Original Contribution SHEDDING OF THE AVIAN INFLUENZA A H6N2 SUBTYPE VIRUS ISOLATE IN NUMIDA MELEAGRIS

An experimental intravenous infection of 7 guinea fowl (Numididae meleagris) with Influenza А virus (AIV) isolate has been performed. The results indicated that over the entire period of observation (21 days) the virus was reisolated in all infected birds from the cloaca and the oropharynx. The maximum percentage of positive birds was observed by the 7 th post infection day. Reisolation was established in 51.2 % of studied cloacal and 41.9 % oropharyngeal samples, with their number varying with time. The major part of samples was found on the 7 th post infection day – 92.9 % of all tested samples. The average period of virus shedding from the cloaca was 5.4 days, and from the oropharynx - 4.6 days.