Development and characterization of a nucleic acid probe for avian reoviruses

摘要

A radiolabelled probe (S4-18), corresponding to 542 base pairs of the S4 genome segment of avian reovirus (ARV), was used in dot blot hybridization assays. The lowest limit of purified viral RNA detected was similar among three ARV strains and was 0.2 ng. The probe also detected nine heterologous strains of ARV RNA prepared directly from cell cultures, indicating that it had a broad specificity. In addition, the probe detected ARV RNA in tendon tissues of birds from commercial broiler raising farms following dot blot hybridization.