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Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines
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Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Poultry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 June 2023) | Viewed by 16032

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zahid Kamran

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Guest Editor
Department of Animal Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
Interests: nutrition; microbiome; probiotics; antibiotics; salmonellosis; feed ingredients
Dr. Konstantinos Koutoulis

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Guest Editor
Department of Poultry Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: infectious bronchitis; infectious bursal disease; colibacillosis; salmonellosis; campylobacteriosis; probiotics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Shakeel Ahmad

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Co-Guest Editor
Department of Poultry Science, Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
Interests: nutrition; probiotics; feed ingredients; antibiotics; salmonellosis
Dr. Dimitris Koutsianos

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Department of Poultry Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Thessaly, 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: colibacillosis; autogenous vaccines; antibiotics; resistance; layers

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Poultry diseases has always been a threat to the industry, despite the significant advances that have developed over the last 20 years. Infectious diseases, such as Avian Influenza, Newcastle Diseases, Infectious Bronchitis, and Infectious Bursal Disease, have caused major financial losses that threaten liveability. Vaccines have always been in the front line of defence, tackling all major viral diseases through continuous development and refinement, and effective strategies. Although nutritional diseases seem to be very well under control, the shortage that might occur due to various reasons, such as being out of production, could result in new emerging problems. New feed ingredients, additives, and formulas can help to decrease the potential risks and, at the same time, increase the performance of the flock.

The scope of this topic is to focus on the advances made in nutrition and vaccines as means to decrease the risk of disease introduction into the poultry flocks. The research topic welcomes research papers, case studies, and literature reviews as well, dealing with the fields of vaccinology and nutrition in an effort to add new scientific knowledge on the above-mentioned subjects.

Dr. Konstantinos Koutoulis
Dr. Zahid Kamran
Dr. Shakeel Ahmad
Dr. Dimitris Koutsianos
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nutrition
  • probiotics
  • prebiotics
  • vaccines
  • poultry diseases
  • broilers
  • layers
  • turkeys

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 3375 KiB  
Article
Identification and Characterization of α-Actinin 1 of Histomonas meleagridis and Its Potential Vaccine Candidates against Histomonosis
by Dandan Liu, Chen Chen, Qiaoguang Chen, Shuang Wang, Zaifan Li, Jie Rong, Yuming Zhang, Zhaofeng Hou, Jianping Tao and Jinjun Xu
Animals 2023, 13(14), 2330; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13142330 - 17 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1566
Abstract
Histomonas meleagridis is a protozoan parasite that causes histomonosis in gallinaceous birds such as turkeys and chickens. Since the banning and restricted usage of effective drugs such as nitarsone, 80–100% morbidity and mortality occur in turkeys and 20–30% mortality in chickens. New ideas [...] Read more.
Histomonas meleagridis is a protozoan parasite that causes histomonosis in gallinaceous birds such as turkeys and chickens. Since the banning and restricted usage of effective drugs such as nitarsone, 80–100% morbidity and mortality occur in turkeys and 20–30% mortality in chickens. New ideas are needed to resolve the re-emergence of histomonosis in poultry. In this study, the α-actinin encoding gene from H. meleagridis was cloned. The 1839-bp gene encoding 612 amnio acids showed close phylogenetic relationships with Trichomonas vaginalis and Tritrichomonas foetus. It was then inserted into the prokaryotic expression vector pET28a(+) and induced with isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyranoside. A 73 kDa recombinant protein rHmα-actinin 1 was obtained and purified with a Ni-NTA chromatography column. rHmα-actinin 1 was recognized by mouse anti-rHmα-actinin 1 polyclonal antibody, mouse anti-rHmα-actinin 1 monoclonal antibody, and rehabilitation sera from H. meleagridis infected chickens. Native α-actinin 1 in the total proteins of H. meleagridis can also be detected with mouse anti-rHmα-actinin monoclonal antibody. Immunolocalization assays showed that Hmα-actinin 1 was mainly distributed in the cytoplasm of virulent histomonads JSYZ-D9 and in the peripheral regions (near the plasma membrane) of attenuated histomonads JSYZ-D195. Based on in vivo experiment, when chickens were subcutaneously immunized with rHmα-actinin 1 at 5 and 12 days old and then challenged with H. meleagridis at 19 days old, rHmα-actinin 1 reduced the lesion scores 12 days after infection (31 days old) and increased the body weight gain during the challenged period (19–31 days old). Furthermore, it also strengthened the cellular and humoral immune responses 7 days after the second immunization (19 days old). In conclusion, Hmα-actinin 1 could be used as a candidate antigen to develop vaccines against chicken histomonosis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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11 pages, 1832 KiB  
Article
Bacillus subtilis Expressing Chicken NK-2 Peptide Enhances the Efficacy of EF-1α Vaccination in Eimeria maxima-Challenged Broiler Chickens
by Youngsub Lee, Inkyung Park, Samiru S. Wickramasuriya and Hyun S. Lillehoj
Animals 2023, 13(8), 1383; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13081383 - 18 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1926
Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the synergistic effects of orally delivered B. subtilis-cNK-2 on vaccination with rEF-1α against E. maxima infection in broiler chickens. Chickens were assigned into the following five groups: control (CON, no Eimeria infection), non-immunized control (NC, PBS), [...] Read more.
This study was conducted to investigate the synergistic effects of orally delivered B. subtilis-cNK-2 on vaccination with rEF-1α against E. maxima infection in broiler chickens. Chickens were assigned into the following five groups: control (CON, no Eimeria infection), non-immunized control (NC, PBS), component 1 (COM1, rEF-1α only), component 2 (COM2, rEF-1α plus B. subtilis empty vector), and component 3 (COM3, rEF-1α plus B. subtilis-NK-2). The first immunization was administered intramuscularly on day 4, and the second immunization was given one week later with the same concentration of components as the primary immunization. The immunization of B. subtilis spores (COM2 and COM3) was performed by oral administration given for 5 consecutive days a week later than the second immunization. On day 19, all the chickens except the CON group were orally challenged with E. maxima oocysts (1.0 × 104/chicken). The results of the in vivo vaccination showed that all the chickens immunized with rEF-1α (COM1, COM2, and COM3) produced higher (p < 0.05) serum antibodies against EF-1α on 12 days post-E. maxima infection (dpi). The COM3 group showed a significantly (p < 0.05) higher average body weight gain (BWG) on 0–6, 6–9, and 0–12 dpi compared to those of the non-immunized chickens (NC). Immunization with rEF-1α alone (COM1) reduced the gut lesion score on 6 dpi and the fecal oocyst shedding on 9 dpi, whereas co-administration with B. subtilis spores (COM2 or COM3) led to further reduction in the lesion score. E. maxima infection increased the expression levels of IFN-γ and IL-17β in the jejunum, but these expressions were downregulated in the rEF-1α immunized (COM1) group and in the groups immunized with rEF-1α and orally treated with B. subtilis spores (COM2 or COM3) at 4 dpi. A reduced gene expression of occludin in the jejunum of the E. maxima-infected chickens on 4 dpi was upregulated following the immunization with COM2. Collectively, rEF-1α vaccination induced significant protection against E. maxima infection in the broiler chickens, and the efficacy of rEF-1α vaccination was further enhanced by co-administration with orally delivered B. subtilis spores expressing cNK-2. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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18 pages, 4428 KiB  
Article
Prospective Application of Nanoencapsulated Bacillus amyloliquefaciens on Broiler Chickens’ Performance and Gut Health with Efficacy against Campylobacter jejuni Colonization
by Hesham Ismail, Doaa Ibrahim, Shorouk El Sayed, Ali Wahdan, Reham M. El-Tarabili, Waleed Rizk El-Ghareeb, Bassam Abdullah Alhawas, Badr Abdul-Hakim Y. Alahmad, Sherief M. Abdel-Raheem and Marwa I. Abd El-Hamid
Animals 2023, 13(5), 775; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13050775 - 21 Feb 2023
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3050
Abstract
Probiotics as novel antibiotics’ substitutes are verified to provide barriers for hindering the colonization of enteric bacterial pathogens with nutritional benefits. For enhancement of the probiotics’ effectiveness, their integration within nanomaterials is a paramount tool to support the progress of new compounds with [...] Read more.
Probiotics as novel antibiotics’ substitutes are verified to provide barriers for hindering the colonization of enteric bacterial pathogens with nutritional benefits. For enhancement of the probiotics’ effectiveness, their integration within nanomaterials is a paramount tool to support the progress of new compounds with functional features. Therefore, we addressed the impact of effective delivery of probiotics (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens) loaded nanoparticles (BNPs) on performance and Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) shedding and colonization in poultry. Two hundred Ross broiler chickens were divided into four groups fed various BNP levels: BNPs I, BNPs II, BNPs III, and BNPs-free diets for 35 days. Nanoparticles delivery of probiotics within broiler diets improved growth performance as reflected by higher body weight gain and superior feed conversion ratio, especially in BNPs II- and BNPs III-fed groups. In parallel, the mRNA expression levels of digestive enzymes encoding genes (AMY2a, PNLIP, CELA1, and CCK) achieved their peaks in BNPs III-fed group (1.69, 1.49, 1.33, and 1.29-fold change, respectively) versus the control one. Notably, with increasing the levels of BNPs, the abundance of beneficial microbiota, such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species, was favored over harmful ones, including Clostridium species and Enterobacteriaceae. Birds fed higher levels of BNPs displayed significant improvement in the expression of barrier functions-linked genes including DEFB1, FABP-2, and MUC-2 alongside substantial reduction in cecal colonization and fecal shedding of C. jejuni. From the aforementioned positive effects of BNPs, we concluded their potential roles as growth promoters and effective preventive aids for C. jejuni infection in poultry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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15 pages, 4244 KiB  
Article
Administration of a Multi-Genus Synbiotic to Broilers: Effects on Gut Health, Microbial Composition and Performance
by Zoi Prentza, Francesco Castellone, Matteo Legnardi, Birgit Antlinger, Maia Segura-Wang, Giorgos Kefalas, Nikolaos Papaioannou, Ioanna Stylianaki, Vasileios G. Papatsiros, Giovanni Franzo, Mattia Cecchinato and Konstantinos Koutoulis
Animals 2023, 13(1), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13010113 - 28 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2387
Abstract
In recent years, the applicability of prebiotics, probiotics and their mixtures, defined as synbiotics, in poultry production has received considerable attention. Following the increasing regulation of antibiotic use, these nutraceuticals are seen as an alternative way to sustain production efficiency and resistance to [...] Read more.
In recent years, the applicability of prebiotics, probiotics and their mixtures, defined as synbiotics, in poultry production has received considerable attention. Following the increasing regulation of antibiotic use, these nutraceuticals are seen as an alternative way to sustain production efficiency and resistance to pathogens and stressors by modulating birds’ gut health. The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits provided under field conditions by administering the multi-species synbiotic PoultryStar® sol to broilers in drinking water. To this purpose, three Ross 308 broiler flocks, representing separate progenies of a breeder flock which was treated with the same synbiotic, were housed in separate farms, divided into treatment and control groups, and followed throughout the productive cycle. Synbiotic administration was shown to improve gut health even in absence of a challenge, with limited changes in terms of macroscopic intestinal lesions and more overt differences related to histopathological scores and villi length. Synbiotic-fed chickens performed consistently better in terms of body weight gain, feed conversion ratio and survivability. Lastly, the evaluation of the caecal microbiome through next-generation sequencing highlighted the effects of synbiotic supplementation on the composition of the bacterial population, the implications of which will, however, require further studies to be better comprehended. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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15 pages, 2595 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of a Novel Precision Biotic on Enterohepatic Health Markers and Growth Performance of Broiler Chickens under Enteric Challenge
by Britt Blokker, Cristiano Bortoluzzi, Christelle Iaconis, Estefania Perez-Calvo, Maria C. Walsh, Ghislain Schyns, Ian Tamburini and Jack M. Geremia
Animals 2022, 12(19), 2502; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12192502 - 20 Sep 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2004
Abstract
This study evaluated the supplementation of a precision biotic (PB) on the enterohepatic health markers and growth performance of broiler chickens undergoing an enteric challenge. In the first study, three treatments were used: Unchallenged Control (UC); Challenged Control (CC; dietary challenge and 10× [...] Read more.
This study evaluated the supplementation of a precision biotic (PB) on the enterohepatic health markers and growth performance of broiler chickens undergoing an enteric challenge. In the first study, three treatments were used: Unchallenged Control (UC); Challenged Control (CC; dietary challenge and 10× dose of coccidia vaccine); and a challenged group supplemented with PB (1.3 kg/ton). In the second study, three treatments were used: control diet, diet supplemented with Avilamycin (10 ppm), and a diet supplemented with PB (0.9 kg/ton). All the birds were exposed to natural challenge composed by dietary formulation and reused litter from a coccidiosis positive flock. In Trial 1, PB decreased ileal histological damage, increased villi length, and the expression of SLC5A8 in ileal tissue versus CC; it reduced ileal expression of IL-1β compared to both UC and CC treatments. PB increased the expression of cell cycling gene markers CCNA2 and CDK2 in the ileum compared to CC. In Trial 2, PB improved the growth performance, intestinal lesion scores and intestinal morphology of broiler chickens. These results indicate that birds supplemented with PB are more resilient to enteric challenges, probably by its action in modulating microbiome metabolic pathways related to nitrogen metabolism and protein utilization. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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12 pages, 1996 KiB  
Article
Oregano Oil Combined with Macleaya Cordata Oral Solution Improves the Growth Performance and Immune Response of Broilers
by Cheng Zhang, Weihao Li, Ligong Chen, Zhaoliang Chen, Xuejing Wang, Qianqian Xu, Hailong Zhang, Huan Chen and Juxiang Liu
Animals 2022, 12(18), 2480; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12182480 - 19 Sep 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2105
Abstract
The abuse of AGPs in animal husbandry has led to severe problems such as drug resistance and ecological, and environmental destruction, which seriously threaten human health and public health security. In recent years, extracts of oregano oil and macleaya cordata have become a [...] Read more.
The abuse of AGPs in animal husbandry has led to severe problems such as drug resistance and ecological, and environmental destruction, which seriously threaten human health and public health security. In recent years, extracts of oregano oil and macleaya cordata have become a hot spot in the research and application of AGP substitutes for their safety and high efficiency. This study is the first to report the effect of oregano oil combined with macleaya cordata oral solution on broiler growth performance. A total of 960 one-day-old broiler chickens were randomly divided into four treatment groups (240 chickens per group). Each treatment group was divided into six replicate groups (40 birds per replicate group). There were four groups in this study: the solvent control group, the oregano essential oil combined with macleaya cordata extract oral solution group (OS group), the oregano essential oil oral solution group (OEO group), and the macleaya cordata extract oral solution group (MCE group). Two chickens from each replicate group were collected and mixed into a composite sample. Six composite samples were obtained for each treatment group. The results showed that the oregano oil combined with macleaya cordata oral solution significantly improved the growth performance of broiler chickens. At the same time, serum biochemical indices, serum antioxidant indices, serum immune indices, serum cytokines, and intestinal morphology were significantly improved by the OS group. This study shows that oregano oil combined with macleaya cordata oral solution has substantial potential to be an alternative to AGPs for broilers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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11 pages, 1634 KiB  
Article
Betaine Alleviates LPS-Induced Chicken Skeletal Muscle Inflammation with the Epigenetic Modulation of the TLR4 Gene
by Feng Guo, Mengna Jing, Aoyu Zhang, Yan Yu, Pei Gao, Qiuxia Wang, Li Wang, Zhiyong Xu, Jinyou Ma and Yanhong Zhang
Animals 2022, 12(15), 1899; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12151899 - 26 Jul 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1994
Abstract
Betaine was found to alleviate inflammation in different studies. Here, newly hatched broilers were randomly divided into control and betaine consumptive groups, who had access to normal drinking water and water with betaine at a dose of 1000 mg/L, respectively. At the age [...] Read more.
Betaine was found to alleviate inflammation in different studies. Here, newly hatched broilers were randomly divided into control and betaine consumptive groups, who had access to normal drinking water and water with betaine at a dose of 1000 mg/L, respectively. At the age of two weeks, the boilers were intraperitoneally treated with LPS. The protective effects of betaine against LPS-induced skeletal muscle inflammation were studied. Betaine attenuated the LPS-induced overexpression of IL-6 significantly in the leg muscle. Furthermore, LPS lowered the expression of TLR4 and TLR2 but increased the expression of MyD88. Betaine eliminated the effect of LPS on the expression of TLR4 but not TLR2 and MyD88. LPS also increased the expression of Tet methylcytosine dioxygenase 2 (Tet2), and this effect was also eliminated by betaine consumption. MeDIP-qPCR analysis showed that the methylation level in the promoter region of IL-6 was decreased by LPS treatment, whilst betaine cannot prevent this effect. On the contrary, LPS significantly increase the methylation level in the promoter region of TLR4, which was decreased by the consumption of betaine. Our findings suggest that betaine can alleviate LPS-induced muscle inflammation in chicken, and the regulation of aberrant DNA methylation might be a possible mechanism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diseases in Poultry: Advances in Nutrition and Vaccines)
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