Rapid detection of BF haplotypes by a semi-nested polymerase chain reaction, which causes resistance/susceptibility to Marek's disease in chicken.

Abstract

A semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (snPCR) assay was developed for the rapid detection of resistant/susceptible BF haplotypes to Marek's disease (MD) using the cDNA samples from peripheral blood leucocytes, liver, spleen and heart from Xiayan homozygous chickens: A(11), C(23), D(8) and D(12) (resistant to MD), A(5) and B(21) (susceptible to MD). The snPCR was utilized to span alternative splicing-out of the sequence encoding the second segment of the cytoplasmic part of the mature BF molecules (exon 7). This alternative exon 7 splice variant was detected in BF*A(5) and BF*B(21) (susceptible to MD), but not in the MD-resistant BF*A(11), BF*C(23), BF*D(8) and BF*D(12) haplotypes, suggesting a potential role of exon 7 for the detection of resistant/susceptible BF haplotypes to MD.