Newcastle disease virusare only found on that virus and not on any other.