March 23, 2009
Salmonella product proved to boost broiler intestinal health
A product originally aimed at helping producers control salmonella in laying flocks is proving effective in boosting the intestinal health of broiler flocks.
The management of intestinal health continues to present challenges to UK broiler operations, but the desire to use fewer antibiotics and the emergence of real alternatives with the potential to complement or some cases replace traditional medication regimes.
The impact of pathogenic bacterial challenge is well recognised in broilers such as enteritis which is thought to account for 20 to 30 points deterioration in feed conversion, as well as further financial losses due to downgrades.
The costs of additional management and also treatment compound the bottom line effect, and researchers noted that on many farms, one course of antibiotic treatment does not seem to clear the problem up and after a few days a further course is prescribed.
Overgrowth of Clostridium perfringens and release of toxins is known to play a key role in the spectrum of conditions that range from dysbacteriosis to necrotic enteritis.
In order to develop a strategy for managing C perfringens which does not rely on antibiotics, we need to understand how the environment in which bacteria thrive can be modified to reduce their impact.
Following research into salmonella control using Aviguard, researchers began to understand and record the real impact it demonstrated on a broader spectrum of intestinal diseases, which contains over 200 strains of bacteria known to be present in normal healthy chicken intestine and works by "competitive exclusion".
This is a process where beneficial bacteria colonise the intestine and, thereby, exclude pathogenic bacteria. Such effects have been demonstrated many times in challenge studies using treated and untreated control chicks which were subsequently challenged orally with pathogenic bacteria, such as E. coli or C perfringens.
Competitive exclusion is particularly applicable to modern broiler production because the natural process of the chick acquiring a healthy normal gut flora from the mother hen cannot happen.
In modern systems, where the hatching egg and chick are separated from the hen, it is then easy for pathogenic bacteria to colonise the chick's intestine early in their life.
