Effects of Eimeria maxima and Clostridium perfringens infections on cecal microbial composition and their possible correlations with body weight gain in broiler chickens

With the voluntary and regulatory withdrawal of antibiotic growth promoters from animal feed, Eimeria spp.-causing coccidiosis and Clostridium perfringens (CP)-causing necrotic enteritis (NE) emerge as the top two enteric infectious diseases responsible for major economic loss worldwide. The objective of this study was to reveal the relationship between the cecal microbiota composition with the growth rate after these two infections. In this study, the effects of Eimeria maxima and/or Clostridium perfringens infections on the microbial composition and its correlation with body weight gain were investigated in broiler chickens using 16S rRNA gene sequencing.

随着抗生素生长促进剂的自愿和监管性撤出动物饲料，由艾美球虫属（Eimeria spp.）引起的球虫病和由产气荚膜梭菌（Clostridium perfringens，简称CP）引起的坏死性肠炎（NE）已成为全球范围内造成重大经济损失的前两大肠道传染病。本研究旨在揭示盲肠微生物群落组成与这两种感染后的生长速度之间的关系。在本研究中，通过16S rRNA基因测序，探讨了艾美球虫属中的最大艾美球虫（Eimeria maxima）和/或产气荚膜梭菌感染对微生物组成及其与体重增加的相关性的影响。