Marek's disease

Marek's disease
/mar"iks, mahr"-/, Vet. Pathol.
a contagious cancerous disease of poultry, caused by a herpesvirus and characterized by proliferation of lymphoid cells and paralysis of a limb or the neck. Also called fowl paralysis, range paralysis.
[after Hungarian veterinarian József Marek (1868-1952), who described it in 1907]

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▪ bird disease
      highly contagious, often fatal malignancy of chickens that affects the nerves and visceral organs and that is caused by a herpesvirus. The classic sign of the disease is lameness in one or both legs that progresses to paralysis; drooping of the wings may also be noted. In young birds (six to eight weeks of age) predominant signs may be loss of appetite, depression, and sometimes tumours of internal organs and tissue that can be felt under the skin. The disease is named for Jozef Marek, a Hungarian physician who in 1907 described signs of this disease in his backyard roosters. The specific cause of the disease was not established until 1967. Exposure of healthy chickens to airborne dust or dander from infected chicken is an effective means of transmission. Examination of infected birds after death reveals nerves that may be as much as three times their normal thicknesses and lymphoid tumours in various organs. Control is primarily by vaccination, which has resulted in a dramatic reduction in losses from this disease in flocks raised for consumption and egg laying. This control method represents the first successful use of an antiviral vaccine to prevent a naturally occurring malignancy. There is no evidence that the disease is a human health hazard.

John M. Bowen
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Marek's disease — Virus classification Group: Group I (dsDNA) Family: Herpesviridae Genus: Mard …   Wikipedia

  • Marek's disease — Mar·ek s disease mar iks , mer n a highly contagious virus disease of poultry that is characterized esp. by proliferation of lymphoid cells and is caused by either of two herpesviruses (Gallid herpesvirus 2 and Gallid herpesvirus 3) Mar·ek mȯ… …   Medical dictionary

  • Marek's disease — noun Etymology: József Marek died 1952 Hungarian veterinarian Date: 1947 a highly contagious virus disease of poultry that is marked especially by proliferation of lymphoid cells and is caused by either of two herpesviruses (species Gallid… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • marek's disease — ˈmarə̇ks , ˈmer noun Usage: usually capitalized M Etymology: after József Marek died 1952 Hungarian veterinarian : a highly contagious viral disease of poultry that is characterized especially by proliferation of lymphoid cells and is caused by a …   Useful english dictionary

  • Marek's disease — Infectious cancer of the lymphoid system (lymphomatosis) in chickens, caused by a contagious Herpesvirus. An effective vaccine is now available …   Dictionary of molecular biology

  • Marek-Disease-ähnliche Viren — Mardivirus Systematik Reich: Viren Ordnung: nicht klassifiziert Familie: Herpesviridae Unterfamilien: Alphaherpesvirinae …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Marek disease virus — Marek disease virus. См. вирус болезни Марека. (Источник: «Англо русский толковый словарь генетических терминов». Арефьев В.А., Лисовенко Л.А., Москва: Изд во ВНИРО, 1995 г.) …   Молекулярная биология и генетика. Толковый словарь.

  • Marek disease vaccine — a modified live virus vaccine of tissue culture origin, used for immunization of 1 day old chicks against Marek disease, prepared from one or more of the three serovars of Marek disease virus …   Medical dictionary

  • Marek disease — Ma·rek disease (mahґrek) [Josef Marek, Hungarian veterinarian, 1867–1952] see under disease …   Medical dictionary

  • Marek disease virus — either of two herpesviruses that cause Marek disease in chickens; see gallid herpesvirus 2 and gallid herpesvirus 3, under herpesvirus …   Medical dictionary

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