Studies on Avian bornaviruses

Bornaviruses(family Bornaviridae) arenon-segmented negative-strand RNA viruses. Avian bornaviruses (ABVs), which arecausative agents of proventricular dilatation disease (PDD), are a geneticallydiverse group with at least 15 genotypes. PDD is a progressive, fatalneurological disorder. The virus distributes systemically in infected animalsand severe lymphoplasmacytic inflammation in peripheral, central, and autonomicnervous tissues occurs, which is a pathological characteristic of PDD,potentially leading to enteric ganglia deficits resulting in a loss ofintestine function and proventricular dilatation. We isolated munia bornavirus 1 (MuBV-1)from bengalese finch (Lonchura striata f. dom.; family Estrildidae) as a newgenotype of ABV. MuBV-1 infected bengalese finches have been apparently healthyfor long period over several generations. Therefore, MuBV-1 may be a no- orless- virulent strain of ABV that may contribute to analyze the mechanisms ofABV pathogenesis. I do the research to understand the mechanisms of ABVpathogenesis, by comparing MuBV-1 and other pathogenic ABVs in vitro and in vivo.