Key Laboratory Preventive Veterinary of Hubei Province, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, Hubei, People's Republic of China.
State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, Hubei, People's Republic of China.
Parasit Vectors. 2024 Aug 2;17(1):327. doi: 10.1186/s13071-024-06409-z.
Chicken coccidiosis is an intracellular parasitic disease that presents major challenges to the development of the commercial poultry industry. Perennial drug selective pressure has led to the multi-drug resistance of chicken coccidia, which makes the prevention and control of chicken coccidiosis extremely difficult. In recent years, natural plant products have attracted the attention of researchers due to their inherent advantages, such as the absence of veterinary drug residues. The development of these natural products provides a new direction for the prevention and treatment of chicken coccidiosis.
The anticoccidial effect of a natural plant product combination formulation (eucalyptus oil + apigenin + eugenol essential oil) was tested against Eimeria tenella in broilers. To search for the optimal concentration of the combination formulation, we screened 120 broilers in a chicken cage trial in which 100 broilers were infected with 5 × 10 sporulated Eimeria tenella oocysts; broilers receiving a decoquinate solution was set up as a chemical control. The optimal anticoccidial concentration was determined by calculating the anticoccidial index (ACI), and the suitable concentration was used as the recommended dose for a series of safety dose assessment tests, such as feed conversion ratio (FCR), hematological indices and serum biochemical indices, as well as liver and kidney sections, at onefold (low dose), threefold (medium dose) and sixfold (high dose) the recommended dose (RD).
The results showed that this combination formulation of three plant natural products had a better anticoccidial effect than formulations containing two plant natural products or a single one, with an ACI of 169.3. The dose gradient anticoccidial test revealed that the high-dose formulation group had a better anticoccidial effect (ACI = 169.2) than the medium- and low-dose groups. The safety evaluation test showed that concentrations of the formulation at one-, three- and sixfold the RD were non-toxic to Arbor Acres broilers, indicating the high safety of the combination formulation.
The combination formulation showed not only a moderate anticoccidial effect but also had a high safety profile for broilers. The results of this study indicate a new alternative for the prevention and control of coccidiosis in broilers.
鸡球虫病是一种细胞内寄生虫病，对商业家禽业的发展构成重大挑战。长期的药物选择性压力导致鸡球虫产生了多药耐药性，这使得鸡球虫病的预防和控制变得极其困难。近年来，天然植物产品因其固有优势而引起了研究人员的关注，例如不存在兽药残留。这些天然产品的开发为鸡球虫病的防治提供了新的方向。
本研究测试了一种天然植物产品组合配方（桉树油+芹菜素+丁香酚精油）对肉鸡柔嫩艾美耳球虫的抗球虫效果。为了寻找该组合配方的最佳浓度，我们在鸡笼试验中筛选了 120 只肉鸡，其中 100 只肉鸡感染了 5×10 个孢子化柔嫩艾美耳球虫卵囊；设立癸氧喹酯溶液组作为化学对照。通过计算抗球虫指数（ACI）来确定最佳抗球虫浓度，并将合适的浓度用作一系列安全性剂量评估试验的推荐剂量，例如饲料转化率（FCR）、血液学指标和血清生化指标以及肝脏和肾脏切片，在推荐剂量（RD）的 1 倍（低剂量）、3 倍（中剂量）和 6 倍（高剂量）。
结果表明，与含有两种或一种植物天然产物的配方相比，该三种植物天然产物组合配方具有更好的抗球虫效果，ACI 为 169.3。剂量梯度抗球虫试验表明，高剂量组的抗球虫效果（ACI=169.2）优于中剂量和低剂量组。安全性评估试验表明，该配方在 RD 的 1、3 和 6 倍浓度下对阿伯丁肉鸡均无毒，表明该组合配方具有很高的安全性。
该组合配方不仅表现出适度的抗球虫效果，而且对肉鸡具有很高的安全性。本研究结果为肉鸡球虫病的防治提供了一种新的选择。
