Assessment of dietary supplementation with probiotics on performance, intestinal morphology and microflora of chickens infected with Eimeria tenella

• Published in: Veterinary parasitology 2012-08, Vol.188 (1-2), p.31-40
• Main Authors: Giannenas, I., Papadopoulos, E., Tsalie, E., Triantafillou, El, Henikl, S., Teichmann, K., Tontis, D.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Bacillus subtilis; Bacteria - classification; Bifidobacterium animalis; body weight; broiler chickens; cecum; Chicken; Chickens - growth & development; chicks; Coccidiosis - parasitology; Coccidiosis - prevention & control; Coccidiosis - veterinary; diarrhea; Dietary Supplements; drug therapy; Eimeria tenella; Enterococcus faecium; Experimental infection; feed conversion; feed intake; feeds; Female; Growth performance; ileum; Intestines - drug effects; Intestines - microbiology; Intestines - parasitology; Lactobacillus reuteri; lasalocid; Lasalocid - pharmacology; Male; microorganisms; mortality; oocysts; Poultry Diseases - prevention & control; Probiotics; Probiotics - pharmacology; shedding
• ISSN: 0304-4017; 1873-2550
• DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2012.02.017

We evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with different preparations of probiotics on the performance of broiler chickens experimentally infected with 2×104 sporulated oocysts of Eimeria tenella at 14days of age. Three hundred, day-old, Cobb-500 chicks, as hatched, were separated into 10 equal groups with three replicates. Two of the groups, one challenged with E. tenella oocysts and the other not, were given a basal diet and served as controls without medication. The other challenged groups were given the anticoccidial lasalocid (60mg/kg) or Enterococcus faecium (5×108 or 5×109cfu/kg feed), Bifidobacterium animalis (5×108cfu/kg feed), Lactobacillus reuteri (5×108cfu/kg feed), Bacillus subtilis (5×108cfu/kg feed), or a multi-species probiotic mix at 5×108 or 5×109cfu/kg feed, respectively. The trial lasted 6weeks. Individual body weight, feed intake per pen and feed conversion ratio values were recorded weekly, along with the extent of bloody diarrhea, excreta oocyst numbers and bird mortality. Caecal lesions were assessed and intestinal samples were taken for histopathological and bacteriological evaluation from ileum and caecum. Overall growth performance of chickens fed the multi-species probiotic mix at both levels was higher (P