Department of Pathobiology, Pharmacology and Zoological Medicine, Ghent University, B9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
Terrestrial Ecology Unit (TEREC), Ghent University, B9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Poult Sci. 2023 Dec;102(12):103075. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.103075. Epub 2023 Aug 30.
Campylobacter is the main cause of human gastroenteritis worldwide, with 50 to 80% of the cases related to consumption of poultry products. Maternal antibodies (MAB) from commercial breeder flocks may protect their progeny against infection during the first few weeks of life. We here studied the prevalence of Campylobacter antibody titers in broiler breeder flocks and to which extent immunization of broiler breeders increases maternal anti-Campylobacter titers in their progeny and protects the offspring against Campylobacter colonization. Two vaccines were used: a bacterin mix of 13 Campylobacter strains and a subunit vaccine comprising 6 immunodominant Campylobacter antigens. All sampled on-farm breeder flocks were positive for anti-Campylobacter antibodies, yet in some breeder flocks only very low titers were detected. Vaccination of SPF broiler breeder flocks with both subunit and bacterin vaccines resulted in a prolonged presence of anti-Campylobacter antibodies in the serum and intestinal mucus of chicks. These bacterin- or subunit vaccine-induced MAB conferred protection against Campylobacter colonization in chicks until 7 and 21 d of age, respectively, but only at a low challenge dose (10 cfu). The concentration of MAB in the mucus is probably too low to sufficiently capture Campylobacter when higher challenge doses are used. In conclusion, vaccinating broiler breeders protects their offspring against Campylobacter colonization under low pathogen exposure conditions.
空肠弯曲菌是全球人类肠胃炎的主要病因，其中 50%至 80%的病例与食用家禽产品有关。商业种鸡群的母源抗体（MAB）可能会在雏鸡生命的头几周内保护其免受感染。我们在此研究了种鸡群中空肠弯曲菌抗体滴度的流行情况，以及种鸡免疫接种在多大程度上增加了其后代的母源抗空肠弯曲菌滴度，并保护后代免受空肠弯曲菌定植。我们使用了两种疫苗：一种由 13 种空肠弯曲菌菌株组成的菌苗混合物和一种由 6 种免疫显性空肠弯曲菌抗原组成的亚单位疫苗。所有农场现场采样的种鸡群均对空肠弯曲菌抗体呈阳性反应，但在一些种鸡群中仅检测到非常低的滴度。用亚单位和菌苗疫苗对 SPF 种鸡群进行免疫接种，导致雏鸡血清和肠道黏液中抗空肠弯曲菌抗体的存在时间延长。这些菌苗或亚单位疫苗诱导的 MAB 在雏鸡中提供了针对空肠弯曲菌定植的保护，直到 7 天和 21 天龄，分别为，但仅在低挑战剂量（10 cfu）下有效。当使用更高的挑战剂量时，MAB 在黏液中的浓度可能太低，无法充分捕获空肠弯曲菌。总之，种鸡免疫接种可在低病原体暴露条件下保护其后代免受空肠弯曲菌定植。
