The course of turkey coronavirus (TCoV) infection in young turkey
poults was examined using a field isolate (TCoV-MG10) from a
diarrheal disease outbreak on a commercial turkey farm. One day old
and 25-day-old poults were inoculated orally with TCoV-MG10 to
examine the effect of age on viral shedding. The presence of coronavirus
particles measuring 105.8±21.8 nm in the cloacal contents was
confirmed using transmission electron microscopy. The pattern of
cloacal TCoV shedding was examined by RT PCR amplification of the
nucleocapsid (N) gene fragment. Poults were found equally susceptible
to TCoV infection at day of age and at 3 weeks of age and turkeys of
either age shed virus in their feces starting as early as 1 day postinoculation
up to 17 days post-inoculation. Infected birds had profound
villus atrophy with some compensatory crypt hyperplasia at 5 to 7
days post infection (7 dpi).