(AI) viral infections cause respiratory
difficulty, diarrhea and cyanosis/edema of the head. They infect domestic
poultry and wild birds. In domestic poultry, (AI) viruses are typically of
low pathogenicity (LP), causing subclinical infections, respiratory disease, and
drops in egg production. A few (AI) viruses cause highly pathogenic (HI) forms
of the disease resulting in high mortality and has been historically called fowl
plague. (AI) viruses are type A Orthomyxoviruses characterized by antigenically
homologous nuleoproteins and matrix internal proteins which are identified by serology
in agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) tests.
