• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.59 no.4
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• pp.403-408
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• 2021

Avian coccidiosis has a major economic impact on the poultry industry, it is caused by 7 species of Eimeria, and has been primarily controlled using chemotherapeutic agents. Due to the emergence of drug-resistant strains, alternative control strategies are needed. We assessed anticoccidial effects of berberine-based diets in broiler chickens following oral infection with 5 Eimeria species (E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, E. mitis, and E. praecox). When 0.2% berberine, a concentration that does not affect weight gain, was added to the diet, the 4 groups infected with E. acervulina, E. tenella, E. mitis, or E. praecox showed significant reductions in fecal oocyst shedding (P<0.05) compared to their respective infected and untreated controls. In chickens treated 0.5% berberine instead of 0.2% and infected with E. maxima, fecal oocyst production was significantly reduced, but body weight deceased, indicating that berberine treatment was not useful for E. maxima infection. Taken together, these results illustrate the applicability of berberine for prophylactic use to control most Eimeria infections except E. maxima. Further studies on the mechanisms underlying the differences in anticoccidial susceptibility to berberine, particularly E. maxima, are remained.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.59 no.5
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• pp.439-445
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• 2021

Coccidiosis in chickens is an intestinal parasitic disease caused by protozoan parasites named Eimeria spp. In some Eimeria infections, intestinal lymphocytes are known to highly express chicken NK-lysin (cNK-lysin), an antimicrobial peptide with anticoccidial activity. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the expression of cNK-lysin in E. necatrix-infected chickens and its role in E. necatrix infection. The expression of cNK-lysin transcript was significantly increased in E. necatrix sporozoites-treated lymphocytes. In E. necatrix infection, cNK-lysin transcript was induced in intestinal lymphocytes but not in the spleen. The recombinant cNK-lysin exhibited anticoccidial activity against E. necatrix sporozoites as well as immunomodulatory activity on macrophages by inducing proinflammatory cytokines. These results indicated that E. necatrix infection induces high local expression of cNK-lysin and the secreted cNK-lysin helps protect coccidiosis.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1262-1266
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• 2005

Twelve Korean native goats, spontaneously infected with mixed species of Eimeria were used to study the possible direct anticoccidial effect of feeding condensed tannin-containing plants on the production of Eimeria oocysts. The effects of feeding pine (Pinus densifora) needles, oak (Quercus acutissima) leaves and lucerne chaff on coccidia oocyst output were studied for a period of 10 days post-feeding. The results indicate that feeding fresh pine needles (40 g condensed tannins (CT) dry matter (DM)/day/goat) and oak leaves (40 g CT DM/day/goat) in combination with lucerne chaff had rapid anticoccidial activities in goats as demonstrated by a sharp decrease in oocyst production. Two days after feeding, the numbers of oocysts per gram of faeces (OPG) from the goats fed pine needles with lucerne chaff, and from goats fed oak leaves reduced by 40% and 44% compared to pre-feeding, respectively. On the sixth day after commencing feeding pine needles and oak leaves, the reduction was 81% and 72%, respectively. Ten days after feeding pine needles and oak leaves, the OPG was reduced by 93% and 85%, respectively compared to pre-feeding. Statistical analysis showed that feeding pine needles and oak leaves to goats naturally infected with coccidia significantly (p<0.001) reduced the numbers of oocysts compared to the control group fed lucerne chaff only. Four clinically important species of coccidia, Eimeria parva, Eimeria ninakohlyakimovae, Eimeria christenseni and Eimeria arloingi were identified in Korean native goats.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.62 no.4
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• pp.30.1-30.6
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• 2022

In the study, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZNOPs) at concentrations of 20, 40, and 60 mg/kg were tested for their antimicrobial action against the oocysts of Eimeria tenella. The oocysts of E. tenella were isolated from the feces of broilers received at the veterinary hospital in Diwaniyah Province and initially diagnosed by compound optical microscopy. The oocysts were confirmed molecularly by polymerase chain reaction targeting the ITS1 gene with a molecular weight of 409 bp. The results in the first week showed that ZNOP concentrations of 20 and 40 mg/kg possess various activities against E. tenella, while 60 mg/kg was the most effective in reducing excreted oocysts compared to the positive control and amprolium group, along with the appearance of mild symptoms and a mortality rate of 0.8%. In the second week of infection, excreted oocysts and mortality rates generally decreased in all treated groups. A comparison of all groups showed that the 60 mg/kg ZNOP-treated group had a significantly lower number of excreted oocysts, and all birds in this group recovered during the second week of infection. These findings revealed the prospect of using ZNOPs against E. tenella in challenging situations of the appearance of resistance to anticoccidial agents.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.7
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• pp.981-989
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• 2014

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of a mixture of functional oils (Essential, Oligo Basics Agroind. Ltda) on performance response of chickens challenged with coccidiosis and the determination of apparent metabolizable energy (AME), nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy (AMEn), the coefficients of protein and ether extract digestibility and intestinal morphology of broilers fed with diets containing Essential. In Exp. 1, a completely randomized design (CRD) was used, with one control diet without Essential inclusion with coccidiosis (Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria maxima, and Eimeria tenella) challenged birds and two different inclusion rates of Essential (1.5 kg/ton and 2 kg/ton) with coccidiosis-challenged and non-challenged birds for each inclusion rate, using 10 replicates and 50 birds per experimental unit. After 7 d of coccidiosis challenge, the livability was approximately 10% lower (p<0.05) for the control group. Intestinal lesion scores were lower (p<0.05) in the anterior intestine and the cecum for the chickens supplemented. Feed efficiency and growth rate were improved in birds supplemented with Essential (p<0.05) before the coccidiosis challenge and during the first 7 d post infection. In Exp. 2, a CRD was used, with one control diet without Essential inclusion and one diet with inclusion of Essential (1.5 kg/ton), using nine replications and 33 chicks per pen. The diets with Essential yielded approximately 4% higher AME (p = 0.003) and $AME_n$ (p = 0.001). Essential supplementation increased villus height in the jejunum on d 14 (p<0.05). Villus height:crypt depth ratio for the supplemented birds was larger (p<0.05) in the jejunum on d 7, larger (p<0.05) in the jejunum and ileum on d 14. In conclusion, these functional oils improved the energy utilization and the livability and decreased lesions caused by coccidiosis in supplemented birds.