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Zhou X, Wang L, Wang Z, Zhu P, Chen Y, Yu C, Chen S, Xie Y. Impacts of Eimeria coinfection on growth performance, intestinal health and immune responses of broiler chickens. Vet Parasitol 2023; 322:110019. [PMID: 37666058 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2023.110019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/06/2023]
Abstract
Coccidiosis caused by Eimeria is one of the most severe chicken diseases and imposes huge economic losses to the poultry industry globally. Multi-Eimeria species coinfections are common with the most prevalent combination being mixtures of Eimeria acervulina and Eimeria tenella. Although detrimental impacts of either E. acervulina or E. tenella on chicken health are well recognized, no information is available regarding their coinfection effects so far. This study was designed to investigate the influence of coinfection with E. acervulina and E. tenella on broiler chickens. 144 one-day-old broiler chickens within each of trials (trial I or II) were divided into four groups, namely, control group (CG), E. acervulina infection group (EAIG), E. tenella infection group (ETIG) and dual (E. acervulina and E. tenella) infection group (DIG). Then, chickens were measured for weight loss, lesion scores, oocyst outputs, histological changes and expressions of pro-inflammatory (interleukin [IL]-6, IL-8 and IL-18), regulatory (IL-10 and IL-22) cytokines and Toll-like receptors (TLR; TLR2 and TLR4) as well as intestinal barrier (mucin 2 [MUC2] and fattey acid-bingding proteins 2 and 6 [FABP2 and FABP6])- and tight junction (TJ; zonula occluden-1 [ZO-1], occludin [OCLN], and claudins 1 and 5 [CLDN1 and CLDN5])-related proteins at 3, 5, 7, 10, 14 and 21 days post-infection, respectively. Our results consistently showed that although ETIG and DIG exhibited a higher level of weight loss and a more amount of oocyst excretion than EAIG, DIG had lighter lesions than EAIG in the early phase because of coinfection with E. tenella. A higher (P < 0.05) ratio of duodenal villous height to crypt depth was also observed in DIG than EAIG. Moreover, histological changes in the duodenum and cecum varied by single and dual Eimeria infections. Expressions of the intestinal barrier- and TJ-related genes of EAIG, ETIG and DIG were significantly (P < 0.05) upregulated but their levels exhibited differential changes among infected chickens. Similarly, the infected chickens showed significant (P < 0.05) inflammatory responses and higher (P < 0.05) expressions of TLRs in the intestines in comparison to CG. These results presented a comprehensive physiological, pathological and immunological characterization of E. acervulina and E. tenella coinfection in broiler chickens and also shed insights into pathogenesis of multi-coccidia coinfections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuan Zhou
- Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China; Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
| | - Lidan Wang
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
| | - Zhao Wang
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
| | - Pengchen Zhu
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
| | - Yijun Chen
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
| | - Chunlin Yu
- Sichuan Animal Science Academy, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Shun Chen
- Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.
| | - Yue Xie
- Department of Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.
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Jenkins MC, O'Brien C, Parker C, Thompson P, Fitzcoy S, Bautista D. Polymerase Chain Reaction Directed to Eimeria ITS1 rDNA or a Single-Copy Orthologue Corroborates Standard Micro-oocyst Analysis of Intestinal Tissue from Chickens Infected with E. acervulina, E. maxima, or E. tenella. Avian Dis 2022; 66:181-185. [PMID: 35838748 DOI: 10.1637/aviandiseases-d-22-00001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to compare micro-oocyst counts of Eimeria to PCR analysis of intestinal DNA from smears of duodenum, jejunum/ileum, and cecum of chickens infected with Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria maxima, or Eimeria tenella oocysts. Broiler chicks were infected in triplicate with various doses of E. acervulina, E. maxima, or E. tenella oocysts and were necropsied 5-6 days later to recover duodenal, jejunal, or cecal tissue for micro-oocyst count and for DNA recovery. Micro-oocyst counts were done independently by three individuals. Micro-oocyst counts and PCR directed to ITS1 rDNA or to a single-copy orthologue (SCO 5995) displayed a linear relationship with oocyst dose for each Eimeria species. A strong correlation was found between mean micro-oocyst counts and both PCR assays for E. acervulina (r = 0.78-0.94), E. maxima (r = 0.79-0.91), and E. tenella (r = 0.85-0.96). There was good agreement between ITS1 and SCO 5995 PCR assays: E. acervulina (r = 0.92), E. maxima (r = 0.79), and E. tenella (r = 0.93). However, only ITS1 PCR analysis corroborated micro-oocyst counts of Eimeria oocyst DNA recovered from Eimeria-infected broiler chickens submitted to a poultry diagnostic laboratory. These findings suggest that ITS1 PCR or SCO PCR can validate traditional micro-oocyst counts used in quantifying Eimeria infection in chickens. Additional studies may provide a method for estimating the relative abundance of each Eimeria species in a natural infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark C Jenkins
- Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, MD 20705,
| | - Celia O'Brien
- Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, MD 20705
| | - Carolyn Parker
- Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, MD 20705
| | - Peter Thompson
- Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, MD 20705
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Pham HHS, Matsubayashi M, Tsuji N, Hatabu T. Relationship between Eimeria tenella associated-early clinical signs and molecular changes in the intestinal barrier function. Vet Immunol Immunopathol 2021; 240:110321. [PMID: 34520968 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetimm.2021.110321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The major clinical signs of coccidiosis in chickens due to Eimeria parasite are diarrhea and bloody feces. Previous studies showed that the impairment of the intestinal epithelial barrier and the elevation of the intestinal permeability are causes of clinical signs associated with coccidia challenges. Nevertheless, the information about molecular changes of the epithelial barrier at the early stage of the infection with a specific Eimeria species has not been mentioned. Hence, this study aims to elucidate the temporal relationships between epithelial barrier conditions and clinical signs in chickens infected with Eimeria tenella over the time from the earliest stages of infection. White Leghorn chickens were inoculated with 1 × 104 oocysts of E. tenella. Thereafter the chickens were monitored for their daily clinical signs through observation, and between 5 dpi to 10 dpi, feces were collected for oocysts counting. Chickens were then administrated with fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran (FITC-d) for gastrointestinal permeability test and tissues were collected each day for histopathological observation and total RNA extraction. Finally, the mRNA expression levels of the tight and adherens junction genes and cytokine genes were evaluated using the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). In this study, clinical signs such as diarrhea and bloody feces were observed concurrently from 3 to 8 dpi. Histopathology changes such as severe inflammation, hemorrhage, and epithelial desquamation were identified in the cecum specimens. The FITC-d level in the E. tenella-infected group was significantly higher than in the control group. In the infected group, the expression of claudin-2 gene was also upregulated, whereas the expressions of claudin-3 and E-cadherin genes were decreased as compared to the control group. These results implied that clinical signs of avian coccidiosis were associated with the intestinal barrier disruption via changes in expression levels of claudins and E-cadherin at the intestine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hung Hoang Son Pham
- Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama University, 1-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Kita-Ku, Okayama, 700-8530, Japan
| | - Makoto Matsubayashi
- Department of Veterinary Science, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Izumisano, Osaka, 598-8531, Japan
| | - Naotoshi Tsuji
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Parasitology, Kitasato University Graduate School of Medical Science, 1-15-1 Kitasato, Minami-ku, Sagamihara, 252-0374, Japan
| | - Toshimitsu Hatabu
- Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama University, 1-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Kita-Ku, Okayama, 700-8530, Japan.
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Mtshali SA, Adeleke MA. A review of adaptive immune responses to Eimeria tenella and Eimeria maxima challenge in chickens. WORLD POULTRY SCI J 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/00439339.2020.1833693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S. A. Mtshali
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, Durban, South Africa
| | - M. A. Adeleke
- Discipline of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, Durban, South Africa
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Kang Q, Vahl CI, Fan H, Geurden T, Ameiss KA, Taylor LP. Statistical analyses of chicken intestinal lesion scores in battery cage studies of anti-coccidial drugs. Vet Parasitol 2018; 272:83-94. [PMID: 30579754 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2018.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2018] [Revised: 12/01/2018] [Accepted: 12/05/2018] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Establishing the efficacy of an anti-coccidial drug in poultry begins with conducting multiple battery cage studies, where the target animals are challenged with single and mixed Eimeria species inoculum under controlled laboratory conditions. One of the primary outcomes in a battery cage study is the intestinal lesion score defined on a discrete ordinal scale of 0 to 4. So far, the statistical analysis of lesion scores has routinely employed the linear mixed model (LMM). This present work proposes to apply the generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) with the cumulative logit link to statistically analyze coccidial lesion scores collected from battery cage studies. Upon applying this new approach on 9 datasets generated by challenging battery-cage-housed broilers with various mixtures of Eimeria species, it is observed that the GLMM fitted adequately to the data, produced variance component estimates that agreed with the experimental setup, and, at the 0.05 significance level, generated statistical results in complete concordance with the LMM approach. Advantages of the proposed GLMM over the LMM are discussed from several standpoints. Parallel to the regulatory requirement of a ≥1-unit reduction in the mean lesion score for clinical relevant efficacy under the LMM, the clinical relevancy criterion under the GLMM could be set as a ≥10-fold increase in the odds of having low lesion scores. That is, the effect of an anti-coccidial drug product would be deemed clinically relevant in battery-cage studies when the odds of having low lesion scores with the medication is 10 times or more than the odds without the medication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing Kang
- The Statistical Intelligence Group LLC, Manhattan, KS, 66503, United States.
| | - Christopher I Vahl
- Department of Statistics, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, United States.
| | - Huihao Fan
- Zoetis, Veterinary Medicine Research and Development, Kalamazoo, MI, 49007, United States.
| | - Thomas Geurden
- Zoetis, Veterinary Medicine Research and Development, Mercuriusstraat 20, 1930 Zaventem, Belgium.
| | - Keith A Ameiss
- Zoetis, Veterinary Medicine Research and Development, Kalamazoo, MI, 49007, United States.
| | - Lucas P Taylor
- Zoetis, Veterinary Medicine Research and Development, Kalamazoo, MI, 49007, United States.
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Jarujareet W, Shigenoki Y, Taira K, Ooi HK. Eimeria tenella oocyst excretion and riboflavin supplement in infected chicken. J Vet Med Sci 2018; 80:1392-1394. [PMID: 30089734 PMCID: PMC6160879 DOI: 10.1292/jvms.18-0219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The effect of riboflavin supplement in Eimeria tenella-infected chickens was evaluated. Mortality, fecal consistency, and oocysts per gram of feces were monitored for
groups of E. tenella-infected chickens administered a basal diet supplemented with either riboflavin, the anti-coccidial drug amprolium, or with both compounds. The number
of oocysts shed per chicken in the riboflavin-treated group was significantly higher than the positive non-treated control group. No significant difference in oocyst number between the
amprolium-treated group and riboflavin plus amprolium-treated group was observed. Thus, the addition of 0.8 g/kg of riboflavin to basal diet can increase oocyst number in E.
tenella-infected chicken, but has no effect on the efficacy of amprolium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wipaporn Jarujareet
- Laboratory of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, 1-17-71, Fuchinobe, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5201, Japan.,Faculty of Veterinary Science Rajamangala University of Technology Srivijaya, 133 Moo 5 Thungyai, Nakhon Si Thammarat, 80240, Thailand
| | - Yurika Shigenoki
- Laboratory of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, 1-17-71, Fuchinobe, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5201, Japan
| | - Kensuke Taira
- Laboratory of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, 1-17-71, Fuchinobe, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5201, Japan
| | - Hong Kean Ooi
- Laboratory of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, 1-17-71, Fuchinobe, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5201, Japan
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Lan L, Zuo B, Ding H, Huang Y, Chen X, Du A. Anticoccidial evaluation of a traditional chinese medicine—Brucea javanica—in broilers. Poult Sci 2016; 95:811-8. [DOI: 10.3382/ps/pev441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2015] [Accepted: 11/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
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Oden L, Lee J, Pohl S, Klein A, Anderson S, Dougherty S, Broussard C, Fitz-Coy S, Newman L, Caldwell D. Influence of diet on oocyst output and intestinal lesion development in replacement broiler breeders following live oocyst coccidiosis vaccination. J APPL POULTRY RES 2012. [DOI: 10.3382/japr.2010-00264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
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