This study was designed to determine the prevalence of eimeriosis in poultry and identify potential risk factors for its spread in Rawalpindi/Islamabad area of Pakistan. Of 359 gut samples (suspected for harbouring eimeriosis) examined, 258 (71.86%) were found infected. Four species of Eimeria (E. maxima, 34.10%, E. tenella, 30.62%, E. mitis, 13.95% and E. necatrix, 7.75%) were recorded. The prevalence of eimeriosis was highest in the month of September (89.74%), while lowest during June (28.57%). The disease was more common at the farms where the litter was wet and not managed properly

M. Q. KHAN, H. IRSHAD, R. ANJUM, M. JAHANGIR AND U. NASIR

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Pakistan Vet. J., 2006, 26(2): 85-87.  EIMERIOSIS IN POULTRY OF RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD AREA  M. Q. KHAN, H. IRSHAD, R. ANJUM, M. JAHANGIR AND U. NASIR    Animal Sciences Institute, National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan  ABSTRACT  This study was designed to determine the prevalence of eimeriosis in poultry and identify potential risk factors for its spread in Rawalpindi/Islamabad area of Pakistan. Of 359 gut samples (suspected for harbouring eimeriosis) examined, 258 (71.86%) were found infected. Four species of Eimeria (E. maxima, 34.10%, E. tenella, 30.62%, E. mitis, 13.95% and E. necatrix, 7.75%) were recorded. The prevalence of eimeriosis was highest in the month of September (89.74%), while lowest during June (28.57%). The disease was more common at the farms where the litter was wet and not managed properly.  Key words: Eimeriosis, prevalence, poultry.  INTRODUCTION  Eimeriosis is a disease of the intestinal lining of chickens caused by protozoan parasites of the genus, Eimeria. Chickens become infected with Eimeria by ingesting infective oocysts (eggs) from litter, soil and contaminated feed and water. The infected birds excrete oocysts into their faeces and are a source of infection for other birds. As Eimeria species can survive for long periods in infected birds and the environment, the parasite is ubiquitous wherever chickens are raised (McDougald, 2003). The disease causes high mortality, morbidity and adverse effects on the growth of infected birds (Anjum, 1990). The incidence of eimeriosis in commercial poultry has increased due to higher stocking densities and intensive husbandry practices. It has been documented that it is the most consistently reported health problem in poultry (Biggs, 1982; Rose, 1987; Williams, 1999) Different workers have investigated the prevalence of eimeriosis in different classes of poultry birds and in different areas of Pakistan (Dar and Anwar, 1981; Anjum, 1990; Ayaz et al., 2003). The present study describes the prevalence of Eimeria species in poultry in Rawalpindi/Islamabad area of the country.  MATERIALS AND METHODS  Collection of samples A total of 359 gut samples of poultry birds (broiler = 244 , layer = 84 and breeder = 31) suspected for eimeriosis were collected from Poultry Research Institute (PRI), Rawalpindi and Poultry Diagnostic Laboratory, Murree Road, Rawalpindi, Pakistan from September, 2003 to June, 2005. All the intestines and caeca were opened and their contents (faeces) were collected in a beaker. The faeces were macerated overnight in potassium dichromate solution at 37oC. The suspension was filtered through a muslin cloth and allowed to sediment. The supernatant was discarded and the oocysts in the sediment were separated by floatation method in saturated sodium chloride solution. They were examined microscopically and the species were identified on the basis of shape and size of sporocysts and sporozoites (Levine, 1985). The samples found positive for eimeriosis were traced back to observe the management practices and determine potential risk factors for its spread. The litter and feed samples were also collected from the farms (n=130) to ascertain the source of infection. The feed samples were collected from the feed bags in the store of the poultry sheds. These feed samples were processed for isolates of Eimeria species by the method described by Levine (1985).      RESULTS AND DISCUSSION  Of 359 gut samples examined, 258 (71.86%) were infected.  E. maxima had the highest prevalence rate (34.10%), followed by E. tenella (30.62%, Table 1). In broilers,  E. maxima showed the highest prevalence (38.04%), followed by E. tenella (24.45%); whereas in layers and breeders, E. tenella showed the highest prevalence (38.88 and 65%, respectively, Table 1). These findings are partially in line with Ayaz et al. (2003), who recorded highest prevalence of E. tenella (50%) in poultry.  The disease was observed all around the year (Table 2) but the prevalence was higher in the months of September (89.74%), October (84.61%) and November (82.97%). This may be due to the high level of humidity in these months of the year.  These results are in consonance with those of Dar and Anwar (1981).  The prevalence of eimeriosis was higher on farms where litter was wet (69.23%), as compared to those   85Pakistan Vet. J., 2006, 26(2): 85-87.   86Table 3: Prevalence of eimeriosis in suspected poultry guts in different age groups Sr. No.  Age (Days)  Prevalence (%) 1 1-7  0.00 2 8-14  0.00 3 15-21  5.38 4 22-28  24.61 5 29-35  35.38 6 36-42  10.76 7 43-49  1.53 8 49-56  9.20 9 57-63  4.61 10 64-70  1.53 11 78-84  3.84 12 252-259  1.53 13 274-280  1.53  Table 1: Distribution of different species of Eimeria in infected broilers, layers and breeders in Rawalpindi/Islamabad area No. of samples infected (%)  Species of Eimeria  Layer (n = 54) Broiler (n =184) Breeder (n = 20) Total (N=258) E. maxima  20.37   38.04   35.0   34.10 E. tenella  38.88   24.45  65.0   30.62 E. mitis  11.11 16.30  -  3.95 E. necatrix  7.40   8.69  -  7.75 E. maxim & E. tenella - 7.06 -  5.03 E. maxima, E. tenella  & E. mitis - 5.43    -  3.87 E. maxima &  E. necatrix 22.22   -  -  4.56 Table 2:  Prevalence of eimeriosis in suspected poultry guts during different months  No. of samples  Sr. No. Months Examined Infested (%) 1 April  17  58.82   2 May  16  50.00   3 June  14  28.57 4 July  12  33.33   5 August  18  33.33 6 September  78  89.74 7 October  52  84.61 8 November  47  82.97 9 December  30  73.33 10 January  26  69.23 11 February  24  66.66 12 March  25  68.00 where it was dry (30.77%). The disease was more common in the birds of 22-42 days of age (70.75%, Table 3). A possible reason for this may be that during the period between 22-42 days of age the birds have not attained immunity against coccidiosis, resulting in the increased incidence of the disease.  Of 130 feed samples processed for isolation of Eimeria species, only one (0.76%) was found positive. The  Eimeria  identified was E. maxima. However, of 130 litter samples processed for isolation of Eimeria species, 110 (84.61%) were found infected. The species of  Eimeria identified were E. maxima, E. tenella, E. mitis and E. necatrix. These results are in agreement with those of Williams (1995), who reported that at least six species of Eimeria (e.g., E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, E. brunette, E. mitis and E. praecox) were found in the litter from single flock during its first six weeks. Management of poultry houses plays a significant role in the spread of eimeriosis because coccidial oocysts are ubiquitous and are easily disseminated in the poultry house environment. Further, owing to their high reproduction potential, it is very difficult to keep chickens coccidia free, especially under current intensive rearing conditions. Oocysts sporulate readily in poultry house litter. However, they can be damaged by bacteria, other organisms and ammonia that are also present and their viability can begin to diminish after three weeks (Williams, 1995). It is a common practice of our progressive farmers to do a thorough cleanout between the flocks. This practice may help to control the widely spread menace of coccidiosis in the country as the effectiveness of anticoccidials continues to decrease. Other biocontrol measures such as requiring attendents to change clothes between houses can minimize the spread of infective oocysts. The findings of the present study indicate that contaminated litter is the major source of infection. Isolation of Eimeria species from feed sample indicates poor management of both storing feed stock and litter disposal.                REFERENCES  Anjum, A. D., 1990. Prevalence of the poultry diseases in and around Faisalabad and their relationship to weather. Pakistan Vet. J., 10(1): 42-45. Ayaz, M.,  M. Akhtar, C. S. Hayat, M. A. Hafeez and A. Haq, 2003. Prevalence of coccidiosis in broiler chickens in Faisalabad, Pakistan. Pakistan Vet. J., 23(1): 51-52. Biggs, P. M., 1982. The world of poultry diseases. Avian Pathol., 11: 281-300.  Pakistan Vet. J., 2006, 26(2): 85-87.   87Dar, S. A. and A. H. Anwar, 1981. Incidence and pathogenesis of coccidiosis in chicken around Faisalabad. Pakistan Vet. J., 1: 20-21. Levine, N. D., 1985. Veterinary Protozoology. Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa, USA. McDougald, L. R., 2003. Coccidiosis. In: Diseases of Poultry. 11th Ed. Saif, Y. M., H. J. Barnes, J. R. Glisson, A. M. Fadly, L. R. McDougald and D. E. Swayne, (Eds.) Iowa State Press, Blackwell Publishing Company, USA., pp: 974-991.                                             Rose, M. E., 1987. Immunity to Eimeria infections. Vet. Immunol. Immunopathol., 17: 333-343. Williams, R. B., 1995. Epidemiological studies of coccidiosis in the domestic fowl (Gallus gallus). II. Physical condition and survival of Eimeria acervulina oocysts in poultry house litter. Appl. Parasitol., 36: 90-96.   Williams, R. B., 1999. A compartmentalized model for the estimation of the cost of coccidiosis to the world’s chicken production industry. Int. J. Parasitol., 29: 1209-1229.    

EIMERIOSIS IN POULTRY OF RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD AREA

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