The effect of vaccination with purified gametocyte antigens of Eimeria maxima on mortality and egg production by breeding hens.

Breeding hens were injected intramuscularly with 50 µg of purified gametocyte antigens emulsified in 0.5 ml of water-in-oil adjuvant at 15 and 20 weeks of age. Mortality rates and egg production of the flocks of hens were monitored until the end of their productive lives (around 60–65 weeks of age). Neither mortality or egg production were affected by vaccination (one-way ANOVA).