Marek's Disease Virus

Dear Colleagues,

Marek’s disease (MD) virus (MDV) has caused major problems worldwide. It is a highly contagious herpesvirus that causes cancer in poultry species, primarily chickens. It is a member of the Alphaherpesvirinae within the Orthoherpesviridae family with similar replicative properties to other alphaherpesviruses like human herpes simplex (HSV) and varicella zoster (VZV) viruses that spread through shedding from epithelial skin cells. However, within the host, its pathogenesis is more similar to gammaherpesviruses with its lymphotropic nature, and like Epstein-Barr (EBV) and Kaposi-sarcoma-associated (KSHV) viruses, transform lymphocytes inducing cancer. Research on MDV has produced tremendous knowledge of virus-induced disease and cancer, and transmission from host to host over the decades. However, there are still significant gaps in knowledge in understanding the viral and host factors that contribute to virus replication, transformation, and transmission. In addition, information about how homologous vaccines are used to protect chickens from MDV-induced disease and understanding the mechanistic importance these vaccines play are needed to develop new vaccines and antiviral strategies. This Special Issue will focus on articles that provide deeper insights into important aspects of MDV and related MD vaccines, lytic replication, latency, transformation, reactivation, pathogenesis, and immune system interactions.

Dr. Keith Jarosinski
Dr. Nagendraprabhu Ponnuraj
Dr. Haji Akbar
Guest Editors

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• Marek’s disease virus (MDV)
• poultry
• herpesvirus
• cancer
• transmission
• pathogenesis