| Newcastle disease (ND), caused by avian paramyxovirus-1 (APMV-1) is an important disease of avian species and continuously cause outbreaks in commercial poultry throughout the world. Despite intensive vaccination, ND is endemic in Pakistan and locally known as Ranikhet. Wild birds are considered natural reservoirs of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and some common resident or migratory wild birds are associated with outbreaks of ND in commercial poultry in Pakistan. Continuous isolation of new genotypes in Pakistan shows the evolving nature of the virus and the emergence of new strains is limiting in its diagnosis and control. Pakistan is a developing country and poultry industry is the backbone of its economy. Recent outbreaks have caused huge losses to the poultry industry. This review details the possible role and potential of some common captive and non-captive wild bird species in the spread of NDV and also its economic impact on the commercial poultry industry of Pakistan.

Infectious bursal disease (IBD), caused by IBD virus (IBDV), is one of the most devastating and immunosuppressive diseases of the poultry and has been a constraint on the sustainable poultry production around the globe including Pakistan. While the disease is threatening the poultry industry, the nature of predominant strains of IBDV in Pakistan remained ill-defined. In this study, an epidemiology survey was conducted in the main chicken-farming regions of Pakistan. The batch of Pakistan IBDVs genes simultaneously covering both VP1 and VP2 were amplified, sequenced, and analyzed. The unique segment-reassortant IBDVs (vv-A/Uniq-B), carrying segment A from vvIBDV and segment B from one unique ancestor, were identified as one important type of circulating strains in Pakistan. The data also discovered the characteristic molecular features of Pakistan IBDVs, which will contribute to scientific vaccine selection and effective prevention of the disease.